TL;DR — which to pick
Pick Tide if: you want fastest account opening, in-app card reader, feature density, or you're on a free tier and don't need FSCS protection. Particularly strong for sole traders running multiple revenue streams who want bookkeeping integrations from day one.
Pick Starling if: you want a full UK banking licence with FSCS protection up to £85k, the best app experience, free Euro accounts, or you'd rather pay £7/month and have a "proper bank" than save money on an EMI. Particularly strong for limited companies and freelancers holding significant balances.
Side-by-side
| Feature | Tide | Starling |
|---|---|---|
| Regulation | E-money institution (FCA-regulated, money safeguarded but not FSCS-covered) | Full UK banking licence (FSCS-protected up to £85,000) |
| Sole trader cost | Free Standard tier | Free |
| Limited company cost | Free Standard tier | £7/month |
| Higher tier | £9.99 Plus, £18.99 Pro, £49.99 Cashback | — |
| Account opening time | Same day, usually under an hour | 1–3 days (proof-of-ID checks) |
| App quality (subjective) | Solid, business-focused | Best-in-class — consistently top-rated UK banking app |
| In-app invoicing | ✓ Full invoice creation + recurring | ✓ Basic (more in Toolkit add-on) |
| VAT / tax pots | ✓ Tax estimator on paid tiers | ✓ Spaces — UI is cleaner |
| Accounting integrations | FreeAgent (Plus+), Xero, QuickBooks, Sage | FreeAgent, Xero, QuickBooks, Sage, ClearBooks |
| In-app card reader | ✓ Tide Reader (additional fee) | — |
| Mobile cheque deposit | — | ✓ Up to £1,000 |
| International payments | Tide GBP only; international add-on via partners | Native SEPA, free Euro account |
| Cash deposits | Post Office (£1 + 0.5% fee) | Post Office (free up to £20/month) |
| Customer service | In-app chat, email; phone on paid tiers | 24/7 in-app chat + phone |
| Multi-user access | Plus tier and above (£9.99/mo) | — |
Pricing in detail
The cost question depends entirely on whether you're a sole trader or a limited company.
Sole traders
Both free. Tide gives you slightly more headroom on transaction allowances at the free tier; Starling's free tier is effectively unlimited. Cash deposit fees apply to both — Starling's are cheaper (free first £20/month at Post Office; Tide is £1 + 0.5% per deposit).
Limited companies
Tide Standard remains free for Ltds. Starling Business charges £7/month, which buys you the FSCS protection and full banking licence. For most Ltds the £84/year is worth it; for very small or pre-revenue Ltds, Tide's free tier wins on cost.
The paid Tide tiers
Tide Plus (£9.99) adds FreeAgent, named account manager, and 3 expense cards. Tide Pro (£18.99) adds more transaction allowances. Tide Cashback (£49.99) adds 0.5% cashback up to £100/month. For most freelancers, the free Standard tier is sufficient; consider Plus if you want FreeAgent and don't qualify for the bundled-with-Mettle version.
Starling Toolkit
Starling Toolkit (£7/month add-on, free for some limited-company customers under promotions) adds advanced invoicing, expense tagging and bookkeeping export. Optional — you don't need it for basic operations.
Why FSCS matters (or doesn't)
The biggest non-price difference between Tide and Starling is regulation. Starling has a full UK banking licence — your money is FSCS-protected up to £85,000, the same as your high-street bank. Tide is an e-money institution (EMI) — your funds are held in segregated client accounts at a partner bank, which means they're safeguarded but not FSCS-protected.
In practice, EMI safeguarding is robust: if Tide went bust, your money would be returned because it's not on Tide's balance sheet. But the process would be slower and messier than a typical FSCS payout, and there's no statutory guarantee of the exact amount.
If you're regularly holding balances above ~£20,000, Starling's FSCS protection is materially more reassuring. Below that, the practical difference is small. Many freelancers run both: Tide for day-to-day with low balance, Starling for VAT/tax pots holding larger ringfenced sums.
Who each is best for
Tide wins for
- Sole traders running cash-heavy businesses (in-app card reader makes a real difference)
- Freelancers who need multiple expense cards across team members
- Limited companies with very low transaction volumes and no need for FSCS
- Anyone who values rapid account opening (often <1 hour) over a slightly more polished app
- Anyone needing the Plus tier's FreeAgent bundle who can't get it via Mettle
Starling wins for
- Freelancers holding significant balances who want FSCS protection
- Anyone working with EU clients (free Euro account is genuinely useful)
- Limited companies who don't mind £7/month for a "proper" bank
- Anyone for whom app polish actively matters (it really is the best in the UK)
- Anyone needing mobile cheque deposit
Compare directly
Many freelancers end up with both. Tide for fast-moving day-to-day, Starling for the FSCS-protected savings/tax pot. That said, two business accounts means two sets of reconciliation work — only worth it if you have a clear separation use case.
Yes — there's no rule against multiple business accounts and many freelancers run both. The most common setup: Tide as the active operations account (where customers pay you, where bills come out), Starling as the savings layer (VAT pot, tax pot, profit-share). FSCS protection then covers the largest balances.
Tide includes FreeAgent on its Plus tier (£9.99/month) and above — but only as a discounted bundle, not entirely free. Mettle bundles FreeAgent free at all tiers (because Mettle is owned by NatWest, who owns FreeAgent). If FreeAgent is your priority, Mettle is the cheaper route.
Yes, via Post Office — free for the first £20 per month, then 0.7% with a £3 minimum. Tide also offers Post Office deposits but at higher fees (£1 + 0.5% per deposit). Both rely on the Post Office network rather than dedicated branches.
Starling — they offer free Euro accounts and send international payments at fair rates via SWIFT. Tide's international features are limited and usually routed via partners. If you regularly invoice or pay overseas, both lose to a dedicated Wise Business account, but if you're picking between just these two, Starling wins.
Tide offers overdrafts (typically £100–£15,000) subject to underwriting. Starling also offers business overdrafts up to £150,000 with credit checks. For most freelancers, neither is a deciding factor — overdrafts are expensive and unnecessary if you have a buffer.
Tide is the fastest in the market — often live in under an hour. Starling typically takes 1–3 days because of stricter identity verification (it's a full bank, with stricter regulatory requirements). For most freelancers, the wait is a fair trade for FSCS protection.
Tide is FCA-regulated as an electronic money institution. Your funds are safeguarded — held in segregated client accounts at a partner bank, separate from Tide's own balance sheet. So if Tide went bust, your money would be returned. The key difference from FSCS protection is procedural: an EMI safeguarding payout is slower and messier than an FSCS one. For balances under £10–20k it rarely matters in practice.
Yes. Both support the Current Account Switch Service for the bank side (though some EMI-to-bank switches don't qualify for the formal CASS guarantee). Practically: open the new account, update your invoice template, update standing orders and direct debits, let the old account empty, close it. Our switching guide covers the mechanics.
Editorial comparison as at May 2026. Pricing and feature lists change — check the live provider sites for current details. Not financial advice. FreelanceToolkit UK has partner relationships with some providers featured; disclosed above.