Revolut vs. Starling - how do they compare?

It used to be the case that the financial services you could access depended almost entirely on where you lived, worked and did business. But thanks to the rise of mobile banking, everything’s changed. You’re no longer tethered to the same geographical locations.

New digital services such as Starling Bank and Revolut have become hugely popular, and it’s easy to see why. They make banking seamless, thanks to the convenience of mobile ‘on the go’.

In this guide, we’ll be pitting Revolut vs Starling against each other, as both apps have a lot to offer. Whether you’re running a small business, have a customer account but want some extra features and great rates, or want a way to make international purchases easier, each has a unique selling point.

Alternatively, if you do a lot of travelling and don’t want to deal with the hassle of international foreign exchanges, an e-money provider like Wise and its Wise multi-currency account could be the best option. It lets you hold up to 50 different currencies, spend in local currency and buy internationally without the hassle of sneaky transaction fees¹.

¹ Please see the Terms of Use for your region or visit Wise fees & pricing for the most up-to-date information on pricing and fees

Revolut vs Starling: an overview

Both Starling Bank and Revolut are seen as part of a growing wave of challenger banks. They provide specialist financial services that the Big Four (Lloyds Banking Group, NatWest, HSBC and Barclays) do not have the flexibility to provide.

The first of these is Starling Bank. It was established by Anne Boden in 2014² as a way to create a wholly digital bank. It had the aim to provide the financial services people need but without the need for physical banks and branches.

By contrast, Revolut was formed in 2015 by Nikolay Storonsky and Vlad Yatsenko as a way to create what they describe as “a borderless economy”³. Their idea was to make managing money, travel expenses and investments both easy and rewarding.

It’s perhaps best seen as an app for financial services rather than a digital bank with an app.

Despite their differences, there is a considerable overlap in the types of services they offer. Here are some of the key comparisons between the two:

• Both are centred around an app/website with similar features, with round-ups, payments, direct debits, spending limits and easy-to-use savings pots.
• Starling has only one account tier, while Revolut not only has its standard card but also three other paid accounts.
• Both give you a card, although Revolut does charge a shipping fee to get it to you.
• Neither Starling nor Revolut have branches, but Starling Bank does allow you to make cheque deposits by scanning them through the app or via the Post Office.
• Starling Bank is a registered UK bank, whilst Revolut is not (although it’s a little more complex than this⁴). Starling is covered by schemes such as FSCS whilst Revolut uses its own safeguarding.
• Starling allows you to withdraw money for free at ATM machines, whilst Revolut has limits depending on the card tier you have.
• Revolut allows you to buy shares, gilts and cryptocurrency through their current account, whilst Starling does not.
• Revolut allows money to be transferred to any account in SEPA whilst Starling charges a transaction fee.

Costs to get started

Now, let’s explore the various costs that are incurred when using either a Starling or Revolut account.

Both Starling and Revolut have a free account. Indeed, Starling only offers free accounts, whilst Revolut has a free account and three tiers of premium account⁵.

Starling has no fees for opening accounts, whether they’re personal accounts, joint accounts, children or business accounts⁶.

Setting up an account is free, as is receiving a debit card.

Revolut, by contrast, has four service tiers. Of these, only the Standard card is free, and even then you need to pay a delivery charge to receive it⁵.

This charge is waived if you subscribe to one of their premium service plans from Plus (£2.99 per month), Premium (£6.99 per month) and Metal (£12.99 per month)⁵.

However, you don’t necessarily need a physical card, as the app supports Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay as standard. The accounts are opened the same day they’re set up and verified through a photograph of a form of ID and a picture of yourself.

The big differences in costs come from how they are used. Revolut has a strict monthly limit (£200 or five transactions) for ATM withdrawals⁵ and charges a 2% fee⁷ whenever this is exceeded. It also has a £1,000 monthly limit for foreign transactions⁵.

Starling has neither of these limitations for spending money. With that said, sending money abroad does incur an additional fee that Revolut does not⁶.

Revolut vs. Starling: accounts and features

Let’s take a look at the types of accounts you can get with Starling Bank and Revolut. And of course, the different features and services that are on offer.

Account plans

As mentioned earlier, Starling Bank only has one service tier, which is free to open and receive your first card.

There are options for both personal and business accounts. Both a standard current account and a joint account are available, much like many other banks.

There is also a bank account designed to interact with the European banking system, as well as children and teen accounts.

Revolut, by contrast, has four tiers of personal accounts available, as well as a business account service. Each of the tiers differs mostly in increasing withdrawal limits, and the additional perks they offer.

Features

Both Starling Bank and Revolut are built around their central apps. They have a number of comparable features.

Revolut has designed itself as a borderless, frictionless way to access financial services. It not only helps you to spend and save your money but also invest it (always remember that your capital is at risk with investing, so never invest more than you can afford to lose)⁵.

It supports the ability to buy stock and shares, invest in the gold and silver market, and trade cryptocurrency tokens and investments. As is standard, there are fees per trade, although these are reduced by upgrading to one of the premium services⁵.

There are also a lot of perks available with Revolut that Starling Bank does not focus on.

These include⁵:

• The ability to book holiday accommodation
• Travel insurance and lounge passes
• Receive refund protection
• Accident coverage
• The potential for reimbursement if you are unable to attend an event.

Starling’s focus, by contrast, is more domestic and more individual. It offers a three-tier overdraft service (15%, 25% and 35% EAR⁸) depending on circumstances. There’s also the ability to manage the limit directly through the app itself. Although, like all credit, going into an overdraft will affect your credit score.

It also has support for withdrawals through the Post Office and cheque scanning. This feature allows you to cash cheques without needing to go into a branch.

Security, FSCS protection and support

The biggest difference and one that could be a major deciding factor is the matter of security.

This is a somewhat controversial and complex subject when it comes to Revolut. As it’s not officially a UK bank⁴, it does not come under the purview of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) which protects savings up to £85,000 if a bank fails⁹.

Starling Bank is officially a bank and proudly claims to be the first-ever digital bank to be registered as such.

However, this does not mean that Revolut is inherently insecure. It is covered through a series of policies it describes as “safeguarding”¹⁰. This scheme ring-fences money deposited into it into a dedicated safeguarding bank account, or invests in approved low-risk cash-equivalent assets.

In terms of customer support, both have in-app live support, but Starling also has a dedicated support line.

International payments

Both Revolut and Starling have somewhat interesting quirks when it comes to their international payment systems, especially the former.

Revolut allows for transactions abroad, although there is a charge. It gives you the mid-market exchange rate, but only on weekdays (there’s an extra fee for converting currency on weekends)⁷. There’s also a limit of up to £1000 per month⁷. The £200 over five transactions limit for ATMs also applies abroad.

Starling allows you to use your card abroad too without limits. However, there are standard fees for sending money overseas, and Starling charges an 0.4% markup¹¹ on top of this.

If you’re currently comparing options for sending money and spending abroad, check out Wise. It offers all the benefits of a multi-currency account, offering low fees¹ and the mid-market exchange rate on all transactions.

With so many choices for challenger banks available, it’s smart to compare carefully - to see which services suit your needs best.

Hopefully after reading this guide, you have a better idea of what’s on offer from both Revolut and Starling Bank.

Sources used for this article:

Sources checked on 16-January-2023.