Top online banks compared

About Top online banks compared

Online banks, and the money apps that sit beside them, are grouped in this ranking by the three things that decide what an account really costs you: the price of keeping it, what stands behind the money inside it, and how much the account lets you do day to day. The list covers 395 brands, and one trade-off runs straight through it. Free monthly fees are the norm rather than the exception here, with the middle of the monthly fee range at €0 and the top of the range reaching €79, so price on its own does not separate these brands. What separates them is the cost of using the account once it is open. Conversion is the quiet one. Foreign exchange fees here run 0% to 7% around a middle of 0%, and the brands near the top of the list are the ones that keep that charge low. Sitting beside cost is safety: some entries are banks, some hold an e-money licence and some are payment institutions, and the deposit protection attached to each is not the same. Read the entries below as a shortlist of accounts that hold up on price, protection and function at once.

How we picked

Each brand is scored on three things, and the weights are set before the list is drawn. Trust carries the largest share at 40%, cost follows at 35%, and the breadth of what an account offers carries 25%. Cost covers what it takes to keep the account open, what a transfer costs and what a currency conversion costs. Trust looks at the licence behind the brand name and the deposit protection attached to the balance, because a free account means little if the money inside it sits uncovered. Offer covers what the account does day to day, such as joint accounts, free ATM access, local account details and the way support is run. Figures come from each brand's own fee schedule, terms and support pages, plus licence registers where the brand is named. A price is used with the account type it applies to, so a subscription and a free plan are never mixed together. The spread behind these rankings is drawn from €0 to €79, 0% to 7% and 1 to 300. Partner brands appear first, in score order, and everything else follows on the same three weights. A high position here means a strong balance of price, protection and function, not the longest feature list.

Our top picks

1. 3. bunq

   bunq is a European account for people whose money moves across borders, and it earns its place in this ranking on that mix. The monthly fee is €0, the brand lists expats, travelers, business users and students among its audiences, and joint accounts are a listed feature, which few entries in this ranking offer. Deposits sit under EU DGS up to EUR 100,000 and the brand was founded in 2012. The cost that matters is conversion, at 3% against a category middle of 0%. Compared with Paysera above, bunq serves personal and expat money as well as business, and support runs on email, chat and help centre rather than by phone.

   • Headline rate: 3.01%
   • Rate type: Variable
   • Deposit protection: EU DGS up to EUR 100,000

   Pros

   • The monthly fee is €0 and the pricing model is no monthly fee, so keeping the account open costs nothing each month.
   • Interest is paid weekly and the rate type is variable, so money keeps earning between withdrawals without a term to serve out.
   • Balances are covered by EU DGS up to EUR 100,000, so there is a payout route if the provider fails.
   • Features list joint account and digital only, so a joint account and a digital only setup are both available.
   • The currency conversion fee is 3% on the free plan, below the 7% top of the range across the site.

   Cons

   • The rate type is variable, so the return follows the base rate and the account ranks 240 of 473 brands on the headline rate.
   • Support runs on email, chat and help centre only, which leaves phone callers with a narrower route in.
   • Features list joint account and digital only, so the service is digital only and there is no branch counter.
   • On the headline rate, 21.59% at axi-card and 24.19% at plazo both sit far above the 3.01% paid here.

2. 4. bunq Spain Bank Account

   bunq Spain Bank Account is the Spanish-facing version of the account above, and it holds its place in this ranking on the same strengths: a free monthly fee of €0, joint accounts, local account details for euro payments and deposit protection of EU DGS up to EUR 100,000. The conversion price is 3%, the same rate the entry above charges. What separates the two is the support list, which runs on chat and help centre, so there is no email or phone channel listed here. Readers who want a phone line for a blocked payment should stay with the entry above; everyone else gets the same protection and the same free monthly fee.

   • Monthly fee: €0
   • Deposit protection: EU DGS up to EUR 100,000
   • Currency conversion fee: 3%

   Pros

   • A monthly fee of €0 a month, so there is no standing charge for keeping the account open.
   • Deposit protection is EU DGS up to EUR 100,000, and De Nederlandsche Bank supervises the firm in the Netherlands.
   • The easy access account pays a variable rate of 3.01%, with interest credited weekly.
   • Transfers are Instant and the account carries a local iban, so salary, rent and supplier payments are quick to set up.
   • The account is aimed at expats, travelers and business, which covers expats, travelers, business customers and students in Spain.

   Cons

   • Currency conversion is the cost to watch: 3% to convert plus a 3% exchange rate markup, so spending abroad adds up.
   • Support runs on chat and help centre only, so a blocked payment or a disputed transfer waits on a chat reply rather than a phone call.
   • The rate is variable, so a reader planning around a known return for a fixed period has to accept the number can move.
   • The service is joint account and digital only by design, so anyone hoping to sort something out in person has no branch to visit.

3. 5. Qonto

   Qonto is where this ranking turns from free accounts to paid ones, and the subscription buys a business tool rather than a personal current account. The monthly fee is €19 on the standard plan, well above the category middle of €0, and the plan bundles a monthly set of SEPA transfers then charges a small fee per extra transaction. In return you get local account details for euro payments, a wide support list on chat, phone and email, and from 30 currencies for international payments. Conversion is 0.8% to 1.8%, inside the category maximum of 7%. Compared with bunq above, Qonto costs more each month and is built for business and freelance money.

   • Headline rate: 1.5%
   • Rate type: Variable
   • Minimum deposit: €0

   Pros

   • Minimum deposit of €0, so the account opens without tying up money
   • Support runs on chat, phone and email
   • Currency conversion of 0.8% to 1.8% suits frequent international invoicing
   • A local IBAN is provided

   Cons

   • The monthly fee of €19 makes it expensive for anyone holding a small balance
   • The account is digital only, so there is no branch to visit
   • The 1.5% rate is only paid while the transaction condition is met

4. 6. Qonto Portugal Business Account

   Qonto Portugal Business Account is the Portugal-facing sibling of the entry above, and it sits near the end of this ranking because it repeats the same offer at a similar price. The monthly fee is €9, the transfer terms again bundle a monthly set of SEPA transfers with a small charge per extra transaction, and the conversion fee is 0.8% to 1.8%. It offers local account details, from 30 currencies, support on chat, phone and email and deposit protection of EU DGS up to EUR 100,000. Read against MonCash below, which serves a single market, this account is built for cross-border euro business money and holds a far wider set of currencies than 1.

   • Monthly fee: €9
   • Licence type: Payment institution
   • Deposit protection: EU DGS up to EUR 100,000

   Pros

   • The account covers from 30 currencies, well above the 5 seen across the site.
   • Deposits sit under EU DGS up to EUR 100,000, so the working balance stays inside the EU guarantee.
   • Support runs on chat, phone and email, including a phone line for urgent payment problems.
   • A local iban fits Portuguese suppliers, payroll and tax payments.

   Cons

   • The €9 monthly fee is the cost rivals skip, with XTB at €0 and AXI Card at €0.
   • Currency conversion costs of 0.8% to 1.8% apply to any payment made outside the euro zone.
   • The account is digital only, so there is no branch counter and no paper trail outside the app.
   • On the Basic plan each transfer beyond the included bundle of SEPA transfers is charged a flat rate.

5. 7. Revolut ES: best for Revolut ES

   Banking app offering bank accounts, savings and share investing from a phone.

   • Licence type: Bank
   • Currency conversion fee: 0% to 1%
   • Currencies: 30

   Pros

   • The page distinguishes three formats, including both virtual options.

   Cons

   • A single-use and reusable card serve different use cases.

What to look for

What the account costs to keep open

The middle of the monthly fee range in this category is €0, the lowest is €0 and the highest is €79. A free account is the norm, so a subscription price needs a reason attached to it, usually business tooling rather than basic current account service.

What a currency conversion costs

Foreign exchange fees in this category run 0% to 7% with a middle of 0%. If you hold or spend more than one currency, this line decides which accounts are cheap in practice and by how much.

How many currencies the account covers

The middle account here supports 3 currencies, the lower end supports 1 and the top of the range is 300. Extra currencies only earn their place if you use them for payments or holding.

What licence stands behind the brand

Licences split across the category: 25% of these brands are banks, 25% hold an e-money licence and 50% are payment institutions. Each comes with its own deposit protection, so check the scheme and the amount before moving a large balance.

Whether you get local account details

Local account details are common in this category, applying to 78.8% of it, with 19.5% for US routing details. Getting your own local details means faster payments and fewer conversion steps for everyday income.

How you can reach support

Help centres cover 85% of the category, phone support 77.7%, email 75.3% and live chat 47.5%. A wider channel list matters most if you expect to resolve a blocked payment quickly.

Frequently asked questions

Top online banks compared by country

• Australia
• Brazil
• Canada
• China
• France
• Germany
• India
• Ireland
• Italy
• Japan
• Philippines
• Singapore
• Spain
• United Kingdom
• United States

The data behind this ranking

All data and the CSV