Business bank Accounts - which to choose

I run a Ltd Co and have been using Starling for the last 6 years or so. Never had any issues, it's totally free so I can whole heartedly recommend.

Others may be as good but have only used Starling - I was with HSBC before that.

Another vote for Starling, really can’t fault it.  Also Opted for their business toolkit option, does what a lot of the accounting packages does for minimal cost and of cause links seamlessly with my account

We moved our personal banking to Starling last year.  Best thing we ever did, what a refreshing bank.

I do feel a bit guilty that I don't bank with the bank I've worked for over the last 17 years...

Starling here as well for 4 years with no problems at all and hassle free software, was with Santander for 20 years but the big banks just aren’t as good for most of the things small business need as the smaller digital banks these days IMO.

I'd check that whatever bank you choose has an API feed into the Accounts system your Accountant uses (e.g. Freeagent, Xero) as otherwise you'll spend lots of time manually adding transactions which gets boring really quickly. Also check transaction fees if you're processing lots of small payments. If you're just raising 1 or 2 invoices a month then that's less of a concern.

I'm with HSBC but I've been meaning to move to Starling or similar for a while as I get charged a monthly fee for no real benefit at the moment.

P.S. If you don't have an Accountant yet, get one. It seems like a bit cost to start with but if they are any good they will save you more in lost time and tax savings than what they cost you. If you're just starting out there will be a lot you don't know about that they can advise you on, such as what you can and can't purchase through the Ltd Co and the most tax efficient way of setting things up.

Good luck!

I’m with NatWest as you get FreeAgent accounting software for free. Really easy to use and can actually submit your year end accounts & ct600 so don’t actually need an accountant.

Starling is great

RBS and NatWest give you FreeAgent for free.

You may not need an accountant

Edit - what @Colp said

Do you need to pay cash in?
Starling are rubbish if you do.
Metro are very helpful.
Before you go with anyone, check that they answer their phones and aren't complete morons.

Thanks everybody.

No cash to be paid in, will all be bank transfers, likely paid on a monthly basis and not expecting to have to have too many outgoings per month (fuel, phone, etc)

Starling claim to have UK telephone support and seem to have reviews confirming this.

Definitely using an accountant, Im sure its possible for people to manage without one, but Ill end up in a universe of pain if I try to do it myself. Good call by people on checking if the accountant can access the information

Like all(?) the above we use Starling for business banking for our Ltd company. I was suspicious whether it would work, but it does. I don't deal with cash though.

i use starling and my accountant is happy to use freeagent linked to my starling account. no probs for 2 yrs for me.

you have to get a few codes for them to get access for various things but its all good.

If you are employing people get an accountant. and a bookkeeper. i would have no idea where to start!

Good Luck BTW!

We use Cooperative and to be honest I wouldn't recommend, the only good thing about it is cheaper fsb membership, and minimal fees.

The software is truly shite. Every update somehow it gets worse.

It's mainly the faff of switching that's keeping me hanging on (and the dwindling hope that they might fix the online banking).

You've got me looking at Starling now...

Starling or Triodos as they don’t do anything dodgy with your money when compared to the majority of the others. Make your hard earned work for a better planet 👍🏼

Wife is a bookkeeper and sends everyone to Starling, works with any software and is free so win/win.

As for needing a bookkeeper or not, tax returns are moving to quarterly (making tax digital, yay!) so you'll have that to look forward to.

Are you planning on taking card payment and use an iPhone? Monzo may be a better bet as they will be activating NFC payments with the next version of iOS. Otherwise Starling have been good to my employer since he switched around 3 years ago.

Not a fan of the Virtual Banks. Revolut absolute shit show for setting up a second company last week.

Main company COOP - a bit dated in their presence but it's free with FSB membership and have been with them for 15 years.

The software is truly shite. Every update somehow it gets worse

Have to agree.

The token thing is awful.

Been with starling for two years. All been good.

recently had a Facebook scam . Starling we’re pretty good - answered the phone quickly and dealt with it quickly.

Starling or Triodos as they don’t do anything dodgy with your money when compared to the majority of the others. Make your hard earned work for a better planet 👍🏼

I’m not sure about that, they have funding from Qatar and Goldman.

Also Starling for one business, and generally a good experience. However I have never found a way to get another person (our Book Keeper) access to the account for making payments, printing statements etc. Starling (when I asked) had no plans to add this functionality.

Bank of Scotland on a couple of businesses, and they've been OK in a dull kind of way.

Was previously with Co-Op. Avoid them like the plague. Errors all over the place, awful interfaces/software, and no-one to answer the phone when it inevitably all goes wrong.

Starling brilliant got few accounts with them, although just been hacked so waiting to see how they deal with the fraud and refund.

Natwest (absolutely rubbish been with them years and don’t seem to move with the digital era)

Barclays…. shit

Just get a starling account you won’t regret it

To the OP, you may know all of this already, but if you have a limited company and only one or two clients (like me), then be aware that the tax man views you similarly to an employee. I think the regulation is called IR35. This makes things really simple from one point of view, but also means (from my idiot layman’s viewpoint) that there may be many less loopholes you could exploit.

i pay several hundred pounds each year to an accountant - I never had an accountant before in my life. And choosing the right accountant was a thoughtful process for me. But I highly recommend getting one - mine definitely saves me much more than he costs me. And he really helps me ensure that I stay ethical and legal from an accounting/tax point of view, which is very important to me personally.

(I’ve seen people get into trouble with their employer in the last, when they were seen to have handled tax improperly. I wanted to make sure there were never any potential allegations of impropriety from a tax perspective for my business. YMMV of course. Some of the accountants I considered seemed much more interested in blurring the lines and focussed on not getting caught. That’s fine if that’s the way someone wants to approach it, but that approach was definitely not something which appeals to me).

@paulmcg if your bookkeeper has Coconut, Zero or similar 3rd party apps then they can get access. Missus has just checked and seems Starling are "working on more ways to support third party access for accountants and bookkeepers in the future".

I’m not sure about that, they have funding from Qatar and Goldman.

Starling or Triodos? I’m with the latter and don’t think they are. Will be off to double check now

Starling