NorthOne Review – Is This Online Small Business Bank Right for You?

NorthOne is an FDIC-insured online banking app built specifically for small businesses. For the all-in price of $10 per month, it delivers a comprehensive package of banking services — a deposit account with no hidden fees, an expansive ATM network, a capable mobile banking app with built-in budgeting software, and more than a dozen software integrations.

NorthOne is truly branchless, and it’s a breeze to use. You can open an account online in minutes, send money in seconds with just a few taps or clicks, and categorize your purchases and receipts in near-real-time.

Intrigued? Read on to learn more about NorthOne’s features, capabilities, and overall suitability for small-business users.

Key Features of NorthOne for Business Banking

NorthOne is built around a feature-rich deposit account that functions as your enterprise’s day-to-day financial nerve center. These are the most important features you’ll get access to when you open a NorthOne account.

Deposit Account – $10 Per Month and No Hidden Fees

NorthOne is branchless. Your deposit account is accessible online and through NorthOne’s mobile app. You’ll never have to visit a NorthOne branch because you can do everything you need in digital space — and NorthOne doesn’t have branches anyway.

NorthOne charges a flat monthly fee of $10. There are no additional fees for common financial activities, such as:

• Check or electronic deposits
• Electronic transfers
• ACH payments
• Budgeting 
• Third-party app integrations (although external apps may charge fees that NorthOne can’t control)

The only additional fees you’ll encounter here are $15 charges for incoming and outgoing wires. If you don’t send or receive wires, you won’t pay these fees.

Payments and Deposits (ACH and Wire Transfers)

You can use your NorthOne account to send ACH payments and wire transfers in seconds. You can also connect your point-of-sale (POS) or payment processor to your NorthOne account and get paid fast. You can deposit checks from approved payers right in NorthOne’s mobile check deposit app.

You can even schedule payments in the app so you don’t have to stop what you’re doing when it’s time to move money.

Envelopes – NorthOne’s Built-In Budgeting Feature

NorthOne has a built-in budgeting feature called NorthOne Envelopes. Use these subaccounts to allocate funds for specific purposes or future expenses, such as rent, utilities, payroll, and taxes.

Envelopes are free to create and use. You can fund them manually as your cash flow allows or set up custom rules to automate the process. For example, you can budget a percentage of your payments to fund each envelope or assign a specific amount to transfer in on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis.

Free Mastercard Debit Card

Your NorthOne account comes with a free Mastercard debit card that’s accepted by millions of merchants worldwide — wherever you see the Mastercard logo online or in person.

You can use your debit card to withdraw cash for free at any MoneyPass ATM. Third-party ATM fees may apply outside the MoneyPass network.

You can lock and unlock your debit card from the NorthOne app. This comes in handy if you or an employee misplaces it.

When you make a debit card purchase, NorthOne’s software categorizes it within seconds. You won’t have to go back through old statements and try to guess at how to characterize a particular expense.

Invoice Maker App – Another Free Benefit!

NorthOne offers a handy invoice maker app — helpfully dubbed Invoice Maker — at no charge to account holders. Use it to:

• Create professional-looking invoices for your clients 
• Send invoices electronically, speeding up payment times
• Track payment status in the app
• Send payment reminders on unpaid invoices

Software Integrations? NorthOne Has Plenty

NorthOne integrates with more than a dozen third-party software providers, from accounting apps to payment processors to hospitality vendors. Notable integrations include:

• PayPal
• Stripe
• Square
• Venmo
• Shopify
• Amazon
• Etsy
• Airbnb
• Toast
• Uber
• Lyft
• QuickBooks
• Freshbooks
• Gusto
• Wave
• ADP

Impressive Customer Support

For a branchless business banking solution, NorthOne has an impressive customer service footprint with three prongs:

• Live chat — talk to NorthOne customer support agents in real time
• Phone call — schedule a time to talk with a NorthOne agent and they’ll call you
• Email — shoot NorthOne an email and expect a quick response from a real human

Advantages of NorthOne for Business Banking

NorthOne has a lot going for it. Among branchless banking solutions, its reasonable, all-inclusive pricing and tremendous value-added capabilities stand out.

• Transparent Pricing. Small-business owners who love price transparency should love NorthOne. The app charges a flat $10 per month for all features and capabilities — which could represent a significant discount to traditional business bank solutions after accounting for transaction fees and other tacked-on fees. The only additional fee you might encounter at NorthOne is one for inbound and outbound domestic wire transfers.
• Built-in Budgeting Capabilities. NorthOne’s Envelopes feature is a great way to manage your business finances without paying for a separate budgeting app. Use it to manually or automatically allocate funds for upcoming withdrawals, such as rent and payroll. 
• Fast Deposits and Payments. NorthOne makes it easy to schedule and send electronic payments when you need to. And its mobile check deposit feature is a breeze, allowing you to deposit funds from paper payment in just seconds.
• No Charge for Debit Card Transactions. NorthOne doesn’t charge for debit card transactions, unlike many business-friendly online banks. It also has a broad network of fee-free ATMs so that you won’t be penalized for making cash deposits or withdrawals. 
• Responsive Customer Support. NorthOne has an unusually responsive customer support team that’s reachable by email, live chat, and phone. The phone support option is especially nice thanks to a callback option that eliminates the annoying experience of waiting on hold.
• Lots of Third-Party Integrations. NorthOne integrates with well over a dozen third-party software providers, including payment processors, ecommerce platforms, and accounting software. With NorthOne as your business banking partner, you’ll never have to juggle multiple sign-ins screens when you’re trying to manage your finances.

Disadvantages of NorthOne (Nobody’s Perfect)

NorthOne isn’t perfect. There’s no way to avoid the monthly fee, for example, and debit card purchases don’t earn rewards at present.

• Has an Unavoidable Monthly Fee. NorthOne is not a totally free business account. In exchange for all the foregoing, you need to put up $10 per month. That’s a deal for what you get, but it’s not nothing.
• No Cash Back on Debit Card Purchases. NorthOne doesn’t offer cash back on debit card purchases at the moment. That could change in the future, but right now this is a drawback in comparison to some other business banking solutions.

How NorthOne Stacks Up

NorthOne isn’t the only small-business account on the market. Let’s see how it stacks up against another well-reviewed competitor: Nearside.

Final Word

NorthOne has a lot going for it. Its pricing is transparent, thanks to a flat $10 monthly fee. Its budgeting capabilities are second to none, courtesy of NorthOne Envelopes. And its third-party integrations pack a serious punch, particularly on the accounting side of things.

It’s no wonder NorthOne is routinely cited as one of the best bank accounts for freelancers, startups, and established small businesses alike. No matter where you are in your entrepreneurial journey — or where you’re headed — NorthOne has you covered.