I was in the same situation as you’re a few years back, when I started Geekflare and wanted a business bank account. I was overwhelmed with search results and spent many hours deciding which one to pick. I know the feeling and to help you pick the right account, quickly, I’ll guide you through in this article.
Before anything, we don’t offer financial advice and this article aims to make you aware of available bank account options you can use for your startups, small or consulting business. The decision is entirely yours, so its consequences.
It is okay to spend sometime to research before choosing the bank as once it is done, it is very challenging and too much work to change the business bank account. I’ll include both high-street and neobank but focus more on later as who likes to visit a branch these days?
Best Business Bank Account Comparison
First, let me give you a quick summary of neobanks with important metrics to compare to help you pick the right online business current account.
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Free | £10 | Free | Free | Free | £9.95 | Free | Free | Free | Free | |
 £5/mo | |  | | | | | | | | |
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4.8 | 4.7 | 4.8 | 4.5 | 4.8 | 4.5 | 4.2 | 2.2 | 4.6 | 4.4 | |
Note: some banks offer multiple account plans, and I’ve mentioned the starting monthly fee.
Those are not banks but financial service provider who offer e-money and payment services. You should verify on respective provider’s website or FSCS official.
A few things about the above business current account offering.
1. Starling Bank
Starling Bank Pros
Award-winning business bank account.
Friendly support via mobile app.
You can access your account through Mobile or Desktop.
You can have GBP (free), USD (£5/mo) and EURO (£2/mo) currency account.
You need a business toolkit (£7/month) to send invoices, calculate tax and more.
Starling Bank Cons
You can’t send invoices in USD, which is major for international digital business.
There is no fixed deposit account or way to earn on parked cash.
2. Revolut
Revolut Pros
Lower currency conversion fee, great for business dealing in multiple currencies.
Issue virtual cards instantly.
Receipt capture and bill payment.
Open accounts in 25+ currencies.
Earn interest on savings.
Revolut Cons
Revolut is not FSCS protected.
I wish Revolut offer free monthly account with some average monthly balance like Metro Bank.
Savings interest is lower on the Grow plan.
3. Monzo
Monzo Pros
Payments links to get paid quickly.
Deposit cash and cheques at Post offices and PayPoints.
Receipt capture using Monzo mobile app.
Accept contactless payments without a POS or card reader machine.
Monzo Cons
Doesn’t offer USD account.
Invoicing and virtual card is only available in Pro plan (£9/mo).
4. Wise
Wise Pros
Free global business account, highly suitable for Internet business and eCommerce.
One card to pay overseas in local currency.
Integrates with QuickBooks, Xero and FreeAgent for accounting and bookkeeping.
Scheduled transfers and batch payments.
Wise Limitations
Wise invoicing is very limited, doesn’t allow to edit once sent.
Not covered by FCSC.
5. Tide
Tide Pros
Register a new business, get virtual address and business bank account.
Business tools to support local business payment like POS card reader, iPhone payments.
Generate payment links to get paid quickly.
Tide Cons
The free plan costs 20p per transfer (in or out).
Only 3 invoices every month is free, then, you need to pay £5.99/month.
Every ATM withdrawals is £1.
How About High Street and Traditional Banks?
Sure, there is no shortage of that, but some of them have poor mobile app experience and cost a minimum monthly fee if you don’t maintain an average monthly (AMB) balance. The below table summarizes business bank accounts from mainstream banks.
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Free for 12 months | Free | Free for 12 months | Free for 12 months | Free | Free on AMB £6,000 | Free | Free on AMB £10,000 | |
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4.7 | 4.7 | 4.6 | 4.7 | 1.4 | 4.6 | 2.8 | 4.7 | |
Which Business Account Should I Choose?
The short answer is – it depends. To make the selection process easier, let me share some questions to ask yourself.
↳ Do you need a multi-currency account like USD and EURO? – consider Starling and Revolut.
↳ Do you mostly deal with international business? – consider Wise and Airwallex.
↳ Would you have more than £85,000 in the account? – choose the one which is protected by FSCS like mainstream banks or Monzo, Tide, Zempler or Starling bank.
↳ Do you need a POS to accept payment? – SumUp, Tide is a good choice.
↳ Are you going to send invoices? – Starling and Revolut have inbuilt invoicing features. If you need advanced features, go for one of these invoicing software.
↳ Do you prefer a branch visit and cheques deposit? – traditional banks like Metro, HSBC, LLYODS are the best bet.
IMO, once your business revenue grows above £85,000, you should look to open another current account to park the money to diverse the fund and mitigate the risk. Having one neobank and one mainstream bank account is another good idea.
Another thing – you should avoid neobanks like Wise, Airwallex, SumUp as your primary business operation account, especially the one doesn’t have FSCS protection. These are good as a secondary account.