The NorthOne app offers secure online banking with few fees to worry about, no account minimums, and plenty of features and integrations for small business owners.
WRITTEN & RESEARCHED BY
Lead Staff Writer
Last updated onUpdated
REVIEWED BY
Editor & Senior Staff Writer
| Total Rating | 3.5 |
|---|---|
| Fees & Rates3.3 | |
| Services3.6 | |
| Rewards0.9 | |
| Features4.4 | |
| Eligibility Requirements4.7 | |
| Application Process3.6 | |
| Sales & Advertising Transparency3.9 | |
| Customer Service4.9 | |
| User Reviews4.5 | |
APY
0%Monthly Fee
$10Business Size
Freelancers to mid-sized businessesTable of Contents
NorthOne is a fintech company offering online business banking through FDIC-insured checking accounts and Mastercard debit cards to business customers.
NorthOne accounts include ATM access, cash deposits, a strong mobile app, no account minimums, and an impressive number of integrations. There are also lending services available for businesses that want to manage their banking and small business loans or lines of credit with one single company.
| Services3.6 |
|---|
| Banking Services 3.0 |
| Online Portal & Mobile App 5.0 |
NorthOne primarily specializes in checking accounts. While we wish that the company also supported savings accounts, there is a savings envelopes feature to help you organize the money in your account.
We were happy that NorthOne has added business lending services for businesses interested in managing business checking and business funding with the same company.
Here are all of the services you’ll find with NorthOne Bank:
| Rewards0.9 |
|---|
| Quality & Value Of Earned Rewards 0.9 |
Unfortunately, rewards and perks are not NorthOne’s strong suit.
Unlike many of the best online business bank accounts, there are no cashback or APY earning options with a NorthOne account.
Here’s what NorthOne does offer:
When a current customer encourages a friend to sign up for NorthOne business banking, each can earn a $75 referral bonus. Customers receive unique referral links to share, and NorthOne will pay the bonus within 30 days once the other person opens an account and makes an initial cash deposit of at least $50.
NorthOne has negotiated free trials and discounts from various software partners and created seamless integration processes. The selection of integrations is probably the biggest thing that sets NorthOne apart in the online banking scene.
Currently, NothOne says these perks amount to $29,000 in savings for business owners. You can view a full list of NorthOne’s software discounts and perks on their website.
Supported software partners include PayPal, Stripe, Square, Etsy, Shopify, Airbnb, Amazon, Venmo, Uber, Lyft, and more.
| Fees & Rates3.3 |
|---|
| Pricing 2.9 |
| Transaction Fees 3.4 |
| Transparency 5.0 |
NorthOne offers two different bank plans: NorthOne Standard and NorthOne Plus. The main difference is that while NorthOne Plus has a $20/month fee, this plan eliminates many of the company’s small fees and gives you access to priority support and a dedicated customer success manager. Interestingly enough, the feature set is the same for each plan.
If you don’t opt for the Plus plan, the fees on the Standard plan are pretty high compared to many of the best online business checking accounts that have no monthly fees and often have very few additional fees.
Here’s a breakdown of exactly what you can expect with each plan.
NothOne Standard costs $0/month and has the following fees:
You’ll get all of NorthOne’s business banking essentials features and partner perks discounts.
NorthOne Plus costs $20/month and has no fees for:
There is a $15 fee for domestic outgoing wire transfers and free ATM withdrawals are limited to six, while free cash deposits are limited to three.
The NorthOne Plus account adds a Doola tax service discounts, priority customer support, a dedicated support rep, and an onboarding assistant.
| Eligibility Requirements4.7 |
|---|
| Eligibility Qualifications 5.0 |
| Eligibility Availability 5.0 |
| Eligibility Transparency 4.0 |
NorthOne business bank accounts are available to all kinds of businesses, including sole proprietorships, partnerships, limited partnerships, LLCs, corporations, and joint ventures. NorthOne especially appeals to small businesses and freelancers, with easy eligibility requirements and no minimum balances.
However, NorthOne maintains a fairly typical list of excluded businesses that will be ineligible for NorthOne business banking services.
Because NorthOne is an online-only bank, applications are processed entirely online. Account holders must be:
| Application Process3.6 |
|---|
| Ease & Transparency Of Application 3.6 |
| Application Timeline 0.0 |
| Opening Deposit Requirements 5.0 |
NorthOne Bank doesn’t provide a ton of information on its application other than you may be required to provide personal identification when you apply, including your name, address, and date of birth. The application process is online and the application process has no impact on your credit score.
Once approved, there is a $50 minimum deposit.
| Features4.4 |
|---|
| Transaction Types Supported 5.0 |
| Transaction Limits 4.0 |
| Standard Banking Features 5.0 |
| Finance Management Features 4.0 |
| Extras 3.0 |
NorthOne is loaded with features that will appeal to small and mid-sized businesses.
What NorthOne does offer is notable: numerous integrations with popular business software that can help you connect your finances and make accounting easier. If you connect your POS, for example, NorthOne even makes it easier to access your cash, delivering almost instantaneous access to funds from sales.
While we think it’s a shame that NorthOne doesn’t include any interest-bearing accounts (e.g., savings accounts), we appreciate NorthOne’s Envelopes feature that allows businesses to set aside money for rent, taxes, payroll, and other regular expenses as well as for unplanned expenses and emergencies. You can set up as many Envelopes as you’d like and can even automatically direct a percentage of your money on a daily, weekly, or monthly schedule.
Here are some of the key features NorthOne Bank offers:
NorthOne’s transaction processing time and transaction limits will depend on which NorthOne account you have. NorthOne boasts high transaction limits to help businesses successfully manage their finances. The best place to find the specifics is in your NorthOne account agreement.
It’s worth noting that there are several customer reviews reporting long check deposit time frames.
| Sales & Advertising Transparency3.9 |
|---|
| Sales Practices 4.0 |
| Web Presence 3.7 |
For the most part, NorthOne is pretty transparent when it comes to features, fees, and rewards. Finding information on eligibility requirements takes a bit more work, but the details are there if you look (the FAQ section on the NorthOne help center or the company’s account agreement documentation are good places to look). There is not as much detail on the specifics of the NorthOne bank application process, which we hope to see the company address.
One huge positive worth noting is that NorthOne Bank is one of the only business banks I’ve seen that has a free guided demo available online. I found this to be a great touch and super helpful for anyone wanting to see the company’s interface before signing up for a bank account.
| Customer Service4.9 |
|---|
| Personal Support 4.7 |
| Self-Service 5.0 |
NorthOne Bank has a solid number of customer support options, including email, live chat, an extensive help center, and more. Businesses that opt for the NorthOne Plus plan get an even better support experience with a dedicated support rep and onboarding assistant.
Many of the positive NorthOne bank reviews mention customer service. One user says NorthOne “made me feel like family,” and another calls NorthOne’s service “the friendliest, quickest, and most helpful customer service I’ve ever interacted with.”
Compared to other online-only business banks, NorthOne stands out by providing live customer service options, though the company’s support hours are more limited than some with support available from M-F 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM.
| User Reviews4.5 |
|---|
| User Feedback 5.0 |
| Review Site Aggregate 4.3 |
NorthOne Bank receives predominantly positive customer reviews across popular review sites like TrustPilot and on app stores. NorthOne is accredited by the Better Business Bureau and has an A+ rating there (previously, they were rated at a B).
Most users who post on the BBB website do so because they have a complaint, so we weren’t surprised to see a higher level of complaints listed there. We do note that NorthOne seemed to provide personal responses to each complaint and resolved several of them.
Because NorthOne is not a bank, it partners with an FDIC member, The Bancorp Bank, to offer FDIC protections to NorthOne customers. Deposits in NorthOne’s business bank account are FDIC-insured to the full legal limit of $250,000.
NorthOne also has several security features in place to protect customer data including Face ID or Touch ID logins, fraud monitoring, and card controls.
In the world of fintech banks, every bank is trying to make a name for itself as one of the best online banks. With NorthOne Bank, the thing that sets it apart is the exceptional customer service and the number of integrations. The software is also easy to use and has a great mobile app.
However, there are some drawbacks that keep NorthOne from being one of our more recommended business banking options. There are no cashback or APY earning options with NorthOne Bank, and there are many fees unless you go with the $20/month Plus plan. There’s also no savings option, though there is a helpful savings envelope feature.
If you value customer support, NorthOne Bank could still be a good option, but if you’re looking for strong rewards and features with fewer fees, take a look at our best online business bank accounts instead. Or, if you’re interested in comparing NorthOne to other checking accounts in particular, check out our list of the top business checking accounts.
Merchant Maverick has been researching and reviewing business banking services since 2015. Our writers have tested over thirty different banking products, including checking accounts, savings accounts, employee spending cards, and more. In each review, we evaluate rates and fees, services, rewards, features, eligibility requirements, application process, sales and advertising transparency, customer service, and user reviews.
Read more about how we rate business banking products.
When comparing different banks and banking services, we consider many data points, including the ease and transparency of the account application process, account fees, sales ethics, minimum deposit requirements, and revenue, time in business, and credit score requirements. Our lists of the best banking services include only those we’ve deemed worthwhile from multiple vantage points, and often share qualities such as widespread accessibility across fifty states, valuable rewards, numerous transaction options, and competitive APY.
We spend an average of 10-15 hours researching and updating each one of our lists, making sure the banking services included meet our internal standards for quality and reputation.
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Merchant Maverick’s ratings are editorial in nature, and are not aggregated from user reviews. Each staff reviewer at Merchant Maverick is a subject matter expert with experience researching, testing, and evaluating small business software and services. The rating of this company or service is based on the author’s expert opinion and analysis of the product, and assessed and seconded by another subject matter expert on staff before publication. Merchant Maverick’s ratings are not influenced by affiliate partnerships.
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