Mercury vs Brex vs Relay: Best Business Bank Account for Photographers & Videographers
Your business bank account is more than just a place to hold client payments — it is the financial backbone for your photography or videography studio. From managing deposits for a destination wedding to paying for new lenses or hiring a freelance editor, the right bank account simplifies your financial workflow. Mercury, Brex Cash, and Relay are three top fintech options that consistently serve creative businesses well, each offering different strengths in managing income, expenses, and team finances.
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The Quick Answer
Mercury is the default recommendation for most solo photographers, videographers, and small creative studios: it offers a clean app, no monthly fees, and easily handles client invoices and vendor payments. Relay is better if you run a studio with associate photographers, freelance editors, or multiple revenue streams (e.g., weddings, real estate, content creation) and need to segment funds with granular team controls. Brex Cash makes sense if your studio already uses Brex for corporate cards to manage gear purchases or travel expenses and you want all spend management in one place.
Side-by-Side Breakdown
Mercury: No monthly fees. No minimum balance. FDIC insured up to $5M through partner banks. Their Treasury product can earn yield on idle cash, perfect for large wedding deposits or funds saved for a new camera body. Handles ACH transfers for client payments, wires for international stock photo sales, and checks for vendor payments.
Relay: No monthly fees (Relay Pro at $30/month adds perks like higher daily limits). You can open up to 20 checking accounts and get 50 debit cards per business. This is ideal for a studio wanting to separate funds for different projects (e.g., 'Wedding Bookings,' 'Real Estate Shoots'), specific expenses (e.g., 'Gear Maintenance,' 'Marketing Budget'), or even 'Taxes' and 'Owner's Pay.' Offers strong team permission controls for your associate shooters or studio manager.
Brex Cash: Free with a Brex card. FDIC insured up to $6M. Can offer high-yield on your operating balance, useful for large project payments sitting in your account. It's tightly integrated with Brex expense management, letting you see card spend for lens rentals or software subscriptions alongside your cash balance. You cannot open Brex Cash as a standalone checking account without their card product.
When to Choose Mercury
You are a solo wedding photographer, a freelance content creator, or a small real estate videography LLC. You want a clean, no-fee business account that just works for receiving client payments and paying for subscriptions like Adobe Creative Cloud or website hosting. You need a solid API for custom integrations, perhaps with your invoicing or CRM software. If you want one account to hold operating cash and a Treasury option to save up for that new Sony A7S III or a rainy day fund, Mercury is excellent. It's also one of the easiest to open — most creative pros get approved within 24-48 hours without needing a bank branch visit.
When to Choose Relay
Your photography or videography studio runs with a team — perhaps associate shooters, freelance editors, or a studio manager — and you need role-based controls for payments. You want to allocate money into separate accounts by category, such as 'Client Deposits,' 'Payroll for Second Shooters,' 'Taxes,' 'Gear Upgrades,' or 'Owner's Draw.' This helps you track each bucket separately. Relay's multi-account structure is perfect for implementing a Profit First banking methodology for your creative business, ensuring you always have funds reserved for overhead, taxes, and your income.
When to Choose Brex Cash
Your studio is already using Brex for your corporate card to manage purchases of camera bodies, lenses, lighting kits, or travel expenses for destination shoots. You want a single platform for spend management, client reimbursements, and cash. You're looking for yield on your operating balance from large client payments without having to manually move money to a separate savings account. If you want to see your corporate card spend and bank balance on the same dashboard for a complete financial overview, Brex Cash provides that unified experience.
The Verdict
Start with Mercury if you're a growing freelance photographer or a small studio — it has broad support for creative entrepreneurs, a clean interface, and no hidden fees. Upgrade to Relay if your studio scales, you manage multiple large projects (like a mix of weddings, corporate events, and product shoots), or you find yourself wishing for better account segmentation and team payment controls. Add Brex Cash if your studio goes all-in on the Brex card ecosystem for extensive equipment purchases, marketing spend, or frequent travel.
How to Get Started
Mercury: Apply at mercury.com with your EIN, business formation documents (e.g., LLC operating agreement for your studio), and personal ID. Approval is typically same-day to 48 hours.
Relay: Apply at relayfi.com. Before opening, plan your account structure – decide how many sub-accounts you want for 'Taxes,' 'Gear Fund,' 'Client Payments,' etc. Setting this up at the start saves you reorganization time later.
Brex Cash: Open through the Brex onboarding flow when you apply for their corporate card. Remember, you cannot open Brex Cash as a standalone product; it's linked to using their card service for your photography or videography business.
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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Are Mercury and Relay real banks?
No. Both are financial technology companies that partner with FDIC-insured banks to hold deposits. Your deposits are FDIC insured, but Mercury and Relay themselves are not chartered banks.
Can I use Mercury or Relay for payroll?
Yes — both support ACH transfers needed for payroll. But most businesses use a dedicated payroll platform (Gusto, Rippling, ADP) and simply connect it to their Mercury or Relay account for the ACH pull.
Which account earns the most interest on cash?
Mercury Treasury earns a competitive yield on balances over $500K. For smaller balances, Brex Cash currently offers the highest yield on operating balances among the three. Rates change frequently, so compare current rates at account opening.