Axos Bank was one of the first online-only banks. It opened for business on July 4, 2000, as Bank of the Internet USA and grew steadily for nearly two decades before rebranding itself as Axos Bank in 2018.
It has a lot of options for checking and just one savings account, plus some solid options for small businesses. But, it's not perfect and our review of the online bank shows both pros and cons.
Our Axos Bank review will give you an honest look at the bank's checking account and savings account features for individuals, as well as its overall convenience and mobile banking features so you can make an informed decision about where you do your banking.
In this post, we review checking and savings accounts, plus accounts geared to small- and medium-sized businesses.
Axos Checking Accounts
Picking a checking account that's right for you is personal. Among some of the most popular features for checking accounts are no minimum balance requirements and no monthly maintenance fees. Plus, no overdraft fees are also an enticement. We look at three Axos Bank checking accounts in search of what will make them work for you.
Besides these accounts, Axos Bank also offers basic checking accounts designed for specific ages. The Golden Checking is for the 55 and older crowd, while First Checking is designed for teens between the ages of 13 and 17. Overall, Axos's checking accounts offer good benefits without getting bogged down by monthly fees.
Axos Bank Essential Checking
Best for Direct Deposit
Key Features
- No minimum balance requirement
- Referral bonus when friends open accounts
- Early paycheck deposit
The basic checking account for Axos Bank is a free checking account that comes with a lot of perks and no fees. It comes with no fees, including no overdraft fees or non-sufficient fund fees, no minimum balance and unlimited reimbursement for ATM charges. You can also get your paycheck up to two days early with direct deposit. The drawback? This checking account doesn't offer interest.
Axos Bank Essential Checking
Fees
None, including no penalty for overdrafts
Interest
None
Minimum balance
None
ATM charges
Unlimited domestic ATM fee reimbursements
Axos Bank Rewards Checking
Best for Direct Deposit
Key Features
- Earn up to 1.00% APY
- Interest begins accruing immediately
- No fees or minimum balance requirements
Get up to 1.00% APY (annual percentage yield) on your balance with a few stipulations. This checking account is best for folks with a regular income of more than $1,000 per month who want to make Axos Bank their main financial institution for spending, saving, investment and loans.
Axos Bank Rewards Checking
Fees
None
Interest
1.00% APY
Minimum Balance
None
ATM charges
Unlimited domestic ATM fee reimbursements
Axos Bank CashBack Checking
Best of Big Spenders
Key Features
- 1.00% cash back on debit card purchases
- Unlimited check writing
- No maintenance fees
Axos Cashback Checking account pays you 1.00% cash back on signature-based purchases with your debit card. The account requires a $1,500 minimum monthly balance to earn the reward. Unlike other Axos personal accounts, this one does charge overdraft fees.
Axos Bank CashBack Checking
Fees
Overdraft fees
Interest
None
Minimum balance
$1,500 monthly balance
ATM charges
Axos Savings Account
If personal savings account options are high on your list, Axos Bank may not be the bank for you. There's the high-yield savings account and, well, that's it. Axos does, however, reward balances under $25,000 with a healthy 0.60% APY.
Axos High Yield Savings
Best for Axos Checking Account Holders
Key Features
- 0.61% APY
- No maintenance fees
- Free ATM card available
This primary savings account does not have maintenance fees or a required minimum monthly balance. It does require a $250 deposit to open the account, which is a little higher than many savings accounts at other online banks. It offers 0.61% APY (annual percentage yield) on your money, regardless of how much you have in your account.
Opening balance
Minimum $250
Prime perk
Digital money management tools
Axos Bank Business Accounts
Axos Bank offers five checking accounts and savings accounts for small-business owners. This is more than most banks offer, and the interest-bearing accounts offer higher interest than other banks we've reviewed. In our Axos Bank review, we found the following accounts fit for entrepreneurs.
Axos Bank Basic Business Checking
Best for New Small Businesses
Key Features
- No monthly maintenance fees
- Up to 200 free transactions per month
- First 50 checks free
If simple is what you like for your business checking account, Axos' Basic Business Checking should fit the bill. You can open an account with just $1,000, and integrate it with Quickbooks for easy bookkeeping.
Axos Bank Basic Business Checking
The fine print
$100 bonus for new clients who started businesses after June 1, 2020.
Prime perk
Free online bill pay
Axos Bank Business Interest Checking
Best for Established Small and Medium Businesses
Key Features
- 0.81% APY with no minimum balance
- 50 free transactions per month
- Unlimited domestic ATM fee reimbursement
If you plan on having a little more money in your checking account, you might as well earn some interest on it. The Axos Bank Business Interest Checking account offers 0.81% on your balance, regardless of the amount. You'll pay monthly maintenance fees of $10 unless you maintain a $5,000 minimum balance
Axos Bank Business Interest Checking
The fine print
$5,000 minimum average daily balance requirement to avoid $10 monthly maintenance fee
Prime perk
Up to 60 items per month for remote deposit
Axos Bank Business Savings
Best for New Small Businesses
Key Features
- 0.20% APY
- Variable interest compounded daily
- $100 bonus for new business owners
The basic Business Savings account at Axos Bank is just that — basic. It offers 0.20% APY on your money and has a pretty low bar to entry. Open an account with a minimum $1,000 deposit. You'll pay a $5 monthly maintenance fee unless you maintain a $2,500 minimum monthly balance. Claim a $100 bonus if you incorporated after June 1, 2020, using code NEWBIZ100.
Axos Bank Business Savings
The fine print
Maintain $2,500 balance to avoid fees
Prime perk
Free image statements
Axos Bank Business Premium Savings
Best for Established Medium-Sized Businesses
Key Features
- 0.20% interest on balances $25,000+
- No maintenance fee
- No average daily balance requirement
If you can afford to keep a little more money in your Axos Bank savings account, you can let it work for you with the Business Premium Savings account. Balances over $25,000 earn 0.20%. Balances below that threshold earn nothing, so it only pays to go this route if you know your business account can stay at $25,000 or higher.
Axos Bank Business Premium Savings
The fine print
$25,000 minimum opening balance
Prime perk
Remote deposit from anywhere
Axos Bank Business Money Market
Best for Access to Business Savings
Key Features
- 0.20% APY
- $5,000 daily balance requirement
- $1,000 opening deposit
If you don't expect to be dipping into your funds too often, the Business Money Market may be for you. It offers 0.20% APY but is limited to six transactions per month. Open an account with a minimum $1,000 deposit, and get free image statements, online banking and mobile banking.
Axos Bank Business Money Market
The fine print
Maintain $5,000 daily balance or you'll have to pay $10 monthly fee
Prime perk
Account has check writing privileges
Other Axos Products
Even as an online bank, Axos offers a pretty full menu of banking products beyond just checking and savings accounts. You can find all of these banking options at Axos:
- Home loans
- Auto loans
- Personal loans
- Investment property lending
- Managed investment portfolios
If you're comfortable handling all of these things online, it can be convenient to have your loans at the same place you do your personal banking.
Axos Bank Customer Service
Axos Bank gets rave reviews for customer service in the app stores with a 4.5 stars out of 5 in Google and slightly higher in Apple. In the Google app store, one customer wrote, "If you need to talk to someone on the phone, they are there to help."
That is definitely true for personal banking when representatives staff the phone 24 hours a day, seven days a week. They take Thanksgiving and Christmas days off.
If you need help with loans, auto refinancing, small business banking and investment property lending, Axos customer service hours are more traditional banking times, 8 a.m. to 5 a.m. generally and those times are Pacific. That makes sense because Axos is based in San Diego, California.
Messages can also be sent through your login on the website and for more general information, follow Axos on Twitter, @AxosBank. Messaging through social media is often a good way to get a quick response from a company.
Is Axos Bank Right for You?
Axos Bank offers a lot of benefits, but that doesn't mean it's the perfect fit for everyone. If you think you're in the market to switch to an online-only bank, it's probably worth your time to scout out Axos Bank. There's a lot to like and not much to dislike.
See how Axos compared to the other banks on our list of the best online banks.
Pros and Cons
The following our overall impressions of Axos Bank:
Pros
- Almost entirely fee-free banking
- Lots of options for small business banking
- Highly regarded customer service
- Offers of other banking products like car loans and mortgages
Cons
- Some reviews claim that the app is slow or buggy
- No physical branches
- Interest rates are good, but they are not the best we've found
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Axos Bank
Is Axos Bank a Brick-and-Mortar Bank?
No, Axos operates entirely online. If you need to get in touch with customer service, Axos offers 24/7 telephone customer support (except on Thanksgiving and Christmas). If you need to speak to someone about a loan or mortgage, you'll find they have different schedules of availability.
Is Axos Bank Trustworthy?
Axos Banks is a direct banking arm of the publicly-held company Axos Financial. The bank is federally chartered, FDIC insured and BBB accredited.
Is Axos Bank Still in Business?
Yes! Axos Bank was previously Bank of Internet USA, then BofI Federal Bank. It's been known as Axos Bank since around 2018.
Who Owns Axos Online Bank?
Axos Bank is the direct banking arm of Axos Financial, the bank holding company previously known as BofI Holding.
Is Axos a Good Bank?
Axos is an online-only bank so if you like walking into a physical place to do your banking business face-to-face, it may not be for you. But, if you're computer and smartphone savvy, you can do all of your banking from wherever you are at any given moment. You can also access your money through a network of 91,000 ATMs with no fees.
Dana Sitar (@danasitar) has been writing and editing for online audiences since 2011, covering personal finance, careers and digital media. She is a former staffer at The Penny Hoarder. Her work has appeared in the New York Times, CNBC, The Motley Fool, Inc. and more. Information from writer Tyler Omoth is included in this report.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, which helps millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. The Inc. 5000 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the fastest-growing private media company in the U.S. in 2017.
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