Mercury Alternatives for Startup Banking

Mercury is a major player in the startup banking space. But a few other banks and fintech companies offer excellent business checking accounts worth a look.

Some platforms on this list — Brex, Rho and Meow — look a lot like Mercury. They have polished websites, few required fees and even similar features, like free wire transfers. They aim to serve the same startup audience.

Others, like Bluevine and Relay, may be better for smaller companies without outside investors.

Most of these companies are also startups themselves. You can’t evaluate them solely by feature set. Instead, consider factors like company size, funding rounds and time in business. Those may offer clues about whether these companies might change strategies (and potentially leave customers behind) or stay the course.

Brex is choosy about its customers. It focuses on venture-backed startups and mid-market companies. (You can view their requirements here.) If you qualify, Brex is a great choice. You’ll get free wires, plus some things Mercury lacks — 24/7 phone support and built-in travel booking.

If you don’t qualify for Brex, Mercury offers a similar feature set to a wider variety of users. Customer support is only via email, though.

Both Brex and Mercury were founded in 2017. Brex hasn’t raised a funding round since its Series B in 2021, while Mercury announced its Series C in early 2025, according to Crunchbase. A funding round generally means a company wants to grow. Series C, specifically, can suggest a company is getting ready to launch new products, acquire other companies or seek profitability.

Brex partners with Column, N.A., an FDIC-insured bank, for its checking account.

One of Mercury’s key drawbacks is its email-only customer support. If you prefer talking to someone on the phone, Rho makes that possible 24/7. (I tested online business bank accounts’ customer support in early 2025, and Rho’s callback option worked very well.)

Other than that, Rho and Mercury’s platforms look a lot alike. Both offer checking accounts, savings accounts, treasuries and corporate cards. Both have free wire transfers and 1% fees on currency conversions. If you ever need cash, Mercury allows ATM withdrawals; Rho doesn’t.

Rho was founded a year after Mercury, in 2018. It closed its Series B round in 2021, according to Crunchbase. Like Brex, that may suggest Rho is focused on acquiring customers right now.

Rho partners with Webster Bank N.A., an FDIC-insured bank, for its checking account.

Relay is a fintech company with an online banking platform well suited to small and medium-sized companies. In general, Relay is a better choice than Mercury for Main Street-based businesses, since it supports cash deposits.

Relay’s wire transfers aren’t free, but they’re cheaper than nearly every competitor. Using local payment networks, you’ll pay up to just $8 for outgoing domestic wires and $5 for outgoing international wires.

Beyond that, Relay lets you create up to 20 business checking accounts for different purposes. If you’re loyal to the profit-first accounting method, that can include profit and owner’s pay, along with ongoing expenses like payroll. And all users get built-in expense management tools like receipt matching and expense categorization.

Relay was founded in 2018 and held its most recent funding round (Series B) in March 2024. Relay partners with Thread Bank, Member FDIC, for its banking services.

Banking with a financial technology company isn’t for everyone. If you’d rather work directly with an FDIC-insured bank, consider Grasshopper.

This online-only bank was founded in 2019 and serves startups and small businesses. You’ll get low-cost outgoing domestic wires ($10 each) and up to $125 million in insured cash sweep coverage. Plus, Grasshopper offers phone support on weekdays.

What Grasshopper lacks compared to Mercury: Easy wire transfers in currencies other than USD. You’ll have to turn to a different brand for a corporate card, too.

Mercury’s tools are best suited to fast-growing startups that frequently make large transfers. If your business is smaller and its operations are simpler, Bluevine’s business checking account is likely a better fit.

You’ll still get insured cash sweep services, free incoming wires and operator-friendly tools like invoicing. Beyond that, Bluevine pays a competitive APY on your checking balance — 1.50% or potentially higher if you sign up for a subscription plan. To earn yield with Mercury, you’ll have to take the extra step of moving funds into treasuries.

Bluevine partners with Coastal Community Bank, Member FDIC for banking services.

Meow was founded in 2021 and has only raised its Series A round, according to Crunchbase. That generally means a business is still refining its product and finding its users.

Compared to Mercury, Brex and Rho, Meow is at a much earlier stage in its growth. It’s also smaller. Its LinkedIn page says it has 11 to 50 employees. That could mean major changes ahead.

Meow can help with a couple of specific needs, though:

• If your business frequently wires money in currencies other than U.S. dollars: With Mercury, you’ll pay a flat 1% fee on currency conversions. Meow, on the other hand, works with a third-party service called Airwallex. Exchange fees can be as low as 0.16% depending on the currency. 

• If you don’t want to juggle accounts: Meow offers interest on its business checking account balance, so you don’t have to open a second account to earn yield. Mercury users have to open a treasury account to earn yield.

Meow partners with Grasshopper Bank, N.A. for its banking services. (Yes, that’s the Grasshopper Bank listed above.)

Mercury is a popular platform with a lot to offer. But it falls short in a couple key ways:

Mercury’s banking partners are under scrutiny. Mercury is a neobank that currently works with three FDIC-insured banks — Column N.A., Choice Financial Group and Evolve Bank & Trust — to hold customer funds. The company announced in March 2025 that it was ending its relationship with Evolve and would give customers the opportunity to migrate their accounts.

Federal regulators have issued enforcement actions to both Choice and Evolve in the last two years. Such orders are relatively rare and should be taken seriously. (Bank failures are still much rarer, though.)

This doesn’t mean customer funds aren’t safe. But if you bank with a fintech company, you should know where your funds are and feel comfortable with all parties involved. If you’d rather work directly with an FDIC-insured bank, not a fintech, look at Grasshopper’s accounts.

Its customer support is lacking. Mercury’s customer support comes via email. That’s not a deal-breaker for every user. But if you value the ability to pick up the phone, explore Rho and Brex instead.