Find the Best Business Bank Account for Your Small Business

The Best Business Bank Accounts for Australian Small Businesses in 2026

A business transaction account is the account every invoice, wage and tax payment runs through, and the wrong one costs money every month in ways that are easy to miss: a fee on each branch deposit, a percentage on every overseas card payment, a balance that earns nothing. There is no single best small business bank account; the right one depends on how the business takes money in and pays it out, not on which bank has the biggest brand.

This guide compares seven accounts on the things that decide the cost for a small business: the monthly fee, which transactions are free and which are charged, the card, whether the balance earns interest, and how the account feeds accounting software. Figures are as at 9 September 2026 from each bank's own product page; fees, features and offers are subject to change, so confirm the current terms before opening an account.

Evaluating the Best Business Bank Accounts in Australia

Start with how the business banks. A trade business paid by bank transfer and paying suppliers online can run on a $0 account with unlimited electronic transactions and never pay a fee. A cafe or a retailer banking cash and cheques pays per assisted transaction on most $0 accounts, so a $10 account with branch transactions included can be cheaper. A business paid in foreign currency or buying from overseas suppliers should look at the foreign transaction fee on the card before anything else. And a business that holds a balance should ask whether the account pays interest, because most transaction accounts do not.

Then the practical points: the account must feed the business's accounting software, the app must handle the payments the business makes, and opening it usually needs an ABN or ACN, identification for each director or owner, and an Australian address or tax residency. Most of the accounts below can be applied for online in minutes, with the account open a day or two later.

Review of Top Australian Business Bank Accounts in 2026

NAB Business Everyday Account

NAB's $0 account gives unlimited free electronic transactions and free NAB ATM use, with a NAB Business Visa Debit card and a bank feed into accounting software (NAB offers Xero free for six months on opening). Banker-assisted deposits and withdrawals cost $3 each, cheques an extra $3, and express, coin and cheque deposit machines $3 a transaction on the $0 option; NAB's $10 monthly option includes 15 free eligible transactions a month for a business that banks cash. NAB says the online application takes as little as ten minutes, with the account open within one to two business days, for sole traders, partners, company directors and trustees who are Australian tax residents. Suits a business that banks electronically; a business depositing cash daily will feel the $3s.

Westpac Business One

Business One has no account-keeping fee and no charge on self-service deposits and withdrawals, with staff-assisted transactions at $3. The step-up, Business One Plus, costs $10 a month and includes five branch transactions. The card is a Mastercard business debit card; foreign transaction fees are 3% at overseas merchants and 2.2% at Australian merchants charging in foreign currency, though foreign currency transfers through online banking carry no transfer fee. The account pays no interest. Suits a business that wants a big-bank branch network with a $0 base; the foreign transaction fees are the line to check.

ANZ Business Essentials

ANZ charges no monthly service fee and no fee on ANZ ATM or electronic transactions, with staff-assisted, cheque and manual merchant deposit transactions at $2.50 each until 29 September 2026. ANZ's published fee changes lift all three to $4.00 from 30 September 2026, which puts it above NAB and Westpac ($3) for assisted transactions from that date. It comes with an ANZ Business Visa Debit card, bank feeds to eligible accounting software, and software offers on opening (MYOB free for 12 months, or 90% off Xero for six months).

CommBank Business Transaction Account

CommBank offers two fee options on the one account: $0 a month for a business that banks online, or $10 a month with five assisted transactions included. Assisted transactions beyond the allowance are $5 each and QuickCash deposits $10 each, the highest cash-handling charges in this comparison, and the account pays no credit interest. It comes with a Business Visa Debit card, links to a Business Online Saver for interest on surplus cash, and connects to CommBank's EFTPOS and merchant services. Suits a business already on CommBank merchant facilities that banks little cash.

Bank of Melbourne Freedom Business Account

The Freedom Business Account is $0 a month for the first 12 months for accounts opened up to 31 July 2027, then $10 a month, and it includes unlimited electronic transactions plus five in-branch transactions a month, with further staff-assisted or cheque transactions at $3 each. The card is a Business Visa Debit. The card carries a 3% foreign currency conversion fee. Suits a business near Bank of Melbourne's Victorian branch network that uses a branch a few times a month; the $10 fee after the first year is the number to weigh against a $0 account with $3 assisted transactions.

AMP Business Cash Manager

AMP's Business Cash Manager is the one account here that pays interest on the working balance: a tiered variable rate that applies from $10,000, with a lower tier again above $250,000, and nothing on the first $10,000. There are no ongoing account fees, a Visa debit card with the mobile wallets, and it is open to sole traders, companies, partnerships, trusts and other entity types, with an online application AMP puts at 10 to 20 minutes. It is online only, so there is no branch and no cash or cheque handling. Suits a business that holds a five-figure balance between BAS payments and banks electronically; the rate itself is on AMP's page and changes, so check it before relying on it.

Prospa Business Account

Prospa, better known as a lender, runs a $0-fee online business account with a Prospa Visa Business Debit card that carries no foreign transaction fees, plus BPAY and bank transfers, Apple and Google Pay, Tap to Pay for taking card payments on a phone, and automatic transaction sync to Xero. An optional rewards mode earns a Prospa Point per dollar paid but adds a 1% plus GST fee on each transaction while it is switched on, which is only worth it where the points beat the fee. Suits a small online-first business that wants payments and banking in one app and buys from overseas; there is no branch, and the page lists no interest on the balance.

Choosing the Right Business Bank Account for Your Needs

Count the business's transactions for a typical month, split them into electronic, assisted and cash, and price each account against that pattern; the answer is usually clear within a few minutes. A business that banks online and holds little cash will pay nothing on most of these accounts, and the choice comes down to the card's foreign transaction fee (3% at Westpac and Bank of Melbourne, nil at Prospa), the software feed and whether the bank also holds the business's loan or merchant facility, which can simplify life more than any single fee. A business with a working balance should keep the transaction account for payments and move the surplus to an account that pays interest.

Revisit the choice as the business changes. An account that suited a start-up paid by transfer may cost real money once the business takes cash or trades overseas, and the banks change fees and offers every year; ANZ's September 2026 change is one example. Moving an account is an afternoon's work, and switching direct debits is the only fiddly part.