Mettle vs ANNA: Business Bank Account Comparison

In our experience, Mettle suits a business that has already decided it wants free banking and free accounting software in one place, and isn't planning to trade internationally or bring on a second signatory any time soon. If eligibility is the sticking point, our Tide vs Mettle comparison covers a rival that accepts a wider range of business structures.

What ANNA Is Designed For

ANNA is built for sole traders, limited companies and LLPs who want invoicing, receipt handling and tax estimates automated inside the banking app, and who are willing to pay for that as the business grows.

Key Characteristics of ANNA

• Three plans that scale with the business: free Pay As You Go, Business at £22.90 a month plus VAT, and Big Business at £59.90 a month plus VAT, each with a free first month

• Eligibility extends to LLPs as well as sole traders and limited companies, a wider net than Mettle

• Free currency accounts in USD, EUR and CHF, each with its own IBAN, alongside SWIFT and SEPA international payments

• Instant invoicing with QuickPay, AI-powered receipt scanning, and automatic categorisation of expenses

• A +Taxes add-on for limited companies, from £29 a month plus VAT, covering Corporation Tax filing, auto-bookkeeping, payroll for one employee and a live tax liability estimate

• 24/7 in-app customer support, with reviewers consistently citing fast, human replies as the standout feature

• A Trustpilot rating of around 4.5 out of 5 from more than 5,500 reviews as of August 2026

Trade-Offs to Consider

• Funds in the everyday account are safeguarded under e-money regulations, not FSCS-protected. Only money moved into the separate ANNA Savings account (provided by Griffin Bank) carries the statutory £120,000 guarantee

• Pay As You Go charges 0.95% commission on every incoming payment, which adds up quickly for a business with regular receipts

• No Sage integration on any plan, only Xero and QuickBooks

• No overdraft on any plan

• Currency conversions between ANNA's own accounts only process during business hours, 9 am to 5 pm

• ANNA can receive CHAPS and BACS payments but cannot send them

We looked into what the incoming-payment commission means in practice. A sole trader billing £3,000 a month on Pay As You Go pays around £28.50 in commission, which already exceeds the Business plan's £27.48 monthly cost including VAT. Once monthly receipts pass roughly £2,900, the paid plan works out cheaper, even before factoring in the free transfer allowance and lower ATM fees that come with it.

For a wider look at how ANNA's admin tools stack up against a bigger fintech name, our Tide vs ANNA comparison is useful background if you're weighing more than these two.

How They Charge

Mettle Pricing

Mettle has one plan, and it's free: no monthly fee, no transfer fees, no minimum balance. FreeAgent is included at no cost provided the account has at least one transaction a month; miss that and standard FreeAgent charges apply once the trial period ends. ATM withdrawals cost a flat £1 each, per Mettle's fee information document, checked April 2026. Cash paid in through the Post Office is credited within two working days, subject to the deposit limits above. Optional extras, like quote-to-invoice conversion at £4 a month, sit outside the core free account.

A business making 50 UK transfers a month and never touching cash or an overdraft pays nothing on Mettle beyond the odd ATM withdrawal.

ANNA Pricing

Pay As You Go costs nothing but takes 0.95% on incoming payments, with unlimited outgoing transfers and free ATM withdrawals. Business costs £22.90 a month plus VAT (£27.48 total), with 60 free local transfers a month, three free ATM withdrawals, two free SWIFT payments and up to five expense cards before per-card charges apply. Big Business costs £59.90 a month plus VAT (£71.88 total), with unlimited free local transfers, unlimited free CHAPS, four free SWIFT payments and unlimited expense cards. The +Taxes add-on, for limited companies only, costs £29 a month plus VAT on top of whichever plan you're on.

A business receiving occasional payments and sending the odd invoice suits Pay As You Go. One taking regular payments, running a small team on expense cards, or paying suppliers abroad several times a month will usually save money on Business or Big Business once the free allowances are accounted for.

For more on how bundled accounting software changes the calculation across providers, our guide to business bank accounts with accounting covers the wider software side of the decision too.

Mettle vs ANNA: Pros and Cons Compared

Feature Comparison: Mettle vs ANNA

Everyday Banking

Payments and transfers: Mettle's UK transfers are free and unlimited on its single plan. ANNA's Pay As You Go plan takes 0.95% on money coming in, while its paid plans include a free transfer allowance before a 20p-per-transfer charge kicks in.

Account access: Both provide a UK sort code and account number with app-first management. Mettle is genuinely app-only, with no desktop login; ANNA also runs primarily through its app, though account management is possible via a browser too.

Business debit cards: Both include a Mastercard debit card as standard. ANNA goes further with additional expense cards for team members from the Business plan upwards, something Mettle doesn't offer at all given its single-user restriction.

Invoicing and Admin

Mettle: In-app invoicing is powered by the bundled FreeAgent subscription, including customisable templates, payment status tracking and automated chasing of late payers.

ANNA: Native "instant invoicing" with QuickPay functionality lets customers pay by card or Apple Pay directly from the invoice, and receipts can be photographed and auto-matched to transactions using ANNA's AI.

Accounting Support

Mettle: FreeAgent comes included free with every account, and Mettle also syncs with Xero and QuickBooks for businesses that prefer a different tool.

ANNA: Connects to Xero and QuickBooks on every plan, but there's no Sage integration, which puts Mettle and ANNA on equal footing there rather than giving either a clear edge.

International Payments

Mettle: None. There's no SWIFT facility, no multi-currency account, and no way to send an international payment from the app at all.

ANNA: Free currency accounts in USD, EUR and CHF, each with its own IBAN, plus SWIFT and SEPA payments with an allowance that rises by plan. This is the single biggest functional gap between the two providers, and it's worth checking their website directly before relying on it for time-sensitive payments, since currency conversions between ANNA's own accounts only run during UK business hours.

Savings

Mettle: A Savings Pot paying around 0.95% AER (variable), holding up to £1 million, on top of the main account limit of £1 million. Confirm the current rate at mettle.co.uk before relying on it.

ANNA: A separate ANNA Savings account, provided by Griffin Bank, with FSCS protection to £120,000. This sits outside the everyday current account, and its rate should be checked directly, since it isn't part of the core banking plans above.

Regulation and Protection

Mettle and ANNA sit in genuinely different regulatory categories, and that distinction matters more here than in most banking comparisons.

Mettle is a trading name of National Westminster Bank plc, which holds a full UK banking licence and is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 121878). Eligible deposits are FSCS-protected up to £120,000, shared with any other accounts held across NatWest Group.

ANNA isn't a bank. It's an e-money institution, with cards issued by PayrNet Limited, an FCA-authorised electronic money institution (FRN 900594). Customer funds in the everyday ANNA account are safeguarded under the Electronic Money Regulations 2011, meaning they're held separately from ANNA's own money and can't be used to cover the company's debts, but this isn't the same as the statutory FSCS guarantee. If deposit protection on your working balance is a priority, that's a meaningful factor to weigh. ANNA does offer a separate FSCS-protected savings account through Griffin Bank, but only money moved into that product carries the guarantee.

Common Misconceptions About Mettle and ANNA

"Mettle and ANNA aren't real banks." Mettle is. It's provided by National Westminster Bank plc and carries a full UK banking licence. ANNA is the e-money account.

"Mettle and ANNA are free." Mettle's single plan genuinely has no monthly fee. ANNA's Pay As You Go plan also has no monthly fee, but it charges 0.95% on incoming payments, which can cost more than a paid plan for a business with regular receipts.

"You need a limited company to use ANNA or Mettle." Both providers accept sole traders. Mettle also accepts limited companies with up to two owners; ANNA extends further to LLPs.

"Mettle doesn't accept cash." It does, through Post Office deposits using an in-app barcode, though the limits are tight at £500 a time and £23,000 a year.

"ANNA's international accounts are the same as a multi-currency wallet." ANNA supports USD, EUR and CHF specifically, with conversions only processed during UK business hours. A business trading in a wider range of currencies, or needing round-the-clock conversion, may find this limiting.

What Real Customers Say About Mettle and ANNA

Mettle holds a Trustpilot rating of around 4.5 out of 5 from more than 6,400 reviews as of August 2026. Recurring praise focuses on how straightforward the app is and the value of the free FreeAgent bundle for sole traders filing under Making Tax Digital. The main recurring complaint concerns delays during account opening and identity verification, a pattern common across regulated digital accounts rather than unique to Mettle.

ANNA's Trustpilot rating sits at around 4.5 out of 5 from more than 5,500 reviews as of August 2026. Reviewers consistently single out customer support, with several mentioning replies from a real person within minutes, even outside standard office hours. Less positive reviews describe difficulty and delay when an account is closed or restricted during a compliance review, particularly where a business had a significant balance tied up at the time.

Reddit sentiment for both is thinner than for the bigger challenger banks in our experience researching this space, with most threads mentioning Mettle or ANNA in passing rather than as a dedicated topic. Where they do come up, the pattern broadly echoes Trustpilot: satisfaction with day-to-day use, set against frustration when an account is paused for a routine check.

Who Should Consider Mettle?

Mettle may be a good fit if your business:

• Is a UK sole trader or limited company with a single person who needs account access

• Wants free banking and free accounting software combined, with no ongoing cost

• Deals mostly in GBP, with no need to send or hold foreign currency

• Occasionally takes cash and can work within Post Office deposit limits

• Would rather have FSCS protection on its working balance than a wider feature set

If you're weighing Mettle against a rival that also bundles accounting software, our Starling vs Mettle comparison covers another FSCS-protected option worth considering.

Who Should Consider ANNA?

ANNA may be better suited if you:

• Are a sole trader, limited company or LLP, since Mettle excludes LLPs entirely

• Want invoicing, receipt scanning and tax estimates handled inside the banking app

• Regularly send or receive payments in USD, EUR or CHF

• Are building a small team and want individual expense cards without a separate provider

• Are prepared to pay a monthly fee once transaction volume grows, in exchange for lower per-transaction costs

If you're a new business trying to keep costs at zero while these tools bed in, our startup business bank accounts guide covers other free-banking options worth comparing alongside ANNA's Pay As You Go tier.

FAQs About Mettle and ANNA

Is Mettle or ANNA better for a limited company?

Both accept UK limited companies. Mettle suits a company that wants free banking with no paid tier and doesn't need more than one person on the account. ANNA suits a company that wants invoicing, tax tools and multi-currency accounts, and is willing to pay for them as the business grows.

Can sole traders use Mettle or ANNA?

Yes to both. Mettle also accepts limited companies with up to two owners, while ANNA additionally accepts LLPs.

Can I get an overdraft with Mettle or ANNA?

No. Neither provider offers an overdraft or any credit facility on any plan.

Are Mettle and ANNA accounts FSCS protected?

Mettle is, up to £120,000, as a NatWest Group bank account. ANNA's everyday account isn't; funds are safeguarded under e-money regulations instead. ANNA's separate Savings account, provided by Griffin Bank, is FSCS-protected to £120,000.

Do Mettle and ANNA offer free invoicing?

Mettle's invoicing comes through its bundled FreeAgent subscription, included at no extra cost provided the account stays active. ANNA includes invoicing with QuickPay on every plan, including Pay As You Go.

Does Mettle or ANNA support international payments?

ANNA does, with SWIFT and SEPA payments and free currency accounts in USD, EUR and CHF. Mettle offers no international payment facility.

Is ANNA's Pay As You Go plan free?

There's no monthly fee, but ANNA takes a 0.95% commission on every incoming payment, which can cost more than a paid plan once monthly receipts pass roughly £2,900.

Alternatives to Mettle and ANNA

• Want a free account with a wider range of eligible business structures than Mettle? Compare against Tide

• Need FSCS protection but also want built-in invoicing without relying on FreeAgent specifically? Compare against Starling

• Want ANNA-style admin automation from a provider with a full banking licence? Compare against Monzo

• Choosing between two admin-first challengers rather than a bank and an e-money account? Read our Countingup vs ANNA comparison

In these cases, it's worth comparing other business bank account providers, or checking our no credit check business accounts guide if eligibility is your biggest concern.

If you're switching from an existing account, our switching guide covers how the Current Account Switch Service works, worth checking against either provider's participation before you commit.

Our Verdict: Mettle or ANNA?

If your business is a sole trader or a small limited company with a single owner, banks mainly in sterling, and wants free banking backed by a full UK banking licence and statutory FSCS protection, Mettle is the more straightforward starting point, and in our experience the bundled FreeAgent subscription alone justifies a look for anyone already planning to pay for accounting software.

If your business is an LLP, takes payments regularly enough that invoicing and receipt automation would save real time, or needs to hold and pay in USD, EUR or CHF, ANNA is the better fit. The admin tools and multi-currency accounts tend to justify the monthly cost once the business is past its earliest, quietest months, something we've seen borne out consistently when we've looked into how businesses actually use these tools day to day.

Neither is the right pick for a business that needs an overdraft, since neither offers one on any plan. And neither suits a partnership of multiple sole traders working together, since Mettle excludes that structure outright and ANNA's LLP eligibility doesn't cover a general partnership in the same way.