- Up to 20 free business checking accounts with up to 50 debit cards available
Relay Online Banking Review
Relay offers business customers a simple, free checking account that integrates with accounting software. This provides users with an easy-to-use tool showing how much money they have while detailing incomings and outgoings in a simple-to-digest manner.
While many ‘free’ accounts have hidden costs, Relay offers a genuinely free business banking option. There are no monthly fees, minimum balance requirements, or overdraft fees, and up to 20 checking accounts with 50 debit cards available.
Whilst these features are great for start-ups and smaller businesses, Relay may be held back by its lack of business banking options. No savings products are available, and no interest is earned on checking accounts. Additionally, cash deposits cannot be made, so Relay is unsuitable for cash-generative businesses.
Relay Online Banking Highlights
ATM NETWORK
32,000 allpoint atms
MIN CREDIT SCORE
300
OTHER FEES
None
Account Type
- Business
Relay Checking business Highlights
DEPOSIT AMOUNT
No minimum
Pros & Cons
- Free business banking offering
- Up to 20 checking accounts and 50 debit cards are available
- Ability to set different permissions for different users
- Full integration with accounting software is available
- Cash deposits unavailable
- No paper checks
- It can take up to a week for checks to settle
- No savings accounts are available
Features Benefits & Rewards
Account Types
Relay only offers one bank account type, the Business Checking Account. This free account requires no monthly fees, has no minimum balance requirement, and does not charge overdraft fees. The account gives business owners up to 20 different checking accounts, which is perfect if you want account separation for payables, payroll, and income.
Furthermore, up to 50 debit cards are available for team members, each of which can have its own spending and ATM withdrawal limits. Yet, the Relay checking account does not earn interest on balances held.
Relay also offers a premium account that costs $30 a month called Relay Pro. Relay Pro includes all the features of the regular Relay business checking accounts alongside same-day ACH availability and free outgoing wire transfers. Otherwise, outgoing wire transfers are charged at $5 for domestic and $10 for international.
| Account Name | Key Features |
| Relay Business Checking |
|
| Relay Pro |
|
Opening an Account With Relay
After hearing about Relay’s free business banking for small businesses, we decided to apply to test how easy the onboarding process is. We headed to the Business Banking tab and hit “Let’s bank” to get started.
We were greeted with a simple opening form and entered our personal information, including our name, gender, phone number, and job title.
After creating our account, we had to start the process by entering details about our business, including the type of business, business name, industry, how many employees we have, and the business website. We then had to describe the business operations and give the incorporation date.
The application process has a progress bar that shows how far through the application you are. What we also found helpful was we were told at this stage what documents we would need later in the process, which included:
- Government-Issued Photo ID
- Employer Identification Number Verification Letter
- Articles of Incorporation
- Doing Business As (Optional)
- Company Bylaws
- Information about all owners with 25% or greater ownership
After entering the business details, we had to complete information about the business address, followed by inputting our personal details. After entering this information, we had to verify the data outlined in the bullet points above.
Then, we were asked by Relay to perform a video authorization. This was a simple process where we had to record ourselves on our cell phones stating that “we authorize an account opening with Relay”. This took less than a minute to record and upload to Relay’s website.
Also, this completed our application process. We heard back from Relay in two days with the good news that we had been approved to open a business banking account.
Overall, the account opening process with Relay wasn’t the quickest we have encountered, but it was easy to complete with an intuitive website and clear guidance.
State Availability
Available in all states
Privacy & Security
While Relay is a relatively new company, it partners with a long-established bank, indicating that Relay is likely to have robust and current privacy policies. This is further enforced when reviewing the “Privacy Policy” section on Relay’s website. The comprehensive policy covers all the expected areas in detail, such as the collection and use of personal data, storage of data, disclosure of information to third parties, and how to access your financial records.
In addition to the comprehensive Privacy Policy online, our review team found no adverse reports noted online regarding Relay’s treatment of personal data.
Customer Support
You can reach the Relay customer support team via phone or email. Relay is also pretty active on social media websites like Facebook and Twitter, effectively opening up another channel of communication.
We decided to call the Relay helpline to enquire about the documents required to sign up for the service. The call was answered immediately by a knowledgeable customer service agent who clearly knew the Relay product inside out. We were so impressed with the interaction that we asked several further questions about checking account types which were answered equally as well.
We would recommend contacting Relay customer service by phone if you have any questions. There is also a detailed Help Center that should be able to answer most common queries. Full details of how to contact customer support are shown in the table below.
Phone Support
(888) 205-9304
Mon – Fri
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM EST
Sat - Sun
Closed
Email Support
support@relayfi.com
Social Media
In Conclusion
Relay appears to offer excellent business online banking services if you are a small company that doesn’t transact in cash. The seamless links with QuickBooks and Xero should please your accountant, and the money management tools and dashboards are clear and easy to use. Coupled with the fact this the business banking facilities are free, it is easy to see Relay making its mark and growing quickly in the coming years.
FAQ
No, Relay is a fintech company and not a bank. Relay has partnered with Evolve Bank & Trust to offer business banking services. Ultimately, this ensures that the services provided by Relay are FDIC-ensured.
Your business can open up to 20 different checking accounts with Relay.
No, Relay only offers checking account services, and the checking accounts are not interest-bearing.
Relay Disclaimer
Synapse Financial Technologies Inc. (“SynapseFI”), a third-party provider, is Relay’s backend software provider and a partner of Evolve Bank & Trust (“Evolve”), a member bank of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. SynapseFI’s API, and its relationship with Evolve, enable Relay to offer online banking services and products. By agreeing to the Relay Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, you also agree to SynapseFI’s terms and policies below:
(the above-listed agreements are collectively referred to herein as the “Ancillary Agreements”)
If you open a bank account or purchase other financial products using the Relay Platform Services (“Bank Account”), you agree that it is administered by Evolve with SynapseFI acting as technical intermediary between Relay and Evolve, per your Cardholder Agreement and Deposit Agreement.
Bank services are provided through our banking software provider, SynapseFI. To report a complaint relating to the bank services, feel free to email help@synapsefi.com.
Disclosure
This website is an informative comparison site that aims to offer its users find helpful information regarding the products and offers that will be suitable for their needs. We are able to maintain a free, high-quality service by receiving advertising fees from the brands and service providers we review on this website (though we may also review brands we are not engaged with). These advertising fees, combined with our criteria and methodology, such as the conversion rates, our team of reviewer's finding and subjective experience and product popularity, impact the placement and position of the brands within the comparison table. In the event rating or scoring are assigned by us, they are based on the position in the comparison table, or according to other formula in the event specifically detailed by us. See our How we Rate page and Terms of Use for information. The reviews, rating and scoring are provided “as-is” without guaranties or warranties regarding the information contained in our website, which shall not be considered as endorsement. We make the best efforts to keep the information up-to-date, however, an offer’s terms might change at any time. We do not compare or include all service providers, brands and offers available in the market.
As an experienced content writer, Lauren’s passion for the finance sector is only exceeded by her love of writing. Lauren specializes in the financial industry, drawing on her knowledge and experience to deliver top-quality, specialized content with an expert tone of voice and a unique flair. She also holds a First Class (Hons) Batchelor’s degree from Staffordshire University.
7.9
LS SCORE
6.5
CREDIBILITY
8.2
SUPPORT
8.0
ACCESSIBILITY
Opening Hours
Mon – Fri
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM EST
Sat - Sun
Closed
Email Support
support@relayfi.com
Social Media
Live Chat
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