Country hub / United Kingdom
Best digital banks and financial apps in the United Kingdom.
Start with the legal product, not the app design. Monzo, Starling and Revolut have authorised UK bank records; Wise Payments Limited is an electronic money institution. That distinction changes how eligible bank deposits and safeguarded e-money are treated if a firm fails.
Direct answer
There is no universal best UK money app.
Monzo is the clearest everyday-bank fit in the approved set. Wise is the clearest international-money fit. Revolut spans bank and travel-style app use, but users must check whether their account has completed the UK bank migration and which entity provides each product.
Product classification
Bank deposits and e-money are not the same claim.
The UK guide classifies the provider-market record before it discusses fit or protection.
Authorised bank
The approved records support Monzo Bank Limited, Starling Bank Limited and Revolut Bank UK Ltd as direct account banks for the cited products.
Eligible deposit
FSCS can protect eligible deposits up to £120,000 per eligible person, per authorised firm. Eligibility and product scope still matter.
Electronic money
Wise Payments Limited is an FCA-authorised EMI. Its UK e-money is safeguarded and not described as an FSCS-protected bank deposit.
Separate products
Crypto, investments, savings and business products may use different entities or protection arrangements. A bank licence is not a group-wide guarantee.
Verified UK comparison
Choose a use case. Keep the legal facts fixed.
The controls reorder approved records only. They never change the entity, protection model, verification status or source date.
Everyday banking: Prioritises bank status, residency evidence and deposit-protection scope.
| Provider | Product type | UK status | Legal entity | Protection model | Evidence | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MonzoEveryday UK banking where the stated UK-residency requirement is met. | uk authorised digital bank | available with residency identity account plan product credit and channel conditions | Monzo Bank Limited | Eligible bank deposits may receive FSCS protection.Scheme, depositor and product eligibility apply; this is not a promise for every service. | 12 source records | |
| Starling BankDirect UK banking for conditionally eligible businesses and sole traders. | uk licensed bank business current account | available with business form residency ownership industry identity cash and acceptance conditions | Starling Bank Limited | Eligible bank deposits may receive FSCS protection.Business form, UK residence, ownership, industry, cash activity, scheme and account eligibility apply. | 7 source records | |
| RevolutApp-based banking and travel use with the account migration status checked first. | uk licensed digital bank business current account | available with business entity onboarding plan currency payment and product conditions | Revolut Bank UK Ltd | Eligible bank deposits may receive FSCS protection; transitional e-money uses safeguarding.Some existing accounts are still migrating, and separate products can use separate entities. | 10 source records | |
| WiseInternational transfers and multicurrency use where EMI safeguarding is understood. | uk electronic money institution business multicurrency account | available with business entity identity feature currency and fee conditions | Wise Payments Limited | Customer e-money is safeguarded, not covered by FSCS deposit protection.Wise Payments Limited is an FCA-authorised EMI and is not presented as a bank. | 10 source records | |
| CoinbaseReceiving or trading supported crypto where the exact UK service and asset are available. | crypto exchange | available with product and account restrictions | CB Payments Ltd | E-money and digital assets are separate; crypto is not FSCS-protected.CB Payments Ltd is not presented as a bank, and receiving crypto requires matching asset, network, address and account eligibility. | 3 source records |
Monzo
uk authorised digital bank- UK status
- available with residency identity account plan product credit and channel conditions
- Legal entity
- Monzo Bank Limited
- Product note
- Monzo Bank Limited directly provides GBP personal and business current accounts. Supported foreign-currency receipts, international sends and card spending use conversion rather than persistent held foreign-currency balances; eligible GBP deposits remain FSCS scoped.
- Protection model
- Eligible bank deposits may receive FSCS protection.Scheme, depositor and product eligibility apply; this is not a promise for every service.
View legal and protection sources
Starling Bank
uk licensed bank business current account- UK status
- available with business form residency ownership industry identity cash and acceptance conditions
- Legal entity
- Starling Bank Limited
- Product note
- Starling Bank Limited directly provides conditional GBP current accounts and an eligible secondary personal euro current account with EUR holding, SEPA, IBAN, conversion and card-currency controls. Eligible GBP and EUR deposits aggregate under FSCS rules.
- Protection model
- Eligible bank deposits may receive FSCS protection.Business form, UK residence, ownership, industry, cash activity, scheme and account eligibility apply.
View legal and protection sources
Revolut
uk licensed digital bank business current account- UK status
- available with business entity onboarding plan currency payment and product conditions
- Legal entity
- Revolut Bank UK Ltd
- Product note
- Revolut Bank UK Ltd provides the cited GBP business current account and supported currency subaccounts with conditional exchange, payment and plan functions. Eligible bank deposits can enter FSCS protection; crypto and other separate-entity products remain outside that deposit state.
- Protection model
- Eligible bank deposits may receive FSCS protection; transitional e-money uses safeguarding.Some existing accounts are still migrating, and separate products can use separate entities.
View legal and protection sources
Wise
uk electronic money institution business multicurrency account- UK status
- available with business entity identity feature currency and fee conditions
- Legal entity
- Wise Payments Limited
- Product note
- Wise Payments Limited offers eligible UK personal and business customers conditional holding, receiving-detail, conversion, transfer and card functions across multiple currencies. Ordinary balances are safeguarded e-money rather than FSCS-insured deposits; Wise Assets is a separate investment state.
- Protection model
- Customer e-money is safeguarded, not covered by FSCS deposit protection.Wise Payments Limited is an FCA-authorised EMI and is not presented as a bank.
View legal and protection sources
Coinbase
crypto exchange- UK status
- available with product and account restrictions
- Legal entity
- CB Payments Ltd
- Product note
- UK e-money and digital-asset services are conditional and separate; eligible accounts can receive supported crypto using an exact asset, network, address and any required tag or memo.
- Protection model
- E-money and digital assets are separate; crypto is not FSCS-protected.CB Payments Ltd is not presented as a bank, and receiving crypto requires matching asset, network, address and account eligibility.
View legal and protection sources
0 selected locally.Open comparison page
Protection model
FSCS protection and safeguarding solve different problems.
FSCS is a statutory compensation scheme for eligible deposits at UK-authorised deposit takers. The current limit shown by FSCS is £120,000 per eligible person, per authorised firm, observed 12 July 2026.
Authorised payment and e-money firms must safeguard relevant funds. FCA consumer guidance explicitly distinguishes safeguarding from FSCS deposit protection.
Monzo
Eligible deposits can fall within FSCS protection. UK residency is stated as an account requirement.
Revolut
Eligible bank deposits can be FSCS protected, while existing e-money accounts still in migration use safeguarding.
Starling
Eligible business and sole-trader deposits can fall within FSCS protection, subject to depositor, product and scheme eligibility.
Wise
UK e-money is safeguarded through Wise Payments Limited and is not presented as FSCS-protected.
Verify the entity
Confirm the named legal entity and exact product before relying on a protection label.
Time-sensitive transition
Revolut's UK bank migration is staged.
Revolut states that new UK customers receive bank accounts, while some existing e-money accounts are still migrating. The protection model therefore depends on the user's actual account and product—not only the Revolut name.
Read the observed Revolut transition sourceCheck the separate Revolut to Coinbase crypto routeEligibility
Residency is verified only where the source says so.
Monzo states a UK-residency requirement. This dataset does not infer a universal document list, approval outcome or business eligibility for Monzo, Revolut or Wise.
Fees and plans
Current prices are unavailable.
No approved current fee schedule is attached to this country record. Plan prices, exchange markups and transfer charges remain unavailable rather than being copied from marketing or search snippets.
Payment rails
UK rails are market context, not provider guarantees.
Pay.UK supports the market-level Faster Payments, Bacs and Image Clearing context. Provider and product support still requires route evidence.
Faster Payments
Listed as United Kingdom market context. Support is not inferred for any provider.
Bacs
Listed as United Kingdom market context. Support is not inferred for any provider.
CHAPS
Listed as United Kingdom market context. Support is not inferred for any provider.
card
Listed as United Kingdom market context. Support is not inferred for any provider.
Source ledger
Material claims keep their evidence and observation date visible.
The source set was observed on 12 July 2026 and should be reverified at launch and after material regulatory changes.
Wise UK source drawer
Wise is displayed as uk electronic money institution business multicurrency account in the United Kingdom.
- UK entity is an FCA-authorised EMI.
- US entity is registered with FinCEN and uses state licences/partner arrangements.
- Wise says it safeguards customer money and does not lend it like a bank.
- Arrangements vary by country.
- Wise Payments Limited is not a bank and its e-money and payment services are not covered by FSCS deposit protection.
- Wise describes safeguarding customer funds separately from its operating money.
- Wise Business supports conditional international receiving, holding, conversion, sending, cards, team access, batch payments and API functions for eligible businesses.
- Features, currencies, receiving details, cards, limits and onboarding evidence vary by business location, entity and account state.
- Wise Payments Limited is an electronic-money institution for the cited UK relationship, not a bank deposit provider.
- The current page lists GBP 50 for the full business feature setup, currency-dependent sending and conversion from 0.33%, and free holding of ordinary supported currency balances.
- Receiving domestic non-Swift payments in the listed currencies is free while Swift or wire receipts have currency-specific fixed charges.
- Card, ATM, external-wallet top-up, Wise Interest and Stocks pricing remain separate; investment products carry capital risk and do not turn ordinary safeguarded e-money into bank deposits.
- Wise's current UK personal page describes use across 40 currencies and international receiving details while identifying the ordinary account as e-money rather than a bank deposit.
- Ordinary Wise funds are safeguarded and not FSCS protected; optional Wise Assets invests money through a separate entity and can have distinct FSCS and capital-risk treatment.
- Holding, local details, card spending, conversion, transfers and investment activation remain separate capabilities and protection states.
- The observed UK pricing page says holding more than 40 supported currencies is free.
- Conversion uses the displayed exchange rate plus a currency-specific fee, so free holding does not imply free receiving, conversion, sending, Swift or card use.
- The authenticated quote and current feature availability control the exact transaction.
- Eligible customers receive a sort code, account number and BIC for GBP local or supported Swift receipts, but Wise explicitly says the details are not a bank account.
- The cited GBP Swift route accepts only listed currencies, has a GBP 2.16 Wise receiving fee and can involve correspondent-bank fees.
- Verification, account state, rail, currency, detail set, beneficiary and sender information must match the current instruction.
- Wise account cannot be used to send money to crypto exchanges such as Coinbase or Binance.
- Wise card policy differs and lawful card transactions may be supported by region.
- Outgoing account transfers to crypto platforms are not supported.
- Article names Coinbase among payments Wise cannot accept from in the described context.
Monzo UK source drawer
Monzo is displayed as uk authorised digital bank in the United Kingdom.
- The list identifies Monzo Bank Limited, FRN 730427, as authorised.
- The list identifies Revolut Bank UK Ltd, FRN 981170, as authorised.
- Monzo identifies Monzo Bank Limited as a UK bank regulated by the PRA and FCA.
- Monzo states that eligible deposits are FSCS protected up to the current scheme limit.
- The page states UK residency as an account requirement.
- FSCS protects eligible deposits with UK-authorised banks, building societies and credit unions.
- The current limit is up to GBP 120,000 per eligible person, per authorised firm; scheme and product eligibility still apply.
- The limit increased on 1 December 2025.
- The linked current terms identify a personal UK current account directly at Monzo Bank Limited, require UK residency and prohibit business use of that personal account.
- The terms separate the main balance, Pots, cards, UK and international transfers, Direct Debits, cash, cheques, overdrafts, fees, screening, closures and app requirements.
- The PDF still prints the former GBP 85,000 FSCS limit, so NeobankDB uses the newer December 2025 Monzo FSCS sheet and current FSCS source for the GBP 120,000 limit.
- The current page lists a free UK current account, debit card, Pots, payment tools and separate paid-plan, savings, credit and investment options subject to their own terms.
- It shows 2.75% AER variable for cited Instant Access savings and 3.25% for eligible Perks and Max customers; rates, products and eligibility can change.
- The page reports App Store 4.9 and Google Play 4.8 as of 27 April 2026; those dated marketing snapshots are not reliability evidence or a NeobankDB score.
- The current comparison lists Free at GBP 0, Extra at GBP 3 monthly, Perks at GBP 7 monthly and Max from GBP 17 monthly; Max with Family costs an additional GBP 5 monthly.
- Extra and Perks require age 18 or older; Max lists age 18 to 69 and a three-month minimum term, with product and benefit eligibility applying.
- Savings rates, partner perks, insurance, breakdown cover, virtual cards, connected accounts and other plan benefits retain separate providers, conditions and change risk.
- The business page lists Lite at no monthly fee, Pro at GBP 9 monthly and Team from GBP 25 monthly, with exact benefits confirmed during signup.
- Only eligible UK sole traders or limited-company directors can apply; account, company, activity, team and product checks remain conditional.
- Business current-account deposits, payment tools, accounting, cards, cash, international payments, credit and third-party services retain product- and plan-specific terms.
- Version 1.14, dated 17 February 2025, contracts the UK business current account between a limited company or sole trader and Monzo Bank Limited.
- The account is for business use; the person opening it must be a director or sole-trader owner, and admin, collaborator and expense-card permissions retain separate responsibility and limits.
- Payments can be refused for legal, fraud, risk, unclear-instruction, partner or changing account-limit reasons; Pots are not part of the main available balance for payment authorisation.
- Monzo lists supported foreign currencies for international sending from its GBP current account and says GBP itself is not sent through that international flow.
- A supported outgoing currency list proves conversion and sending, not a held balance, local foreign receiving detail or foreign-currency deposit account.
- Eligibility, recipient, quote, third-party rate, fees, limits, review and unsupported-currency treatment remain transaction-specific.
- The cited plan fee information says supported EUR and other foreign-currency receipts are converted to GBP before appearing in the Monzo account, with the stated plan fee and external-bank costs potentially applying.
- Monzo card spending in a foreign currency also uses conversion rather than a persistent foreign-currency deposit balance.
- International receipt, outgoing transfer and card conversion must not be combined into an unsupported multicurrency-holding claim.
- Monzo says personal customers can use a range of cryptocurrency exchanges through their personal banking account.
- The statement does not name every supported exchange, payment method, card route or customer-specific limit and does not create a Monzo crypto custody product.
- Transfer acceptance remains subject to Monzo's current allowance, fraud controls, account terms and live payment review.
- Monzo lists a GBP 5,000 cryptocurrency-payment allowance in a rolling 30-day period and says the limit cannot be changed.
- A payment that would exceed the rolling allowance is stopped; available allowance returns as older qualifying payments leave the window.
- The page warns that crypto wallets are outside FSCS protection and explains scam indicators, but does not guarantee every payment below the allowance.
Revolut UK source drawer
Revolut is displayed as uk licensed digital bank business current account in the United Kingdom.
- The list identifies Monzo Bank Limited, FRN 730427, as authorised.
- The list identifies Revolut Bank UK Ltd, FRN 981170, as authorised.
- Revolut states that Revolut Bank UK Ltd became a fully licensed UK bank in March 2026, FRN 981170.
- New UK customers receive bank accounts, while migration of some existing e-money accounts is staged.
- FSCS protection applies to eligible bank deposits; e-money accounts still in transition use safeguarding instead.
- Crypto, investments and other products may be provided by separate legal entities and must be assessed separately.
- FSCS protects eligible deposits with UK-authorised banks, building societies and credit unions.
- The current limit is up to GBP 120,000 per eligible person, per authorised firm; scheme and product eligibility still apply.
- The limit increased on 1 December 2025.
- Funds held by authorised electronic money institutions and authorised payment institutions are safeguarded rather than protected by FSCS deposit protection.
- Safeguarding and FSCS deposit protection are distinct protection models.
- The current terms make Revolut Bank UK Ltd the provider of the GBP business current account and supported currency sub-accounts; separate group products retain separate agreements.
- Eligible deposits are stated as FSCS protected up to the current statutory limit across eligible deposits held with Revolut Bank UK Ltd, subject to scheme eligibility and aggregation.
- Onboarding criteria, supported entity and industry restrictions, authorised-person roles, plan terms, payment limits, holds and account-specific availability remain conditional.
- The current schedule lists Basic at GBP 10 monthly, Grow at GBP 35 monthly or GBP 360 annually, Scale at GBP 125 monthly or GBP 1,080 annually and Enterprise at custom pricing.
- Plan allowances differ for domestic payments, international transfers and foreign exchange; the cited over-allowance FX fee is 0.6% and the outside-market-hours fee is 1%.
- ATM withdrawals carry a 2% fee, payment acceptance uses separate percentage-plus-fixed pricing and the final in-app fee controls.
- The UK cryptocurrency agreement is with Revolut Ltd and covers buying, selling, depositing, withdrawing, holding and transferring cryptoassets under product and geographic conditions.
- Revolut Ltd is registered with the FCA for specified cryptoasset activity, but the cryptoassets are not protected by FSCS or Lithuanian deposit insurance and can lose their full value.
- The crypto agreement remains separate from the Revolut payment-account entity and terms; crypto availability, assets, limits, fees, custody and external transfers retain separate conditions.
- Eligible UK personal customers can withdraw supported crypto to an external wallet or exchange using a supported blockchain network and a newly added or saved compatible address.
- The customer must verify the receiving address and network; Revolut recommends a small test and says an on-chain send cannot be canceled or reversed after confirmation.
- Withdrawal limits, fees, wallet review, asset support, network support, compliance checks and in-app approval remain transaction-specific.
- Revolut states that UK crypto services are provided by Revolut Ltd, FCA firm reference 900562, under the cited money-laundering registration.
- Crypto transaction funds are not safeguarded like fiat e-money and crypto holdings are not covered by FSCS.
- The registration and provider identity do not guarantee asset value, external-wallet acceptance, transaction completion or recovery.
- Revolut requires sender and recipient information for crypto withdrawals under its cited Travel Rule process, including recipient name and transaction hash, with sender address requested above the stated threshold.
- The customer must identify the destination wallet owner or exchange truthfully; compliance collection is not proof that the destination will accept the asset or network.
- Additional information and review can delay or prevent a withdrawal without changing the irreversible on-chain boundary after broadcast.
Coinbase UK source drawer
Coinbase is displayed as crypto exchange in the United Kingdom.
- The agreement updated 8 June 2026 covers UK customers and identifies CB Payments Ltd as the e-money and digital-asset service counterparty under the cited FCA permissions.
- Eligibility, service access, digital assets, transfer limits, holds and refusals remain conditional on location, verification, payment method and other account factors.
- Coinbase e-money and digital assets are separate products; the agreement does not make Coinbase a bank or extend FSCS protection to cryptoassets.
- Coinbase UK customers can receive supported crypto from another exchange by copying the current asset- and network-specific receive address and any required destination tag or memo.
- The sender must use a Coinbase-supported asset and matching network; an incorrect network can cause permanent loss that Coinbase cannot retrieve.
- Account limitations, identity or two-step verification, confirmations and deposit processing can still delay or prevent credit.
- Coinbase lists separate UK capabilities for 3-D Secure cards, Easy Bank Transfer, Faster Payments, PayPal, SEPA, Apple Pay and Google Pay across buy, add-cash and cash-out actions.
- The generic method table does not certify Revolut as an accepted bank or card for every Coinbase customer; ownership, issuer, action, eligibility, fee, hold and live authorization remain separate.
- Published settlement times are estimates for the named method and do not describe an on-chain crypto withdrawal from Revolut.
Starling Bank UK source drawer
Starling Bank is displayed as uk licensed bank business current account in the United Kingdom.
- The general terms apply from 27 April 2026 and make Starling Bank Limited the direct provider of the cited business current account.
- Account use, authorised persons, cards, payments, cash, holds, errors, closure and support remain subject to the agreement and customer-specific account state.
- Starling identifies the account as a bank deposit relationship covered by FSCS only where the depositor and deposit are eligible.
- The schedule applies from 27 April 2026 and lists no monthly fee for the core GBP business current account before optional or action-specific charges.
- Faster Payments, Direct Debits and Standing Orders are listed without a Starling fee; cash deposits, international activity, optional services and third-party charges retain separate pricing.
- The live agreement, schedule and transaction preview control rather than a generic free-banking description.
- Starling assesses applications case by case and lists business form, Companies House, UK residence, ownership, authority, industry and due-diligence conditions.
- The page excludes specified structures, industries, client-money activity and insolvency states rather than guaranteeing every otherwise eligible applicant acceptance.
- Business cash deposits are capped by cited daily and annual limits and charged GBP 3 or 0.7%, whichever is higher, subject to current terms.
- The information sheet states that most eligible individual and business deposits at Starling Bank Limited enter the FSCS framework at the current statutory limit.
- The limit aggregates eligible deposits held by the same depositor at Starling Bank in the same protected capacity; the account statement confirms eligibility.
- FSCS covers eligible deposit failure, not business losses, card fraud, payment disputes, currency conversion or service availability.
- Eligible Starling personal-current-account customers can apply for a separate euro current account that can hold, send and receive EUR through supported SEPA functions.
- The current page lists no monthly holding fee, a 0.4% GBP-EUR conversion fee and conditional card spending from the EUR account through currency controls.
- The euro account is a Starling Bank deposit with a unique IBAN; total eligible Starling deposits aggregate under current FSCS rules.
- The current terms restrict the personal euro account to EUR payments and require an open Starling GBP personal current account plus continued eligibility.
- A non-EUR payment sent to the euro account is declined and returned; other currencies can instead enter the GBP account and be converted before transfer to EUR.
- Payment, conversion, card, restriction, closure and residual-balance handling retain separate terms, rates and fees.
- Starling says it no longer supports buying or selling cryptocurrency by debit card, GBP bank transfer or bank transfer in other currencies.
- The bank states the restriction is a customer-protection decision and does not charge for the declined payment.
- A generic Starling card or transfer capability must not be used to infer a workaround or supported crypto route.
UK market and protection sources
- The FCA regulates financial services firms in the UK and sets conduct standards.
- The FCA works with the PRA, which prudentially regulates banks and other specified firms.
- The PRA is part of the Bank of England and prudentially regulates and supervises banks and other specified firms.
- PRA rules cover capital and risk controls; supervision considers safety and soundness.
- FSCS protects eligible deposits with UK-authorised banks, building societies and credit unions.
- The current limit is up to GBP 120,000 per eligible person, per authorised firm; scheme and product eligibility still apply.
- The limit increased on 1 December 2025.
- Funds held by authorised electronic money institutions and authorised payment institutions are safeguarded rather than protected by FSCS deposit protection.
- Safeguarding and FSCS deposit protection are distinct protection models.
- Pay.UK operates the Faster Payment System, Bacs Payment System and Image Clearing System.
- Country-level rail availability does not establish that a particular provider or product supports a rail.
Unavailable or not yet verified
- Current consumer and business plan fees.
- A universal identity-document list or approval promise.
- Provider-level support for Faster Payments, Bacs, CHAPS or cards.
- Protection for investments, crypto or other products outside the cited account entity.