There are always a number of current account switching offers and new bank account offers, so which is the best for you? Here are some quick links to help you jump through the deals.
Switching & referral deals
You must switch and close your old account to get the headline bonuses listed below.
- First Direct – £100 switching bonus if you leave, 2.75% Regular saver
- HSBC – £125 switch bonus, access to 2.75% Regular saver
- Lloyds – £100 bonus (ends 9th November), up to 2% interest on savings (until 1st October), plus freebies
- Metro – £50 referral bonus
- Natwest – £125 bonus (ends 19th November) and up to £3 monthly reward after fee
- RBS – £100 bonus (ends 19th November), up to £3 monthly reward after fee
- TSB – £50 cashback for opening an account
Interest and regular saver accounts
- Nationwide – 2% interest for one year on £1,500
- Virgin Money – 2.02% on £1,000
- First Direct – 2.75% Regular saver
- HSBC – 2.75% Regular saver, plus £125 switch bonus
- Marks and Spencer Bank – 2.75% Regular saver
Cashback accounts
- Santander 123 – 0.6% interest and up to 3% cashback on bills after fee
- Santander 123 Lite – Up to 3% cashback on bills after fee
Reward offers
- Halifax – £5 a month “reward” or cinema tickets/movie rentals after fee
- Natwest – £125 bonus, up to £3 monthly reward after fee
- RBS – £100 bonus, up to £3 monthly reward after fee
- Lloyds – free magazine subscription or cinema tickets
- Barclays – Earn £3 a month for a year (after fee)
- Co-Op – Earn up to £5 a month extra
- TSB – Up to £5 a month for first six months
Fee-free overseas spending
- Starling
- Virgin Money – also 2.02% interest on £1,000
- Monese
- Monzo
Overdrafts
Until 31st October 2020 you can request a £500 interest-free overdraft from all UK banks. It’ll last for three months.
- First Direct – £250 interest-free overdraft
- Halifax – 0% overdraft for six months if you switch
- Marks and Spencer Bank – £250 interest-free overdraft
- Nationwide – 12 months interest-free overdraft
- Monzo – possible 19%, 29% or 39% overdraft
- Starling – possible 15%, 25% or 35% overdraft
Ethical banks
As rated by Ethical Consumer magazine. Listen to my podcast episode on the topic for more.
- Triodos
- Nationwide
- Co-Op
- Starling
- Monzo
- Metro
** All efforts have gone into ensuring the accuracy of these deals, however changes do happen so make sure you read the terms and conditions of the account and any switching offer before applying**
October round-up of the top bank account offers Watch this video for a quick summary of the best deals for opening or switching an account. You can like and subscribe to my YouTube here.
Some articles on the blog contain affiliate links, which provide a small commission to help fund the blog. However, they won’t affect the price you pay or the blog’s independence. Read more here.
One of the quickest ways to make some extra cash is to take advantage of the very competitive current account market and get a switching bonus, cashback or high interest on your savings.
If you’ve been with the same bank since your first job or University, you’re probably missing out. Since seven-day switching was introduced in 2013 the banks have been offering free cash, high interest and other extras to get you to move to them.
Just from switching, I made £1,900 between 2013 and 2018 – and a few hundred more since. And there’s more to be made from other benefits just by opening additional bank accounts.
Sadly a raft of banks have cut their high-interest rates in current accounts, but that doesn’t mean you won’t be better off moving your bank account. Here are the best current deals.
I’ll update this page as new offers appear, and every month I’ll remove expired offers – though do check the offer hasn’t changed before you apply. And do remember that you’ll be credit checked when you make an application.
And you can read more about how to switch bank here, or watch the video below
*Barclays Blue Rewards offer*
Barclays occasionally offers double Blue Rewards as a switching incentive so it’s best to wait for one of these to switch.
Here’s my Is the Barclays Blue Reward worth switching for? blog post
Barclays Blue benefits
You get
- £7 a month Blue Rewards after the fee
- Extra if you have a mortgage or home insurance with Barclays
- Limited cashback
Requirements
- Pay in £800 a month
- Pay out two Direct Debits
- Pay a £4 a month fee
*Bank Of Scotland*
Vantange Account benefits
The Vantange add-on is available to Classic, Silver, Gold and Premier accounts.
You get
- 0.6% on balances up to £3,999, 1.5% between £4,000 and £5,000 (equivalent to 0.78% if hold full £5,000)
Requirements
- Pay in £1,000 a month
- Stay in credit each month
- Pay two Direct Debits a month
*Co-operative Bank current account offer*
Everyday Rewards benefits
The Everyday Rewards offer is available on the Co-op Current Account but you need to Opt-In.
You get
- £2 a month credit
- 5p cashback each time you use your debit card to a max of £3 a month
Requirements
- Pay in £800 a month
- Stay in credit or your overdraft
- Use online or app banking once a month
- Go paperless
- Have four Direct Debits
- Close old account
*First Direct switching offer*
£100 switching bonus if you leave
In 2018 First Direct replaced the cash switching bonus with a choice of freebies, but it brought back a £50 to £100 bonus in 2019. Occasionally it increases to £125, and there’s the chance to get another £100 if you don’t like the account.
However, the account is now only offering a £100 bonus if you leave after six months but within a year. The money is paid 28 days of leaving.
- You need to let the bank know you are unhappy within 12 months
- All First Direct products (so savings accounts, mortgages etc) will be closed
- You need to pay in £1,000 a month for six months
- You have to have switched from and closed your old account
First Direct account benefits
You get
- £250 0% overdraft
- Access to 2.75% regular saver
Requirements
- None
*Halifax Rewards switching offer*
£100 switching bonus
Halifax was the first to bring back switching bonuses since lockdown began (and the first time it ran the offer since late June 2019). It was due to end on 14th September but closed early on the 8th September,
Halifax Reward account benefits
The Reward account changed massively in June 2020 – here’s my analysis.
You get
- £5 a month reward or movie rentals or cinema tickets
- Occasional cashback deals
Requirements
- You need to pay in £1,500 a month to avoid a £3 monthly fee
- You need to either spend £500 on the debit card or save £5,000 a month to get the reward
- You have to switch from and close your old account for the bonus
*HBSC Advance current account offer*
HSBC often runs a switching deal for £150/£175. The latest offer in September 2020 was £125.
£125 switching bonus
There’s no set expiration date for this promotion, so it could end any time. You can get £125 by opening up an HSBC Advance or HSBC Premier account and switching over an account with two active direct debits or standing orders.
The bonus will be paid within 30 days of the switch completing, so you’ll also need to meet the account eligibility requirement of paying in £1,750 a month. Of course once you’ve got the payment you can close it down or cancel it.
You need two direct debits or standing orders as well, but the latter are easy to set up. You can just transfer between accounts.
You can’t currently have an HSBC current account or had one since 1st January 2017 (I’m eligble for this by 2 days!). You also can’t get the bonus if you have opened a First Direct or M&S Bank account since that same date – though you can hold one of these as long as you applied before that cut off.
HSBC Advance benefits
You get
- Access to 2.75% regular saver
Requirements
- You must pay in £1,750 every month or £10,500 over 6 months
*Lloyds Club current account offer*
£100 Switching offer
In October 2019 Lloyds offered its first bonus (£125). It came back in September 2020 for the Club Lloyds account. You’ll get the payment within 10 working days of starting the switch.
Here are the main points, but make sure you read the terms and conditions when you apply.
- £100 switching bonus (ends 9th November 2020)
- Existing customers are eligible for the bonus as long as they haven’t had one since April 2018
Club Lloyds benefits
Here’s my review of the account and analysis of the different freebies.
You get
- 6 free cinema tickets, a Rakuten movie rental a month, an annual Gourmet Society subscription or an annual magazine subscription
- 1% on balances up to £3,999, 2% between £4,000 and £5,000 (drops on 1st October 2020)
- Access to a 1.5% monthly saver
Requirements
- You need to pay in £1,500 a month to avoid a £3 a month fee
- You need two direct debits to get the interest
*Marks and Spencer Bank (M&S Bank) switching offer*
M&S last ran its bonus in January 2020.
You get
- Access to a 2.75% monthly saver
- £250 interest-free overdraft
Requirements
- Must switch and pay in 2 direct debits for regular saver interest
*Metro Bank current account offer*
£50 switching offer
Metro has introduced a brand new referral offer. You can get £50 until 18th December 2020. People referring friends have until 11th December to invite people. You’ll get the payment within 30 days of meeting the criteria (so that’s at least two months, if not longer after switching).
- £50 if you switch with a referral code by 18th December 2020
- Pay in at least £500 in each of the first two months
- Make 10 debit card purchases in the first two months
- Log in to internet or mobile banking within one month
- Only for new customers opening a retail or banking current account
> Switch to a Metro Current Account (using my referral code)
*Natwest Reward current account offer*
In both 2018 and 2019 Natwest offered various switching bonuses on three occasions. It returned in October 2020.
£125 switching bonus
You can get £125 if you switch into a Select or Rewards account. It’s open to new or existing customers. It finishes 19th November 2020 – though they could end it early. The money will be paid by 12th February 2021.
- £125 if you switch by 19th November 2020
- Pay in at least £1,500 by 15th January 2021
- Log in to online banking or mobile app by 15th January 2021
- Existing customers can’t have had a bonus for switching to Natwest, RBS or Ulster Bank since October 2017
Natwest Reward benefits
This account used to offer cashback on bills, but the rewards changed on 1st February 2020.
You get
- Up to £5 a month (before fee)
- Limited additional cashback offers (eg Argos)
Requirements
- You need to pay a £2 a month fee
- Have two direct debits of £2 or more
*Nationwide FlexDirect offer*
£100 referral scheme
** REFERRAL SCHEME CURRENTLY PAUSED – I’ll update it if it returns **
If you have a friend with the account you can both get a £100 bonus (if you know me, just get in touch and I’ll share my code!)
Nationwide FlexDirect benefits
The 5% interest offer fell to 2% at the start of May. It’s possible to have both a solo and joint account with 2% for one year.
You get
- 2% interest on balances up to £1,500 for the first year
- 0% arranged overdraft for the first year
- Other accounts are available which offer free mobile and breakdown cover for £10 per month
Requirements
- You need to pay in £1,000 a month to get the interest
*RBS Reward current account offer*
£100 switching offer
RBS has offered a £150 bonus a few times, with a £100 offer returning in September 2020. The payment will be made by 29th January 2021.
- £100 if you switch by 19th November 2020
- Pay in at least £1,500 by 30th December 2020
- Log in to the app or online by 30th December 2020
- Keep the account open until 29th January 2021
- It’s available for new and existing RBS customers across all the different current accounts.
My top pick is the Rewards account which can earn you an additional £30 a year.
RBS Reward account benefits
You get
- Up to £5 a month (before fee) on Reward Account
- Limited additional cashback offers (eg Argos)
Requirements
- You need to pay a £2 a month fee for Reward account
- Have two direct debits of £2 or more
*Santander 123 current account offer*
From time to time there’s a £50 referral fee, though there hasn’t been one for a long time.
There are two accounts, the 123, which has a £5 fee but also offers interest, and the 123 Lite which is £1 a month. There have been big changes in 2020 and more are coming in October. Here’s my full comparison of the two accounts.
123 Account benefits
You get
- 1% cashback on Council Tax and water bills, 2% cashback on gas and electricity bills, 3% cashback on mobile, TV, phone and broadband bills. (Capped at £5 per tier)
- 0.6% interest on balances up to £20,000
- Limited additional cashback offers
Requirements
- You need to pay a £5 a month fee
- You must have 2 direct debits
- You need to pay in £500 a month
- Not all companies take part in the bills cashback
123 Lite Account
You get
- 1% cashback on Council Tax and water bills, 2% cashback on gas and electricity bills, 3% cashback on mobile, TV, phone and broadband bills. (Capped at £5 per tier)
- Limited additional cashback offers
Requirements
- You need to pay a £1 a month fee (£2 a month from 27th October 2020)
- You must have 2 direct debits
- You need to pay in £500 a month
- You have to go paperless
- You have to log in to internet or app banking once every three months
- Not all companies take part in the bills cashback
Is it any good? See my Should you ditch Santander 123? blogpost.
*TSB current account offer*
The Classic Plus account has been closed to new customers and the interest rate for existing users will drop from 1.5% to 0% on December 2nd 2020.
It’s been replaced by the Spend and Save account.
£50 for opening an account via Quidco
Though in the past there have been a £100 or £125 switching bonus, I haven’t seen these for a while. However you can get £50 cashback from Quidco for opening an account.
- Keep the account open for at least 120 days
- You need to pay in £500 in three of the first four months
- Make two debit transactions (debit card, direct debit, standing order) a month in three of the first four months
- Payment takes up to six months (full details on Quidco site).
- £5 a month (first six months only)
TSB Spend and Save benefits
Here’s my review of the new TSB account.
You get
- £5 a month (first six months only)
Requirements
- Spend 30 times on your debit card each month
*Virgin Money account offers*
Virgin Money has taken over from Yorkshire Bank and Clydesdale and their digital B Bank.
Virgin Money benefits
You get
- 2.02% interest on first £1,000 in account
- Fee-free spending overseas
Requirements
- None
*Monzo account offers*
Here’s my review of Monzo.
You get
- Free-free spending overseas (some limits on cash withdrawals)
Requirements
- None
*Monese account offer*
The free money from Monese seems to change regularly without notice so do check what the link says when you click through.
You get
** OFFER HAS BEEN PAUSED DUE TO COVID – I’ll update if/when it’s live again **
- £5 when you open an account via the link below and using the code ANDR4552
- An extra £15 once you’ve spent £500 using your card
Requirements
- None
*Starling account opening offer*
You get
- Free-free spending overseas
Requirements
- None
Hi Andy, I switched from RBS to Halifax for £100 incentive on 11 Sept and received the cash. Is there anything stopping me from switching Halifax to HSBC for their £125 incentive now? Just not sure if there is any amount of time you need to keep your new account open before switching again. Thanks.
Nope! That’s exactly what I did. It will impact your credit score a little but nothing to worry about if you’ve not got any major applications (mortgage, credit card etc) soon.
Great! Thanks Andy. Brilliant website 🙂
Hi Andy. I opened a Virgin Money account to access their fee-free overseas spending. I’ve also got their Regular Saver. Sorry if this is a silly question, but WHERE should my money sit in order to earn the 2.02% interest, in my Current Account, or in the Regular Saver? Many thanks and take care.
Hi Christa. It’s in the current account for the 2.02%
Great – thank you.
Hi Andy,
Might be worth mentioning the Tesco Bank Current Account – Although the bank is not taking any new applications and the interest rate has dropped to 0% from September, those who still have this account can still benefit from the rewards it offers: See below
https://www.tescobank.com/current-accounts/rewards/
Santander 123 Lite is not worth it any more after 27 October when the fee goes up to £2. It would be OKish if they had kept the cashback categories untouched, but the cashback on mobile and home phone bills, broadband and paid-for TV packages is reducing to 1%, and cashback for water bills is increasing to 3%. So the bills which are usually more substantial will be attracting a lower cashback rate.
I’m fed up with penny pinching Santander who still pay their Spanish customers 3% interest. We’ve been with them for many years, but enough is enough and we will be switching accounts when the banks reopen new current account applications.
Yup, Santander can do one. Scottish resident and our water is part of our council tax so no 3% cash back from October.
Is the natwest bank still offering a “golden welcome” of £175.00? when transfewrring your current account.
All the welcome bonuses were stopped or paused when the lockdown began. Hopefully some will return but there are none on offer right now.
Hi Andy!
What is the best way to hold your savings in a bank? I have a Barclays Instant Cash ISA at the moment, but the rate only 0.40% (£1 to £29,999).
I would not take a big risk. I can fixed that saved money for a while (1 year) it is necessary.
https://www.barclays.co.uk/savings/isas/
Could you offer a better one?
Thanks.
Hi, yes you can definitely beat that. Marcus has an easy access account offering 1.2% so that’s possibly your best bet. https://becleverwithyourcash.com/cash-savings-beat-inflation/
Is the Natwest/RBS switch £175 offer still available? I don’t see anything mentioning this on the banks’ websites.
Thanks for letting me know. It looks like Natwest, RBS and HSBC have all ended their switching incentives early due to the Coronavirus. The only free cash right now is £100 from First Direct, £100 if a friend refers you to Nationwide, £50 for signing up to TSB via Quidco and £20 from Monese. I imagine this could change again!
The TSB deal with Quidco is rubbish, I opened my account on Dec 12th and despite having contacted Quidco 5 or 6 times (with responses to just wait and wait and wait) nothing has happened to get the credit into my Quidco account.
Hey Martin, good to know. Did it come through as tracked or did it hit confirmed?
I had my £50 from quidco for the opening of the TSB account even after I closed it as well
Can I switch from Natwest to RBS and still receive the switch reward?
Yes, as long as you’ve not had a bonus from RBS or Natwest since late 2017
One of your stated Requirements for Natwest is:
Can’t have received a bonus from RBS
However I can’t see this reference anywhere in the T&C’s of the new switch offer. So presume this condition no longer apply?
Hi Nelo, I’ve downloaded the new T&Cs and the RBS line is still in there
as per today Tesco has stopped accepting new applications for the bank accounts – temporarily?
Does switching adversely affect one’s credit score?
There will be a credit check when you apply to open most current accounts, so it’s worth a) checking your credit report for any errors before applying, and b) avoiding any credit applications – if you can – if you’re planning on getting a mortgage in the next six months. Also, one thing that credit reports do like is a long relationship with a bank, so potentially moving away from someone you’ve been with for a long time could see your score dip. But you should be ok to go through with a switch absolutley fine.
Hi,
Im going to open my firt account and I feel a bit lost. I would be interested on Nationalwide which offer:
5% interest on balances up to £2,500 for the first year, 1% after.
Does it means if the interest gross is 4.89% per month , Could I get profits up to £122.25 per month with a balance of £2,500? is that correct?
Thanks,
Hi, no it’s annual. So you’ll get 5% on £2500 if there’s £2500 there the whole year
It seems you can also get the £150 bonus at NatWest by switching to their fee free current account. Just wandering if the other banks offering switch incentives have a similar range of options?
Hi, I don’t think the monese offer is correct. You dont get £15 for simply creating an account. You have to refer a friend who thensets up an account and deposits something into it.
You should get £15 for opening the account and making a transaction via the link in the article. You can also get a further £15 for referring friends who do the same.
HSBC NEVER RESPONDED TO MY APPLICATION TO SAY IF I COULD HAVE IT OR NOT .
Hi I joined nationwide last year and I referred my uncle so we could get the £100 bonus,but recently received an email saying that we where not entitled to it, so just be careful with these things.
Yes, always check the terms and conditions before signing up to any offer. What happed to you Tracy? Had your uncle already had the account?
Hi,
Switching via a refer a friend to Nationwide Current Account for the £100 offer but also wanting to open the FlexDirect. Just to clarify, if someone already has the savings FlexDirect, and you get a referral, are you entitled to another £100 bonus on top of opening the regular account?
Hi Jo, you can only get a referral credit of £100 if you aren’t a Nationwide customer. If you already have a current account with them then you won’t get the bonus.
Hi – I don’t think Halifax is having current account switch offer.
HSBC have refused to pay out becuase I previously had an account with them in the last 3 years so beware!
Lloyd’s Club current account give you limited Cashback also access to a club Lloyd’s Monthly saver currently at 2.5%
In the Summary box at top of this article under Other Offers it indicates that Bank of Scotland offer free magazines or cinema tickets in addition to the 1.5% interest. I think that needs correcting as I believe it is only Lloyds Club account offers those extra incentives.
Why does First Direct pay you extra £100 if you leave within twelve months but after 6 months? Do they want you to leave after 6 months???
I think they hope it’ll attract people to switch but then not move on again. It does win lots of awards for customer service.
M&S switching offer to get the £125, it says on their website need to have four active direct debits, not two as stated under requirments in the post
Thanks Jan, they must have changed it. Will double check and update the post
Oh I see… it’s not clear, I took “Swtich on” to mean switching accounts… but one finds it on the Ts&Cs… strange way to advertise!
https://www.barclays.co.uk/important-information/blue-rewards-terms-and-conditions/
Yes you’re right – there are two offers! So if you’re already with Barclays you can get double rewards for the first month, and if you switch to Barclays you get double rewards for a year! They really should make it clearer
Yes you’re right – there are two offers! So if you’re already with Barclays you can get double rewards for the first month, and if you switch to Barclays you get double rewards for a year! They really should make it clearer
Barclays site is slightly confusing… states double rewards for one month if switch before 31st October… says “Get a £14 loyalty reward when you pay two Direct Debits” whilst at bottom in two places says “We’ll give you £3.50 cashback monthly for your first 2 Direct Debit payments” or “£7 every month”- so the £14 per month might only be for one month… Unless I’ve missed something, the reality is it might be it’s worth £55 total…
I wonder if Halifax will increase their switching bonus to £125 in the next few months, just as they did earlier this year…
It’s been a while since it’s offer was over £75 but I wouldn’t be surprised if it does increase at some point
Be great if you could separate the switch ones from the regular sign up offers.
Are there any other tricks, I have a few of these already and don’t necessary want to lose the accounts, but happy to sign up for new accounts to get the bonuses.
Thanks James, yes I can do something on this.
TSB = the shit bank
With TSB you get £5 for using your debit card 20 times, doesn’t need to be contactless