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Accounts for start-ups and small businesses
Choose our start-up business account and get everyday banking features. Designed to help new businesses and small businesses.
Ideal features for start-ups and small businesses
Funding and support for your new business
Looking for other accounts?
Find all the other accounts we offer, including those for schools, charities and community organisations.
Sylwia Golebiowska CEO, Simply GrowWe were attracted to Lloyds for our business banking needs due to their strong reputation, wide range of business services, and the perceived stability and trust that comes with a well-established high street bank.
Frequently asked questions
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A dedicated bank account has a lot of benefits – and you can apply if you're a freelancer, small business, sole trader or limited company. Keeping small business finances separate from your personal income and having all your transactions in one place can make managing your finances easier.
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You can apply for this account if you’re a sole trader, running your own small business or self-employed.
We also offer accounts for charities and community organisations and an account for schools.
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Check our handy comparison table to see our different account types.
A comparison table of the different Lloyds business accounts. Account
Who can apply?
Where to next?
Account
Business Account
Who can apply?
- UK businesses with annual turnover under £3 million.
- Ideal for start-ups, established business, sole traders and limited companies.
- Turnover over £3 million? See how we can help you
Where to next?
Account
Charity Account
Who can apply?
- Organisations registered with the charity regulator for England and Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland.
- Organisations with excepted or exempt charity status in England and Wales.
- Less than £250,000 paid in every 12 months.
Where to next?
Account
Community Account
Who can apply?
- Not-for-profit organisations serving their local community such as clubs and associations, unregistered societies, school clubs and PTAs.
- Less than £250,000 paid in every 12 months.
- Not suitable if your organisation pays out surplus money as dividends or profits.
- Not suitable if your organisation is structured and run for the personal benefit of members. Not available to co-operatives, property management companies and residents’ management companies (or equivalent).
Where to next?
Account
School Bank Account
Who can apply?
- Academies, multi-academy trusts or state-funded schools.
- Must be used for core school activities such as payroll and receiving state funding.
- Not suitable for independent schools that are registered with Companies House.
Where to next?
Account
Client Accounts (Designated and Undesignated)
Who can apply?
- Professional firms holding client funds, such as solicitors, accountants, insurance brokers, real estate/managing agents.
Where to next?
Account
Credit Union Account
Who can apply?
- An approved credit union.
- Use the account for business only.
Where to next?
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Yes. You can easily switch banks to a Lloyds Bank start-up business account using the Current Account Switching Service (CASS). Once you’ve given us your details, you can sit back and we’ll manage the rest for you.
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You can open a start-up business bank account online if your estimated turnover for the next 12 months is under £3 million.
The application usually takes around 20 minutes, and we usually need about 4 - 8 business days to open your new account.
Annual turnover between £3 million and £25 million? Find out how to apply
To open your start-up business account, you’ll need the following information:
- a way to take a live photo of your signature and one of yourself
- a form of ID such as your passport or UK driving license
- the name, date of birth and three-year personal address history (including month and year of moving dates), mobile number and email address for everyone connected to the account.
- your start-up or small business name, address, details of your activities and estimated annual turnover.
For limited companies, Companies House must be up to date before we can progress an application. Please allow four days from the date of Companies House registration before applying online or over the phone.
Most customers complete the online application in minutes. In some cases, we’ll ask for extra information to finish our checks, which can add time. We’ll keep you updated if this is the case.
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If you’ve already started an online application, you can continue or check the status of your application at any time using the log on button in your welcome email, which you’ll get once you’ve shared your personal details.
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If you run a start-up or small business, there are various benefits to having a start-up bank account with Lloyds Bank:
- free accounting software
- no account fee for the first 12 months – then £8.50 a month
- free debit card
- access to start-up funding options
- make and receive international payments
- business support resources, including tailored advice for your sector
- add other people to your start-up business account (such as co‑directors) with appropriate access and controls.
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There’s no account fee for your first 12 months. Then it’s £8.50 a month. See our Business Account rates & charges for full details, including transaction fees.
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No. We don’t pay credit interest on this account. If you’d like to earn interest, see our business savings options.
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You get access to free accounting software with your start-up business account, and you can export your transaction data for use with most major accounting platforms including Xero and QuickBooks.
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Find out more about our Business Account fees and charges.
Lloyds Business Bank Account fees and charges. Payment type
Charges
Payment type
Introductory offer
Charges
No monthly account fee for 12 months if it’s your first business account with us
Payment type
Monthly account fee
Charges
£8.50 after 12 months
Payment type
Electronic payments in2
Charges
Free
Payment type
Electronic payments out2
Charges
First 100 a month are free / £0.20 each after that
Payment type
Cash payments (in or out)
Charges
£0.85 for every £100 at an Immediate Deposit Machine / £1.50 for every £100 over the counter
Payment type
Cheques (in or out, any amount)
Charges
£0.85 at an Immediate Deposit Machine / £1 over the counter
Payment type
Credit paid in at branch or ATM
Charges
£0.85
Payment type
Credit paid in at an Immediate Deposit Machine, Automated Deposit Machine, through the app
Charges
Free
Payment type
BACS
Charges
File submission: £5.50
BACS Item: £0.15 (a set up fee may apply)
Payment type
CHAPS
Charges
£30
Payment type
Sending and receiving money abroad
Charges
Payment type
Balances below £0 (going overdrawn)
Charges
Payment type
Other account services
Charges
No credit interest is payable on this account.
See the full account rates and charges (PDF, 666KB) and product terms and conditions.
Estimate with our calculator how much your business account could cost per month after the first year.
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In-branch cash and deposit machines, for notes and cheques. Limits and charges will apply.
Other options:
- Withdraw cash, notes only, from any LINK ATM. Most don't charge a fee.
- Withdraw or deposit coins and notes at Post Offices or Banking Hubs. Limits and charges will apply.
- You can find out about your options on LINK's Cash Locator.
- Some locations charge a fee to make a withdrawal or deposit. If they do, it'll be clearly signed in store and on the machine. You'll be able to cancel the transaction if you don't want to pay the charge.
Independent service quality survey results
Business current accounts
Published August 2025
As part of a regulatory requirement, an independent survey was conducted to ask approximately 1,200 customers of each of the 17 largest business current account providers if they would recommend their provider to other small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs*). The results represent the view of customers who took part in the survey.
Overall service quality
We asked customers how likely they would be to recommend their business current account provider to other SMEs.
*SMEs include businesses, clubs, charities and societies with an annual turnover/income of up to £25m (exclusive of VAT and other turnover-related taxes).
Ranking
The requirement to publish the Financial Conduct Authority Service Quality Information for business current accounts can be found here