Review contents
A great alternative to a bank account. Suits Me has got all the banking features you want, a debit card, a good mobile app, and you can sign up in minutes (with no credit checks) – all you need is a UK address and ID. There’s also cashback on spending, and customer support in 11 languages.
Looking to open a UK account for banking, payments and spending? Suits Me could be for you.
Suits Me is made for people who might struggle to get a traditional bank account in the UK – for instance, foreign nationals, expats, freelancers or those with bad credit or no banking history. It’s pretty popular too, with over 130,000 customers.
You’ll get a debit card for payments, can take out cash, receive your salary (and benefits), make payments and money transfers in both the UK and abroad. There’s also customer support in 11 different languages.
It all works on their mobile app, and website, and you can open an account in a few minutes, with no credit checks. There’s also extra benefits, like cashback when you spend (free cash when you spend on your card).
If you’ve heard enough already, head over to the Suits Me website¹ to learn more and get started. If not, let’s run through the details and see if it’s right for you.
You can think of Suits Me as a bank account, although technically it’s not a bank, it’s an e-money account – it’s got most of the same features, such as making payments and receiving money, it’s just not from an actual bank. It's just easier than opening a standard bank account, with less hoops to jump through. It's safe too.
You’ll get the same features you might expect from a bank account, and some are even better, so you can do things such as:
All sounds pretty great right?
It also doesn’t have to be your ‘main’ bank account either, you can have it as an additional account if you like (for instance if you want separate transactions for work).
Note: to get a Suits Me account, you’ll need to be over 18, have an address in the UK, and have ID such as a driving licence or passport.
Sign up in minutes, all you need is a UK address.
There’s two different types of accounts with Suits Me, and confusingly, they’re both called premium. There’s the more basic account, which is called ‘Premium’, and then there’s the more premium account, which is called ‘Premium Plus’.
With both accounts, you’ll get access to everything you’ll likely need, such as a debit card, access to the mobile app (and website), and sending and receiving money etc, there’s just differences on how much you’ll pay in fees for things such as using an ATM, or paying cash in.
Here’s the main differences:
By the way, these aren’t the only fees you’ll pay, there can be extra fees to set up things like standing order (60p or free on the Premium Plus plan), and fees for foreign currency transactions (2.35% if you make one).
All these fees do add up over time, making it more expensive than most traditional banks.
Cashback is where you’ll get cash added to your account as a reward for using your card in certain places. Pretty cool right?
Suits Me has a network of places where you can get cashback, and these range from 3% to 15% and cover things like restaurants, B&Q (4%) and Halfords (7%).
And importantly, they also include major supermarkets, Asda (3%) and Sainburys (4%), so you can get a nice big discount every time you do your food shopping.
The customer support is great. There’s a phone line open Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm (UK time), and they speak 11 different languages, including Spanish, Romanian, Polish, Bulgarian and Russian.
Instead of phone, you can also email the support team, and get a fairly quick response. There’s also a live-chat option, where you can chat on their website, and a help centre, which pretty much answers every question you might want to ask, and there’s even video help.
Yep! It’s authorised and regulated in the UK by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), who are the people who make sure companies are looking after your money. They’re also licensed by Mastercard to offer a debit card.
Your money is not protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), as it’s not technically a bank (which could give you protection up to £85,000).
However, your money is actually held in a completely separate account with a large bank (separate to Suits Me’s own money), and this can only be returned to you, should anything happen to Suits Me, such as going out of business.
Customers really like Suits Me. On the popular reviews website, Trustpilot, it has a rating of 4.1 out of 5, from over 9,000 reviews. That’s pretty great.
Lots of the reviews mention how easy it is to set up an account, and make transactions, with a great mobile app.
There are a range of 1 star reviews from people who weren't aware of some specific fees, such as if you don’t have enough money in your account and a transaction is declined (0.69p, but free on the Premium Plus plan).
So before you sign up, make sure you’re aware of all the fees (available on the Suits Me website¹ and when you sign up).
Here’s a quick recap and the pros and cons of Suits Me:
If you can’t open a standard bank account in the UK (or don’t want to), Suits Me is a great alternative. There’s no complicated sign up process like a bank, and no credit checks, meaning you could get an account in just a few minutes (if you have a UK address and ID).
You can do pretty much everything you can do with a bank account, such as make payments, receive your salary and spend money on a card.
The downside is that it’s not free. It starts at £4.97 per month and goes up to £9.97 for the Premium Plus plan. There can also be extra fees depending on how you use the account (such as paying in cash).
The cashback feature is also pretty great, especially for your regular food shop.
Overall, it’s a really good option, even if it is a bit expensive. 4 stars from us. To learn more, and get started, head over to the Suits Me website¹.
Sign up in minutes, all you need is a UK address.
Sign up in minutes, all you need is a UK address.
Sign up in minutes, all you need is a UK address.
This article was written by the team at Nuts About Money, and fact-checked by 2 independent reviewers. You’re in safe hands.
Sign up in minutes, all you need is a UK address.
