Revolut Business vs Starling (2023): Everything You Need to Know

Are you in the market for a business bank account? Great – because you’re in the right place. This review looks at two well-known options: Starling Bank and Revolut Business.

Starling is a UK-based bank offering personal and business banking solutions, plus loans, overdrafts, and international money transfers. In contrast, Revolut is often written about in regard to its personal banking solutions, especially where overseas money transfers are concerned.

Stay with me for a dive into both banking solutions. Hopefully, by the end of this comparison, you’ll be able to determine which (if either) is best for your business.

However, if you’re pushed for time, don’t worry; here’s our quick bottom line up front:

Both platforms are FCA registered.
Both offer free accounts with limited features, which are excellent starting points for new businesses.
Both offer currency exchange/money transfers, although Revolut Business supports 25+ currencies vs. Starling’s 20.
Both offer specific accounts for solopreneurs (Starling’s Sole Trader account and Revolut’s three types of Freelance account).
Both are easy to set up and provide mobile banking apps and desktop access.
Revolut is best for businesses looking to expand globally with its support for 25+ different currencies across 100+ countries.
Starling is best for businesses looking for a bank that offers loans and overdraft facilities in addition to its business bank accounts.

With that in mind, let’s dive into the meat of this Starling vs Revolut Business comparison:

What is Revolut Business?

Revolut Business launched in 2017, a year after Revolut launched its personal banking option. Revolut Business is registered with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), although its cryptocurrencies feature isn’t.

Its main USP is that businesses can make and receive financial transactions across 100+ countries in 25+ currencies. Revolut Business also focuses on offering one platform to empower its customers to manage all financial aspects of their business.

Lastly, according to its website, since its founding in 2015, more than 10,000 businesses a month are signing up. Impressive, right?

What is Starling?

As I mentioned in the intro, Starling is a British-registered bank regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. In fact, it’s the UK’s first 100% digital bank. It has offices in London, Cardiff, and Southampton and launched its first accounts in 2016. By 2021, it had around 475,000 business accounts.

Starling offers personal accounts, business accounts, overdrafts, loans, and money transfers between 36 countries.

Revolut Business’s Features

These are split into five categories with a range of features in each:

Accept Payments

Accept payments: Accept, settle, and track online and in-person payments in 25+ currencies (with next-day settlement). There are no currency conversions (unless you ask Revolut to do that).
Payment gateways: Tailor your website checkout with Revolut’s widgets and integrations, including OpenCart, Big Commerce, Xero, Shopify, and WooCommerce.
Payment links: Create and share payment links (email, invoice, and SMS) to get paid quickly.
QR code: Create a QR code to accept in-person contactless payments via your smartphone.
Revolut Pay: Set up a single-click checkout button on your website with Revolut Pay.
Revolt Reader: You can take fast in-person payments. This reader is compatible with Apple Pay, Google Pay, and major credit and debit cards.

Connect

APIs: Paid subscribers can build custom integrations.
API Payouts: Automate payments (for example, to contractors or to pay out insurance claims).
Integrations: Including accounting software such as Sage, Zoho Books, Xero Shopify, Slack, and WooCommerce.

Essentials

Cards: Depending on your payment plans (more on this below), you’ll have metal or plastic company cards and virtual cards.
Multi-currency account: Transfer, exchange, and receive money in 25+ currencies
Teams: Manage team spending in real-time, including setting and altering spending limits and authorizations
Transfers: Approve and track all money transfers in real time.

Tools

Analytics: Plan, manage and track your spending with a breakdown of expenditure by time period, team member, and category.
Payroll: Set up employee payroll with the freedom to customize pay schedules per employee and benefit from automated tax calculations.
Invoices: Create, send, and monitor professional invoices
Team expenses: Authorize team members to use expense cards and set and monitor spending in real-time.
On-demand pay: Employees can pay £1.50 (per withdrawal) to withdraw a portion of their accrued wages.

Treasury

Currency exchange: Use Revolut’s app or website to exchange 25+ currencies at the real exchange rate with no hidden fees.
Forward currency contracts: Lock your exchange rate to protect yourself from currency volatility for 12 months. This is available in USD, GBP, and EUR. Set up foreign contracts to the maximum value of £500,000.
Crypto: Buy Bitcoin and/or Ether with no hidden fees using a Revolut Bitcoin account.

Starling Bank’s Business Features

Starling Banks offers it's business customers seven key features:

Business toolkit: Accounting and bookkeeping software that permits you to manage your finances from one dashboard, including uploading bills, scheduling payments, creating and sending invoices, a handy bookkeeping to-do list (so nothing is forgotten!), automated expense categorization, and up-to-date estimates of your tax liability. You can also keep a record of VAT on your transactions and connect with HMRC to submit your tax returns.
Fixed-rate business savings: This new feature ensures you earn 2.5% interest on your business savings (with Starling’s one-year Business Fixed Saver account).
Online banking: Manage your finances via the Starling mobile app or your laptop.
Mobile cheque deposits: Deposit cheques of £10,000 or less with the Starling mobile app, with a maximum of £5,000 per day.
Bills manager: Set money aside for bill payments in one of Starling’s “Saving Spaces.” Starling will automatically pay any bills due by direct debit or standing order. This feature automatically updates and syncs to your accounting software, such as Xero or Freeagent, via Starling’s integrations.
Business spending insights: Starling tracks all your spending, recommends where you might cut back, and analyzes your monthly outgoings (including what you spend the most). You can also upload written notes and images of manual receipts to better manage your expenses.
Business marketplace: 17 integrations organized into the following categories are available: Utilities, HR, Accounting, Payments, Pensions, and Communications. Examples of well-known integrations include QuickBooks and Slack.

Other noteworthy features include:

Bulk payments: Send multiple payments 24/7 – for example, running a payroll
Card controls: I.e., manage what you can and can’t do with your Starling card, e.g.
- Block online payments.
- Set contactless payment limits up to £100.
- Disable contactless payments.
Instant notifications: Receive real-time mobile alerts whenever money goes in or out of your account.
Deposit and withdraw cash: (from your nearest Post Office)

Lastly, it’s also worth noting that Starling Bank offers the following business services:

Business overdrafts: Limited companies and Limited Liability Partnerships can apply for a business overdraft between £1,000-£50,000, with a 1.75% arrangement fee and a personal guarantee required as security.
Business loans: Borrow between £25,001 and £250,000 with a 4% loan arrangement fee, a personal guarantee required as security, and repayment terms of 12-72 months.
Money transfers: Send money to 36 countries in 20 currencies, including GBP, USD, EURO, and Zloty, from 30p per transfer (price varies on the country) or £5.50 per transfer using SWIFT.

Revolut Plans and Prices

Revolut Business plans are split into two categories:

Company
Freelance

There are four Company accounts:

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Free:

Plastic company cards – up to three per person (fees may apply, but these aren’t listed)
Virtual company cards – up to 200 per person
Five free local payments/mo (£0.20 per transaction after that)
1.99% crypto exchange fee
Support for 150+ currencies.
Hold and exchange 25+ currencies.
Free transfers to other Revolut cards
IBANs for global transfers
Manage recurring transfers
Local accounts in GBP and EUR
Accept domestic payments online for a 1% + £0.20 fee.
Accept international commercial cards for a 2.8% + £0.20 fee.
Accept Revolut Pay transactions for a 1% + £0.20 fee.
Bank transfers for £1 or less
Create and track invoices.
Accept in-person payments with a 0.8% and £0.02 fee for UK consumer cards and 2.6% and £0.02 for international and commercial cards.
Register unlimited team members and assign permissions.
Manage team member expenses for £5/mo per team member added.
24/7 support
Manage payroll, with a £3/mo per team member on the payroll.
App integrations (as highlighted above)
Web and mobile access
You can create payment links.

Grow £25/mo (or up to 24% off with annual billing)

Everything above, and:

One metal card
Ten free international payments per month
100 free local payments per month
Foreign exchange up to £10,000 per month with a 0.4% markup for each exchange after that
0.99% crypto exchange fee
Bulk payments
Analytics to track per-account spending over a set period
Rewards such as a free six-month Shopify trial and £149 credit with Zipcar for Business
Business API integrations
Forward currency contracts

Scale £100/mo (or up to 21% off with annual billing)

Everything above, plus:

Two metal cards
50 free international payments per month
1,000 free local payments per month
Foreign exchange up to £50,000 per month with a 0.4% markup after that

Enterprise – Custom Pricing

Everything above and a range of customized features, including the:

Number of metal cards
International payments
Free local payments
Foreign exchange limits
Fees on consumer and commercial cards and international payments
Bank transfer fees
Custom fees when you accept in-person payments
Custom transaction fees for online payments (international transfers, consumer cards, and commercial cards).
A dedicated account manager

There are three Freelance accounts:

Free:

A plastic company card
One virtual card
Five free local payments a month (£0.20 per payment after that)
£3 fee per international payment (weekend and rare currency markups apply)
Support for 150+ currencies
Hold and exchange money in 25+ currencies
Free transfers to Revolut accounts
IBANs for global transfers
Manage recurring transfers
Local accounts in GBP and EUR
Accept payments online and in person (fees the same as those quoted above)
Create and track invoices
Accept payments on your website
Create and share payment links
Invite unlimited team members and assign permissions
24/7 support
Manage payroll at £3/mo per team member on the payroll

Professional £7/mo (or up to 29% off if you pay annually)

Everything in the Free freelancer plan and:

Five free international payments per month (fees mentioned above apply after that)
20 free local payments per month (fees, as mentioned earlier, apply after that)
Foreign exchange up to £5,000 per month with a 0.4% markup for each exchange after that
Bulk payments

Ultimate £25/mo (up to 24% off if you pay annually)

Everything in the Free and Professional freelancer plans, and:

One free metal card
Ten free international payments per month (fees mentioned above apply after that)
100 free local payments per month (fees mentioned above apply after that)
Foreign exchange to a £10,000 limit per month with a 0.4% markup for each exchange after that

Starling Plans and Prices

Starling has three types of business accounts:

Original Free Business Account:

For limited companies and registered businesses.

This includes:

No monthly fees
No UK payment charges or ATM withdrawal or card payment fees when you’re overseas
A Mastercard debit card
24/7 support via the app, phone, or email
Integrations with Xero, QuickBooks, and other useful apps
Six free ATM withdrawals a day with a daily limit of £300
Free UK bank transfers up to £250,000
Compatible with Apple, Google, Samsung, and Garmin Pay
Deposit cash at the Post Office for a 0.7% fee (a £3 minimum fee applies)
In-app cheque deposits up to £1,000
Send cheques of £1,000+ using a Starling Freepost address
View all scheduled payments in one place
Add digital receipts to your account
International money transfers to bank accounts in 36 countries

To upgrade, you can customize your Business account with the following:

Business Toolkit for £7/mo
Euro Business Account £2/mo
USD Business Account £5/mo

Check out Starling Bank's pricing page for a full breakdown of what these upgrades entail.

Sole Trader Account

If you’re working a side hustle or a self-employed sole trader, there are two Sole Trader Account plans:

Original Free Account £0:

No monthly fees
QuickBooks, Xero, and FreeAgent integrations
24/7 UK-based customer support
Instant notifications
Free UK bank transfers

Business Toolkit £7/mo (with the first month free)

You get everything in the Original Free Account and:

Create and send invoices; once they’re paid, you can match your payment to the invoice in a single click.
Automated expenses and bookkeeping- for example, one such bookkeeping feature uses a red symbol to tell you what additional information you need to record on transactions.
MTD-compliant VAT submissions
Tax estimation (sole traders only)
Bill uploads
Payment scheduling

Multi-Currency Accounts

USD and Euro bank accounts are currently available for UK businesses. These accounts are priced as mentioned in the costs above for the Original Free Business Account. You can hold, send and receive USD and Euros. You’ll also benefit from local account details to make and receive local payments for free.

Starling vs Revolut Business: Pros and Cons

No review would be complete without a quick pro-cons list, so below, I’ve listed some of Starling Bank and Revolut Business’s most notable pros and cons:

Revolut Business’s Pros

You can transfer and exchange money in 25+ currencies
There’s a wide range of business accounts, including ones for solo operators
24/7 support for all plan holders
The QR code payment feature is handy (especially if you’re operating in-person0
Fully FCA regulated

Revolut Business’s Cons

There’s no option to make cash deposits
Revolut doesn’t offer overdraft facilities
There’s a 2% fee for ATM transactions, irrespective of which plan you’re on, which seems steep.

Starling Bank’s Pros

Access to fully FCA-regulated UK bank accounts
Starling Spaces helps you manage your money by setting aside funds for bills
You can receive instant payment notifications to your mobile when cash moves in and out of your account
You can apply for loans and overdrafts (subject to checks and approvals)

Starling Bank’s Cons

There’s a charge to deposit money.
Larger value cheques have to be posted.
You can only open an account if you’re a Limited Company or LLP registered with UK Companies House, and all directors with access to the account must be UK residents.

Starling vs Revolut Business: My Final Verdict

So that brings my Starling vs Revolut Business review to a close! I hope you have a clearer idea of what both institutions offer.

In a nutshell, I think they both offer a good selection of business accounts (including free options). Also, both are suitable for smaller and larger operations. However, Revolut is a more attractive option for anyone transferring numerous currencies across multiple countries. However, if you want overdraft facilities, Starling Bank is the more suitable solution because Revolut Business doesn’t offer this service.

Whichever you choose, keep your eye trained on additional costs, read consumer reviews, and find out as much as possible before signing up. That way, your only surprise will be your healthy bottom line!

That’s enough from me, over to you. In the comments box below, let me know your thoughts about Starling Bank and Revolut Business! Or are you considering another digital bank like Monzo? Either way, we want to hear from you!