Opening a business bank account with a digital provider can give you a strong financial foundation in the modern business landscape. Many of today’s digital banking solutions offer lower fees, competitive interest rates, and useful digital tools. To help you find a solution that suits your needs, we’ve listed the best digital business bank accounts for businesses of different sizes and specialties.
| Bank Account | Monthly Fee | APY | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| Venn Essentials | $0 | 2% | Best overall |
| RBC Digital Choice | $6 | N/A | Best for sole proprietorships |
| BMO Essential Business | $0 | N/A | Best for freelancers |
| Float Essentials | $0 | Starts at 3% | Best for corporations |
| Wise Business | $0 | N/A | Best for international transactions |
| EQ Bank Business | $0 | 2.25% | Best interest-earning chequing |
A digital business bank account is a business bank account that you can open and manage online without needing to visit a physical branch. Unlike traditional accounts, digital business bank accounts rarely provide in-branch transactions like cheque and cash deposits. Instead, they move money through other means, such as Interac eTransfers, electronic fund transfers (EFTs), wire transfers, and bill payments.
Digital business bank accounts often come with access to useful in-app financial management tools — financial activity dashboards, budgeting tools, or sub-accounts for dividing and labeling funds — and integrate with common business solutions like payroll software, payment processors, and accounting software. Eliminating in-branch services allows banks to save money, and many pass those savings on through lower account and transaction fees, interest on balances, or cashback.
Creating a business bank account draws a clear boundary between your personal and business finances. It lets you:
Choosing a digital provider often means giving up in-person support. The right provider offsets that with lower fees, a smooth online experience, and meaningful perks. Key factors to weigh include the user interface, fees and transaction allowances, scalability (online-only providers usually offer tiered plans), access to other banking products, built-in tools (invoicing, budgeting, bill payment automation, expense management, sub-accounts), integrations with accounting software and payroll, interest on chequing deposits, cashback, international capabilities (multi-currency accounts, competitive FX rates), customer service, and the provider’s reputation.
Venn Essentials is our pick for the best digital business bank account in Canada. This free account comes with 3 physical corporate cards and 20 virtual cards, and provides 1% cashback on credit card spending, with a cashback-eligible spend limit of $5,000 per month. It’s especially suitable for companies that transact with the U.S., U.K., and Eurozone — it lets you hold CAD, USD, GBP, and EUR, simplifying international payments and reducing conversion fees, and you earn 2% APY on all CAD and USD deposits. After the free tier, you can upgrade to the $40 Venn Plus or $100 Venn Pro account.
In our list of the best bank accounts for sole proprietors, we named the RBC Digital Choice Business Account the best overall. Its low $6 monthly fee, unlimited debit and credit transaction volume, and seamless integration with RBC’s digital tools make it suitable for sole proprietors. Although it prioritizes digital transactions, it still provides access to in-branch services. One of its best benefits is access to Ownr discounts — sole proprietors with RBC accounts can waive Ownr’s one-time $49 fee for sole proprietor registration.
The BMO Essential Business Plan is a great, cost-effective alternative to the RBC Digital Choice account. It charges no monthly fee, provides unlimited electronic debit and credit transactions, and allows cash deposits for $2.25 per $1,000. This structure makes it suitable for freelancers with slower monthly activity — it supports cash deposits on an as-needed basis, sparing account holders steep monthly fees for allowances they use infrequently.
Float is a strong banking option for digital-first corporations. Like Venn, it offers a tiered structure that increases perks as you upgrade, and all account types let you hold balances in both USD and CAD. They pay a base APY of 3%, increasing to 3.5% above $25,000/month spending and 4% above $250,000/month. Even its free account comes with 20 free physical cards and unlimited virtual cards, earning 1% cashback once you hit the $25,000 minimum spend. Keep in mind that Float is not a bank — it stores funds through Scotiabank (CAD) and Thread Bank (USD).
If you operate beyond Canada, the U.S., the U.K., and the Eurozone, it helps to open a business account with Wise. As the global leader in international transfers, Wise gives businesses cost-effective ways to move money internationally, hold deposits in multiple currencies, and connect to local banks. While traditional international wire transfers cost around $10 to $80, Wise only charges 0.50% to 0.70% of the transaction amount, and shows the upfront fee, the amount you send, and the amount the recipient receives after conversion.
While Float pays the highest base rate at 3% APY, smaller businesses may find its corporation-oriented features intimidating. If you want a small-business-oriented bank that pays modest interest, consider EQ Bank. Its business account charges no monthly fee and applies 2.25% interest to your total closing balance every day. It comes with unlimited bill payments, unlimited mobile deposits, 50 free outgoing Interac eTransfers, and 100 incoming eTransfers, plus support for sub-accounts, automated bill payments, and online tax remittances.
Canada requires corporations to open dedicated business bank accounts, but allows sole proprietors, partnerships, and nonprofit organizations to use personal bank accounts. Business account holders, however, gain additional legal privileges that expand their operational abilities and protect their personal assets.
Digital banks require the same documents as traditional banks: identification for all business owners, proof of business registration, business formation documents (such as articles of incorporation, partnership agreements, or business licenses), and relevant industry permits.
Selecting the right digital banking provider is the first step in your financial management journey. To build an even stronger foundation, outsource your bookkeeping to EpicBooks. With services like strategic bookkeeping setup, account reconciliation, fixed asset tracking, and reporting, our experts ensure your records are accurate, up to date, and easy to analyze.
Echo Wang is an accomplished Canadian entrepreneur and the driving force behind EpicBooks, bringing a wealth of experience and a passion for excellence to the realm of bookkeeping.
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