Compare business bank accounts
The eight accounts that genuinely cover a UK small-business shortlist — challengers and high street — scored on real cost at your transaction volume, deposit safety, accounting integration and the support you get when it matters.
| Product | Score | Best for | From | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starling Bank Business | 9.0/10 | Most UK small businesses — a genuinely free, fully licensed bank account done properly | Free — no monthly fee | Read review |
| Tide | 8.5/10 | Sole traders and new companies wanting banking plus admin tools — invoices, bookkeeping, even company formation — in one app | Free plan; paid tiers from ~£12.49/mo | Read review |
| Monzo Business | 8.2/10 | Founders already banking personally with Monzo who want the same clean experience for business | Free (Lite); paid plans from ~£5/mo | Read review |
| Mettle (by NatWest) | 8.0/10 | Cost-absolute sole traders who want free banking backed by a major banking group | Free | Read review |
| Barclays Business | 7.7/10 | Businesses that want branches, lending relationships and high-street resilience | Free intro period (~12 months for new businesses); then monthly fees from ~£8 | Read review |
| Santander Business | 7.3/10 | Established small businesses wanting high-street coverage with cashback-style sweeteners | Monthly fee (from ~£7.50) with periodic fee-free offers | Read review |
| ANNA Money | 7.9/10 | Sole traders who self-manage tax and want the account to do the admin for them | Free (£0 — but 0.95% on incoming over £1k/mo); plans from £12.90/mo + VAT | Read review |
| Revolut Business | 8.1/10 | UK SMEs earning or spending internationally — 25+ currencies at interbank-grade rates | From £10/mo (Basic); Grow £35/mo; Scale £125/mo | Read review |
Challenger versus high street is a real choice now
Starling, Tide, Monzo and Mettle are no longer the risky option — they are the default for most new businesses, and often the better one. High-street banks answer with fee-free introductory periods, branches, and lending depth the challengers cannot match. Neither side is universally right; the decision turns on volume, cash handling and borrowing plans.
Safety first: FSCS versus safeguarding
Not every "business bank account" is a bank account. Licensed banks protect eligible deposits directly through the FSCS (up to £120,000). E-money institutions are mixed: Tide provides accounts via ClearBank with FSCS protection flowing through; Revolut Business covers you only if your account sits with Revolut Bank UK Ltd; ANNA relies on safeguarding throughout. We state the protection model in every review — check it before your balance grows.
"Free" is a pricing strategy, not a fact
Free accounts make money from interchange, add-on tiers and per-transaction fees. Tide is free until your sixth transfer of the month; Starling is free with a £7/mo toolkit upsell; high-street accounts are free for 12–18 months, then not. Our scores weight the two-year cost at realistic volumes, not the sticker.
Head-to-head comparisons
Tide vs Starling Bank Business
Starling wins on banking economics; Tide wins on bundled business tooling.
Starling Bank Business vs Monzo Business
Starling for substance at scale; Monzo for experience at small scale.
Tide vs Mettle (by NatWest)
Mettle is free; Tide is free-to-start. Buy the one that matches your actual ambition.
Barclays Business vs Starling Bank Business
Barclays when you need a bank; Starling when you need banking.
Tide vs ANNA Money
ANNA automates your tax panic; Tide protects your balance. Bigger balances should pick Tide.
Revolut Business vs Starling Bank Business
Revenue geography decides: domestic → Starling, international → Revolut, both → both.