Revolut Business vs Starling Bank Business
The most common bank decision for internationally-minded UK businesses: the FX specialist versus the domestic champion. Increasingly the honest answer is "both" — but if forced to one, your revenue geography decides.
| Revolut Business | Starling Bank Business | |
|---|---|---|
| Terrain | International, multi-currency | Domestic GBP-first, light international |
| Monthly cost | From £10 (no free tier) | £0 |
| FX economics | Interbank in allowances (£1k–£60k), then 0.6% | ~0.4% + £5.50 SWIFT per payment |
| Currencies held | 25+ properly held | GBP, EUR, USD accounts |
| Protection | FSCS only if bank-entity account — check yours | Direct FSCS, £120,000 |
| Lending | Limited, no overdraft | Overdrafts and loans in-app |
| Cash | Not accepted | Post Office, 0.7% |
Where Revolut Business wins — and where Starling Bank Business wins
Revolut Business
- Unmatched FX value at volume — interbank rates and 25+ held currencies
- Corporate cards, expense controls and API on higher plans
- The better platform for cross-border teams and suppliers
Starling Bank Business
- Free, full-bank domestic account with direct FSCS
- Lending, deeper accounting integrations, no fee labyrinth
- Predictable: no allowances, no out-of-hours markups
Our verdict
Domestic business? Starling, effortlessly. Significant international flows? Revolut Business earns its subscription in FX savings almost immediately. Many UK SMEs rationally run both — Starling as the home account, Revolut as the currency engine — and our scoring reflects exactly that division of labour.
How we compare: assessments draw on vendor documentation, published pricing, product testing where noted, and our published methodology. Prices are indicative entry-level figures — confirm current plans with vendors. We may earn commission from links on this page; it never affects our verdicts.