Our Take
4.4
NerdWallet rating
The bottom line:
Found business checking is a great banking option for freelancers and sole proprietors thanks to its built-in invoicing, bookkeeping and tax-planning tools. But Found’s limits on deposits and transfers could challenge the owners of larger businesses.
Found Small Business Banking
Checking
Deposits are FDIC Insured
Monthly fee
$0
Bonus
$125 Requirements to qualify
Learn more
at Found, Deposits are FDIC Insured
Pros & Cons
Pros
- No monthly fees or minimum opening deposit.
- No excess transaction fees or overdraft fees; free incoming domestic wires.
- Free, built-in invoicing, bookkeeping and tax-planning features.
- Integrates with popular business apps, including Stripe, Etsy and PayPal.
Cons
- No weekend or after-hours phone support.
- Only available to single-owner businesses.
- Low check and cash deposit limits; fee for cash deposits.
How does Found compare?
Found Small Business Banking Deposits are FDIC Insured | Grasshopper Business Checking Account Member FDIC | Lili Basic Business Checking Deposits are FDIC Insured |
|---|---|---|
at Found | at Grasshopper Bank | at Lili |
Monthly fee $0 | Monthly fee $0 | Monthly fee $0 |
APY N/A | APY 1.80% With $25,000 min. balance for APY | APY N/A |
Bonus $125 Requirements to qualify | Bonus N/A | Bonus N/A |
Full Review
Found is a fintech company that partners with Piermont Bank to offer an FDIC-insured business checking account full of freelancer-friendly features, like automatic expense categorization, built-in invoicing and tax calculation (plus the ability to auto-save for your taxes). If you hire contractors or subcontractors, Found also lets you manage their tax forms and pay them with no fees.
Launched in 2019, this online business checking account is only available to sole proprietors and other single-owner businesses (including single-member LLCs). And it comes with relatively low deposit limits — each week you'll be limited to $3,000 via mobile check deposit and $2,000 in cash (and the monthly cash limit is $4,000).
In 2023, the company introduced Found Plus, a subscription option ($19.99 per month; $149.99 per year) that turns your Found business checking account into a high-yield account earning 1.50% APY on balances up to $20,000. (Unfortunately, that low cap means the interest you earn may not even offset your subscription fee.) Found Plus also includes a dedicated customer support line and enhanced bookkeeping features, such as customizable rules and categories and the ability to pay quarterly taxes through Found.
This review, and the corresponding star rating, are based on the features and services available with Found’s free business checking account.
Found is best for small-business owners who:
- Are freelancers, sole proprietors or single-member LLCs who want a one-stop shop for banking, invoicing and bookkeeping.
- Are subject to self-employment tax and want tools to help plan for tax payments.
- Pay contractors or subcontractors.
- Only occasionally use cash.
- Are comfortable without an in-person banking or customer service experience.
Who should consider an alternative to Found?
Small-business owners who primarily take payments in person. NBKC is an online bank that offers cash deposits at a large network of ATMs, plus the ability to accept customers’ tapped credit cards on your iPhone. You’ll lose out on Found’s free tax-planning tools, though.
Freelancers who run multiple businesses. Lili, another fintech company, offers a business checking account quite similar to Found’s. For most freelancers and sole proprietors, Found offers more features for free. Lili is the better choice if you run multiple businesses, though — you can set up a separate account for each business using your existing login information.
Business owners with larger bank balances. Found’s 1.50% APY is only available to users paying the Found Plus subscription fee, and you can only earn interest on your first $20,000. If your business is large enough that you have more than that in the bank (even occasionally), consider Bluevine. Its online bank account pays
1.5
% APY on balances up to and including $250,000 as long as you meet at least one eligibility requirement, like spending at least $500 per month with your business debit card. Terms apply.Found business checking at a glance
Monthly fee: | $0. |
Minimum opening deposit requirement: | $0. |
APY: | None. |
Transactions: | No fees. |
Cash deposits: | Yes. Fees and limits apply. |
Where Found business checking stands out
Built-in invoicing, bookkeeping tools: Found’s free business checking account includes unlimited invoicing, including scheduled and recurring invoices. You can customize invoices to include your company logo or to add a personal note. Invoices sent using Found can be paid by ACH, credit or debit card (processed by Stripe for a fee) or Cash App Pay. The first time you send an invoice and charge the customer using Stripe, it may take 7-14 days for Stripe to transfer their payment to your account.
Found also has integrated bookkeeping tools that automatically categorize expenses when you use your Found business debit card. Plus, you can save and annotate receipts in the Found app, and create multiple reports based on account activity.
Automated tax-planning tools: Tax planning can be a pain — or a full-on shock — for the self-employed, especially those otherwise accustomed to W-4 tax withholding through an employer. Found aims to simplify the process.
The Found app includes a tax estimate that updates as you spend and earn, and it automatically sets aside money for your tax bill. It also helps you keep track of deductible business expenses and automatically creates a Schedule C, which you’ll use to file your taxes.
Found’s free business checking used to offer the option to pay your quarterly estimated taxes from the Found app. This is now only available to Found Plus subscribers.
Contractor payroll features: Found allows you to collect W-9 forms from contractors and pay them directly from your Found account. Contractors who also create Found accounts can receive payments instantly, or you can make an ACH transfer into their existing bank accounts. At tax season, Found will generate 1099-NEC forms for each payee. Best of all? All these tools are on the free plan.
Where Found business checking falls short
Multi-owner businesses cannot apply: Found's business checking account is currently only available to businesses with one owner, including sole proprietors and single-member LLCs. Partnerships, multi-member LLCs and other corporations cannot open a Found business account at this time.
Most other business accounts accommodate multi-owner companies, including Relay Business Banking, Grasshopper business checking and Lili business banking.
Subscribers get a high APY — but its overall value is low: Found customers have to upgrade to Found Plus ($19.99 per month; $149.99 per year) to earn interest, and there’s a low ceiling on how much you can earn. Found Plus customers get a competitive 1.50% APY, but only on balances up to $20,000. At that rate, your subscription costs eat up most of your interest.
If you maintain a balance of $20,000 for a year, for example, you’d earn roughly $302 in interest at that current APY. But the subscription fees would cut that to $152 if you pay annually — and just $62.12 if you opt for the monthly subscription.
Several free business checking accounts offer a higher APY and a much higher ceiling. Bluevine business checking, for example, earns
1.5
% APY on balances up to and including $250,000 (terms apply). And Grasshopper business checking earns up to 1.8
%, depending on your balance.Limits on deposits, transactions: Found caps the size of some transactions, especially those involving cash. These daily and weekly limits apply to money going into and out of your account:
- Mobile check deposits: $3,000 per week.
- Cash deposits: A maximum of $2,000 per rolling seven days and $4,000 per rolling 30 days.
- Debit card purchases: $5,000 per day for new accounts and $20,000 per day for established accounts. Established accounts have been open for at least 30 days and met Found's activity thresholds.
- ATM withdrawals: $550 per day for new accounts and $1,550 per day for established accounts.
There is no limit on direct deposits, wire transfers and transfers from payment apps like PayPal or Cash App.
Some of the limits on your account will automatically be increased when you hit certain balance, usage and account age milestones. Until then, you can request a limit increase using the Found app. These requests are reviewed by customer support, which Found says is typically quick to respond (but keeps rather limited hours).
Deposit and transfer limits aren’t unusual, but if your business relies on cash, you may want to consider other options. For example, Axos, LendingClub and NBKC allow fee-free cash deposits and withdrawals at compatible ATMs with no strict limits.
Found customer support
Found offers live customer support via phone and chat during normal business hours: Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. PT. Weekend support is only available via email — staffed from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. PT Saturday and Sunday — and there is no after-hours support. That means side hustlers and gig workers who don’t keep traditional hours could be left in the lurch if something goes awry outside that support window.
Need to reach Found by phone? Found’s customer support number (888-845-0131) is listed on the back of your business debit card.
Business owners looking for more accessible assistance should consider American Express Business Checking, which offers 24/7 customer support.
📢 What do small-business owners say about Found?
NerdWallet's evaluations focus on data like fees, perks and accessibility. Customer satisfaction is harder to quantify. To understand sentiment broadly, we look at public forums (like Reddit, myFICO and Quora) and review sites (like Trustpilot and the Better Business Bureau). People post anonymously in these spaces, so we cannot confirm their individual experiences or circumstances. However, NerdWallet does contact providers regarding negative feedback that we consistently observe.
Commenters value Found’s built-in tools for self-employed professionals. These include the expense-tracking features and “pockets” for organizing money. Gig workers also like that Found can help them demonstrate “direct deposit” income — which can be important for things like loan applications — as transfers from Found to personal bank accounts include their company’s name.
As with many online-only financial providers, Found’s customer service often comes up as a downside of the company. Multiple commenters say that it’s hard to get someone on the phone, especially if your account is frozen — making resolving such issues difficult. A Found spokesperson said phone support is available to all customers with active accounts in good standing during normal business hours. The spokesperson confirmed that only email support is available for frozen accounts.
Multiple commenters also report trouble with fraudulent purchases and delays receiving refunds for disputed charges. Found’s website says the company responds to reports of disputed charges within 10 business days. A Found spokesperson said, “card holders are not liable for unauthorized transactions if they have used reasonable care in protecting their card from loss or theft and they promptly report any loss or theft.”
In NerdWallet's experience, these types of online complaints are not atypical for business accounts. They may be more pronounced for neobanks like Found, which lack physical branches (eliminating a way to get in-person assistance) and work with partner institutions for banking services. We recommend business owners understand what a neobank is before opting to use one for their company's operations.
» Read more about Found: Trustpilot | BBB | Reddit
How to open a Found business checking account
Single-owner businesses can open a Found business checking account on the Found website or via its app.
Found business accounts are opened using just your personal name and Social Security number, making these accounts best suited for freelancers, gig workers and other sole proprietors. If you have an EIN, you can add it once the account is open.
This is a departure from what you typically need to open a business bank account. Most banks ask for formation documents, like a business license or registration, and you open the account in your business's name.
What you need to open a Found business account
Here’s what you need to apply for a Found business checking account:
- Legal name, home address and cell phone number.
- Social Security number and date of birth.
- Basic business details, including industry and date started.
- Estimated business income, tax filing status and total expected income (to estimate your tax bill).
While you can apply for an account in minutes, it can take up to seven business days for your Found debit card to arrive. Your card details are available in the app, though, so you can open your business acccount and use a virtual card while you wait.
Ready to fund your Found account? Cash deposits are available via a third-party service at more than 79,000 retail locations. You can use the Found app to find the nearest location and, when you arrive, request a barcode in the app to scan at the store and make your deposit.
There is a $2 fee per deposit; however, this is less than the $4.95 charge from Green Dot, a service used by several online business checking accounts to enable cash deposits.
Found is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services are provided by Piermont Bank, Member FDIC. The funds in your account are FDIC-insured up to $250,000 per depositor for each account ownership category. The Found Mastercard ®️ debit card is issued by Piermont Bank pursuant to a license from Mastercard Inc. and may be used everywhere Mastercard debit cards are accepted.
Found's core features are free. They also offer a paid product, Found Plus.
Lili is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services provided by Sunrise Banks N.A., Member FDIC.
Learn more
at Found, Deposits are FDIC Insured
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