Banking · Self-Employed & Solo Banking
Found Review
Banking built for the self-employed — taxes and bookkeeping included
Quick verdict
Found is best for Solo and 1099 trades operators (handymen, solo cleaners, single-operator contractors) who want banking that automatically handles quarterly taxes and bookkeeping in one app. Built for solo/self-employed, not growing teams; not a chartered bank (banking via partner); cash deposits are a gap; advanced bookkeeping/tax features require paid tiers.
Fees & APY
Core banking is free; Found Plus is $35/mo ($315/yr) and Found Pro is $80/mo ($720/yr) for advanced bookkeeping and tax tools. A fintech (banking via Lead Bank, Member FDIC), not a chartered bank.
- Monthly fee
- $0 core; Plus $35/mo, Pro $80/mo
- APY / yield
- No high-APY angle — built around automatic tax set-aside, not interest
Affiliate disclosure: No confirmed affiliate program — we currently earn nothing from Found.
About Found
Found is business banking designed specifically for the self-employed — the solo contractor, handyman, or one-person trade business juggling 1099 income, quarterly taxes, and bookkeeping. NerdWallet named it the best business checking for paying contractors and saving for taxes, and that's exactly its lane: it's a fintech (banking provided by Lead Bank, Member FDIC) that bundles a checking account with the tax and bookkeeping tools a solo operator actually struggles with.
The standout feature is automatic tax set-aside: Found estimates your quarterly taxes and automatically moves money aside every time you get paid, so you're not scrambling at deadline. It also does expense tracking and categorization, contractor payments with no per-contractor fees, invoicing, and tax-form collection — all in one app, so a solo operator doesn't need separate banking + bookkeeping + tax tools.
The core product is free, with optional Found Plus ($35/mo or $315/yr) and Found Pro ($80/mo or $720/yr) adding advanced bookkeeping and tax features. The trade-offs: Found is built for solo/self-employed, so it's not the fit for a growing multi-employee shop that needs payroll, multiple users, or business credit — and like most fintech-banking platforms, it isn't a chartered bank and (typically) doesn't handle cash deposits, which matters for cash-taking trades. But for a 1099 solo trade who wants banking that handles the tax headache automatically, Found is purpose-built.
How it works
You open a free Found account (a fintech account, FDIC-insured through Lead Bank). As money comes in, Found automatically estimates your self-employment taxes and sets aside the right amount into a tax bucket, so the funds are there at quarterly deadlines. It tracks and categorizes expenses for write-offs, lets you send unlimited contractor payments with no per-contractor fee and collect their tax forms, and handles invoicing — all in one app. The core is free; paid tiers (Plus/Pro) add deeper bookkeeping and tax tools. Because it's self-employed-focused, it's optimized for one-person finances rather than multi-user business operations.
Pros & cons
What works
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Automatic tax set-aside
Found estimates your quarterly self-employment taxes and automatically sets money aside as you get paid — directly solving the #1 financial pain point for 1099 trades and removing deadline scrambles.
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Banking + bookkeeping + tax in one app
Instead of separate banking, bookkeeping, and tax tools, a solo operator gets expense tracking, write-off categorization, invoicing, and tax forms alongside the checking account — a genuine simplification.
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Free core product
The core banking and tax features are free, which is ideal for a solo contractor watching costs. Paid tiers are optional, only adding advanced bookkeeping/tax depth.
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Contractor payments with no per-payee fee
Send unlimited payments to subs/contractors with no per-contractor fee and collect their tax forms, which is handy for a solo who occasionally pays helpers without a full payroll system.
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Purpose-built for 1099 income
NerdWallet's pick for paying contractors and saving for taxes — Found is optimized end-to-end for self-employment income rather than retrofitted from a general business account.
What doesn't
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Built for solo, not growing teams
Found is designed for self-employed/1099 operators. A growing shop with employees, payroll, multiple users, or business-credit needs will outgrow it and need a fuller business bank.
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Not a chartered bank
Found is a fintech with banking via Lead Bank (Member FDIC). Deposits are FDIC-insured through the partner bank, but it's not a traditional bank relationship — understand how that works before moving all your cash there.
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Cash deposits are a gap
Like most fintech-banking apps, Found isn't built for cash deposits — a real limitation for trades that still take cash. If you collect cash regularly, confirm your options before relying on it.
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Advanced features cost extra
The deepest bookkeeping/tax tools sit on Found Plus ($35/mo) and Pro ($80/mo). The free tier is solid, but power users pay for the full feature set.
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Limited credit/lending
Found focuses on banking + taxes, not working-capital credit. Contractors who want a line of credit alongside banking should look at Bluevine instead.
Features & integrations
Key features
Integrations
Frequently asked
Who is Found best for?
Solo and self-employed trades operators — a one-person handyman, cleaner, or single-operator contractor — who deal with 1099 income and want banking that automatically estimates and sets aside quarterly taxes, plus bookkeeping and contractor payments in one app. It's not built for growing multi-employee shops.
How much does Found cost?
The core banking, tax set-aside, and bookkeeping features are free. Optional paid tiers — Found Plus at $35/mo ($315/yr) and Found Pro at $80/mo ($720/yr) — add advanced bookkeeping and tax tools. Many solo operators run on the free tier.
Is Found a real bank?
Found is a financial technology company, not a chartered bank — banking services are provided by Lead Bank, Member FDIC, so deposits are FDIC-insured through the partner bank. That's standard for fintech-banking platforms, but it's a different relationship than a traditional bank, so understand it before moving all your operating cash there.
Can I deposit cash with Found?
Cash deposits are a known gap for most fintech-banking apps, Found included. If your trade still takes meaningful cash, confirm your deposit options before relying on Found as your only account — this is a common limitation across Found, Novo, Relay, and similar platforms.
Found vs a traditional business bank account?
Found wins for solo/1099 operators because of automatic tax set-aside and built-in bookkeeping — things a traditional bank doesn't do. A traditional bank (or a fuller platform like Bluevine or Relay) wins once you have employees, need business credit, take a lot of cash, or want multi-user access. Match the tool to where your business is.