Our Take
4.0
NerdWallet rating
The bottom line:
The CitiBusiness Streamlined Checking account stands out for its cash deposit limit of $10,000 per month and its transaction limit of 250 per month, both of which are higher than many brick-and-mortar competitors. However, you must visit a branch to open an account, and those are typically clustered in metropolitan areas in just a handful of states plus Washington, D.C. Account limits may also vary by location.
CitiBusiness® Streamlined Checking
Checking
Member FDIC
Monthly fee
$15.00 Waived with $5,000 minimum balance
Bonus
N/A
Pros & Cons
Pros
- No fees at 60,000 Citibank and MoneyPass ATMs and access to more than 600 branches.
- Up to $10,000 per month in free cash deposits.
- Sign-up bonuses start at $300 when you deposit $5,000 and can reach $2,000 when you deposit $200,000.
- Supports Zelle for Business.
- Account holders are assigned to a dedicated banker or customer support representative.
Cons
- Must visit a branch to open an account.
- Business accounts are only available in 10 states plus Washington, D.C.
- No spend controls on employee debit cards.
Full Review
Citibank offers four main business checking accounts:
CitiBusiness® Streamlined Checking
, CitiBusiness® Flexible Checking, CitiBusiness® Analyzed Checking and CitiBusiness® Interest Checking. On top of that are the CitiBusiness® Preferred Banking programs, which allow you to customize a banking package for your unique business needs.This review and the corresponding star rating focus on
CitiBusiness® Streamlined Checking
, which carries the lowest monthly fee ($15
). Citibank waives that monthly fee for business owners with an average collected balance of more than $5,000.You can only open a Citibank business account at branches in certain cities in California, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Nevada, Washington, D.C. and greater New York City (though Citibank also serves business owners in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Virginia).
If you don’t live in those areas but prefer a brick-and-mortar banking experience, consider other small-business banks like Chase, Bank of America and U.S. Bank. Some credit unions offer business accounts, too. Most charge fees that are comparable to Citibank’s.
Citibank business checking is best for small-business owners who:
- Are able to visit a branch location in California, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Nevada, Washington D.C. or the New York City metro area.
- Need to deposit more than $5,000 in cash each month.
- Rarely overdraft, since Citi charges an overdraft fee of $35 with no grace period.
- Maintain an average balance of more than $5,000 in order to waive the $15monthly fee.
Is your business smaller, with an average balance that hovers below $5,000? There are lots of free business checking accounts that have no monthly fee — including many online accounts and a couple from brick-and-mortar banks, like U.S. Bank and Huntington.
U.S. Bank's business checking account also offers a comparable bonus:
Earn $400 bonus when you open a new, eligible U.S. Bank business checking account online with promo code Q4AFL24 and complete qualifying activities, subject to certain terms and limitations. Offer valid through January 15, 2025. Member FDIC.
New Citibank customers can get $750 when they deposit $20,000 (details below). Citibank business checking at a glance
Note: Account details may vary by location. Review the account agreement for your state to confirm rates and fees for your area.
CitiBusiness® Streamlined Checking | |
Monthly fee: | $15, waived with an average monthly collected balance of $5,000. |
Minimum opening deposit requirement: | $1. |
APY: | None. |
Transactions: | Up to 250 fee-free transactions per month, then 45 cents per transaction after that. |
Cash deposits: | Up to $10,000 per month with no fee. 45 cents per transaction after that. |
Bonus: |
|
How to open a Citibank business checking account
You must visit a Citibank branch location to open a business bank account. There are branches in California (the Los Angeles, Orange County, Riverside, San Diego and San Francisco metro areas); and in the Miami, Chicago, Baltimore, Las Vegas, New York City and Washington, D.C. areas.
You’ll need to provide the following when you apply:
- Required information: Basic details about you and your business, including your date of birth, residential address, Social Security number, business name, employer identification number, number of employees, etc.
- Citi also requires that you provide basic information for all individuals associated with the business, such as account or authorized signers, owners of the business (10% or more), owners of a personal investment company or business trust, and controlling persons (e.g., president, managing member, general partner, chief executive officer).
- Required documentation: One form of government-issued ID and business formation document (varies based on your entity type).
After you’ve been approved, you can make deposits or transfers to fund your account, enroll in online banking, download the mobile app and customize your alert preferences.
You can also then use your Citibank business debit card to withdraw and deposit cash at Citibank and other participating ATMs across the country; plus, you can request debit cards for your employees, if needed.
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Monthly fee $0 | Monthly fee $0 | Monthly fee $0 |
APY 1.30% With $0 min. balance for APY | APY 1.50% With $0 min. balance for APY | APY 1.80% With $25,000 min. balance for APY |
Bonus N/A | Bonus $300 Requirements to qualify | Bonus N/A |
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Where Citibank business checking stands out
High cash deposit limit: The
CitiBusiness® Streamlined Checking
account includes up to $10,000 per month in fee-free cash deposits. For comparison, the Chase Business Complete Banking®
account, Wells Fargo Initiate Business Checking℠ Account
and Bank of America® Business Advantage Fundamentals™ Banking
all have a limit of $5,000.ATM and branch access: While you can only open a business checking account in a handful of states, once you do, you’ll have access to a fee-free network of more than 65,000 ATMs across the U.S. That includes those located at Citi branches, Citibank-branded ATMs at other locations and MoneyPass ATMs — plus additional ATMs in more than 20 countries.
Sign-up bonus: Citibank’s sign-up bonus is generous, especially if you have a lot of cash to move. Depositing more than $200,000 during the initial 20-day funding period, for instance, will get you a $2,000 bonus (as long as you maintain that balance for at least 60 days after that funding period ends). If your balance dips — or you don’t deposit as much — you can still earn smaller bonuses. You’ll get $300 for depositing and maintaining more than $5,000 and $750 for crossing the $20,000 threshold.
Unlike some other business bank account promotions, Citibank does not require you to perform additional qualifying activities to earn its bonus, like making a certain number of debit card transactions. That may make this reward easier to earn, or at least to keep track of, for some small-business owners.
CitiBusiness® Checking Plus: This revolving line of credit can be used with Citibank checking accounts as a means of protection for overdrafts and uncollected funds — with associated fees. In addition, CitiBusiness Checking Plus can be used as a business line of credit, giving you the ability to withdraw funds or write checks for more than the available balance in your checking account, up to the balance of your credit line.
It’s important to note that this product is subject to credit approval, meaning you must apply separately and receive approval from Citibank in order to attach this line of credit to your business checking account.
Where Citibank business checking falls short
Can’t open an account online: Regardless of the Citi business checking account you choose, you have to visit a branch location to open an account. Many competitors, including national brick-and-mortar banks like Wells Fargo, Bank of America and Chase, offer the option to open business checking accounts online in addition to visiting a branch location. Citi has a much smaller footprint than those other financial institutions as well, with branches in just six states plus Washington, D.C.
No APY: You won’t earn interest on the funds in your
CitiBusiness® Streamlined Checking
account. Some online business checking accounts, on the other hand, pay more than 1% APY. If a physical branch isn’t a necessity for you, consider an option like LendingClub Tailored Business Checking. That account has an APY of 1
% and allows unlimited fee-free cash deposits and withdrawals via MoneyPass ATMs. And if you want even higher rates, consider moving some money into a business savings account.
No overdraft grace period: If you overdraft on your
CitiBusiness® Streamlined Checking
account, you’ll be charged a fee of $35 each time — no exceptions for only overdrafting by a dollar or two, and no option to bring your balance back above zero before a certain time. For more generous overdraft policies, consider Chase business checking or Huntington’s business account. Both banks offer $50 of wiggle room before charging overdraft fees. If you overdraft by more than that, you’ll have 24 hours to bring your account back into the black before fees kick in.
The information related to
CitiBusiness® Streamlined Checking
has been collected by NerdWallet and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer or provider of this product or service.Best Accounts
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