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Opening a business checking account is a crucial step toward building a business. A business bank account allows you to make the necessary distinction between your personal finances and those of your business, and it also makes recordkeeping and financial management much easier.
Of course, you’ll be much better served by your business bank account if you take the time to find one that fully meets your needs. One option to consider in your search is Bank of Oklahoma. As you may have guessed from its name, this bank is best for business owners in Oklahoma, where the bank is based. The bank serves Oklahoma City, Tulsa, Norman, Broken Arrow, Edmond, Moore, Midwest City, Enid, Muskogee, Bartlesville, Owasso, and other areas across the Sooner State. You can find out if there’s a banking center or ATM near you with Bank of Oklahoma’s locations tool.
In this review, we’ll delve into the three Bank of Oklahoma business account options. And, because finding the right business checking account is all about exploring your options, we’ve also included three top alternatives to consider.
Choosing a business checking account is a big decision for any small business owner. To narrow down your options, there are a few key factors to keep in mind. These will help you discern whether an account aligns with what your business needs, whether that’s an account with low fees and no balance minimum or an account designed for large businesses with a high level of account activity.
An account’s transaction limit is how many transactions you can make each month. Typically, you’ll get a set number of free transactions with your business checking account, after which you’ll pay a per-transaction fee. Bank of Oklahoma business account transaction limits range from 200 up to 400 free transactions per statement period.
A balance minimum is the smallest amount of money you can have in your account. Meeting the balance minimum often allows you to waive the monthly fee, which can accrue to considerable savings. Bank of Oklahoma Free Small Business Checking doesn’t have a balance minimum, whereas Business Advantage Checking and Business Interest Checking each require a $10,000 average monthly balance. Business Advantage Checking also offers the option to meet the minimum through $25,000 combined deposit balances or $50,000 combined loan balances.
Many business checking accounts require you to pay a monthly service charge. The only account option at Bank of Oklahoma that does not have a monthly service fee is Free Small Business Checking. Business Interest Checking has a $15 fee, while Business Advantage Checking has a $20 monthly fee. As mentioned above, these fees are waivable for account holders who meet the balance minimum requirement.
If you’re interested in getting a Bank of Oklahoma business account, you’ll have three accounts to choose from. Each account varies in its specific features, transaction limit, and fees.
Each account, however, offers the following:
The first option we’ll cover is Business Advantage Checking, which is best for business owners with moderate transaction levels. The account includes 400 transactions per month, which covers checks written, debits, deposits, items deposited, and transfers. Your debit card transaction limits won’t count toward the transaction limit.
The account has a $20 monthly service fee, which is the highest fee of the three account options. The monthly fee can be waived in one of three ways: maintaining a $10,000 average monthly balance, $25,000 combined deposit balances, or $50,000 combined loan balances.
Monthly fees and limits:
Best for:
Bank of Oklahoma’s Business Interest Checking is the only interest-earning account among the three offered business accounts. The account can cover business’s basic business banking needs as they earn compounded interest each month. Interest rates are tiered, so you can earn more interest if you have a higher account balance.
This account carries a slightly lower $15 monthly service charge. That fee is waivable for account holders that maintain an average monthly balance of $10,000. Unlike with Business Advantage Checking, this account balance cannot be combined with other accounts in order to meet the balance minimum.
The account offers 200 free transactions and 15 online bill pay transactions per statement period. Notably, the per-transaction fee after reaching that limit is higher for this account than it is for the two other Bank of Oklahoma business accounts. While you’ll pay $0.40 per transaction with Business Advantage Checking and Free Small Business Checking, Business Interest Checking charges a $0.50 fee per additional transaction.
As its name implies, Free Small Business Checking does not have a monthly service charge, distinguishing it as the only Bank of Oklahoma business account without a monthly fee. It has the same transaction limit as Business Interest Checking, allowing 200 free transactions per month, after which you’ll pay a $0.40 per additional transaction.
This account is recommended for businesses that are just starting out and have basic business needs.
If you’re not Oklahoma-based or you’re simply not yet done exploring your options, we’ll delve into the top alternatives to Bank of Oklahoma Business accounts. Considering more accounts also can help you better determine whether a Bank of Oklahoma business account truly meets your business’ needs.
If affordability is what you’re after, then Azlo Business Checking is worth considering. There’s no service fee, balance minimum, or transaction limit associated with the internet-only account.
Although the fact that the bank is online-only maximizes flexibility and minimizes costs, the total lack of physical locations does result in a few potential drawbacks. This includes not being able to make cash deposits, which could be a dealbreaker for cash-heavy businesses. You can, however, withdraw cash at any of the 55,000 ATMS in the AllPoint nationwide network.
Open an Azlo Account
If you want a big-name bank and accessibility across the country, then Chase Total Business Checking may be right for you. The bank has a whopping total of 5,100 locations throughout the country.
The number of brick-and-mortar locations comes at a cost though. Unlike Azlo Business Checking, this account does have a $15 monthly service fee. However, this is a lower monthly fee than either of the service charges associated with Bank of Oklahoma business accounts. You can waive this fee if you maintain a $1,500 minimum daily balance.
Note that this account is specifically designed to meet the needs of businesses that are growing. The transaction limit is notably lower than it is for any of the Bank of Oklahoma business accounts, allowing only 100 free transactions per month. Larger businesses with more robust banking needs may want to consider another option.
Open a Chase Total Account
For a more personalized feel, you may want to consider credit unions if you meet the eligibility requirements. Unlike big banks like Chase, credit unions are more community-focused. Moreover, because they’re not-for-profit organizations, credit unions typically charge lower fees and penalties than traditional banks.
Credit unions are not technically banks, however, so although you’ll get many of the same services, you likely won’t get the full range of options you’d get at a traditional bank—especially one as large as Chase. You also likely won’t get anywhere near the same level of online accessibility as you would with an online-only bank like Azlo.
Perhaps the biggest thing to consider when deciding whether Bank of Oklahoma business accounts are right for you is your location. As the bank is Oklahoma-based, it won’t make sense for business owners outside of the state. Sooner State business owners will need to evaluate the features of each of the accounts to figure out if any of the three options aligns with what their business needs in a checking account.
The first option we covered, Business Advantage Checking, is recommended for business owners with a moderate transaction volume, as it has a 400-item transaction limit. This is the highest transaction limit of the account options available, so business owners with high transaction volumes may not find what they need here.
Then there’s Business Interest Checking, the only Bank of Oklahoma business account that’s interest-earning. It caps free transactions at 200, after which it charges a higher fee per transaction than the other two accounts.
Last but certainly not least is Free Small Business Checking, the only Bank of Oklahoma business account that does not have a monthly service charge. Like Business Interest Checking, it offers 200 free transactions per month but it charges a lower fee for each additional transaction thereafter.
As you’re considering your options, remember to pay close attention to an account’s transaction limit, balance minimum, and fees. All three factors are indicative of whether an account can meet your business’s banking needs.