How to Open Monzo Business Account Online

What Types of Business Bank Accounts are Available at Monzo?

Monzo keeps things simple with its business accounts, offering just two plans: Business Lite and Business Pro.

Business Lite

Lite is Monzo’s free business account. It only offers basic features:

As well as the usual key features of Monzo (which we’ll cover shortly).

Business Pro

The Pro account has everything the Lite plan offers, but with additional features:

Key Features

Both Monzo business accounts provide the following:

It also provides the key features you’d expect from any business account, such as a debit card, instant UK bank transfers, mobile apps, and the option to pay in cash and cheques.

This simple set of features works well for many entrepreneurs. However, those who are looking for more business support may benefit from an account like ANNA, which offers tools to help you run your company. Our business account can calculate and file VAT return and corporation tax, alongside other similar features.

Monzo Business Account Pros and Cons

No business account is perfect. Below, we’ve summarised the pros and cons of Monzo’s offering.

Pros

Monzo is part of the £85,000 FSCS protection scheme. This means that eligible deposits up to this amount will be protected, regardless of what happens to Monzo.

Another of the bank’s main selling points is that it's well-suited for those who want to use it internationally. It’s cheap and easy to use your business debit card abroad, and you can even withdraw some cash from foreign ATMs without fees.

Monzo also has a simple fee structure, with just two plans. Plus, even its most expensive tier is just £5 a month, which is cheaper than most traditional banks.

Cons

While Monzo’s simplicity is a draw to many, it can also be a limitation. For instance, you can’t manage your account over the phone or at a branch if you encounter issues, which is a dealbreaker for many.

Although its low fees are one of the primary draws, they may not always be as generous as they first appear. For some businesses, the £1 fee for paying in cash and the 1% currency conversion fee for receiving international payments can add up.

Also, relying on a third-party (Wise) for international transactions isn’t ideal in case something goes wrong with the process.

What are the Requirements to Open a Monzo Business Account? 

To apply for a Monzo business account, you must be either a sole trader or a limited company director in the UK. Charities and partnerships aren’t eligible.

You must also meet the following criteria:

There are additional criteria for limited companies:

You can open a Monzo account for up to three businesses.

Restricted businesses

You can’t open a business account with Monzo if you are operating a business from the industries below:

If this is your case, you are welcome to open a business account with ANNA.

Here is a common list of industries that can’t open a business account neither at Monzo nor at ANNA:

What Documents Do I Need to Provide to Open a Monzo Business Account?

You’ll need the following documents to open an account:

How Much Does a Monzo Business Account cost?

A full breakdown of Monzo business account fees can be found on their website. However, we’ve summarised the fees below.

Monzo Monthly Account Fees

The Business Lite plan is free, while Business Pro costs £5 per month.

Monzo International Payment Fees

It’s free to use your card abroad – Monzo won’t inflate the exchange rate for a profit or charge other hidden fees.

Monzo keeps the fees for its international payments simple.

There’s a 1% currency conversion fee for receiving international payments, with a cap of £1,000 per transaction.

Monzo offers its outbound transactions through an integration with the payment solution Wise. Therefore, the fees in question are set by Wise and not Monzo.

Wise’s conversion fees vary depending on the currency, but they start at 0.33%.

Monzo Local Transfers

There are no fees on local transfers with a Monzo account.

Monzo Pay Cash In Deposit

There’s a £1 fee to pay in cash into your account from the UK.

Monzo ATM Withdrawals

In countries outside the European Economic Area, you can take out £200 every 30 days fee-free, after which there’s a fee of 3%.

Within the UK and the European Economic Area, this service is free.

Can you Pay a Cheque in an Online Monzo Business?

Yes. Monzo lets you pay in cheques of up to £500 through its app, and over £500 by post.

Monzo vs ANNA Fees

We’ve summarised the cheapest fees for ANNA and Monzo in the table below.

ANNA vs Monzo fees comparison

How to Apply for a Monzo Business Account

Monzo prides itself on a simple sign-up service, and you can carry out the process straight from your phone.

It involves the following steps:

Or, if you already have a personal account with the bank, you can log into the app, click “Do more with Monzo” and select the option to open a business account. Then, the rest of the steps are the same as above.

You can’t apply for an account over the phone or at a branch.

Monzo Business Account Customer Reviews

On Trustpilot, Monzo has an average rating of 4.1, which puts it in the “great” category. This is across more than 35,000 reviews.

Customers generally reported that they enjoyed using the app and its features and found it straightforward to navigate. However, some of the negative reviews were frustrated with the poor customer service and long wait times.

It has a much lower rating of 1.7 on Reviews.io, but this is only across 125 reviews.

This compares with an average rating of 4.5 for ANNA on Trustpilot, across more than 3,000 reviews.

Monzo vs ANNA – A Case Study

Let’s compare the costs of a Business Pro account on Monzo with a standard business account on ANNA.

In this example, an entrepreneur has the following costs:

When using Monzo Pro, the entrepreneur would face the following fees:

Meanwhile, when using the Standard Business ANNA account, fees would be as follows: 

Total fees for Monzo would be £35, while the fees for ANNA would be just £15.90, making ANNA the cheaper option.

FAQs

Can I Open a Monzo Business Account Online?

Yes, but you must download the app and open the account from your phone.

How Long Does a Monzo Business Account Take to Open?

It takes the average customer one day to open their account. In some cases, it may take a few days.

How Do I Close my Monzo Business Account?

First, make sure your balance is £0. Then, tap on your profile icon, go to settings, and click “close account.”

Embrace the Banking Revolution

Setting up a business account no longer means heading to the high street and registering with one of the big names. There are now a whole host of challenger banks vying for your attention with the allure of low fees and forward-thinking features, such as Monzo.

For a modern business account with all the trappings of Monzo plus additional support features, look no further than ANNA. Opening an ANNA business account will give you access to tools that help you file taxes and run your company, as well as low fees for international payments.

Best of all, you can give it a go for free.

Summary table

ANNA vs Monzo features comparison table

Sources:
https://monzo.com/legal/business-account-fee-information/#general-account-services 
https://monzo.com/business-banking/eligibility/