Revolut vs. Chase - how do they compare?

If you’re in search of a new bank account, you don’t necessarily have to choose a traditional bank. Instead, you can opt for one of the new wave of digital banks, such as Revolut or Chase.

Revolut is a bank challenger seeking to remove the borders between people and finance. Chase meanwhile is owned by one of the oldest financial institutes in America, and is expanding to the UK for the first time.

In this guide, we’ll be comparing the two on everything from accounts and features to fees and security.

And if you’re looking for an account for international spending, theWise multi-currency account is well worth considering. It offers easy currency conversion at the mid-market exchange rate, low fees and even a Wise debit card for overseas spending.

But for now, let’s get back to Revolut vs. Chase.

Revolut vs. Chase: an overview

Both Revolut and Chase are both technically challenger banks, although they have very different backgrounds.

The Revolut story starts in 2015 as a small technology-focused startup by Nik Storonsky and Vlad Yatsenko. Their goal was to give everyone access to a global, borderless economy¹.

Chase, meanwhile, is owned by one of the biggest banks in the United States, JPMorgan Chase². While it has a major presence across the US, Chase is new to the UK digital banking market, only launching in 2021.³

Let’s take a look at a few of the main points of comparison between the two:

• Both offer a free, easy-to-open current account, although Revolut also has several upgrade tiers on top of this.
• Both offer ways to transfer money into savings pots
• Both have a free debit card, although Chase also has free delivery for both new and replacement cards.
• Both are compatible with Apple Pay and Google Pay for contactless mobile banking.
• Both offer competitive currency conversion.

Costs to get started

The best place to start with any comparison is with the costs that come with creating an account and starting to use its features. The good news is that in both cases, the prices start relatively low.

Both Revolut and Chase are free and easy to get started, both requiring only a selfie, a mobile phone number and a photo ID to open an account.

It must be said however that in some cases, they may require additional information such as employment status or tax residency.

Both have a debit card for everyday spending. Revolut charges a delivery fee to actually receive the card, while with Chase you not only get your first card for free but also any replacements should you need them⁴. Interestingly, the debit card is numberless as a security measure to prevent the risk of useful card cloning⁵.

The story is quite similar for cash machine withdrawals as well. While Revolut limits you on its free service to 5 withdrawals or a maximum of £200 per month⁶, Chase has no fees for withdrawals or payments both in and out of the country⁴.

Accounts and features

Now, let’s run through the main account types and features you can expect with both Revolut and Chase.

Whilst Revolut prides itself on a robust set of features, perks and benefits for people on its subscription deal, Chase has chosen to keep things very simple indeed.

Account plans

Revolut has four tiers, including its free Standard service⁷:

• Standard, available for free but with quite strict limits to how you use it, as well as no extra perks.
• Plus for £2.99 per month. Alongside extra purchase protections, this gives you access to Revolut’s <18 accounts, support priority and standard card delivery.
• Premium for £6.99 per month. It adds improved interest rates, cheaper international transfers, higher withdrawal limits, travel perks and discounts for airport lounges and SmartDelay eligibility.
• Metal for £12.99 per month. Alongside the metal card itself, you get 2.5% AER interest paid daily, 10 stock trades each month commission-free and lower investment fees. Plus, 1% cashback on purchases, Revolut’s highest available withdrawal limits and an international transfer discount.

By contrast, Chase has just one free account tier and only two types of account. Unlike most challenger banks, Chase UK does not have a business account division.

Features

Revolut has a large scattering of features that allow you to do everything from saving to investing, Chase focuses on rewarding savers.

Chase’s biggest benefits are focused on encouraging customers to use their accounts for saving and spending.

The headline feature for Chase is their Round-up Account. This is a system that allows you to save your pennies by rounding up all payments to the nearest pound. Then, you simply move the remainder into a savings account⁸. The selling point is that the round-up account has an interest rate of 5% rather than its typical 2.7% AER interest rate⁹.

Chase also offers a 1% cashback scheme for the first year. This further incentivises spending in a way that is only available to Revolut customers on their highest subscription tier.

Revolut chose a somewhat different way to reward its customers. It offers perks built around jet-setting lifestyles, the borderless economy, and cryptocurrency.

It offers discounted rates for airport lounges, plus a SmartDelay system that allows free access if a plane is delayed for more than an hour¹⁰.

Alongside this, there is:

• Overseas medical coverage
• Car hire excess
• Cover for ticket or event cancellation
• Up to 10% cashback on bookings made through Revolut’s Stays service.

Revolut also provides access to a small number of commission-free stock and commodities market trades¹¹.

Finally, Revolut has a dedicated cryptocurrency platform. This allows you to easily transact in crypto in the same way you would any other currency (although given the wild volatility in the market, never invest what you cannot afford to lose)¹².

Protection, security and support

The most prominent difference between Revolut and Chase comes in how the two work to protect your money.

Revolut is not a UK-licensed bank¹³. It operates as an e-money service, not covered by deposit protection schemes such as the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS)¹⁴.

With that said, Revolut does have a safeguarding policy. This is where the money deposited by customers goes into a dedicated account, is invested in regulator-approved low-risk assets or is covered by an insurance policy¹⁵.

By contrast, Chase has two major protective elements that can inspire some degree of confidence.

It is a registered UK bank and so has FSCS protective status¹⁶. It’s also part of the monolithic JPMorgan Chase empire, which makes the chance of collapse slim (although of course, not impossible).

Account security

In terms of individual account security, both Revolut and Chase offer a range of ways to keep your account protected from bad actors, scammers and criminal activity.

Both have two-factor authentication, as well as the ability to lock and unlock cards directly from the app.

Revolut has an active fraud prevention system that locks out accounts suspected of fraudulent activity. It also offers private wallet keys for crypto transactions¹⁷.

Interestingly, Chase also has a numberless debit card, which helps to prevent card cloning and the problems associated with it⁵.

Customer support

Another fundamental place where the two banks differ is in their customer support.

Revolut is limited to in-app support, with priority offered to people on its higher tiers⁷.

By contrast, Chase has a dedicated free telephone line, as well as 24-hour support via the App¹⁸.

International payments

One final sign of just how different the two companies approach modern banking is international payments.

Chase sets currency conversion at Mastercard’s exchange rate, charges no fees and will not charge for withdrawing money on their side (although local fees can still apply)¹⁹.

The main limit is a £1500 monthly withdrawal limit for people travelling abroad¹⁹.

Revolut, meanwhile, allows for up to 29 fiat currency accounts, which allows you to shop like a local. However, it does have much stricter limits on withdrawals and charges a 2% fee for buying currency at the weekend²⁰.

If you want the best of both worlds when it comes to currency conversion, Wise could be a better alternative.

You can send money worldwide with Wise for low, transparent fees²², and the mid-market exchange rate. There’s even a Wise debit card for spending in the local currency in 175 countries.

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Since it launched, Chase UK has appeared to have put its best foot forward. It offers a competitive service which gets the basics right, offering an easy-to-use, rewarding current account.

But if you’re interested in investing, Revolut’s evolution into a well-rounded financial services app could be of more interest.

Whichever you choose, just make sure to compare fees, limits and features closely. Hopefully, this guide has helped you do just that.

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Sources used for this article:

1. Revolut - About us
2. JP Morgan Chase - History of Our Firm
3. Chase UK - Chase arrives in the U.K. to offer consumers a simple, rewarding banking experience
4. Chase UK - Fee Information Document
5. Chase UK - Debit card
6. Revolut - Personal Fees (Standard)
7. Revolut - Compare plans
8. Chase UK - Chase round-up account
9. Chase UK - Interest rates
10. Revolut - Lounges and Smart Delay
11. Revolut - Stocks
12. Revolut - Buy and Sell Bitcoin, Ethereum and more cryptocurrency | Crypto Exchange
13. Revolut Help Centre - Is Revolut a bank?
14. FSCS - See how FSCS protects banks and building societies
15. Revolut blog - How we keep your funds safe (UK)
16. Chase UK - FSCS Protection
17. Revolut - Security
18. Chase UK - Information about current account services
19. Chase UK- Travelling with Chase
20. Revolut - Currency Converter | Money Exchange Rates Today
21. Chase & Revolut
22. Wise Terms of Use - “Please see Terms of Use for your region or visit Wise Fees & Pricing: Only Pay for What You Use for the most up to date pricing and fee information.”

Sources checked on 18-January-2023.