UK business account comparison data (2026)
A single dated table covering nine UK providers across eleven variables. Free to cite with attribution. Last verified 12 October 2026.
Daniel Okoye maintains the comparison data behind Business Account Referral. He collects published pricing, transfer allowances, FX charges and account-protection details from provider sources, models the total cost of each plan at realistic transaction volumes, and dates every figure so readers can see when it was last verified.
Reviewed 12 October 2026 · About the team · How we review
Download the citable dataset
Stable, version-independent files with provider, plan, price, allowance, protection, offer, source URL and checked date fields. Updated only after a material data review.
| Feature | Tide | Starling | Monzo Business | Revolut Business | Mettle | ANNA Money | Wise Business | Cashplus | HSBC Kinetic |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Entry monthly fee | £0 (Free) | £0 sole trader / £7 Ltd | £0 (Lite) | £0 (Basic) | £0 | £0 (Pay As You Go) | £0 + one-off £45 setup | £0 (Business Go) | £0 (eligibility applies) |
| Top paid tier | £69.99 (Max) | £7 (Ltd) | £9 (Pro) | Tiered, varies | — | £49.90 (Big Business) | — | ~£9.95+ | — |
| Included UK transfers at entry tier | 5/month | Unlimited | Unlimited | Capped by plan | Unlimited | Capped on PAYG | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Account model | ClearBank bank account or PPS e-money | UK bank | UK bank | UK e-money | Bank account via NatWest | UK e-money | UK e-money | UK bank | UK bank |
| Deposit protection | FSCS on eligible ClearBank deposits; PPS accounts safeguarded | FSCS | FSCS | Safeguarded | FSCS via NatWest | Safeguarded | Safeguarded | FSCS | FSCS |
| Multi-currency balances | No | EUR/USD add-on | No | 30+ currencies | No | No | 40+ currencies | No | No |
| Built-in invoicing | Yes (3/month; unlimited on Max) | Basic | Pro tier only | Yes | Yes | Yes, with chasing | Yes | Basic | No |
| Business savings account | Instant Saver, variable AER by plan | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Interest on balances | Yes | Yes |
| Cash deposits | Partner network, per-deposit fee | Post Office, per-deposit fee | PayPoint, per-deposit fee | No | Post Office, fee | No | No | Post Office/PayPoint, fee | Branch and Post Office |
| CASS switching | Supported for eligible businesses | Supported | Supported | No | Supported | No | No | Supported | Supported |
| Current sign-up offer | REFER200 — up to £200 cashback | None | None | Varies | None | None | None | None | None |
All values taken from provider-published pricing and terms and verified 12 October 2026. Fees, rates and features change; re-check the provider's own pricing page before relying on any figure. Free to reuse with attribution to Business Account Referral and a link to this page.
How to read the table
Entry monthly fee is the recurring charge on the cheapest plan that is genuinely usable for a trading business — not a promotional first-year rate. Several providers advertise "free" accounts that meter transfers, so read that row alongside included UK transfers.
Account model is the single most misunderstood column. A "UK bank" row means the provider holds a banking licence and your balance sits in a bank account. "UK e-money" means funds are safeguarded in a segregated account rather than covered by the FSCS. Tide sits across both: ClearBank-issued Tide accounts are bank accounts with eligible deposits protected up to £120,000 per eligible depositor, while PPS-powered Tide accounts are safeguarded e-money.
Cash deposits is where headline comparisons usually mislead. Most digital providers accept cash only through Post Office or PayPoint at a per-deposit fee. For a business banking a few hundred pounds of cash a week, that charge can dwarf the monthly plan fee.
Methodology in brief
- Values are sourced from each provider's published pricing, terms and help pages — no third-party aggregators.
- Volatile values (fees, savings rates, offers) are re-checked monthly; the verification date is shown above the table.
- Where a provider publishes tiered or conditional pricing, we record the tier a typical small business would land on and note the condition rather than quoting a best case.
- Sign-up offers are only recorded when the provider or its official referral programme publishes the terms.
The full scoring process behind our recommendations is on review methodology, and every external source is listed on sources.
Tide plan detail
The table above shows Tide at its entry tier. Tide sells four plans — Free, Smart, Pro, Max — and the differences between them are set out in full on Tide fees, with cost modelling at realistic volumes on Tide fees examples.
Citing this dataset
You are welcome to reproduce this table in articles, research or comparison tools. Please attribute it as: Business Account Referral, UK business account comparison data 2026, with a link to this page and the verification date. If you spot a value that has changed, tell us and we will update it and note the change on the changelog.
Frequently asked questions
How current is this data?+
Every value was verified on 12 October 2026 against provider-published sources, and volatile values are re-checked monthly. Provider pricing can change at any time, so treat the verification date as the guarantee, not the values themselves.
Can I reuse this table?+
Yes, with attribution to Business Account Referral and a link to this page. We publish it as a citable dataset precisely so it can be quoted accurately rather than paraphrased incorrectly.
Why are some providers marked e-money rather than bank?+
Because they operate under an e-money licence rather than a banking licence. Customer funds are safeguarded in segregated accounts rather than covered by FSCS deposit protection, which is a different mechanism with no fixed compensation limit.
Why does Tide appear in two protection categories?+
Tide offers ClearBank-powered business bank accounts and some PPS-powered e-money accounts. Eligible ClearBank deposits may be FSCS-protected up to £120,000 per eligible depositor; PPS balances are safeguarded.
Do you include providers you have no commercial relationship with?+
Yes. Most of the providers in this table earn us nothing. A comparison that only included commercial partners would not be a comparison.
Why is only one sign-up offer listed?+
Because at the last verification only Tide had a published, structured cashback promotion for new business account customers — REFER200, worth up to £200 subject to Tide terms and eligibility. Live market offers are tracked on our business bank account offers page.
Independent introducer disclosure: this site is not Tide and is not operated by Tide. If you sign up using our link or the code REFER200, we may receive a referral reward. Tide controls account approval, eligibility and cashback validation. This is not financial advice. Always check the latest Tide terms before applying. Last checked 12 October 2026.