Best Bank Accounts For eBay Sellers (2023 Update)

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If you are a responsible individual, you have a bank account.

If you are a thrifty individual, you sell on eBay.

If you are both, you are awesome and probably have an eBay account just for your store. Or at least you should.

But what if aren’t quite there yet? What if you’ve been limping along with PayPal to avoid taking a step into grown-up land and getting a bank account for eBay sellers?

What’s the best bank account for eBay sellers anyway? Well, we’re here to answer that question!

The Bank We Use For eBay (And Our Money Flow)

Our first year on eBay was a disaster. Or, at least, we figured out it was a disaster when we went to file our taxes. We literally spent days hunting through our cars, pockets, and junk drawers for receipts.

Not only did we not have receipts, but we had $60,000 worth of inventory listed about $50 in our bank account to try and pay taxes with. Bad times.

However, it motivated us to open a business bank account, get our financial tracking in order, and figure out if we were actually making a profit by flipping thrift store items.

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For our reselling business, we bank with Capital One (meaning we get deposits from eBay, Mercari, Posh, etc). Looking back, we made a pretty good choice. However, we chose it at the time mainly because it was one of the first things that came up when searching Google for online banks. We were able to set up our account in about 10 minutes.

But what about now that we’re smarter? Not to mention the advent of eBay’s Managed Payment system. What is the best bank account for eBay sellers in 2023?

The Best Banks For eBay Sellers – My Top Picks

Chime – Best Online Bank Account For eBay Sellers

If you want a bank that is easy to set up, all online, and has terrific customer service then Chime is a great option!

One of the major problems people have with connecting their bank account to eBay is that it takes so long to get paid. Chime users claim to be the fastest at getting their payout, typically the very next day. In fact, Chime claims that direct deposit to their accounts arrives up to two days sooner than to other banks!

What’s more, you get fee-free overdrafts (up to $200)! With no overdraft fees, no monthly fees, no minimum balances, foreign transaction fees, and 60,000 fee-free ATMs, Chime really is one of the best banking options for eBay sellers.

The only two drawbacks (in my opinion) are that Chime does not have physical locations (they do counter this with terrific customer support though), and that your account would not be a business account. This does not allow you to build credit for your business, take out loans, apply for a business credit card with Chime (since they don’t have one…), etc.

However, if you’re looking for the simplest option that will help you hit the ground running then Chime is it!

Capital One – Best Business Bank Account For eBay Sellers

When it comes to banks that just work, that’s what Capital One has been for us. We don’t have unusual fees, the app works, and the connection to eBay has been seamless.

We had two problems while using Capital One, neither was their fault, and they were extremely easy to work with in getting things straightened out. The first time, a crappy ATM failed to dispense money and Capital One had it back in our account within 48 hours. The other time, I had my card stolen and someone tried to spend $600 at a Walmart. Capital One notified me of what they thought was a fraudulent charge and credited the money to my account while they were still investigating the situation. No complaints there!

One other great feature is that I can sign into my account and open other savings accounts any time I want. I have a savings account for taxes, one for larger inventory purchases, etc.

All-in-all, the most revolutionary thing about Captial One is that it just works and I don’t have to complain about my bank at parties anymore.

Ninja Tip:

One of the other perks of being with Capital One is that we’ve been able to run all of our business expenses through a travel rewards card. It’s not the best travel card out there but we like having it linked to our account so we can keep our balance paid off.

You don’t even have to have a Capital One bank account to apply!

Also, if you spend $20,000 in the first year with the card (which was super easy for us with all of our sourcing) then you’ll get a 100,000-point bonus with is worth getting the card by itself.

Best Banks For eBay Sellers: Our 5 Deciding Factors

When we were deciding on our first account we weren’t very scientific. We just got lucky. However, there are a few things you should be looking for if you want to find the absolute best bank for eBay sellers:

Ease Of Opening Account

Most of us choose to sell on eBay because it’s a fun and convenient way to make money. Writing down a business plan, gathering up your business license and related documents, making P&L statements, etc. all to open a business banking account doesn’t fall in line with that.

If we had to jump through a dozen hoops to move to eBay’s new payment system we might have just quit eBay altogether. Not really. But you get the idea.

We looked for banks that would allow you to open an account quickly and with minimal documentation. If you have an ID and know your full name you should be able to set up an account with Capital One or Chime in just a few minutes.

I also wanted a bank that didn’t need a large balance to open or require a significant minimum balance.

Accessibility

A good bank account obviously should be as responsible as possible. If my bank app goes down without any warning it stresses me out. I need my bank to provide instant and easy access to both my money and information about my money.

Having a local branch wasn’t important to me but I did want:

• Easy ATM access (preferably with no fee)
• Easy access via an app
• Phone support if something went wrong
• Access to all of my statements either online or via the app

An Opportunity For A Credit Card

If you are spending a significant amount of money on your business, you should be using a cash-back or rewards card of some sort. We run all of our business expenses through our Capital One Venture travel card to take advantage of the travel bonuses.

If you want to go that route, be sure that the bank you choose to go with offers travel or reward cards.

Unlimited Transactions/Transfers

Our first back, which shall be unnamed, *cough* Wells Fargo *cough* only gave us 3 free transfers from our savings account to our checking account per month. As you can imagine, this meant we had to transfer in much larger chunks than we wanted.

Some business bank accounts also give you a limited number of free transactions per month. You’re unlikely to run into this problem on eBay but we decided to be safe rather than sorry.

Low/No Fees

This probably should have gone first but we wanted a checking account without a monthly fee.

While you’re shopping around for a bank account be sure to do your due diligence. There are some companies out there that should not be allowed anywhere near your money.

For example, AZLO was a promising (but small) online-only bank for small businesses…at least until its parent company announced out of the blue that they were shutting down.

Look for larger more established banks that are FDIC insured and you can be relatively sure that it will be around for a while.

There are some non-FDIC-insured options out there.

How To Connect Your Bank With eBay – 2 Quick Tips

If you’re just getting your eBay Managed Payments Account up and running you’re probably a bit worried about granting eBay access to your money. Well, fear not, here are a couple of things you should do to make sure everything works as smoothly as possible.

Use A Separate Bank Account For eBay

If you are serious about selling on eBay (meaning you make more than $400 and year and file taxes) then you should have a separate bank account.

Having a dedicated bank account is one of the basics of business. It allows you to more easily balance your books, take profits, see if you have money for inventory, etc.

While I don’t think that you need to put on a tin-foil hat and get a separate bank account to protect yourself from eBay, it also can’t hurt!

Use An eBay Preferred Bank

Here’s the thing, there’s not really a “best” bank for eBay’s Managed Payment system. When it first launched it was difficult to get many different banks to connect reliably but things seem to have been largely worked out.

While I would personally stick with a larger and more well-known bank, you can connect any checking account that has an account number and routing number by manually typing them in.

However, it is likely that you won’t have to type anything in but your username and password as eBay (with the help of Trustly) now integrates with thousands of banks

Now, let’s face it unless you choose a terrible bank, whatever you choose will probably be able to do the job. You simply need someone to hold your money and not charge you tons of fees for it.

Most banks offer the basic services required so if you prefer, you can always try somewhere local. For some people, the best bank for their eBay store will actually be a local credit union. So you’ll just have to figure out what works best for you!

Choosing A BankAs An eBay Seller – FAQs

Can I Sell On eBay Without A Bank Account?

With eBay’s new managed payment system you now have to have a bank account to sell on eBay. Without a bank account connected, eBay you cannot be paid, and eBay will limit your account.

Do I Have To Have A Business Bank Account To Sell On eBay?

You do not have to have a business bank account to sell on eBay. Any bank account that is classified by your bank as a “Checking Account” can be connected.

Can I Use PayPal As A Bank Account For eBay?

You cannot connect PayPal to eBay as your bank account. You must use a standard checking account with an account and routing number.

Do I Have To Have A Bank Account For eBay Managed Payments?

If your eBay account has been moved over to the Managed Payments system you have to connect a bank account if you wish to maintain your listing privileges and continue being paid.

You cannot get paid on eBay without a bank account. Offline payments and PayPal are no longer options.

Is It Safe To Give eBay My Bank Information?

In general, it is considered safe to give eBay your bank information. Your information is encrypted with bank-level security by the verification company (Trustly) and the payment processing company (Adyen). However, there are always risks associated with sharing your financial information.

Adyen is a large international company that has been successfully processing payments since 2006.

Many people have been up-in-arms about “giving eBay their bank information” because they think that eBay will either start fraudulently debiting their account or they’ll get hacked and their information will be stolen.

In reality, eBay has always been able to debit your account. Before the managed payments system they would debit your PayPal account which, if insufficient, would pull from your bank account.

Additionally, eBay has not reinvented the wheel and has gone out to process payments on its own. They simply switched from PayPal to Adyen and chose to consolidate the front end of payment processing on their own site.

While I won’t say that I love it, I’m far from leaving eBay over it.

I will say, however, that choosing a great bank account for eBay that is separate from my personal account does give me peace of mind!

So, if you don’t have an account yet, Capital One or Chime are great options! So scroll back up, choose one, and take your eBay business to the next level!