Currensea vs Revolut: Which travel debit card is best for you?

If you’re reading this, you’re interested in finding a new card to use when travelling abroad. Specifically, a card that doesn’t charge you high, or even worse, hidden fees when spending on your trip. 

We’ve compared Revolut’s Terms and Conditions for spending abroad with our own, to help you make the right decision. 

What is Revolut? 

Revolut is a global neobank and fintech that was founded in 2015. It offers a wide range of digital banking services such as multi currency accounts, international money transfers and foreign currency exchange. 

What card options and plans does Revolut offer?

Revolut offers a range of subscription plans, including Plus, Premium, Metal and Ultra. For the purposes of this comparison, we’ll be focusing on the Standard card, which is free. 

What is the interbank rate? 

The interbank rate tracks the real-time value of your currency and is considered the fairest rate in the industry. Like Revolut, Currensea uses the interbank rate with a slight markup.

However, unlike Revolut, we keep things simple and clear, adding a 0.5% markup for all transactions no matter the day or amount spent. The 'Revolut rate' also has a markup - but they don't tell you how much it is, or how it increases based on day of the week and amount spent. 

So what does Revolut charge when spending abroad?

When spending abroad on weekdays, cardholders pay something called the 'Revolut rate'. This is based on the same interbank rate that Currensea uses, however Revolut always add an unspecified markup on top. So, although Revolut appears to have zero fees, in reality they are simply embedded into the Revolut rate you pay when using your card. 

We don’t believe fees should ever be hidden - so we’ve done the calculations for you. Based on several week’s worth of data, we calculated that the Revolut rate typically includes a 0.2% markup over the interbank rate, and this increases to 1% on weekends (see their terms & conditions for more detail on this). So, if you use a Revolut card on weekends (when most of us might splash out a little more or check out of a hotel), you'll be paying five times more in fees and double the rate that Currensea offers. 

You’ll also need to watch how much you spend overall on your Revolut card. Spend more than £1,000 in a month and you'll be paying 1% for every transaction. For example, if you spend £5000 on a family holiday to Florida, you'll be hit with a £40 fee.

What other fees does Revolut charge?

Cash withdrawal 

Revolut charge 2% or £1 per transaction (whichever is highest) if you withdraw more than £200 or make 5 cash withdrawals in a month. If you withdraw less than this amount, they charge their usual 0.2% fee.

Replacement cards 

The first card on the Standard plan is free, but you will have to pay a delivery fee.  A replacement card is £5, plus a delivery fee. 

What is Currensea?

Currensea is a travel debit card that allows you to spend money directly from your trusted bank account, rather than having to open up a new one or top up a prepaid card. It is based on open banking, which was introduced several years ago to promote innovation and competition in financial services so that you have access to a wider range of options and rates.

What card options does Currensea offer? 

Currensea has three travel cards, including Currensea Premium and Currensea Elite. For the purposes of this comparison, we'll be focusing on Currensea Essential, which is free like the Revolut standard card.

So what is different about Currensea?

Not only do we offer consistent and transparent rates, but unlike Revolut users you won’t need to faff around opening a new bank account to get a card.

What Currensea offers is a card that partners directly with your trusted bank account. That means you can spend with your Currensea card abroad just as you would at home with your regular debit card. Funds come straight out of your bank account, and you can spend whatever balance you have.

Because it’s not a prepaid card (like some travel cards), you never have to top up your Currensea card. You don’t have to worry about losing it and any funds that might remain on it, nor do you have to constantly top it up and remember how much you have on it: we offer travel, but without the hassle. 

We also check how much your bank would have charged you to use your regular debit card abroad- and we can tell you exactly how much money you saved by using your Currensea card.

What does Currensea charge you to spend abroad? 

We convert your currency based on the real-time interbank exchange rate (the same as Revolut), but only apply a markup of 0.5% per transaction no matter when you use your card or how much you spend with it. No hidden fees, no weekend fees, no caps with increases to the existing markup - just clear, transparent information on how much we charge and how much you save.

What other fees does Currensea charge?

Cash withdrawal 

We charge our usual fee of 0.5% for withdrawals up to £500 a month, and for anything over this amount we charge 2%.

Replacement cards 

While your first card is free, we charge a £5 replacement fee (but no delivery fees).

How does Currensea stack up against Revolut? 

We compared how much it would cost spending with Currensea versus Revolut on a 10 day holiday to Florida for a family of four. With a combination of card and cash spending, we found that using a Currensea card can save you just shy of £99 on FX fees compared to Revolut.

Take a look at the table to see the breakdown of spend for the trip and a comparison of the costs to use both cards.

Total saved with Currensea vs using Revolut: £98.96

% saved with Currensea vs using Revolut: 70.5%

In summary

Revolut and Currensea both offer competitive rates that significantly undercut those offered by high street banks. Although not the most transparent, Revolut rates are generally pretty good, and there is no doubt that you'll save a significant amount whichever product you choose. If you're not travelling on weekends, are spending £1000, and taking out less than £200 cash from ATM's Revolut could be a great option, since in those scenarios they offer an excellent 0.2% spread versus the 0.5% offered by Currensea. 

But that’s making four big assumptions:

• Firstly, that your trip doesn't include a weekend (when most people check out of their hotels). In those cases, Revolut charge five times more than during the week, with transaction charges double those of Currensea. 
  

• Secondly, that you don't spend more than £1000. If you do, you'll incur another 1% fee for every transaction you make, so if you spend £3000, that's another £20 gone- the fees quickly stack up.

• Thirdly, that you don't make many ATM withdrawals. While our maximum fee for withdrawals is 2% when you withdraw over £500 in a month, Revolut charge this rate for withdrawals more than just £200, or 5 withdrawals per month, leading to much higher fees.

• Final assumption- that you don't mind setting up a new bank account and continually topping it up. While Currensea simply partners with your existing bank account, Revolut requires you to create an entirely new bank account. Assuming this is used as a secondary account, you'll then need to faff around topping it up as you spend abroad. Even if you leave your high street bank and operate using Revolut as your primary bank account, there is still the problem of protection: as they don't have an authorised banking license, you'll receive no FCFS protection for your money.

Overall, if you are in the market for a whole new bank account, Revolut could be a good choice if you bear in mind some of the limitations above. But if you're happy with your existing bank account and want a product focused on great rates when travelling abroad, then Currensea is the right choice for you.

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