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N26 is a German-born digital bank that launched in the UK in late 2018. In February 2020, following the UK’s departure from the EU, N26 announced it would close its UK operation. There are plenty of other options though, which we’ve rounded up here.
Many challenger banks specialise in offering a fee-free current account with a debit card and a well-structured mobile app, that helps you keep track of your spending and make payments easily.
Here are the main N26 alternatives. You won’t be charged for using your card or making bank transfers in the UK by any of them, but there are (slight) differences when it comes to other features.
Monzo and Starling are the top players here, but it’s a close call. Ultimately, we’ve picked Starling because you can deposit cash in your account for free and because your overdraft rate is more likely to be cheaper with Starling than with Monzo.
The challengers mentioned above easily beat most traditional banks when it comes to making purchases abroad, simply because they don’t charge a foreign currency transaction fee. The foreign currency transaction fee is a percentage that’s added to all your payments made in another currency by most traditional banks; it can be up to 3% of the transaction, which makes your holiday bank charges pretty expensive.
Instead, fee-free card spending abroad is a given with these challengers, so you’ll need to look at other features to compare them:
When it comes to all foreign currency things, the choice is between Starling and Revolut. For travelling, Starling tops the league, because if you go somewhere where cash is still the main payment method – as is the case for many countries outside of Europe – Revolut’s £200 monthly limit on free ATM withdrawals can be annoying.
On the other hand, fee-free money transfers (especially in Europe) are Revolut’s speciality – everyone else, including dedicated money transfer companies, charge at least a small fee. So if you also need to send money out of the country every now and then, Revolut is probably your best option.
If you’re only looking for top interest-paying savings accounts, challengers aren’t your best shout. Instead, you should probably take a look at what traditional banks offer.
However, challenger banks still have something to offer to savers:
There is no clear winner here. Among challengers, Atom Bank is the one that specialises in savings accounts, and if you want a fixed term one then it can be competitive. But you can’t get a current account with Atom, if that’s what you are looking for as your alternative to N26.
Monzo tops the league for easy access savings accounts, but what you’re doing is actually opening a separate account with another provider, so it’s open to debate whether that really counts.
Finally, Starling is the only one that pays interest directly on your current account balance, so we’re going with Starling – 0.05% on up to £85,000. However, there are more competitive interest rates available with more traditional banks if that’s your priority.
The short answer is yes, all the challengers we’ve mentioned are registered with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and fully authorised to do what they do. However, there is a slight difference when it comes to how your money is protected:
Now N26 no longer operates in the UK, you’ll have to look elsewhere for a digital-only current account. As our guide highlights, there are some great alternatives out there in the UK market, and you can compare them further in our table below.
We take a detailed look at the Kuda money app to see how it works.
We look at how bank accounts from Chase and Starling compare.
Use our guide to compare the free current accounts from digital challenger banks Chase and Monzo.
We look at how current accounts from Chase and Revolut compare.
Learn more about Juni’s business account for ecommerce and online marketing entrepreneurs.
Find out more about the SumUp business account, including its pros and cons.
Is Monzo’s app-only current account the right option for you? Read our review to get the low-down on all of the features of the account, its card and the app.
Revolut Plus is the latest current account to be offered by digital banking brand Revolut – we take a look at its features and fees.
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The latest kid on the neobank block, Vybe is a free-to-use digital account that offers perks and discounts through its range of brand partners.