Best Business Bank Account in Germany

As a business owner in Germany, it is recommended to have a business bank account (Geschäftskonto). Not only do business owners need a special bank account in Germany, but also self-employed, including freelancers.

Separating your personal income & expenses and revenue generated from self-employed is critical for accounting and keeping track of your finances. For some businesses, having a business bank account is even obligatory.

The best business bank accounts in Germany are:

1. Kontist
2. FINOM
3. Bunq
4. Fyrst
5. Qonto

It’s recommended that all freelancers, self-employed, and small businesses have two separate accounts; a business bank account “Geschäftskonto” and a private bank account “Privatkonto”. In Germany, you have a wide choice when it comes to banking, ranging from traditional branch banks to fully digitalized fintech companies.

Generally, you can select between the following banks to open a German business bank account:

• Bunq
• Kontist
• Hypovereinsbank
• Ethik Bank
• Fidor Bank
• FINOM
• Qonto
• netbank
• N26
• Targobank
• comdirect
• Holvi
• Noris
• Fyrst 
• Penta
• Postbank

Overview of all available banks for business owners, freelancers, and self-employed in Germany:

When selecting your business account, some things must be considered, e.g., whether the bank allows your legal forms of business or foreigners as account holders. In the end, the final decision is made by the financial organization.

In this article, we collected all the best German bank accounts for small businesses, self-employed, and freelancers.

Best German business bank accounts

Bank	Monthly fee	German IBAN	Cash withdrawal fee	Cash deposit fee
Bunq	4,99€	Yes	10 for free, after 0,99€/transaction	–
FINOM	0€	Yes	0	–
Qonto	9€	Yes	1%	–
Kontist	0€	Yes	2€	–
Fyrst	0€	Yes	free at Cash Group ATMs otherweise, 1,90€	0,6%
Fidor	0€	Yes	1,90€	1,9%

Kontist

Kontist is also a digital bank that was founded in Germany. They offer banking and accounting services exclusively for self-employed, small business owners, and freelancers in Germany.

A free account gives you a virtual debit card and many other perks. But you can always upgrade to 9 EUR per month for even more benefits. Both accounts include free unlimited transactions.

Furthermore, Kontist is virtually your private accountant in Germany but at a fraction of the cost (free or 9 EUR/month). It’s ranked 4,7 stars on Trusted.de and 4,5 on Trustpilot. 

With Kontist app, you can effectively:

• manage online banking and bookkeeping
• handle your taxes and communication with the German tax office
• consult experts

Kontist offers a 100% digital free bank account for freelancers, some handy add-ons for a small premium fee, and tax handling for your business. Their webpage, app, and customer service are in German and English. 

• Accounts ranging from free to 12 EUR per month
• Visa debit card
• Unlimited free transactions
• Service & customer support is 100% in English & German
• SEPA transfers 
• Overdraft facility – between 500 EUR and 5,000 EUR
• Accounting and invoicing integration

You can start with the free plan, sign up here.

FINOM

FINOM is a perfect digital solution for all self-employed and freelancers out there. Although it’s a French company, they provide banking services in Germany, Italy, and France.

FINOM is a complete solution for your business operations, including business bank accounts, invoicing, and accounting software integration. For example, the popular German accounting software Sorted is already integrated into FINOM.

You can open a free account and get a physical debit card together with free cash withdrawals. Customer service is available in both German and English.

FINOM business bank account offers:

• Accounts ranging from 0 to 69 EUR per month
• Visa debit card
• Free cash withdrawals up to 10,000 EUR
• Cashback on card expenses
• Online account opening in a few minutes
• 50 free SEPA transfers
• Invoicing and accounting integration
• All major legal forms accepted

Bunq

Bunq is a new banking concept founded in the Netherlands but provides services in all EU countries. It’s a 100% online bank.

Bunq business account fee starts from 4,99 EUR and gives you a German IBAN number. Moreover, they offer a free trial where you can test the account for one month.

You can use Bunq’s bank account and cards in Germany, all European countries, and beyond.

Bunq offers:

• Affordable business bank account (4,99 EUR)
• Immediate access to the bank account
• A business account with multiple local IBANs and currencies
• Free ATM withdrawals 
• Fantastic user interface and simple navigation
• Instant transfers/payments
• English app and support

Qonto

Qonto is a French digital banking service operating in Germany (German IBAN included) and focusing on freelancers & small businesses. Their services are available in French, English, Italian, Spanish and German. 

Business bank account from Qonto ranges in price from 9 EUR to 39 EUR per month.

Qonto accepts all major legal forms of businesses, like freelancers, GmbH, and UG. Depending on the plan you choose, a certain amount of monthly transactions is included (from 30 to 1,000 transactions per month).

Qonto features:

• Monthly fees from 9 EUR
• Online account opening in 10 minutes
• Free debit Mastercard 
• English website and customer service
• Overdraft up to 20,000 EUR per month
• Basic travel insurance included

*In 2022, Qonto acquired digital bank Penta.

Penta (Now part of Qonto)

Penta is another digital bank for businesses in Germany. They accept all major legal forms of business, so if you are a freelancer or if you are a business owner – you will be able to get a bank account with Penta.

The business bank account at Penta starts at 9 EUR per month and goes up to 49 EUR for the enterprise plan. Together with a bank account, you will get two free debit cards and can make up to 100 free transactions each month.

English-speaking app and customer support are also available. Their services are available in German, English, and Italian. 

Benefits of Penta’s business account:

• All major legal forms accepted (e.g. freelancers, GmbH, UG)
• Free in the first month, after 9 EUR
• Free physical debit card included
• 30 up to 100 free SEPA transactions per month
• Online banking available in English
• Country-specific IBAN: German, French, Italian, or Spanish
• Integrated and automated accounting

*In 2022, Penta was acquired by Qonto.

Fyrst

First is a German digital bank that offers dedicated accounts to self-employed and freelancers. You can get a free account as a freelancer and for a small fee as an incorporated business. However, they only offer services in the German language.

First provides a free debit card and 50 free transactions per month. With that card, withdrawing money in Germany is very easy and free! You can withdraw and deposit money at 10.000 ATMs all over Germany.

Generally, Fyrst offers only two different accounts, the free BASE account and the COMPLETE for 10 EUR per month. The BASE bank account is free for self-employed or freelancers, legal entities (e.g., GmbH, UG, GbR) will pay a small fee of 6 EUR.

Benefits of Fyrst business bank account:

• Major legal forms accepted
• Free debit card
• Free for freelancers and a small fee for businesses
• Up to 50 free SEPA transactions per month
• Possibility for instant payment transfers
• Free ATM cash withdrawals at more than 10,000 Cash Group ATMs
• Possibility for cash deposits

Criteria

How did we select the best German business bank accounts? We looked at the following parameters:

• Account maintenance fee & monthly price
• Costs for cash withdrawals
• Costs for cash deposits
• Interest rate
• Availability of a debit card
• Number of free transactions
• Ease of opening the account as a foreigner
• Costs
• Availability of German IBAN
• Other charges
• Accepted legal forms
• Customer service and language

Business bank account for freelancers in Germany

Kontist is by far the best bank account designated for freelancers working in Germany. In fact, it’s only available to freelancers and self-employed; legal persons such as GmbH, and UG can’t open an account with them. Kontist is a 100% digital bank offering integrated accounting with it.

Highlights of Kontist bank account:

• It’s free
• Free virtual debit card included
• Unlimited free transactions
• Online banking available in English
• Only available for freelancers and self-employed in Germany
• Allows to handle taxes and communication with the German tax office
• Overdraft facility – between 500 EUR and 5,000 EUR

Who needs a business bank account in Germany?

In Germany, business accounts are mandatory for incorporated companies such as the GmbH (limited liability company) or UG. Moreover, depending on the selected legal form, you might be required to deposit your share capital (Stammkapital) into a business account.

Freelancers, sole proprietorships (self-employed), and partnerships don’t necessarily need to sign for a separate bank account, but it’s generally recommended.

Why do you need a business bank account?

Firstly, a separate business bank account allows you to do all your taxes and accounting in a proper way. It saves you a lot of time and money when it’s time to pay taxes at the end of the year.

Furthermore, with the many banking solutions mentioned above, you can manage your taxes directly in the provided banking app.

Some of them automatically calculate your taxes and offer you the option to send invoices straight from your online banking.

Ultimately, having a business bank account will ease the process of filing taxes by allowing you to complete all business transactions in one place. 

You can use most of the business bank accounts mentioned above to send invoices, receive payments, make business-related purchases, and payout your salary.

How can you open a German business bank account?

Opening a business bank account comes down to preparing the right documents. As a rule of thumb, traditional branch banks require more paperwork to deal with and take more time. For that reason, we recommend opening an account in one of the fintech or digital banks.

Banks favorited by freelancers and self-employed are:

• FINOM – read reviews here.
• Kontist – read reviews here.

With some banks, you might be able to open an account in minutes online; some might take a day or two. The set of required documents will depend on the bank. You will need at least your valid ID.

Required documents for the German business bank account

To open a business bank account in Germany, you need a set of documents. The exact list depends on the type of legal form of the business or self-employment/freelancing.

Moreover, in most cases, you will need to have a residency in Germany or another European country where the selected bank operates. Some general documents for a business bank account include:

• ID card or passport or German residence permit or European residence permit
• Official registered address in Germany (Anmeldung)
• German Tax ID number (Steuer-ID)

Many banks can require these additional documents:

• Business registration
• SCHUFA or credit score
• Proof of income for the last few months; e.g. last three pay slips
• Bank statements of the private account

Further documents will be required for corporations and partnerships.

Most banks and fintech companies mentioned above will have the option to open an account online. In fact, most digital banks operate only online.

Document type	Self-employed and freelancers	Partnerships	Corporations
ID or passport	Yes	Yes	Yes
Business registration (Gewerbeanmeldung)	Yes	Yes	Yes
Articles of association (Gesellschaftervertrag)	No	Yes	Yes
List of shareholders (Gesellschafterliste)	No	Yes	Yes
Excerpt from the commercial register (Handelsregisterauszug)	Yes	Yes	Yes
Certificate of incorporation (Gründungsurkunde)	No	Yes	Yes
Account authorizations for shareholders (Kontovollmachten für Gesellschafter)	No	Yes	Yes

For self-employed or freelancers (Freiberufler) registered in Germany, identity proof is sufficient to open a business account. For example, you can do it with Kontist online in just a few minutes.

If you have a registered trade in Germany (Gewerbe), banks will want to see a certificate of incorporation, extract from the commercial register, and, if applicable, the trade license.

Partnerships (Personengesellschaften) such as oHG or GbR must submit proof of the identity of all partners in addition to the articles of association (Gesellschaftsvertrag) when opening a business account.

For the oHG, the list of partners (Gesellschafterliste), an extract from the commercial register (Handelsregister), and a trade license (Gewerbeschein) (if applicable) will be required.

For corporations e.g., German LLC, a more extended list of documents applies. In addition to the basic papers, founders of a GmbH, UG, or AG must submit the list of shareholders (Gesellschafterliste) and articles of association (Gesellschaftervertrag) but also certificates of incorporation (Gründungsurkunden).

Moreover, some banks might request a trade license (Gewerbeschein).