Best Bank for Truckers: The Top Options

Life as a trucker isn’t a walk in the park. You spend long hours on the road, days on end behind the wheel, and don’t always have the luxury of driving your rig over local roads just to hit a bank branch when you need to withdraw or deposit cash. The last thing you want to find out is that your current banking provider doesn’t have a local branch at the town you’re in, leaving you to pay outrageous ATM fees. Or, worse yet, that your frequent travel across several states ends up accidentally flagging your account for fraud.

Finding the best bank for truckers isn’t as easy as waltzing into a local neighborhood branch, dropping an initial deposit down on the counter, and walking away with a debit card. You don’t have the luxury of being in your hometown (or even home state) most days, which means you’ll need to find a business banking partner with plenty of branches throughout the country. Plus, you’ll want to find a bank that gets the specific needs of truck drivers—be it longer branch hours, best-in-class mobile banking, or dependable customer service.

There are a few options when it comes to finding the best bank for truckers. We’ll help you determine the best picks for you, as well as what to look for in a business checking or savings account, what features to consider, and how to decide which of them are dealmakers (or breakers) for you.

Truckers have specific needs—a place for a hot shower when filling up, quick access to food and groceries, and the ability to get back on the road fast, since time is money. One thing truck drivers shouldn’t have to put up with is an inconvenient bank. You want to take out cash without spending too much time looking for a bank with low ATM fees (or one that’s too far away from your truck stop).

The best bank for truckers is one with plenty of locations. You’ll want to find a bank with loads of branches throughout your typical routes, which means hitching up with a larger national bank in most cases. You might find that a local credit union or online bank can be a great move for you if you’re willing to sacrifice being able to talk to a teller versus working with customer support online. Some of these banks will even reimburse you for a certain amount of ATM fees per month, which helps make up for their lack of physical presence.

Location isn’t everything, though. Truckers should also look for banks that understand what it’s like to be out on the road for weeks or months at a time. This means picking a bank with excellent customer service that’s available in person, online, and over the phone. You don’t want to end up working with a bank that, well, keeps bankers’ hours. Your workday isn’t a regular 9 to 5, which means longer customer hotline operating hours become a must-have. Some of the best banks are improving the online customer service experience too, which can be a great alternative to hopping on the phone to discuss an issue with your account. Online-only banks have a great reputation for this, since they have to make themselves available on the web if they’re going to handle client queries.

Lastly, the best bank for truckers helps them save for their goals. Managing your money when you’re on the road isn’t easy—you’ve got food to buy, laundry to tackle, and other expenses to make your cab feel like a home away from home. Staying budget-conscious is important when you’re on the road and everything comes with a premium price tag. This means it’s crucial to pick a bank that rewards you for having an account, which can take the form of high-yield checking accounts, money market accounts, or savings accounts with industry-leading APYs.

Now that we’ve covered the rules of the road, let’s dive into some of the best banks for truckers. We’ll cover personal accounts as well as the best business bank accounts in case you’re your own boss and might be in the hunt for a banking solution for your company.

Unless you’re working for yourself or operate a small business, you’re likely looking for the best bank for truckers that provides you with either a checking or savings account (or ideally both). We’ll get into what makes up the best bank for truckers who run their own shop or are independent contractors later on.

For truck drivers, there’s less of a dividing line between personal finances and work expenses, given that you’ll spend days or weeks on the job and have to account for OTR expenses on top of your regular run-of-the-mill bills back home. In other words, you need a bank that makes it easy to manage your money—both while you’re on the road and when you’re taking care of life back at home. Here are a few of the best banks for truckers that need personal accounts.

TAB Bank, also known as Transportation Alliance Bank, is dedicated to helping truckers manage their finances. Be it through checking accounts, savings accounts, or loans, TAB Bank is there to help individuals and businesses within the industry. TAB 365 personal checking gives account holders the flexibility of being available at major truck stops across the United States, as well as mobile check deposits and banking, account alerts, and budgeting tools. Best of all, this is an interest-bearing account, which means you’ll get a 0.10% APY on your checking account balance.

Finding an account that offers you the flexibility to bank on your own terms is a great reason to open a checking account. Finding a checking account that actually pays you to keep a balance every month is even better. TAB gets what it’s like to be a trucker, and makes it simple to manage your everyday money with a straightforward and benefits-rich checking account. TAB also offers savings accounts, IRAs, CDs, and money market accounts to help you round out your financial needs.

Online banking is a uniquely beneficial option for truckers who may not have time to go to physical bank branches, or who may not benefit from the kinds of personal attention that a brick-and-mortar bank provides. In that case, a Simple checking account could be a perfect option.

Simple is an online-only bank, which means everything related to your account happens through the Simple mobile app or online banking portal. You won’t have any branches or brand-name ATMs, but you can conduct mobile deposits, set up direct deposit, write physical checks, and withdraw cash from Simple’s network of fee-free ATMs across the country.

Simple also offers a “Safe to Spend” feature, which reserves a portion of your checking balance in case of an emergency where you need more cash than your daily budget might provide. You can also earn a 2.02% APY on your account if you maintain a balance of $2,000 or more. Add it all up, and Simple gives you the flexibility and perks you need to make your money work for you. One word to the wise, however: Simple doesn’t support cash deposits. So if you need to put physical currency in your account, you’re out of luck.

When you live your life on the road, easy access to ATMs is crucial. Any time you spend not driving is time you’re not optimizing, which means you need a network of cash machines from Burlington to Bakersfield. If this sounds like you, consider GoBank, which has ATMs in most Walmart locations across the country. GoBank allows you to take out money and make physical deposits at participating retailers, which adds a layer of convenience that other online-driven banks don’t yet offer.

Aside from the convenience of depositing cash in person, GoBank also supports online deposits, bill pay, electronic transfers, and all of the other perks of a modern digital bank. This  can be a great solution for truckers who are always on the go, and for whom time is money.

Trucking uniquely suits itself to the independent contractor and self-employed lifestyle. You stand to make more money without having an intermediary take a cut of your take-home pay, plus you get the freedom of being your own boss. Setting up your own business is no easy feat; nor is finding the best business bank account that works for your solo professional life. Thankfully there are a few contenders for the title of the best bank for truckers who work for themselves.

We included TAB personal checking accounts earlier in this roundup of the best banks for truckers, and the bank makes a second appearance here for its small business banking solutions. TAB offers a business checking account that provides tailored services for small businesses, startups and—as you would probably expect—trucking companies.

TAB helps trucking businesses manage fuel costs, track their cash flow, reduce paperwork, and get loans for equipment financing and other investments. TAB business checking accounts come with mobile banking, online bill pay, and most importantly, a 1.75% rebate on fuel purchases made from the business account. This goes a long way when you or your employees are on the road and need to fill up. Getting rebates on fuel purchases can help put a little extra money back into your company’s ledger, and every bit helps to curb your biggest operating expense.

TAB business checking accounts come in two varieties: Business Checking and Analyzed Business Checking. Business Checking is TAB’s entry-level checking account, as it provides 100 free debits/credits per month, extended customer service hours, telephone banking support, and 0.25% interest on your balance. Analyzed Business Checking takes things a step further, providing you with unlimited deposits and withdrawals, and a dedicated relationship manager. This account provides all the same perks that come with Business Checking, but throws in the above benefits as well.

Axos Bank, formerly known as Bank of Internet USA, is the country’s oldest online-only bank. Axos uses their 19 years of experience to offer a robust, pain-free, and feature-rich business checking account that works great for small businesses and independent contractors who have their own business entity.

The Axos Basic Business Checking account gives unlimited fee-free items, 60 free remote deposits every month, and unlimited domestic ATM fee reimbursements. You can also use paper checks with an Axos business bank account, which is something other online business banks don’t offer. There are no monthly fees on this account and no minimum opening deposit requirement.

If you’re on the road and are comfortable doing all of your business banking online, Axos is a fantastic option. You’ll still have phone and web support for any account questions or concerns, but with the flexibility of a bank that does all of its business online. This means you don’t have to waste time at local bank branches, and you get access to brand-new banking technology that makes it easy to manage your business finances.

Chase business banking can’t be beat. They’ve got years of experience serving large and small companies, and plenty of options to help you manage your company’s financial landscape. Plus, Chase has over 16,000 ATMs and 4,700 branches across the country, which means you’re bound to be close to a Chase location no matter where your itinerary takes you.

Chase has three business checking accounts: Chase Business Complete Banking, Chase Performance Business Checking, and Chase Business Platinum Checking.

Business Complete Checking is a great option for small businesses, as it comes with low monthly services and account balance requirements to have fees waived. It also offers unlimited electronic deposits, as well as $5,000 in monthly cash deposits at no cost.

Performance Business Checking takes things a step further for medium-sized businesses that need a bit more from their bank. You’ll get 250 transactions and $20,000 in cash deposits for free every month, as well as two outgoing domestic wires. All you’ll need to have the $30 monthly fee waived is a deposit balance of $35,000.

Lastly, Business Platinum Checking offers a fully loaded business checking account for larger companies with complex financial needs. If you conduct a ton of transactions, deposits, and wire transfers, this may be the right account for you. You’ll get 500 transactions and $25,000 in free cash deposits every month, and can have the account’s $95 fee waived with a $100,000 deposit balance every month. This account might not be perfect for everyone, but if you’re in need of a ton of financial flexibility and can afford the balance minimum, this might be the right fit for you.

Put simply, the best bank for truckers is the one that gives you the financial support, flexibility, and features that work for you. Truckers have a unique work schedule and lifestyle, which makes it crucial to find the right solution for you on a personal level. For some, that might mean picking a bank that’s right within a truck stop on your route. For others, it might mean doing your banking from the back of your cab before turning in for the night. Figure out what works best for you and work from there. With so many banking options—both personally and professionally—you’re bound to come up with the right choice with enough research.