Business Bank Account in Germany 2026: Banks Compared, Costs and Opening

At a Glance

• Costs: Digital business accounts start at €0 a month. Traditional banks usually charge €12–30; Commerzbank, for example, charges €15.90 after a free first year.
• Obligation: A UG, GmbH and AG must have their own account. Freelancers, sole traders and a GbR do not need one, but a separate account is almost always the better choice.
• Our picks: Vivid, Finom and N26 Business for a free start, Qonto for growing businesses and GmbH formation, FYRST for cash.
• Opening: Digital providers open your account online in 1–5 business days, usually with an ID and video identification. Traditional banks take 1–4 weeks.
• After that: Connect the account to your bookkeeping via open banking, or Qonto through the official Qonto-Norman integration. Your transactions then flow automatically into your EÜR or balance sheet.

Which Business Account Fits You?

Norman itself held several business accounts with providers from this article, so we can compare the products as customers.

The monthly fee alone says little. What matters is your legal form, how many transfers you make and whether you deposit cash. Our picks by need:

Note: Some links on this page are affiliate links. If you open an account through them, we earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.

With the code NORMAN50 you get a €50 bonus straight into your Qonto account, valid for new customers in Germany. All 9 accounts with cards, cash and bookkeeping features in detail are in our business account comparison.

Business Accounts Compared (as of September 2026)

We checked the prices with the providers on 29 September 2026. The table shows the cheapest plan of each provider. Almost all providers have larger plans with more transfers, cards and sub-accounts.

What Does a Business Account Cost in Daily Use?

The monthly fee is only part of the bill. These items decide what you pay at the end of the month:

• Transfers and direct debits: Many plans include only a few free bookings. After that, each one costs €0.19–0.25.
• Cards: The first card is usually included, but often only a virtual one. A physical card costs €3 a month with Finom Solo and Holvi Flex, and a one-off €10 with N26.
• Cash: Deposits cost extra almost everywhere, for example 1.5% via CASH26 at N26.
• Foreign payments: Transfers outside the SEPA area cost extra, depending on the plan.

Example: You make 20 transfers a month, use a virtual card and deposit no cash. This is what it costs on the cheapest plan:

If you need more cards, sub-accounts or far more bookings, a plan with an included quota pays off, for example Qonto Basic (€9, 30 transfers), Tide Smart (€9.99, 75 transfers) or FYRST Complete (€10, 75 bookings). All account fees are business expenses and fully deductible.

Do You Need a Business Account?

Whether you need a business account depends only on your legal form:

Corporations (UG, GmbH, AG) must have their own account, because they are legal entities and have to deposit their share capital in a provable way. How this works for a GmbH is covered in Opening a GmbH Business Account.

For freelancers, sole traders and a GbR there is no obligation; the tax office does not require a business account. Why one almost always pays off anyway is covered in Business Account for Freelancers.

Using a Personal Account for Business: Allowed, but Risky

As a freelancer or sole trader you may legally use your personal account for business too; the tax office does not object. The catch is the bank: most banks exclude business use of personal current accounts in their terms. If the bank notices heavy business traffic, it can demand a switch to a business account or, in extreme cases, close the account.

There is also the effort: with a mixed account you have to mark every transaction as private or business at year-end. A separate account spares you that and makes your bookkeeping audit-proof.

Which Banks the Self-Employed Really Use

Our Banking Monitor shows how the self-employed choose in practice. For it, we analysed more than 1,000 bank connections that self-employed people and small businesses linked to their bookkeeping in Norman. More than six in ten lead to a neobank. N26 leads clearly with about 22%, ahead of Revolut (11%), all Sparkassen together (9%) and Qonto (8%).

By legal form, the picture splits: freelancers bank most often with N26, UG and GmbH with Qonto. Almost one in three corporations has connected a Qonto account (about 31%), ahead of Sparkasse with about 15%.

The numbers show which account really works day to day: people link the account through which their income, expenses and receipts run.

What to Look for When Choosing

1. Legal form: N26 Business opens accounts only for the self-employed, and Qonto's free Starter plan is only for freelancers and sole traders. FYRST charges a UG, GmbH and GbR €6 a month after six months.
2. Your bookings: Count the transfers, direct debits and card payments of a typical month. The cheapest plan depends on them, not on the monthly fee.
3. Cash: If you deposit cash regularly, your main options are FYRST with the Deutsche Bank and Postbank branches and traditional branch banks. With N26 it works via CASH26 for 1.5%.
4. Deposit protection: Not every provider is a bank. The next section explains what that means for your balance.
5. Bookkeeping: Look for open banking and a DATEV export. Your bookkeeping software then fetches the transactions automatically, and your tax advisor gets clean data.
6. Cards and team: Several partners or employees need their own cards and permissions. You usually get these only on larger plans.

Bank or Payment Institution: What Happens to Your Balance

Qonto is a payment institution, Finom an e-money institution. Both keep your balance separate from their own assets at partner banks, but the statutory deposit protection of up to €100,000 does not apply. N26, FYRST and Commerzbank are banks; Kontist runs its accounts through Solaris SE and Tide through Adyen N.V. There, the statutory deposit protection covers your balance up to €100,000.

Expert opinion

For my business and myself I usually keep around three accounts: one operational main account, typically at a neobank; one reserve account at an older bank with a full license; and one account for special needs, like good FX or higher interest rates.

The three-account system shows how to split income, taxes and reserves cleanly.

Opening a Business Account in 5 Steps

1. Clarify your needs: legal form, number of bookings, cash, cards for the team.
2. Choose a provider: Use the table above or the business account comparison.
3. Prepare your documents: The overview below shows what you need.
4. Apply online: You apply in the app or in the browser. The provider checks your identity by video or automatic identification, which takes a few minutes.
5. Get the account ready: Give the IBAN to clients, the tax office and payment providers, put it on your invoices and connect the account to your bookkeeping.

With digital providers, opening usually takes 1–5 business days; with traditional banks 1–4 weeks. For a UG or GmbH in formation, you then deposit the share capital. You need the bank's deposit confirmation for the registration in the commercial register.

Connecting Your Business Account to Your Bookkeeping

The biggest time saving comes after opening. If you connect your business account to Norman via open banking, Norman fetches every transaction automatically, detects the VAT and assigns the right category. Norman matches receipts to payments, and your EÜR and VAT return fill themselves from the same data. This works with most German business accounts, including N26, Qonto, Vivid, Finom and Commerzbank. Qonto also has an official Qonto-Norman integration: you connect the account directly in Norman under Integrations.

Switching Your Business Account

Unlike for personal accounts, there is no statutory account-switching service for business accounts. This is how you move without missing a payment:

1. Open the new account and run the old one in parallel for one or two months.
2. Give the new IBAN to clients, suppliers, the tax office, your health insurer and payment providers.
3. Move standing orders and direct debits.
4. Close the old account once no more payments arrive there.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a business bank account?

A business account is a current account only for business payments: income from clients and expenses for materials, software or rent. Technically it works like a personal account, but the bank runs it for your business and charges its own fees.

Which business account is the best?

It depends on your legal form and your bookings. For freelancers with few transfers, Vivid, N26 Business and Finom cost nothing to run. For a UG or GmbH we recommend Qonto, for cash FYRST. All details are in the business account comparison.

How much does a business bank account cost per month?

Digital providers start at €0 a month, traditional banks usually at €12–30. Depending on the plan, fees for extra transfers (usually €0.19–0.25), physical cards and cash come on top.

Are there free business accounts?

Yes. Vivid, N26 Business, Finom, Tide, Kontist, Holvi, FYRST and Qonto have plans without a monthly fee. Truly free in daily use are mainly the plans with included transfers, for example at Vivid and N26 Business.

Is a business account mandatory?

It depends on the legal form. For a UG, GmbH and AG it is legally required. For freelancers, sole traders and a GbR there is no obligation, but a separate account is strongly recommended.

Do I need a business bank account before I register as self-employed?

No. Freelancers and sole traders have no legal obligation to have a business account, neither before nor after registration. Many open one right after registering, so that business and private money are separate from the first invoice. A UG or GmbH needs its account before it is entered in the commercial register, because the share capital must be paid into it first.

As a self-employed person, may I use my personal account for business?

Legally yes, the tax office does not object. But most banks prohibit business use of personal current accounts in their terms and can demand a switch to a business account or close the account.

Can I open a business account without a SCHUFA check?

With some digital providers, yes; Kontist, for example, advertises opening without a SCHUFA check. If you need an overdraft or a loan, the bank almost always checks your credit.

How long does opening an account take?

With digital providers usually 1–5 business days, often within a day via video identification. Traditional banks take one to four weeks, often with an appointment at the branch.

Which documents do I need for a business account?

Always a valid ID and your tax ID or tax number. Traders also show their trade registration; companies show their articles of association and, once registered, the commercial register extract.

Are account fees tax-deductible?

Yes. Fees for a business account are business expenses and reduce your profit. With a mixed-use personal account the deduction is hard to separate cleanly.

How many business accounts do I need?

One is enough to start. Many self-employed people later use two or three: a main account for daily business, one for tax reserves and one as a reserve. The three-account system shows how it works.

Conclusion

A business account is mandatory only for a UG, GmbH and AG, but for almost everyone else it is the better choice. Choose it by your legal form and your bookings, not by the monthly fee. If you make few transfers, start for free with Vivid, N26 Business or Finom. If you are growing or founding a GmbH, Qonto serves you well, and if you deposit cash, go with FYRST. Connect the account to your bookkeeping from day one, and a large part of the work takes care of itself.

Read on: Business account comparison · Business Account for Freelancers · Opening a GmbH Business Account · Banking Monitor