Mercury Review July 2024: Fintech with great business banking for tech companies and startups

Mercury offers business checking and savings, a treasury product, a corporate credit card, and venture debt products. As of April 17, 2024, Mercury offers a personal checking account, although it is still waitlisted on the company’s website.

All rates and fees are current as of July 11, 2024, and are subject to change. 

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Mercury

Checking accounts:	Starting at $0 per month
Savings accounts:	Open with as little as $0
Treasury account:	Available with $500,000 or more in Mercury accounts;

Pros and Cons

Pros

• User-level spend controls help companies customize access for each team member needing access
• Extended FDIC insurance up to $5 million thanks to partner banks and a sweep network
• Perks page offers both discounts on other business products and a chance to promote your business

Cons

• No physical locations and no cash deposits
• Mercury may not best serve small startup companies, as high balances are needed for interest earnings
• Personal banking services are still waitlisted and will cost $240 a year, much more expensive than other providers

Who is Mercury good for?

Mercury is geared toward tech companies and startups, especially those with higher account balances. Mercury offers user-level spend controls to customize access for companies that need separate levels of account access for different employees. It is also great for companies that want to set card limits for specific members or teams.

Startups can benefit from Mercury’s perks page, which offers discounts on dozens of products your business might need. Mercury can also spotlight your business on the perks page, helping drive customers your way. For high-balance customers, Mercury uses its partner banks to create a sweep network to extend your FDIC insurance up to $5 million.

Who shouldn’t use Mercury?

As an online-only fintech company, Mercury doesn’t have branch locations. If you prefer to do your business banking in person, you must choose an alternative. It might not be the best option for smaller startups, as you need at least $500,000 to unlock high-yield rates with Mercury Treasury. You also cannot deposit cash with Mercury, making it less attractive to small businesses that handle cash regularly.

Finally, the company’s new personal banking product is still waitlisted and will cost $240 a year once it becomes available. If you want personal and business banking with the same provider, many other banks and fintechs offer it much cheaper.

Mercury rates and products

Mercury’s business checking account is free with no monthly fees. When you open a business checking account with Mercury, you get a free savings account. It does not draw interest, however. Mercury Treasury draws up to 5.39% APY, but you must have $500,000 across your Mercury accounts to request a treasury account.

Checking accounts 

Mercury, through its partner banks, offers one business checking account option. It is a free checking account with many great features. Mercury doesn’t offer a new account signup bonus on its website.

Mercury Business Checking Account

Mercury’s business checking account charges no monthly fees. It provides debit cards for free and allows you to send and receive checks and domestic and international wires for free.

Savings accounts

You automatically get a business savings account when you open a Mercury business checking account. It is a free account, but it doesn’t draw interest. Consider shopping around if you are looking for a high-yield savings account for your excess business funds. If you have over $500,000 in your Mercury accounts, request Mercury Treasury for high-yield savings.

Mercury Business Savings Account

You can move money between your business checking and savings accounts and your savings account has no transaction limits. Even though this account doesn’t qualify as a high-yield account, check out our primer on high-interest savings accounts for more information on how savings accounts work.

Mercury savings rates compared to current top rates*

While Mercury is a great option, some institutions offer higher interest rates. Compare the rates above to this list of competitors:

Treasury Account 

While Mercury doesn’t offer a business money market account (MMA), it does offer a treasury account for high-interest earnings.

Mercury Treasury Account

Once you have $500,000 across your Mercury accounts, you can request Mercury Treasury. Funds are held with Mercury’s partner, Apex Clearing Corp. They are invested in two mutual funds: Vanguard Treasury Money Market Fund (VUSXX) and Morgan Stanley Ultra-Short Income Portfolio (MULSX). Interest yield will fluctuate with the markets, but it currently earns up to 5.39% APY.

Treasury accounts are insured by the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC). If assets are lost or missing from an account while a troubled or failed brokerage is being unwound, the SIPC insures $500,000 of securities and cash. The maximum protection is $250,000 for cash and $250,000 for securities.

When shopping for alternatives, consider a bank or fintech offering high-yield MMAs. For more information, see our guide to MMAs.

Other services Mercury offers 

Mercury, either directly or through its partner banks, offers many other banking products and services, including:

• Personal banking: A new product with Mercury, the fintech announced personal checking and savings services on April 17. You can sign up to join the waitlist on the company’s website. The service will cost $240 a year. The savings product earns 5.00% APY.
• Credit card: The Mercury IO business credit card earns 1.5% cash back on all spending. You can qualify with at least $25,000 in your Mercury accounts. It has built-in integrations with QuickBooks and Xero.
• Venture debt: For businesses exiting the early startup stage or tech companies looking for an influx of cash, Mercury offers venture debt, which allows you to get funding without giving up equity in your company. 

Online banking

Mercury provides digital business banking services, including online banking and bill pay. Basic online banking through the company’s website is free and includes spend controls, accounting automations, and basic approval rules. As of August 1, Mercury is offering tiers of financial workflows. Higher tiers cost a monthly fee but include more bill payments per month and more online capabilities.

Once the tiers are in place, you will receive up to five bill payments per month as part of the free Core package. The $35 a month Plus package will give you 20 bill payments per month, with each additional bill being $2 a month. The Pro package will provide 250 monthly bill payments plus $1 for each additional. Enterprise customers can contact Mercury for details on the cost.

The Mercury platform and customer support 

Mercury’s banking products can be accessed via desktop and mobile apps. Mercury’s mobile app is well rated, earning 4.3 stars out of 5 on Google Play Store out of more than 550 reviews and 4.9 stars out of 5 on the Apple App Store out of more than 4,600 reviews.

You can contact Mercury customer service by email at help@mercury.com or by logging into your account and messaging them directly. 

Is Mercury secure?

While Mercury’s website security seems top-notch, a recent data breach from one of its partner banks is causing concern. In May, Evolve Bank & Trust was the victim of a ransomware attack, according to the bank. 

Mercury stated in a follow-up message that no account credentials, including passwords, were exposed in the partner breach. It did state that some account numbers, deposit balances, business owner names, and emails associated with Mercury accounts were leaked.

Mercury’s website security uses several security measures to safeguard your data. It hires a third party to test its website annually for vulnerabilities. It does not store passwords in plain text, and it encrypts its database and all uploaded images, with additional encryption for sensitive data. Mercury uses one-time, time-sensitive passwords for two-factor authentication (2FA). This is done through Authy or Google Authenticator.

The fintech uses Plaid to connect your accounts securely to apps or other accounts. Mercury is SOC 2-compliant. You can get a copy of the fintech’s SOC 2 report by emailing security@mercury.com.

Mercury user reviews

Mercury has received solid reviews online, with Trustpilot users giving the fintech 3.8 stars out of 5 based on around 950 reviews.

Positive reviews raved about the fast onboarding process. Another user was amazed the fintech worked over the weekend for them to get a legal name changed on an account. Negative reviews complained about accounts being closed and about having to contact Mercury via email instead of by phone.

Compare Mercury alternatives

Is Mercury right for you?

Mercury is best for larger startups and tech companies with large teams. It is also best for businesses looking to earn interest from high balances or potentially looking for venture debt to expand a business. It is not best for very small companies with balances too small to earn interest earnings or businesses that handle cash regularly. But if your large tech company or startup is looking for a fintech banking provider to handle large balances and complicated account controls, Mercury is a great option.

Frequently asked questions