Business banking with sub-accounts

If you want to separate business money into buckets for taxes, profit, operating expenses, and individual client projects, there are several good U.S. business banking options. The key difference is whether a provider offers true sub-accounts or lets you open multiple separate checking accounts under one login.

For your use case, I'd start by comparing Relay, Bluevine, and Found. They make it easier to keep money allocated for a specific purpose instead of relying on a spreadsheet to remember what's already committed.

Best business accounts for separating funds

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1. Relay

(Best for multiple buckets)

Open separate checking accounts named Taxes, Profit, Operating Expenses, Payroll, or Client A. Relay offers up to 20 checking accounts on its Starter and Grow plans, with a lower limit for sole proprietors, and up to 50 on Scale. The Starter plan has no monthly maintenance fee.relayfi.com+1

Best if: You want distinct accounts, clear transaction histories, and control over who can access each account.

Relay business banking

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2. Bluevine

(Best for flexible sub-accounts)

Offers up to 5 sub-accounts on Standard, 10 on Plus, and 50 on Premier. Each has its own account number, and you can set automatic transfer rules and issue separate debit cards. Standard has no monthly account fee.www.bluevine.com+1

Best if: You want separate buckets but also want to receive payments directly into project-specific accounts or automate transfers.

Bluevine business checking

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3. Found

(Best for freelancers)

Includes dedicated Pockets for different purposes, with up to 20 total. You can organize client revenue, taxes, and business expenses, and use automated tax estimates and bookkeeping tools. Its standard account has no monthly maintenance fee.found.com+2

Best if: You're a freelancer, consultant, or solo service provider who wants banking and tax organization in one place.

Found business banking

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4. Mercury

Lets you create multiple checking and savings accounts, name them by purpose, use virtual debit cards, and automate transfers between accounts. Its business banking offering has no required monthly fee.support.mercury.com+2

Best if: You run an online business, agency, or startup and want strong digital account controls.

Mercury business banking

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5. Novo

Novo Reserves lets you create up to 20 named budgeting buckets and automatically allocate a percentage of incoming deposits. The checking account has no monthly maintenance fee. Unlike Relay and Bluevine, Reserves are budgeting allocations within your checking account, not separate accounts with their own account numbers.www.novo.co+2

Best if: You want simple tax, profit, and expense buckets without opening additional bank accounts.

Novo business checking

Quick comparison

Feature details and plan limits are based on the providers' published information available in October 2026. Eligibility, transaction fees, interest rates, and other terms can vary.www.bluevine.com+4

Which would I choose?

• For Profit First budgeting: Relay. You can create dedicated accounts for income, taxes, owner pay, profit, and operating expenses.
• For client projects: Bluevine or Relay. Separate account numbers can make it easier to direct payments and manage project funds.
• For a solo freelancer who wants tax tools: Found.
• For simple automated budgeting: Novo.

One important distinction: a labeled bucket doesn't always prevent you from spending money allocated to it. If you need strong separation between funds committed to different projects, check whether the provider lets you pay directly from each account and control debit cards or access permissions.

Let me narrow it down for your business

Are you operating as a solo freelancer, an LLC, or an agency with employees/contractors? That will help me identify the best fit, especially if you need a separate bucket for each client project rather than just taxes and profit.

Several business banking platforms allow you to segment your cash flow for things like taxes, profit, and client projects . However, these platforms approach "sub-accounts" in two distinct ways: virtual buckets (where money sits inside one main account dashboard but isn't a separate bank routing number) or true sub-accounts/multiple accounts (which can have unique account numbers or standalone structures).bluevine.com+2

The best options on the market that cater to this style of budgeting and cash-flow management include:

1. Bluevine (Best for True Sub-Accounts with Unique Numbers)

Bluevine offers robust business checking sub-accounts that come with their own unique account numbers, making them functional for targeted billing, expenses, or client projects.bluevine.com+1

• How it works: You can create dedicated sub-accounts under your primary checking account and set up automatic transfer rules. You can even issue unique physical or virtual debit cards tied directly to specific sub-accounts.bluevine.com+2
• Limits & Plans: The Standard plan includes up to 5 sub-accounts, the Plus plan scales up to 10, and the Premier plan allows up to 50 sub-accounts.bluevine.com
• Fees: No monthly maintenance fees on their standard tiers.

2. Relay Financial (Best for "Profit First" & Multiple Separate Accounts)

Relay is widely considered one of the best platforms for business owners practicing the Profit First accounting method because it lets you open up to 20 individual, distinct checking accounts under a single login.

• How it works: Rather than just "virtual buckets," Relay lets you create fully separate checking accounts (e.g., Income, Profit, Tax, Operating Expenses). You can set up automated percentage-based rules to route incoming deposits instantly.
• Fees: Zero monthly maintenance fees and no minimum balance requirements.
• Perk: FDIC insured up to $3 million through their partner bank (Thread Bank).

3. Novo (Best for Virtual "Reserves" / Envelope Budgeting)

Novo features a tool called Novo Reserves , which acts as a built-in budgeting and envelope system inside your primary business checking account.rho.co+1

• How it works: You can create up to 10 custom Reserves (named for taxes, equipment, or specific client projects) and set automatic rules to funnel a fixed dollar amount or percentage of every incoming deposit into them.novo.co+1
• The Catch: The money in a Reserve is virtually set aside so you don't accidentally spend it, but it still shares your main account's single routing and account number.novo.co
• Fees: Free to use with no monthly account fees.novo.co

4. Rho (Best for Unlimited Checking Sub-accounts)

Rho provides high-powered digital banking and treasury management that supports granular cash-flow organization for growing businesses.rho.co

• How it works: You can create individual checking sub-accounts for distinct organizational needs like payroll, taxes, or specific corporate projects, with each sub-account featuring its own dedicated account number.
• Fees/Minimums: Geared heavily toward modern companies and scaling teams, with automated workflows.rho.co

Quick Comparison to Help You Choose:

• Choose Bluevine if you want separate account numbers for distinct buckets or sub-entities without managing separate banking relationships.
• Choose Relay if you want completely standalone operational buckets with separate account numbers to strictly implement Profit First.
• Choose Novo if you prefer a clean app interface where funds are virtually partitioned ("budgeted") without needing separate account tracking for incoming wires/ACH.bluevine.com+1

If you'd like to narrow this down, let me know:

• Do you prefer virtual budgeting (one account number) or true separate account numbers for each bucket?
• Are you specifically trying to implement the Profit First methodology?

Yes. Several U.S. digital business-banking platforms now offer some version of envelopes, pockets, reserves, or sub-accounts that can automate tax set-asides.

The most relevant differences

Mercury lets you create additional checking or savings accounts and name them—for example, “Taxes,” “Payroll,” or “Operating Expenses.” Its auto-transfer rules can maintain target balances or distribute funds by percentage.Mercury+2

Found is particularly interesting if the primary goal is taxes. Its Pockets can be customized for things like Taxes, Payroll, Profit, and Operating Expenses, and deposits can automatically be allocated among them. For sole proprietors, Found can calculate an estimated tax requirement and automatically put that amount into the Taxes pocket.Found+3

Novo calls its envelopes Reserves. You can create separate buckets inside the checking account and automatically allocate either a percentage or fixed dollar amount from incoming deposits. Novo specifically describes tax, payroll, and slow-season reserves as use cases.Novo+2

Lili has an explicit Tax Bucket: each business-income deposit can have a predefined percentage automatically set aside. It's available on its paid Pro, Smart, and Premium plans.Lili Help Center+2

Relay takes a somewhat different approach: its savings accounts can use auto-transfer rules to move excess cash out of operating accounts into savings. That makes it useful if you want actual savings accounts rather than purely organizational buckets.Relay+1

If you're a founder choosing between them

For a startup/LLC/S-corp where you simply want a “Taxes” bucket, I'd focus on Mercury or Novo because their multi-account/reserve structure is flexible beyond taxes.

For a solo business where automated tax calculation is the main attraction, Found or Lili are more tax-centric.

One important distinction: a “bucket” generally isn't a separate legal bank account. For example, Novo explicitly says its Reserves remain part of the parent checking account, while Found's Pockets roll up into the overall account balance.Novo+1

If you tell me whether you're sole proprietor, single-member LLC, S-corp, or C-corp, I can narrow this to the options that make the most sense for your tax-reserve workflow.

Several top digital business banking platforms support automated envelope or bucket savings features to separate tax reserves, with Found and Novo leading for built-in tax automation, and Relay leading for multi-account envelope budgeting.novo.co+2

Top Digital Business Banks with Bucket/Envelope Features

Breakdown of Platform Functionality

• Found: Specifically built for self-employed operators and small businesses. It features a dedicated tax savings bucket that can auto-calculate what you owe based on income and automatically tuck away funds. It also supports up to 20 "Pockets" for custom allocations.found.com
• Novo: Offers Novo Reserves , which allow you to partition your core checking balance into virtual named buckets (e.g., "Q1 Taxes", "Operating"). You can set up auto-allocation rules so a set percentage of every incoming customer deposit instantly routes to your designated tax reserve.novo.zendesk.com+1
• Relay: Operates on a true multi-account structure rather than virtual sub-buckets. You can open up to 20 separate checking accounts under a single login (acting as digital envelopes). While it provides phenomenal visibility, automatic percentage-based splitting on incoming deposits is less natively automated than platforms like Found, meaning transfers often require manual setup or recurring rules.rho.co

If you can share your business structure (e.g., Sole Proprietor, single-member LLC, S-Corp) and whether you need automatic percentage-splitting or just manual multi-account partitioning , I can recommend the exact platform that fits your workflow.