Choose Monzo if you want the app with the most extras around your current account: Pots, Salary Sorter, cashback, savings, investments, pensions and optional paid plans. Choose Starling if you want a no-monthly-fee account with Spaces, virtual cards for set-aside money, no fees from Starling when you spend abroad and 24/7 UK-based human support. Both offer free personal, joint and children's accounts to UK residents, so the deciding factor is which extras you'd use.
I read Monzo's home, current account and About pages, then Starling's home and current account pages. Both are UK app banks with free personal accounts, so the real differences sit in the features around the account and how each one makes money from extras.
Monzo and Starling compared
| Monzo | Starling | |
|---|---|---|
| Customers | More than 16 million personal and business customers | More than 3.5 million customers |
| Budgeting | Pots, Salary Sorter and a bills Pot | Spaces, virtual cards per Space and Bills Manager |
| Spending abroad | Travel without fees is a listed feature | No fees from Starling when you spend and withdraw abroad |
| Other accounts | Joint, under 16s, 16-17s, business | Joint, under 16s debit card, business |
| Optional plans | Extra, Perks and Max on top of the free account | No paid plans mentioned on the pages I read |
| Support | Help centre and money worries support | 24/7 UK-based support from humans |
| Free option (as of October 2026) | Free personal current account for UK residents | Current account with no monthly fees |
What Monzo puts around your account
Monzo's pitch is one app for everything. Salary Sorter divides your income into Pots for bills, spending and goals, Direct Debits can come from a dedicated bills Pot, and round-ups send spare change to savings. Around that sit cashback, savings and ISAs, investments, pensions, credit cards, loans, overdrafts and a mortgage tool.
The free account is the base. Monzo then sells three optional plans, Extra, Perks and Max, with Max adding worldwide travel and phone insurance. Its app ratings on its own page are 4.9 on the App Store and 4.8 on Google Play.
What Starling does its own way
Starling leans on Spaces: money set aside inside the app for bills, plans and goals, separate from your balance. The clever part is virtual debit cards linked to a Space, each with its own number, so you can only spend what you've set aside for that thing. Bills Manager keeps bill money apart, and a newer AI feature answers questions about your spending.
Its current account has no monthly fees, you'll pay no fees from Starling when you spend or withdraw abroad, and there's 24/7 UK-based human support by chat or phone. Starling also says eligible deposits are protected by the FSCS.
The difference that usually decides it
Monzo grows by adding products and paid plans around a free account, so it suits people who want savings, investing and credit in one app. Starling keeps the account simple with no monthly fees and puts its effort into budgeting tools and human support. If you know you'll never pay for a plan, Starling's model is easy to understand; if you want the extras, Monzo has more of them.
Choosing in five questions
- Do you want your pay split into pots automatically? Monzo's Salary Sorter does it.
- Do you want a separate card for each spending goal? Starling's virtual cards for Spaces do that.
- Do you travel a lot? Both talk up fee-free spending abroad; check the details for your trips in each app.
- Would you value phone support at 2am? Starling offers 24/7 UK-based human support.
- Want investing and pensions next to your current account? Monzo offers both.
If you're weighing a business account too, see how to open a business bank account online, and for a different angle, here's a look at how Monzo built its brand.
My advice on Monzo or Starling
I'd pick Starling if you want a clean, no-monthly-fee account with budgeting cards and people on the phone when something goes wrong. I'd pick Monzo if you like having savings, investing and credit inside one app and you're happy to consider a paid plan later. Both accounts are free to open, so you could keep one of each and use them for different jobs.
Do you make a banking or money app? Tool makers can ask to be considered for a featured place in comparisons like this one.
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Related: the loans page.
Related: writing for us on investment.
Frequently asked questions
Is Monzo free?
Yes, as of October 2026, Monzo offers a free personal current account to UK residents, with optional paid plans called Extra, Perks and Max.
Does Starling charge a monthly fee?
No. Starling says its current account has no monthly fees, and its business account has none either.
Can I use Monzo or Starling abroad?
Both list spending abroad as a feature. Starling says you can spend and withdraw abroad with no fees from Starling.
Who can open a Starling account?
Starling says you need to live in the UK and be aged 18 or over to apply for its personal current account.
Do Monzo and Starling offer joint accounts?
Yes. Both offer joint accounts and accounts or cards for children, according to their own pages.
