Best free business bank account UK (2026)
The quick answer: several UK business accounts are genuinely free with no monthly fee, including at least one fully licensed bank. “Free” mostly differs in the small print — cash deposits, transfers and FX.
What “free” really means
A £0 monthly fee doesn’t always mean £0 to run. Read the line items that apply to you: cash deposit fees (if you handle notes and coins), charges for faster payments or transfers beyond a monthly allowance, and currency conversion rates if you deal internationally. For a typical digital-first business, the free tiers below cost little or nothing in practice.
The genuinely free options
| Account | Type | Free because |
|---|---|---|
| Starling | Licensed bank | No monthly fee on the standard account; FSCS-protected |
| Mettle | E-money (NatWest) | Free, funded by the parent bank |
| Tide | E-money | Free plan; charges for some extras |
| ANNA | E-money | Free plan; paid tiers add tax tools |
Two of the strongest free options here — Starling and Mettle — earn us nothing, and we’re recommending them anyway. That’s the whole point of how we work: read how we make money.
How to pick
- Want FSCS protection? Choose a licensed bank (Starling) over an e-money account.
- Handle cash? Check deposit fees — this is where “free” accounts differ most.
- Want invoicing and tax pots? Tide and ANNA bundle more tools into their free plans.
Some links on this page are referral links: if you sign up with a partner we may earn a fee at no extra cost to you. It never changes what we recommend or the order we list it, and where the best option is free we say so. Provider details (fees, features, eligibility) change — always confirm current terms on the provider’s own site. This article is information, not financial advice.