Best Student Bank Accounts 2023
Compare your options by exploring our league table based on student bank account reviews
To calculate this league table, we analysed over 8,500 StudentCrowd student reviews of bank accounts since 2015. This list is limited to banks in the UK with at least 10 reviews. Scroll down to view the best banks in the UK according to verified student reviews.
What’s good about a student bank account?
Student bank accounts in the UK are only available to people studying in higher education. Banks offer unique services to students to reflect their current stage of life. For example, most student accounts offer interest-free overdrafts. A good overdraft service can financially support students during their time at university, considering their lack of stable income.
Student accounts may also come with additional incentives, such as cash rewards or subscription services. Freebies that come with student accounts vary depending on the bank and may change year-on-year.
Why do banks offer freebies to students?
The offer of freebies is a common marketing technique used by banks. These incentives are promoted to encourage students to open an account with them when they start university.
In our bank reviews, students generally rated freebies lower than other factors (2.5 / 5 stars average). This leads us to believe that students’ expectations of bank freebies are not being met by a long way.
Do students need an overdraft?
An overdraft is a financial buffer which allows you to spend or withdraw a maximum amount of money even once your balance hits zero. Overdraft amounts are unfortunately becoming increasingly necessary to students. As the cost of living and accommodation has increased, maintenance loans are not always enough to cover all student expenses.
This has led to over a third of students relying on their bank’s overdraft service to get through the term. It is important to check if the overdraft banks are offering charge interest, as this could cost you money for using it. Most student bank accounts offer an interest-free overdraft for a set period of time.
What do the reviews say about student banking?
There were significantly fewer students reviewing the top 3 challenger banks than the traditional banks, but they rated them higher, indicating that for the minority of students that have made the shift, they are happier overall with the service they are receiving. Metro Bank and Danske Bank are only just leading the more traditional banks in our league table, with many traditional banks scoring on average between 3.3-3.6 / 5 stars.
The number of reviews for each bank indicates that Santander is the most popular bank for students in the UK, with more than a quarter of our 8,500 reviewers having an account with them. HSBC and Barclays were the next two most popular banks amongst our student reviewers, closely followed by Natwest and Lloyds.
Analysis of Top Banks According to Student Reviews
The top 3 overall banks in our league table are all new challenger banks. They are obviously delivering a different kind of service to traditional banks that students are clearly appreciating.
Monzo is the clear front-runner with an average score of 4.5 / 5 across all our review categories: customer service, overdraft, freebies and online banking. Monzo scored a staggering 5 / 5 for customer service and 5 / 5 for online banking. The online banking rating is not surprising given that they don’t have any local branches you can visit, so everything is online via their internet banking app.
Metro Bank is another challenger bank to recently enter the market in 2010. But, unlike Monzo, it does have 76 branch locations across the UK. It scored highly for customer service (4.7) and online banking (4.4) but was let down by its overdraft and freebies ratings (3.3 and 3.2 respectively).
Danske Bank is a Danish bank with branches in Northern Ireland. Its average rating of 3.9 was, once again, bolstered by its performance in customer service (4.6) and online banking (4.6), but hampered by its ratings for overdraft facilities (3.7) and freebies (2.7).
Is it time for more students to make the switch away from traditional banks? Are the challenger banks offering better services for students?
Compare student bank accounts in the UK below
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Monzo
"It is an online bank and easy to use. Most importantly, you can use your card in other countries with very good rate and no charge. Also you can withdraw £300 without extra charge in other countires per month. Good for international student who will always travel in Europe during break!"
Monzo bank is an online provider which launched in 2015 and offers a free Monzo Current Account to students. Account holders can use the Monzo app to manage finances, transfer money and organise funds into 'pots'. The app also allows you to view your spending categories, and sends you notifications as transactions occur.
| Overdraft in 2023 | Freebies in 2023 |
| Can apply for an arranged overdraft of up to £2,000 Find out more here. | No offers |
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Metro Bank
“Great bank and also really good customer service and savings account policy”
The Metro Bank Current Account is open to students, but can be used by anyone over the age of 18. If you use this debit card in most countries in Europe, you will not be charged exchange rates. Metro Bank also offers an online banking app, which enables you to view insights about your spending.
| Overdraft in 2023 | Freebies in 2023 |
| Can apply for an arranged overdraft. Find out more here | No offers |
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Danske Bank
“Customer service has always been great with Danske Bank, I can't review the overdraft process since I've never needed to take out one nor have I been aware of any freebies available. The online banking system is easy to set up in the bank and easily accessed on your phone.”
The Danske Freedom account is an account designed for 18-27 year olds, open to students. The account is only available to new customers living in Northern Ireland or previous customers living in the UK.
| Overdraft in 2023 | Freebies in 2023 |
| Can apply for an interest-free overdraft of up to £3,000. Find out more here | No offers |
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Ulster Bank
“Been with this bank for quite a while and have had no problems. Advice was given from friendly customer service people when required.”
The Ulster Bank Student Account is open to all students in the UK, although Ulster Bank branches can only be found in Northern Ireland. This account has a feature which allows you to withdraw up to £130 without your card every 24 hours at Ulster Bank ATMs. Instead of using your card, you can use your mobile banking app to get cash out.
| Overdraft in 2023 | Freebies in 2023 |
Can apply for an interest-free overdraft up to £1,000. Find out more here. Students studying medicine, dentistry, law, accountancy, pharmacy, optometry, physiotherapy and veterinary science can apply for an interest-free overdraft limit of up to £3,000. | No offers |
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RBS
“RBS student account is a perfect account for students. The... overdraft is handy if you know you are stuck in a rut. And customer service and the mobile banking is always great...”
The Royal Bank Student Account has been designed to make managing money during university a lot easier. Students can withdraw up to £130 without their card every 24 hours at RBS ATMs (as long as it’s within your daily withdrawal limit.) Students can also temporarily freeze their bank card via the app if it is misplaced or lost.
| Overdraft in 2023 | Freebies in 2023 |
Can apply for an interest-free overdraft of up to £3,250. Find out more here. Up to £500 from term 1 Up to £2,000 from year 1 Up to £3,250 from year 3 onwards | £100 cash and a 4-year tastecard worth £39.99 if you apply between the 3rd July 2023 and 30th November 2023 |
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Nationwide
“I have used Nationwide student bank for the last 4 years and they have been nothing but good. The overdraft range is one of the best for students just for emergency purposes. I have had problems with customer service but my situation is unique where money from a foreign bank was rejected and I was told that I had no problem accepting foreign currency into my account and the amount. The only other issue was the card reader but they have recently made it easier to use face ID to allow a new payee to receive money.”
The Nationwide FlexStudent Account is available for students who have been a resident in the UK for 3+ years. To hold the account, you'll need to pay in at least £500 each term, keep up with any bill payments and stay within your arranged overdraft limit. Your bank account can be changed into a FlexGraduate account once your course ends.
| Overdraft in 2023 | Freebies in 2023 |
Can apply for an interest-free arranged overdraft up to £3,000. Find out more here. Up to £1,000 from year 1 Up to £2,000 from year 2 Up to £3,000 from year 3 | £100 cash if you apply on or after 1st August 2023. To qualify you will need to pay in at least £500 into the account by 15 December 2023 |
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The Co-operative Bank
“Fantastic bank for student satisfaction. Cares for students separate to normal clients and will be willing to increase overdrafts as you go through years.”
The Co-operative Student Account is offered by the UK's first ethical bank. The Co-operative Bank has been led by its ethical values and policies since 1872. Students using this account also have access to the mobile banking app, ensuring flexible money management.
| Overdraft in 2023 | Freebies in 2023 |
Can apply for an interest-free arranged overdraft up to £2,000. Find out more here. Up to £1,400 from year 1 Up to £1,700 from year 2 Up to £2,000 from year 3 onwards | No offers |
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Halifax
“I have used Halifax my whole life and they are pretty consistantly good. It's very easy to get an appointment with them... There is also the option for them to send you weekly/monthly texts of what your balance is or when you're close to going into your overdraft.”
The Halifax Student Current Account is open to students who have been a resident in the UK for the last 3 years. Halifax banking offers a 'Save the Change' tool, which rounds up spending and puts the extra change into a savings account. Students also have access to the Halifax cashback scheme.
| Overdraft in 2023 | Freebies in 2023 |
| Can apply for an interest-free arranged overdraft of up to £1,500. Find out more here. Overdraft available throughout course and 3 years after you graduate. | £100 cash if you open an account and deposit at least £500 by 31st October 2023. Up to 15% cashback through Cashback Extras. |
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Santander
“I've had a great experience with Santander. Everyone I've spoken to at the bank has been extremely helpful and kind, and whenever I've had an issue they have sorted it out quickly and with no complaints. The student overdraft is huge and interest-free... so there's no need to worry about ending up in an unarranged overdraft and paying interest. With a student Santander account, you are also given a free 4 year railcard which saves you 1/3 on train tickets, which comes in VERY useful if you travel often. You will often find that most students use Santander as their bank, because they have great customer service, a great overdraft and great freebies.”
The Santander 123 Student Account is very popular among students in the UK due to the travelcard incentive. Students also benefit from no fees when using Santander cash machines abroad. To hold the account, students must pay in at least £500 into your account every 4 months - this could be through student loans.
| Overdraft in 2023 | Freebies in 2023 |
Can apply for an interest-free arranged overdraft of up to £2000. Find out more here. Up to £1,500 from years 1-3 Up to £1,800 from year 4 Up to £2,000 from year 5 | Free 4-year Santander 16-25 Railcard to save 1/3 on rail travel in Great Britain (worth £70+). Cash back through Santander Boosts. |
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Lloyds
“Lloyds is a brilliant bank for students. Setting up a student account is very easy and the staff are very friendly... The online banking service makes it very easy to transfer money to pay bills, deposits etc and their 24/7 customer service number is extremely helpful if you do not understand anything or something has happened to your funds etc such as you would like to increase or cancel your overdraft. Best Bank I have ever used!”
The Lloyds Student Current Account gives members an interest rate of 2.00% AER (1.98% gross) variable on balances between £1 and £5,000. Students with Lloyds can also get up to 15% cashback on things like shopping, gadgets, clothes and much more.
| Overdraft in 2023 | Freebies in 2023 |
Can apply for an interest-free arranged overdraft of up to £2,000. Find out more here. Up to £500 for first 6 months Up to £1,000 for first 7-9 months Up to £1,500 for first 10-12 months Up to £1,500 from years 2-3 Up to £2,000 from years 4-6 | £100 cash if you open an account and deposit at least £500 by 31st October 2023. |
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HSBC
“I never had a bad experience with HSBC... most of my friends at uni had also gone to HSBC because of their freebies...Their online banking is extremely easy to use and the thing which I found to be the most useful was the ability to temporarily block your bank card if it was misplaced. This came in handy during a trip to the supermarket where I dropped my card as it was very reassuring to know that my card was blocked until I found it. Customer support services through the app are also easy to use and make it really quick if you have a question. Would 10/10 recommend.”
The HSBC Student Bank Account is designed to cater to the needs of students during their academic years. Account holders are able to access the HSBC 5.00% AER / gross Regular Saver account as part of the student service.
| Overdraft in 2023 | Freebies in 2023 |
Can apply for an interest-free limit of up to £3,000. Find out more here. Up to £1,000 from year 1 Up to £2,000 from year 2 Up to £3,000 from year 3 | £100 cash and 1-year subscription to Headspace (worth £49.99). You'll need to make a minimum of 5 qualifying transactions with the account within 30 days of opening. |
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TSB
“I have been with TSB for years now and have never had a problem, when you go directly into the banks the advisors are always so friendly aswell.”
The TSB Student Account aims to meet the financial needs of people at university. Students with TSB have access to online and mobile banking with their account. Interest-free overdraft services are available and can be increased every few months for the first year.
| Overdraft in 2023 | Freebies in 2023 |
Can apply for an interest-free overdraft up to £1,500. Find out more here. Up to £500 for first 1-6 months Up to £1,000 for first 7-9 months Up to £1,500 for the first 10 months onwards. | No offers |
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Barclays
“Every issue i've had, they've sorted it. Even when amazon took money from me in dollars and then refunded me the wrong amount due to the exchange rate. Barclays fixed it for me. As someone who doesn't feel very powerful over my money as a student who owns money to loan companies for my education, barclays makes me feel comfortable in asking questions and feeling like I have some power over my money... Online banking is exactly what it needs to be.”
The Barclays Student Additions Account includes a 12-month subscription to Perlego, enabling students to save money on academic books during their first year of university. It is open to students who have been a resident of the UK for over 3 years.
| Overdraft in 2023 | Freebies in 2023 |
Can apply for an interest-free overdraft of up to £1,500. Find out more here. Up to £500 from account opening and first term. Up to £1,000 from year 1 Up to £1,500 from year 2 | 12-month subscription to Perlego’s online library of books, academic texts and tools, worth up to £653. Offer ends 18 December 2023 |
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Natwest
“The customer service for Natwest is absolutely brilliant. When they say they are happy to help, they really mean it. They're overdraft is reasonable... and it does not give you too much. Their online banking is also superb because it is so quick and easy to use. The only bad thing is the freebies... Other than that, Natwest are brilliant and I would highly recommend them.”
The Natwest Student Current Account offers a 4-year tastecard as a freebie for joining. Unlike some bank freebies, this is likely to cover your entire time at university. Natwest also offers mobile banking and an app called Housemate which helps you to split bills with friends.
| Overdraft in 2023 | Freebies in 2023 |
Can apply for an interest-free overdraft of up to £3,250. Find out more here. Up to £500 from term 1 Up to £2,000 from year 1 Up to £3,250 from year 3 onwards | £100 cash and a 4-year tastecard worth £39.99 if you apply between the 3rd July 2023 and 30th November 2023 |
