Sub-accounts can be used for any number of aspects of business life: managing your finances, tracking income vs expenses, or just keeping track of the different parts of your business. The best part is that sub-accounts are easy to create and manage. You can even assign different levels of access to different users, making it easy to keep track of who is doing what with the company's money.
In this article, we'll explore the different ways you can leverage Bonsai's business account's sub-accounts with your business checking account. Let's get started.
Note: If you want one business checking account with the ability to instantly create sub-accounts, try Bonsai's business account. Our business checking account has no monthly maintenance fees, transaction fees, minimum balance requirement, and allows for unlimited electronic deposits. It's one account to organize your business business account simpler. Open an account today.
What is a sub-account?
To put it simply, a sub-account is an account that resides within your main bank account. It’s like having a bunch of mini bank accounts all in one place, and it can be really helpful for organizing your money.
You can use sub-accounts to break down your expenses into more manageable categories, like rent, groceries, and utilities, without the extra hassle to manage multiple accounts. This can help you stay mindful of your spending and make it easier to save money.
Bonsai Envelopes: Enjoy the convenience, simplicity, and flexibility of sub-accounts
Bonsai's business account is the best business checking account that allows you to easily manage, save, and spend your business funds. With Bonsai's business account, you can create envelopes – which are basically virtual sub-accounts – to divide your funds for various purposes.
It's a simple way to manage cash flow. You can set aside money for business emergencies, save some cash for future purchases, reserve some money for self-employment taxes, keep business finances separate among other things.
You can even devise a set of rules for your money as it arrives in your Bonsai's business account account thanks to Envelope Automation. For instance, you can allocate 40% of all the money you receive to the “Taxes” envelope and 20% to the “Rainy Day” envelope, depending on your preferences. This feature allows you to save more efficiently and stay focused on your short-term and long-term goals.
Bonsai's business account is a fantastic option as an online business bank that has everything you need to manage your business's finances.
What are the benefits of using Bonsai's business account's sub-accounts?
Now that you understand the basics of a sub-account, let’s take a look at some ways to put them to use Bonsai's business account's envelopes for your business:
Keep personal finances separate with sub-business checking accounts
If you’re like most small business owners, your business and personal finances are closely intertwined. However, this can lead to some serious accounting headaches down the line. One way to avoid these problems is to set up sub-accounts specifically for your business.
This will help you keep track of your business spending and make it easier to file your taxes at the end of the year. It can also help you avoid any potential legal issues down the road.
If you own multiple businesses, you could avoid using the same bank account for two separate businesses.
Set aside reserves for slow months
Every so often, your business will experience a lull in sales. Rather than dip into your operating budget, you can use your sub-accounts to draw from your reserves. This will help you maintain a healthy cash flow and keep your business running smoothly.
For instance, let's say you're running a restaurant and you know that there's always a lull in sales between January and March. You can set up a sub-account specifically for your "reserves" and use it to cover your costs during those slow months.
Make tax payments on time
One of the benefits of using sub-accounts is that you can earmark money specifically for tax payments. This ensures that you always have enough funds on hand to make your tax payments on time.
If you're a professional services firm or independent contractor, then sub-accounts can help you take advantage of tax deductions. You can set up a sub-account specifically for business expenses and then write off those expenses come tax season.
Save for a rainy day
No one knows when the next financial downturn will hit. But, if you're prepared, you can use sub-accounts to help you weather the storm. By setting up a sub-account specifically for your "rainy day fund," you'll make it easier to save up to the amount you need in case of an emergency.
When you have some money tucked away, you don’t have to worry about dipping into your regular savings or going into debt when something unexpected comes up.
Get a better understanding of your financial situation
Creating an accurate budget for your business is near impossible if you don’t know how much money is coming in and going out from each of your accounts.
Dividing your funds into different buckets according to their purpose (e.g. payroll, rent, marketing) can make budgeting a breeze.
When you have a clear separation of expenses between your personal and business account, it makes accounting and budgeting a lot simpler. This is because you can see exactly how much money you're making and spending every month.
By using sub-accounts, you can get this same level of clarity for your business finances. This will help you make more informed decisions about your business and keep track of your progress over time.
Create separate funding streams for different parts of your business
Another great use case for sub-accounts is when you want to create separate funding streams for different parts of your business. Maybe you have a side hustle that you want to keep completely separate from your main source of income, or maybe you want to set up a separate account for paying business debts or personal expenses.
Whatever the case may be, sub-accounts make it easy to do this without having to juggle multiple accounts.
Set up budget limits for specific expenses
If you’re trying to rein in your spending, then sub-accounts can be a great way to set budget limits for specific expenses. This will help you stay within your monthly budget and avoid overspending.
For example, if you want to limit how much you spend on food each month, you can set up a sub-account specifically for groceries. This will keep your spending in check and make it easier to stick to your budget.
Manage payroll more efficiently
If you have employees, then you know that payroll can be a real hassle. Thankfully, you can use sub-accounts to make the process a little bit easier. By setting up separate sub-accounts for each set of employees -- depending on their rank levels -- you can keep track of their wages and withholdings more easily. This will help you stay organized and avoid any compliance issues.
Also, if you offer your employees benefits, like health insurance or 401(k) contributions, you can use a sub-account to manage those contributions, which will make it easier to keep track of how much money you're spending on benefits and help you stay within your budget.
Reserve funds for insurance
If you're self-employed, then you're responsible for paying your Medicare and Social Security taxes out-of-pocket. To help cover these costs, you can set up a sub-account specifically for your "insurance reserves."
This will ensure that you always have the money you need to pay your taxes on time. An added advantage? You'll also save yourself from paying any late fees or penalties.
Separate income from different businesses
If you own multiple businesses, it can be helpful to set up separate sub-accounts for each business. This will help you keep track of your expenses and income separately, making it easier to track your progress and identify potential problems.
For instance, using the example from before, if you own a restaurant and a catering business, you can set up separate sub-accounts for each business. This will make it easier to see how your businesses are doing individually and help you identify any areas where you might need to make adjustments. You'll also be able to keep track of your food costs, advertising expenses, and other overhead costs separately.
The challenges of managing multiple business bank accounts (and why sub-accounts or envelopes are the better option)
Here are a few reasons why you should prioritize using sub-accounts over applying for multiple small business business bank accounts:
Convenience
The beauty of sub-accounts is that they are essentially add-ons to your existing account, without the hassle of having to apply for and open a new business bank accounts. This makes them perfect for small business owners who want to segregate their expenses into specific categories (e.g. payroll, rent, marketing), but don’t want the added inconvenience and expense of applying for a small business checking account.
With traditional bank accounts, you have to go through the hassle of applying for and opening a new business savings account. This can be a time-consuming process, especially if you have to gather all the required documentation (e.g. proof of address, proof of ID) for your business bank account.
Then, once you've opened the separate account, you have to transfer your money over and keep track of the two business bank accounts -- this can be an added inconvenience if you have a lot of tasks on your plate.
But with sub-accounts, you can easily split your funds into different categories without having to open and manage multiple small business checking accounts or paying a monthly fee. This makes them perfect for business owners who want to streamline their finances and keep things organized.
Simplicity
When you have a lot of balls in the air, the last thing you want is more complexity to deal with. A benefit of sub-accounts is that they are simple to set up and use. You can add them to your business account in minutes, without having to jump through hoops or fill out any extra paperwork.
This simplicity also extends to their functionality. With a sub-account, you can easily move money in and out, make transfers, and set up automated payments. In other words, sub-accounts allow you to manage your business finances with ease.
This is in contrast to having multiple business bank accounts, where you would have to go through the inconvenience of transferring money between business accounts every time you want to make a payment and dealing with a monthly maintenance fee.
This can be a real pain, especially if handling multiple tasks isn't your forte. With sub-accounts, you don't have to worry about this, as the money is all in one place and easy to access.
Flexibility
As a small business owner, you need to be flexible when it comes to your finances. The last thing you want is for something unexpected to come up and throw your business off balance.
Sub-accounts offer the perfect level of flexibility, as they can be customized to fit your specific needs. This means that you can set them up in a way that works best for you and your business. Whether you need to track expenses, earmark money for taxes, make cash deposits, or set budget limits, sub-accounts can do the job.
This flexibility is in stark contrast to traditional small business bank accounts, which are often inflexible and don't offer the same level of customization.
Try Bonsai's business account Today
The best part is that you won’t incur any fees when using Bonsai's business account – this means no monthly transaction limits, monthly service fees, minimum balance requirements, or hidden fees.
It is one business account for all your small businesses' business account needs.
You can get started today.
