Business current account
The award-winning business bank account
Business banking – but not as you know it. Apply for a free digital business account easily within the app and join over 460,000 UK businesses who have changed the way they bank.
Less admin. More control.
There’s a faster, easier way to stay on top of your business’s finances. Apply for a free digital business account easily within the app to get your Mastercard debit card, plus:
An easy-to-use business account stacked with powerful money management tools. All with no monthly fees or UK payment charges.
Free 24/7 UK support via app, phone or email, with fast response times and help from real humans.
A fully regulated UK bank account, where your money’s covered up to £85,000 by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.
An easy life. If you want us to, we’ll move all your banking over for you through the Current Account Switch Service (all it takes is a few taps in-app).
Most banks charge fees for what limited companies get for free with Starling business. Give our comparison table a quick scan to see for yourself.
“No monthly fees means business banking is one less thing to worry about.”
Independent service quality survey results
Business current accounts
Published February 2022.
As part of a regulatory requirement, an independent survey was conducted to ask approximately 1200 customers of each of the 14 largest business current account providers if they would recommend their provider to other small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs*). The results represent the view of customers who took part in the survey.
In addition to this independent survey, we are also required to publish Financial Conduct Authority Service Quality Information for business current accounts.
Business banking, your way
Choose a feature-packed business account with no monthly fees, and add on bespoke subscriptions to power your business, your way.
Original free business account
£0/month
- Sole traders
When applying for the account we will need evidence of trading activity, and the sole trader can’t engage in any of the prohibited activities set out in the Sole Trader Current Account Terms
- Limited Companies and Limited Liability Partnerships (including startups)
- Companies with multiple PSCs / Directors
Multiple Directors (registered at Companies House) can access the account, but we can’t yet provide access to third parties (e.g. accountants) or other team members (e.g. finance teams or assistants)
Good for business
- Free access to multiple directors
Multiple Directors (registered at Companies House) can access the account, but we can’t yet provide access to third parties (e.g. accountants) or other team members (e.g. finance teams or assistants).
- Integration with Xero
From the Starling Marketplace, you can integrate Xero with your business account.
- Integration with QuickBooks
From the Starling Marketplace, you can integrate QuickBooks with your business account.
- Integration with FreeAgent
From the Starling Marketplace, you can integrate FreeAgent with your business account.
- Integration with other business services
Connect to some of the world’s best business products and services to create your own in-app financial hub.
- Automated business spending categorisation
Get a breakdown of your company’s spending, organise your outgoings and store receipts.
- Receipt capture
Keep your files in order by adding digital receipts to payments.
- All bills in one place
Get a clearer view of your money by paying Direct Debits and standing orders from a separate Saving Space.
Starling best-loved
- Free UK current account from a regulated bank
No monthly fees on opening a business account. Starling Bank is a fully-licensed bank.
- Easy in-app application
Applying for a business account can be done from your mobile phone.
- FSCS Protection up to £85,000
All of Starling’s eligible accounts are protected up to £85,000 by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.
- Mobile and online banking
Access and manage your business account from the app or through online banking.
- 24/7 customer support
Free 24/7 UK support via app, phone or email, with fast response times and help from real humans.
- Free ATM withdrawals
Starling will not charge a fee when you withdraw money from an ATM. You can make up to six withdrawals per day, with a daily limit of £300, regardless of what currency you are withdrawing.
- No fees abroad
Starling will not charge you for card payments or ATM withdrawals when you’re abroad.
- Card security controls
In-app card locking and personalised card settings.
- Saving Spaces
Separate spaces for separate costs. Set things like tax and overheads to one side.
Made for payments
- Free UK bank transfers
No payment charges on UK bank transfers. You can make a domestic bank transfer (we are part of the UK’s Faster Payments network) of up to £250,000 per transaction in your app / online banking, and an international bank transfer of up to £10,000 per transaction.
- International payments
Fast and secure money transfers to bank accounts in 37 countries worldwide, with no hidden fees.
- Apple, Google, Samsung and Garmin Pay
Pay on the go with Apple, Google, Samsung and Garmin Pay.
- Managed scheduled payments
See all your scheduled payments in one place and get notified when they’re due to go out.
- Instant payment notifications
Get notified instantly when you pay or get paid, and get a reminder the day before payments are due.
- Cash deposits at the Post Office
Deposit cash at the Post Office for a 0.7% fee (£3 min. fee)
- In-app and freepost cheque deposits
Deposit cheques up to £500 digitally in-app, for free. Cheques above £500 can be sent to us via Freepost. If you’d prefer to send your cheque via recorded or signed for delivery, please send it to: Starling Bank Operations Team, 5th floor, Brunel House, 2 Fitzalan Road, Cardiff, CF24 0EB, Wales. We don’t issue chequebooks.
Customise it with add-ons
Design the account that’s right for you, by signing up the services your business actually needs. Add on as many as you like, through the app.
The Business Toolkit
Streamline your bookkeeping with the Business Toolkit
£7/month inc. VAT
- Create, send and match invoices in a matter of clicks
- HMRC tax calculation, tax report, and automated savings
- Record VAT and submit MTD VAT return
- Best for freelancers and sole traders
Euro business account
A euro bank account for UK businesses
£2/month
- Exchange and hold euros
- Local account details to make and receive local payments for free
- Spend for free on card like a local using your regular business card
US dollar business account
A US dollar business account in the UK
£5/month
- Hold, send and receive dollars
- Get local account details, for easier, cost-free payments.
- Use your regular business card; no need to faff around with two.
Spending, simplified
Instant payment notifications. Get notified the second you pay or get paid, and get a reminder the day before payments are due.
Spending analytics. Break down your monthly spending and automatically sort it by category.
Digital receipts. Keep your files in order by adding digital receipts to payments.
Separate spaces for separate costs. Set things like tax and overheads to one side.
Bills Manager. Get a clearer view of your money by paying Direct Debits and standing orders from a separate Saving Space.
“I really love Goals. I separate money for paying my intern or events or tax.”
Everything you need, under one roof
Integrate with accounting tools. Connect to Xero, FreeAgent or Quickbooks to get the full picture and save time.
Deposit cash. Deposit cash at the Post Office for a 0.7% fee (£3 minimum fee), and cheques digitally in-app, for free.
Pay people easily with a tap. No card readers or PINS required.
Multi-director access. Easily add directors to your account (directors must be registered at Companies House). We can’t yet provide access to third parties (e.g. accountants) or other team members (e.g. finance teams or assistants).
“I like the transparency and simplicity of Starling. I can send an invoice and immediately see when it’s been paid.”
Fast, friendly help. Whenever you need it.
Always open
Day or night; we’re open 24/7 to lend a hand.
Always human
Speak to real UK-based humans.
Always fast
Save time with quick response times via app, phone or email.
Always free
All service is priority service at Starling.
“The final thing that made me fall in love with Starling was Customer Services... when I want to speak to someone, I can talk to a human within minutes. Starling has a personality.”
Compare Starling to other banks
It’s great to have options, so we’ve compared the business accounts from a variety of high street banks and challengers so you can see how we stack up.
Find out about fees, rates and charges for our business account.
Many a happy customer
Don’t just take our word for it. We’ve been reviewed thousands of times on Trustpilot, and our customers think we’re “easily the best business bank account they’ve had”, “a refreshing experience”, and that we “make business banking easy”.
Grow your business: We’ve teamed up with bestselling author Della Hudson to provide you with free and helpful guides on how to successfully manage your business.
Service information: Find out more about our business current account service information.
Apply for an award-winning business account today
Eligibility requirements
- A Limited Company or LLP registered at Companies House. General partnerships or charities which are not registered as a Limited Company are not yet supported.
- Limited Companies and LLPs need all Persons of Significant Control (PSCs) to be a UK resident and natural persons (i.e. no corporate shareholders).
- All directors with access to the account must be UK residents.
- The business must not be a holding company, dissolved, in liquidation or engage in any activities set out in our terms and conditions.
- Evidence of your trading activities so we understand that your business does what you say it does. We can’t accept Companies House documents for this.
- Meet our standard AML/KYC, fraud and credit checks and processes.
- Refer to our terms and conditions to check sectors not supported. We also do not offer client money accounts.
What do I need to open a business bank account?
- A smartphone (and signal).
- Valid photo ID such as a passport or UK driving licence.
- If you have documents which confirm the nature of your business at hand this will be easier. Examples could be a trade registration or bank statement which shows your business activity.
- About 10 minutes of your time to complete the application. Then it’s over to our team to approve your details and open your account.
Due to high demand there is currently a delay in business account opening times. We are working through applications as quickly as possible, please bear with us and thank you for your interest. Our customer service agents will not be able to speed up your application process if you get in contact.