Curve Metal review
A premium option for the seasoned traveller, Curve Metal is a debit card packed with benefits and perks.
![Curve Curve](https://www.finder.com/niche-builder/5d3b1d0c71481.png)
If you’re abroad so often that you barely remember what sleeping in your bed feels like, Curve Metal can be a good idea for your finances. It is a premium option and is an alternative option to the standard Curve account.
Our review looks at how it works, how to get it and whether the extra features are worth the monthly fee.
Curve Metal is the top-tier Curve subscription, including all the perks and benefits Curve has to offer, most of which are linked to travelling. It comes with a fancy-looking metal debit card that you can have in black, rose or blue. Its more down-to-earth siblings are the standard Curve plan which is free. Curve X which offers a couple of extra benefits, and the intermediate premium service Curve Black.
Curve’s basic functionality is to allow you to only take one single card with you when you leave the house – the Curve card. You can connect all your Mastercard and Visa cards to it using the Curve app, then select which one you want Curve to take money from and simply pay with the Curve card.
Curve is especially useful when you go abroad because even if your regular cards charge a foreign transaction fee, Curve scraps them in most cases by treating your transaction as if it was a sterling one.
Curve Metal takes all this to the next level by adding travel insurance and other perks to Curve’s basic features.
In return for Curve Metal’s monthly fee, you get:
Curve Metal gets you airport lounge access via LoungeKey, a programme that offers lounges in more than 1,000 airports in 120 countries.
You just need to show your Curve Metal card at the entrance and use it to pay for it. There’s normally a fee per person (yes, you can buy passes for your travel companions as well), but the price can vary depending on the lounge. Don’t leave your Curve at home or you won’t be able to get in.
Lounge benefits vary, but you’ll usually get a nice and comfy seating area, newspapers to read and some refreshments at the very least. Anything else you might need to know about the LoungeKey programme can be found in this dedicated guide.
Some of the extra benefits Curve Metal has on the free Curve option are also included in Curve Black. Basically, the following features are unique to Metal:
You’ll need to weigh up whether you’re likely to make use of these additional benefits to work out whether the higher monthly fee is worth paying.
It’s also worth keeping in mind that while you can get rid of your Black membership anytime, the minimum period you can keep Curve Metal for is 6 months, otherwise you’ll be required to pay a fee. How much this is can be found in Curve’s fee schefule.
Have you decided to give Curve Metal a go? You need to do the following:
Email support | |
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Telephone support | |
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Branch support |
The key words here are frequent traveller. If you don’t go abroad at least 4 or 5 times a year, there’s really no point in considering a premium Curve membership at all, as it’ll be cheaper to just pay the occasional ATM fee if you need more than £200 cash.
If you do travel a lot, you might find that Curve Black works better for you than Curve Metal as it gives you many of the features at a cheaper price.
However, if you habitually travel to countries where you pay cash and like to take advantage of an airport lounge, Curve Metal could still be a good solution. But you’ll really need to weigh up the benefits against the cost in order to see if it’s worth it.
Finder scores, in blue, are based on our expert analysis. We also show reviews from users, where we've received more than 10, with a score in yellow. We gather more reviews from customers every year in Finder's customer satisfaction survey.
To find out more, read our full methodology.
The Finder team roamed the streets of London to quiz the general public about whether they prefer cash or card. Paid content.
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