Top 5 Mercury Bank alternatives: compare fees, features, & benefits
Fast-paced, growing businesses need a flexible yet secure business bank account to manage cash flow, simplify transactions, and enable financial operations across borders without excessive wait times, red tape, or fees.
While Mercury Bank is one option, evaluating additional platforms ensures you find a financial partner that aligns with your goals, offers competitive advantages, and supports your business as it scales.
In this guide, we’ll explore how Mercury Bank compares to other leading financial platforms, focusing on fees, features, and benefits to help you select the right business banking option for your needs.
What is Mercury Bank?
Mercury Bank is a financial technology company that partners with regulated banks to provide digital financial services and products – primarily for early-stage startups.
Known for its venture debt funding services and read-write application programming interface (API), Mercury provides businesses with a tech-driven banking experience. In addition to no-fee business checking and savings accounts, it enables companies to send domestic ACH payments without additional costs. However, Mercury limits its accounts to businesses with existing or planned operations in the US.
Mercury Bank's products include virtual and physical debit cards, a corporate credit card, and an API for integrating custom banking functionalities into a company’s existing systems. It also integrates with financial tools like QuickBooks and PayPal.
Mercury allows limited currency conversions for international wires (USD to 20+ non-USD currencies) but lacks multi-currency accounts. Customers can only accept payments in USD, and intermediary banks handle conversions at rates outside their control.
Signing up for a Mercury Bank account is free; however, Mercury charges a 1% currency exchange fee, and customers using Mercury Treasury will incur a percentage fee based on assets held.¹
The top 5 Mercury Bank alternatives
Mercury Bank offers a low-cost digital banking experience but is one of many financial platforms worth reviewing.
Here are five noteworthy Mercury Bank competitors and their benefits.
Airwallex: Airwallex is a global financial platform that empowers businesses with multi-currency Business Accounts to manage currencies and FX, make high-speed international transfers, and issue multi-currency corporate cards to simplify expenses. Designed for businesses with global operations, Airwallex offers advanced capabilities like onboarding customers with legal entities in multiple countries, providing Global Accounts in 23 currencies, and delivering robust FX solutions. Airwallex enables seamless global transactions for eCommerce businesses with features like Payment Links and Payment Acceptance, enhancing operational efficiency and customer experiences.
Bluevine: Bluevine provides small businesses and entrepreneurs with digital banking solutions, including business checking accounts, credit cards, and financing options. Known for its flexible lines of credit and easy-to-use interface, Bluevine delivers accessible financial products at transparent pricing.
Brex: A financial platform offering credit cards and cash management accounts for startups and high-growth companies, Brex strongly emphasizes simplified credit and financing – especially through its business credit cards – and helping businesses scale.
Novo: Novo offers easy-to-use banking services on a mobile-first platform. Its simple, no-fee checking accounts are a good option for smaller businesses or freelancers looking for an intuitive, low-cost banking solution, as are its tools that simplify managing business finances.
Ramp: Founded as a corporate credit card with spend management software, Ramp offers tools that help businesses manage expenses and streamline operations from one integrated platform. Ramp is a good option for small businesses and startups looking to improve their financial operations.
Find out for yourself how Airwallex compares to Mercury Bank.
Compare the top 5 Mercury Bank competitors
Provider | Account type | Transaction fees (payments and transfers) | Payment methods | API and integrations | International capabilities |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Mercury Bank | Business checking and savings accounts | No domestic transaction fees; free USD international wires with SHA option; $15 fee for OUR option to cover recipient's fees² 3% currency conversion fee for transactions made in non-USD currencies³ | ACH transfers, wire transfers, debit cards | Integrates with QuickBooks, Xero, and NetSuite; offers API access | Supports international wire transfers Does not offer multi-currency accounts. Accounts are in USD, so funds cannot be held or received in multiple currencies |
Airwallex | Global financial platform providing multi-currency business accounts | $0 for international and domestic transfers using local rails in 120+ countries Currency conversions at 0.5-1% above interbank rates | Process payments with Visa, MasterCard, Amex, and 160+ local methods Collect payments in 130+ currencies Issue multi-currency cards in 40 markets | Integrates with QuickBooks, Xero, and NetSuite; offers robust API for embedded finance | Multi-currency accounts supporting 23+ currencies Open local accounts in 60+ countries with local bank details Payouts to 150+ countries, 120+ via local rails, ~90% within hours/same day, 60% instant. |
Bluevine | Business checking accounts, lines of credit | No fees for incoming domestic payments; free standard ACH Outgoing domestic wires $15. Outgoing international wires $25 (+1.5% for non-USD)4 | ACH transfers, wire transfers, debit cards, business credit cards | Integrates with QuickBooks, Xero, Wave, and Expensify; offers limited API access5 | Supports international payments to 30+ countries; does not offer multi-currency accounts. Accounts are in USD6 |
Brex | Cash management accounts, corporate credit cards7 | International wire transfers and card transactions in non-USD currency subject to exchange rate chosen by Brex8 ACH transfers, domestic wire transfers, sent checks, and check deposits can only be completed in USD | Corporate credit cards, ACH bank transfers, wire transfers, Brex payment platform, bank account linking | Integrates with Oracle NetSuite, QuickBooks, Xero; offers API access9 | Offers local-currency cards in 45 countries and local reimbursements in 63 countries10 |
Novo | Business checking accounts | $27 insufficient funds charge and uncollected funds return fee11 1.5% total transaction volume for outgoing express ACH | Business checking account, debit cards, ACH transfers, payment integrations, Apple Pay, Google Pay | Integrates with Stripe, Shopify, Quickbooks; offers limited API access12 | Customers can receive international wires but can only send them through Novo’s integration with Wise |
Ramp | Corporate credit cards | $20 fee for international wire transfers13 | Corporate cards, ACH transfers, bill pay, wire transfers, bank account linking, payment integrations14 | Integrates with Oracle NetSuite, Quickbooks, and Xero; offers API access15 | Pay global vendors in USD across 195 countries or in 40 foreign currencies Partners with Wise for FX16 |
Why choose Airwallex over Mercury Bank?
| Airwallex | Mercury Bank |
|---|---|---|
Cross-border payment capabilities (currencies) | Payments in 130+ currencies; FX in 60+ currencies | Supports only USD payments; intermediary banks handle conversions for non-USD currencies at variable rates |
FX rate | 0.5-1% | Variable rates with 1% fee¹ |
$0 withdrawal fees | ✅ | ✅ |
No opening, monthly, or overdraft fees | ✅ | ✅ |
Employee debit cards | ✅ | ✅ |
Multi-currency corporate cards | ✅ | ❌ |
0% international transaction fees | ✅* | ❌ |
Hold and manage balances in 23+ currencies | ✅ | ❌ |
Payment acceptance capabilities (e.g., Payment Links, APIs, local payment methods) | ✅ (In-house capabilities for global payments) | ❌ (Requires third-party services like Stripe for payment acceptance, and primarily available within the US) |
Robust global accounts infrastructure | ✅ | ❌ |
Dedicated account manager | ✅** | ❌ |
**When using local rails
**For corporate card accounts, eligible businesses
What questions should I ask when choosing an alternative to Mercury Bank?
Keep these ten important questions ready when considering financial platform alternatives to Mercury Bank.
What currencies do you support?
What are the currency conversion charges?
What are the fees for international transfers or wire payments?
What are the transaction fees, and do they vary?
Are there any setup, ongoing, or early termination fees?
What payment methods do you support?
Are there minimum transactions or volume amounts?
What kind of customer support do you offer?
What are your security credentials?
What integrations do you offer?
Airwallex: A leading Mercury Bank alternative
Airwallex provides the most expansive global infrastructure among Mercury Bank alternatives, offering local accounts in 60+ countries, multi-currency support, and seamless cross-border payments. Designed for startups and enterprises, its cost-effective platform enables businesses to scale internationally with features like robust FX solutions, corporate cards, and local payment methods.
Unlike Mercury Bank, which focuses primarily on US-based businesses, Airwallex supports global operations. Its comprehensive toolkit saves time and money while simplifying international transactions. Thus, Airwallex empowers businesses to navigate the complexities of global finance and accelerate growth.
Find out for yourself how Airwallex compares to Mercury Bank.
Sources & references
https://mercury.com/pricing
https://mercury.com/faq
https://support.mercury.com/hc/en-us/articles/28779250688788-Debit-card-FAQs
https://support.bluevine.com/s/article/Does-my-Bluevine-Business-Checking-account-have-fees
https://www.bluevine.com/guides/checking/connecting-financial-apps
https://www.bluevine.com/business-checking/international-payments
https://www.brex.com/product/credit-card
https://www.brex.com/support/cost-of-brex-services
https://www.brex.com/product/api
https://www.brex.com/product/global
https://www.novo.co/blog/novo-faqs
https://www.novo.co/integrations
https://support.ramp.com/hc/en-us/articles/10593954538259-International-wires-on-Ramp-Bill-Pay
https://support.ramp.com/hc/en-us/articles/4417836454419-Bill-payment-methods-and-timelines
https://ramp.com/integrations
https://ramp.com/international-payments-pricing#app
Disclaimer:
We wrote this article in Q1 2025. The information was based on our own online research, and we were not able to manually test each tool or provider. The information is provided for educational purposes only, and readers should consider their business's specific requirements when evaluating providers. If you would like to request an update, feel free to contact us at [email protected].
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Erin is a business finance writer at Airwallex, where she creates content that helps businesses across the Americas navigate the complexities of finance and payments. With nearly a decade of experience in corporate communications and content strategy for B2B enterprises and developer-focused startups, Erin brings a deep understanding of the SaaS landscape. Through her focus on thought leadership and storytelling, she helps businesses address their financial challenges with clear and impactful content.
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