Starling or Monzo ?

richardvc

I fancy changing to one of the challenger banks and would like to hear of anyone's experiences, both good and bad, and if you have a preference for either Starling or Monzo ?
Thank you
Richard

[Deleted User]

I have both. I use Starling as my main current account, pay goes in and direct debits come out and all daily spending. Also have Monzo which I use as a back up account which I also used in Ireland recently.

richardvc

Deleted_User wrote: »

I have both. I use Starling as my main current account, pay goes in and direct debits come out and all daily spending. Also have Monzo which I use as a back up account which I also used in Ireland recently.

Just out of interest Lee, why do you have a back up account ?

[Deleted User]

richardvc wrote: »

Just out of interest Lee, why do you have a back up account ?

It's available and free so why not!

I'm sure there are many folk on here who have more than one current account.

Westie983

richardvc wrote: »

Just out of interest Lee, why do you have a back up account ?

Its always worth having one if banks servers go down or issues repeated like TSB you still have access to some funds.

Westie983

K80_Black

I use Starling as a secondary account for temporary savings/holiday money as it gives a little interest - I've found it great, and used it abroad (Paris) with no issues. In that instance, the automatic notification saying how much you've spent was useful, but for everyday spending I'd probably find it annoying.

I like that there is no limit to fee-free foreign transactions, and they gave me a larger overdraft than my high street bank which helps my overall credit utilisation - though my partner who is in full time work (I am not) got a smaller overdraft than me with them, so your mileage may vary!

My 'main' back account is with Halifax which is Visa, and Starling is Mastercard - as well as having credit cards in both Visa and Mastercard format. I like to cover my bases, and have both 'real money' and credit available from as many sources as possible, especially when abroad. If one goes down, the other is available.

Since neither offers a switching bonus (to my knowledge) why not open one or both, leaving your regular account open, have a play about with them and see which you prefer?

waseem432000

I have used both for a month of so and they both are equally good but my "main" current account is with NatWest because i want to use my bank statement for official purposes and i don't want to put a bank statement from Monzo or Starling to a UKVI officer. Unless you have some reservations where you want to use their bank statements for, you should be alright. I still receive my salary in Monzo and they actually have a nice feature of upcoming payments which are visible in application a day before they will be added to your account. Used Starling for some temporary savings but have recently switched Starling account to NatWest for switching bonus. One minor difference which one of my friends, who gambles a bit, noticed is that you can enable/disable gambling transaction on your card instantly in Starling but Monzo requires you to request their team via chat and it takes 48 hours for limit to be disabled but surely that's not a deal breaker for most of us.

[Deleted User]

Westie983 wrote: »

Its always worth having one if banks servers go down or issues repeated like TSB you still have access to some funds.

Westie983

+1 this.

I also have current accounts with Lloyds, TSB, and Barclays. I've had others but they are all gone now. I used to bank with RBS but my banking relationship with them fell apart.

Handy to have for back up.