Tide and Revolut both offer a range of digital bank accounts for businesses and freelancers.
They’re both top-rated challenger banks with competitive offerings for both new and established companies.
But which is right for your business?
In this article, we’ll compare their banking features, fees, security, and customer service to gauge their differences.
We’ll also consider other factors, such as interest rates, mobile apps, customer service, and account-switching processes, to help you decide which to sign up with.
Tide vs Revolut: My Verdict
Choosing which one of these two excellent challenger accounts is ‘best’ isn’t easy as they both have much to offer, but the accounts are aimed at slightly different types of business.
If you’re a business trading internationally, Revolut has the edge with the ability to send, receive and exchange in 25+ currencies at interbank rates.
Currently, Tide only allows payments within the UK.
Revolut is also very progressive when it comes to crypto, allowing the direct purchase of cryptocurrency through the app
Tide
If you’re a business using an account primarily in the UK, we think Tide is the one to choose.
It’s a regulated bank account as opposed to an e-money account, meaning you get FCA protection.
They charge £1 per ATM withdrawal as opposed to Revolut’s flat 2%.
It also offers a range of connected business services, such as free legal advice, free company registration, and the ability to get business loans with instant approval through the app.
It’s a more comprehensive bank account offering for a business.
Revolut
For a freelancer, we recommend the Revolut Pro account.
It includes 0.8% cashback on all Pro debit card purchases, quick and easy ways to receive payments through QR codes, payment links, customizable invoices, and access to free side hustle tools within the Revolut app.
Both brands have excellent ratings on Trustpilot, with a 4.3 * average.
1% cashback on all card spend – Ends 3/12/2024
Tide Free Business Account
Monthly Fee
£0Bank Transfers
20pCard Purchases
£0Overdraft
NoFSCS Protection
YesAccessibility
Access your Tide account via the web or the mobile app
– You must be at least 18 years old.
– You must have a valid UK phone number.
– You must have a device that can access the UK Apple App Store or Google Play Store.
– You must be either the director of an active company registered with UK Companies House or a sole trader/freelancer registered with HMRC.
– Charities/trusts and other high-risk industries are not eligible.
– Businesses operating from outside the UK are excluded.
Revolut Business Basic Account
Monthly Fee
£0Bank Transfers
20p
Card Purchases
£0Overdraft
NoFSCS Protection
NoAccessibility
Access your Revolut account via the web or mobile app
– You must be at least 18 years old.
– Your business must have a physical presence in the UK, EEA or Switzerland.
– You must be a private limited company, public limited company, Limited Liability partnership or partnership.
– Charities/trusts and other high-risk organisations are not eligible.
– Businesses operating from outside the supported countries are excluded.
Tide vs Revolut Banking Features Compared
Here are the top features of the Tide Bank accounts.
Tide Plans
| TIDE BUSINESS ACCOUNTS | FREE | PLUS | PRO | CASHBACK |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly cost | Free | £9.99 + VAT | £18.99 + VAT | £49.99 + VAT |
| Tide business card | Free | Free | Free | Free |
| Expense cards for staff | £5 / month | 1 x free card incl. | 2 x free cards incl. | 3 free cards incl. |
| Transfers in and out | 20p / transfer | 20 / month free | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| ATM withdrawals | £1 | £1 | £1 | £1 |
| Scheduled payments | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Accounting integrations | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Create and send invoices | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Phone support | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 24/7 legal helpline | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 0.5% cashback with Tide card | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ |
| Get FREE | Get PLUS | Get PRO | Get CASHBACK |
Revolut Plans
| REVOLUT BUSINESS ACCOUNTS | FREE | GROW | SCALE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Transfers & exchange | |||
| Free international payments | – | 5 | 25 |
| Free local payments | 5 | 100 | 1,000 |
| Foreign exchange at the interbank rate | £1,000 | £10,000 | £50,000 |
| Crypto exchange | 1.99% fee | 0.99% fee | 0.99% fee |
| Bulk payments | – | ✓ | ✓ |
| Spend like a local in 150 currencies | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Hold and exchange 30 currencies | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| IBANs for global transfers | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Local accounts in GBP and EUR | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Accept payments online | |||
| UK consumer cards | From 0.8% + £0.02 | From 0.8% + £0.02 | From 0.8% + £0.02 |
| International and commercial cards | 2.8% + £0.20 | 2.8% + £0.20 | 2.8% + £0.20 |
| Revolut Pay | 1% + £0.20 | 1% + £0.20 | 1% + £0.20 |
| Easy bank transfers | Fees will never exceed £1 per transaction | Fees will never exceed £1 per transaction | Fees will never exceed £1 per transaction |
| Create and track your invoices | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Request payments with shareable links | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Payroll Management | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Accountancy Integration | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Get Free | Get Grow | Get Scale |
Tide vs Revolut Summary
In conclusion, Tide and Revolut are both excellent accounts, but with quite distinct offerings that will appeal to a differing customer base.
Revolut aims its accounts squarely at businesses and freelancers operating internationally, at least some of the time, or at businesses with a particular interest in crypto investments.
Tide is specifically aimed at UK businesses operating domestically.
Its service is designed to facilitate business growth, whether through company registration, access to legal advice, or finance.
Tide vs Revolut: How Do the Fees Compare?
Both Tide and Revolut offer free entry-level accounts.
These accounts give you everything you need to run a basic business, with certain features coming at an extra cost.
| Feature | Tide | Revolut |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly account charges | Free Plus £9.99/month Pro £18.99/month Cashback £49.99/month | Free Grow £19/month Scale £79/month Enterprise £Custom/month |
| Paid Plan | Plus £9.99/month | Grow £19/month |
| Paid Plan | Cashback £49.99/month | Scale £79/month |
| Fee for cash deposits | £2.50 for deposits up to £500 | Cash deposits not accepted |
| 0.5% of cash amount for deposits over £500 (at Post Offices) | ||
| 3% (at PayPoints) | ||
| Transfers between accounts (Tide/Revolut) | 20p | Free |
| ATM cash withdrawals | £1 each | 2% |
Tide Fees
Tide charges £1 for ATM withdrawals, 20p for transfers between accounts, and £1 for cash deposits via the Post Office.
Revolut Business Fees
With the free Revolut account, you will pay £3 for international payments (outside EEA) and pay just 20p for local (within EEA) payments, outside a free allowance of 5 per month.
Crypto exchange comes with a 1.99% fee, and bank transfers cost 1% + 20p. You can accept payments in person via the APP for a charge of 0.8% + 0.02p.
Tide vs Revolut Interest Rates
Neither Tide nor Revolut offers interest on business current accounts.
Tide vs Revolut Business for Paying in Cash and Cheques
Tide allows you to pay in cash via the Post Office but doesn’t allow cheque deposits.
Revolut does not allow either cash or cheques.
Tide vs Revolut: Which is Safer?
Both Tide and Revolut are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
Tide has two-factor authentication, biometric logins, the ability to instantly freeze your card, and real-time notifications.
Tide is also ISO 27001 certified, meaning your information is safe and secure.
Tide’s bank accounts, provided by Clear Bank, also come with FCSC Protection, which means up to £85,000 is protected should the bank fail.
Similarly, Revolut has implemented two-factor authentication, biometric logins, the ability to instantly freeze your card and an anonymous sending feature.
As of July 2024, Revolut has received a UK banking licence with restrictions but is still providing accounts as an electronic money institution. This means that your money is not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) but is instead safeguarded.
Safeguarding means your money is placed into accounts that are separate from Revolut, and Revolut cannot use or invest the money.
Tide vs Revolut: Which Bank Has the Better Mobile App?
After examining the reviews for both Google Play and the APP store, it seems that Revolut Business and Tide are evenly matched.
Revolut Business has a rating of 4.8 stars with 25.4k reviews on Google Play and 4.9 stars with 32.9k ratings on the Apple Store.
Most of the negative reviews about Revolut’s app have to do with buggy logins and bad UI updates.
In contrast, Tide has a rating of 4.7 stars with 17.8k reviews on Google Play and 4.8 stars with 68.7k ratings on the Apple Store.
Many of the criticisms of the Tide app seem to be around the app freezing or other technical glitches.
Tide vs Revolut Business: Third-Party App Integrations
| Integration | Tide | Revolut |
|---|---|---|
| Xero | ✓ | ✓ |
| Sage | ✓ | ✓ |
| FreeAgent | ✓ | ✓ |
| Coconut | ✕ | ✓ |
| Kashflow | ✕ | ✕ |
| Quickbooks | ✓ | ✓ |
| Crunch | ✓ | ✕ |
| Clear Books | ✓ | ✓ |
| Reckon | ✓ | ✕ |
| Zoho Books | ✕ | ✓ |
| Zapier | ✕ | ✓ |
| Slack | ✕ | ✓ |
| Dynamics 365 Business Central | ✕ | ✓ |
| Pandle | ✕ | ✓ |
| Money Dashboard | ✕ | ✓ |
| Dext Prepare | ✕ | ✓ |
| Odoo | ✕ | ✓ |
| NetSuite | ✕ | ✓ |
| Shopify | ✕ | ✓ |
| Crezco | ✕ | ✓ |
| WooCommerce | ✕ | ✓ |
| Magento2 | ✕ | ✓ |
| PrestaShop | ✕ | ✓ |
| FreshBooks | ✕ | ✓ |
| Ember | ✕ | ✓ |
| QuickFile | ✕ | ✓ |
| Board | ✕ | ✓ |
Tide Vs Revolut: Using Your Card Abroad
When abroad, Tide allows you to use your card at any retailer accepting Mastercard without additional fees, providing you with the Mastercard exchange rate.
However, if you need to withdraw cash from an ATM abroad, Tide charges a £1 fee.
Revolut offers a prepaid currency card for payments abroad in over 150 currencies, with no fees using the interbank exchange rate.
It’s important to note that Revolut may charge a markup fee between 0.5% and 2.5% to the interbank rate on weekends due to foreign exchange markets being closed.
Tide vs Revolut Customer Support
Both companies have a majority of “Excellent” reviews, indicating that most users are satisfied with their services, but what services do they offer?
Tide has a live chat feature on its website and also offers email support.
Phone support is offered to users on paid plans, as well as 24/7 live chat.
Revolut offers all its customers 24/7 support via their in-app live chat.
Tide vs Revolut Customer Reviews
Tide
On Trustpilot, Tide has achieved an average rating of 4.1/5 from more than 19.6k total reviews.
5-star reviews make up 72% of the total, and 1-star reviews make up 18%.
User engagement statistics are exceptional, with over 96% of the negative reviews receiving responses from Tide.
Positive Reviews
A number of positive reviews outline Tide’s security in all its processes and the measures it takes to ensure customer information remains private and secure.
Tide is also praised for its variety of features and intuitive app design, which help enormously with managing business finances.
Negative Reviews
Some users express frustration towards Tide’s customer support, receiving automated or slow responses and wasting people’s time asking for information that was already provided.
Other customers report that their accounts were closed unexpectedly with their funds frozen in the account, and they received little to no help from customer support.
Revolut
Similarly, Revolut has gained a 4.1/5 rating out of over 159k reviews.
74% of these reviews are 5-star, with 11% being 1-star.
Like with Tide, Revolut user engagement is extremely high, with more than 97% of negative reviews receiving a response.
Positive Reviews
The majority of positive reviews mention excellent experiences with Revolut’s customer service, for its speed and how it helped with very pressing issues.
Other users praise Revolut’s app, outlining its stability and user-friendly interface, which makes managing finances much smoother.
Negative Reviews
Lots of the negative reviews report that their funds had been held by Revolut for random reasons while getting no help from customer support, sometimes for more than a week.
Other users have experienced issues with being locked out of their accounts despite following the necessary account recovery steps, as well as other technical issues.
Account Switching
Neither Tide nor Revolut is signed up for the easy switching service, so account migration will be your responsibility.
