Monzo vs Wise: Business Bank Account Comparison

In our experience, Monzo suits a business that has already decided it wants simple, free sterling banking and doesn't need to hold or receive money in other currencies. If eligibility is the sticking point, our Tide vs Monzo comparison looks at a rival with a similarly straightforward free tier, and our Monzo vs Mettle comparison is worth a look if bundled accounting software matters more to you than Monzo's app experience.

What Wise Is Designed For

Wise Business is built for sole traders, freelancers, partnerships and companies that regularly send, receive or hold money in more than one currency, and who are willing to trade a UK banking licence for lower FX costs and genuine multi-currency functionality.

Key Characteristics of Wise

• Funds held and converted across 40+ currencies under a single login, all at the real mid-market exchange rate with the fee shown upfront, typically from around 0.33% depending on the currency pair

• Local receiving account details, including a UK sort code and account number, a EUR IBAN and a US routing number, in around 22 currencies once the Advanced plan is active

• A wider eligibility net than Monzo: sole traders, freelancers, limited companies, public companies and partnerships can all apply

• Batch payments supporting up to 1,000 recipients in a single run, useful for payroll or supplier runs

• No monthly subscription. A single one-off £50 charge unlocks the Advanced plan, which most UK businesses need to receive payments at all

• Volume-based FX discounts for businesses sending more than £20,000 a month in foreign currency

• A Trustpilot rating of around 4.3 out of 5 from close to 295,000 reviews as of July 2026, though this figure covers Wise's personal and business customers together rather than the business account specifically

Trade-Offs to Consider

• Wise isn't a bank. Funds are safeguarded under the Electronic Money Regulations 2011, held separately from Wise's own money, but this isn't the same as the statutory FSCS guarantee

• The free Essential plan can't receive payments or set up direct debits since a November 2025 pricing change, which pushes most businesses towards the £50 Advanced plan almost immediately

• No overdraft, no lending, and no way to build a credit facility through Wise itself

• No cash deposits and no cheque handling of any kind

• Only two free ATM withdrawals a month, up to a combined £200. Beyond that, a 1.75% fee plus a flat £0.50 charge applies per withdrawal

• Support runs through in-app chat and email rather than a phone line, and some reviewers report response times of several hours during busier periods

We looked into what the £50 Advanced fee means in practice, and for a business that needs to invoice a single overseas client even occasionally, it pays for itself quickly against the cost of a traditional bank's international transfer fees and FX margin. For a wider look at how Wise stacks up against another multi-currency specialist, our Wise vs Airwallex comparison is useful background if you're weighing more than these two options.

How They Charge

Monzo Pricing

Lite has no monthly fee, no transfer charges and no minimum balance, and covers UK current account basics including Making Tax Digital filing for sole traders. Pro costs £9 a month, with the first month free, and adds invoicing, Tax Pots, virtual cards and accounting integrations with Xero, QuickBooks, FreeAgent and Sage. Team starts at £25 a month and adds multi-user access for up to 15 people, employee expense cards, bulk payments and payment approval limits. We checked current pricing at monzo.com in July 2026.

A business making regular UK transfers and never touching an overdraft or foreign currency pays nothing at all on Monzo Lite.

Wise Pricing

Essential is free to open and lets a business hold and send money in multiple currencies, but since November 2025 it can't receive payments or set up direct debits. Advanced costs a one-off £50, with no ongoing monthly fee, and unlocks local account details for receiving money in around 22 currencies, direct debits and invoicing tools. FX conversions are charged separately at the mid-market rate plus a fee from around 0.33%, varying by currency pair, regardless of which plan you're on. We checked Wise's UK pricing pages in July 2026.

A business invoicing overseas clients in EUR or USD, and converting that income to GBP regularly, is where Wise's transparent FX fee tends to beat a traditional bank's transfer charges and exchange rate margin most clearly.

For more on how currency needs should shape the choice of account, our guide to switching business bank accounts covers what to check before moving your day-to-day banking, including whether your new provider can actually replace the international payments you currently rely on.

Monzo vs Wise: Pros and Cons Compared

Feature Comparison: Monzo vs Wise

Payments and Transfers

Monzo's UK transfers are free and unlimited on every plan, including Lite. Wise's Advanced plan also offers free UK transfers, but its real strength is international payments, using local payment rails where available and the real mid-market exchange rate rather than a marked-up one.

Account Access

Both are app-first. Monzo is genuinely app-only, with no desktop login at all. Wise runs a full-featured web platform alongside its app, including batch payments, invoicing and accounting integrations, so there's no functionality gap between the two.

Business Debit Cards

Both include a debit card as standard, a Mastercard from Monzo and a Visa from Wise. Wise's card is built for spending in whichever currency you're holding, without the currency conversion fee that Monzo applies outside sterling. Monzo's card carries a 1% fee on non-GBP spending, on top of the Mastercard exchange rate.

Invoicing and Admin

Monzo: Invoicing is included from the Pro plan upwards, alongside Tax Pots for automatically setting aside money for tax and VAT.

Wise: Invoicing tools are included on the Advanced plan, built around the same multi-currency infrastructure as the rest of the account, useful if you're billing clients in a currency other than sterling.

Accounting Support

Monzo: Connects with Xero, QuickBooks, FreeAgent and Sage from the Pro plan, giving it the widest accounting integration list of the two.

Wise: Connects with Xero and other accounting tools, though the integration list is narrower than Monzo's. It's worth checking Wise's current integration list directly if a specific accounting package is a dealbreaker for your business.

International Payments

Monzo: None in any meaningful sense. There's no multi-currency account and no local IBANs in other currencies. Card spending abroad works, but at a 1% fee on top of the exchange rate.

Wise: This is Wise's core product. Local account details in around 22 currencies, funds held in 40+ currencies, and transfers at the real mid-market rate with the fee shown before you send. This is the single biggest functional gap between the two providers, and it's the deciding factor for most businesses choosing between them.

Savings

Monzo: Savings Pots for ring-fencing money within the main account, including a dedicated Tax Pot on Pro and Team plans. Confirm the current rate at monzo.com before relying on it.

Wise: No dedicated savings product in the way Monzo offers one. Balances held in Wise's multi-currency account don't earn interest, so businesses wanting to earn a return on cash reserves typically look elsewhere.

Regulation and Protection

Monzo and Wise sit in genuinely different regulatory categories, and in our experience working with business owners, this is the distinction that ends up mattering most once the initial fee comparison is out of the way.

Monzo Bank Limited holds a full UK banking licence, authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 730427). Eligible deposits are FSCS-protected up to £120,000.

Wise isn't a bank. It's an electronic money institution, authorised by the FCA under the Electronic Money Regulations 2011. Customer funds are safeguarded, meaning they're held separately from Wise'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, particularly for a business holding larger sterling balances rather than actively moving money between currencies.

Common Misconceptions About Monzo and Wise

"Monzo and Wise are the same type of account." They're not. Monzo is a fully licensed bank offering standard current account banking. Wise is an e-money institution built specifically around multi-currency holding and international transfers.

"Wise doesn't have banking features." It does, on the Advanced plan, including a UK sort code and account number, and free domestic GBP transfers. It's just not designed to be your only account if you need an overdraft or take cash payments.

"You need to be a limited company to use Monzo or Wise." Both accept sole traders. Monzo also accepts limited companies with up to a certain ownership structure; Wise additionally accepts partnerships and public companies, a wider net than Monzo's.

"Monzo's free plan is very limited." Not for sterling banking. Lite includes free unlimited UK transfers and Making Tax Digital filing at no cost, which covers what many small, domestically focused businesses actually need.

"Wise's fees make it more expensive than Monzo." Not necessarily. It's a one-off charge, not a subscription, and for a business making regular international payments, the saving on FX margin against a traditional bank typically outweighs it within the first few transactions.

What Real Customers Say About Monzo and Wise

Monzo holds a Trustpilot rating of around 4.6 out of 5 from more than 60,000 reviews, and 4.5 out of 5 on Google Play from over 170,000 ratings, as of June 2026. Recurring praise focuses on the app's clarity and real-time notifications, with occasional complaints about the recent rise in the Pro plan's monthly fee.

Wise's Trustpilot rating sits at around 4.3 out of 5 from close to 295,000 reviews as of July 2026, though this covers Wise's personal and business customers together rather than the business account in isolation. Positive reviews consistently highlight fast, transparent international transfers at a genuine mid-market rate. Less positive reviews mention account verification delays and, less commonly, temporary account freezes triggered by fraud checks on larger or unusual deposits.

Reddit sentiment for both providers is thinner than for the bigger high street challengers in our experience researching this space, though where Wise does come up, international freelancers and agencies tend to recommend it as their go-to for overseas client payments, which lines up with the Trustpilot pattern above.

Who Should Consider Monzo?

Monzo may be a good fit if your business:

• Is a UK sole trader or limited company banking mainly in sterling

• Wants genuinely free banking with no catch on the entry-level plan

• Would value FSCS protection on its working balance over multi-currency features

• Occasionally needs an overdraft and can meet Monzo's eligibility criteria

• Takes some cash payments and can work within the Post Office deposit limits

If you're weighing Monzo against a rival with a full FreeAgent bundle thrown in, our Monzo vs Mettle comparison covers another FSCS-protected option worth considering.

Who Should Consider Wise?

Wise may be better suited if you:

• Regularly send, receive or hold money in currencies other than sterling

• Are a partnership, LLP or public company, since Monzo's eligibility doesn't extend that far

• Want to see the real exchange rate and fee before every transfer, rather than a marked-up one

• Are prepared to pay a one-off £50 fee in exchange for lower ongoing international transfer costs

• Don't need an overdraft, cash deposits or phone-based customer support

If international payment volume is your main concern, our Wise vs Starling comparison looks at how Wise stacks up against a fully licensed bank with its own FX offering.

FAQs About Monzo and Wise

Is Monzo or Wise better for international payments?

Wise, clearly. It offers local account details in around 22 currencies, holds funds in 40+ currencies, and converts at the real mid-market rate. Monzo has no multi-currency account at all and charges a 1% fee on non-sterling card spending.

Can sole traders use Monzo or Wise?

Yes to both. Monzo also accepts UK limited companies, while Wise additionally accepts partnerships, LLPs and public companies, a wider range of business structures than Monzo supports.

Are Monzo and Wise accounts FSCS protected?

Monzo is, up to £120,000, as a fully licensed UK bank. Wise isn't. Funds are safeguarded under e-money regulations instead, which is a different form of protection to the statutory FSCS guarantee.

Does Monzo or Wise offer overdrafts?

Only Monzo, and only for eligible sole traders and limited companies, up to £3,000 or £5,000 respectively. Wise offers no overdraft or credit facility on any plan.

Is Wise's free Essential plan good for businesses?

It's limited. Since November 2025, Essential can't receive payments or set up direct debits, so most businesses need the £50 Advanced plan to use Wise as a working account rather than just a way to send money out.

Which account is cheaper for a UK-only business?

Monzo, in almost every case. Its Lite plan is free with unlimited UK transfers, while Wise's £50 one-off fee and per-transaction FX costs are built for businesses actually converting currencies, not simply moving sterling domestically.

Alternatives to Monzo and Wise

• Want free UK banking with a wider range of eligible business structures than Monzo? Compare against Tide

• Need Wise-style multi-currency accounts from a provider with a full UK banking licence and FSCS protection? Compare against Revolut, covered in our Wise vs Revolut comparison

• Want a business account with bundled accounting software rather than Monzo's paid-tier approach? Compare against Mettle, covered in our Monzo vs Mettle comparison

• Choosing between two international-focused providers rather than a bank and an e-money account? Read our Tide vs Wise comparison

If eligibility is your biggest sticking point, our free business bank accounts guide rounds up other zero-monthly-fee options worth comparing alongside Monzo Lite.

Our Verdict: Monzo or Wise?

If your business is a UK sole trader or limited company banking mainly in sterling, and wants free everyday banking backed by a full UK banking licence and statutory FSCS protection, Monzo is the more straightforward starting point. In our experience, the genuinely free Lite plan justifies a look even before you factor in the option to add invoicing and accounting tools later.

If your business regularly sends, receives or holds money in currencies other than sterling, or trades as a partnership or LLP that Monzo won't accept, Wise is the better fit. The real mid-market exchange rate and transparent per-transaction fees tend to pay for the one-off £50 setup cost quickly, something we've seen borne out consistently when we've spoken to business owners paying overseas suppliers regularly.

Neither is the right pick on its own for a business that needs both an overdraft and genuine multi-currency accounts, since Monzo doesn't offer international currency accounts and Wise doesn't offer any credit facility at all. Many internationally active businesses end up running a Monzo account for domestic sterling banking alongside a Wise account for international payments, rather than treating the choice as either-or.