General information only, not financial advice. Grow & Guard is not authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority to give advice. Check details with the provider and consider independent advice before making financial decisions.
Quick answer
- Free account with the most built-in tools: Tide. A free Lite plan, free Making Tax Digital tools and paid plans from £12.49 a month.
- Free account from a UK bank with 24/7 support: Starling. No monthly fee, FSCS protection and a built-in MTD tool.
- Free account with low-cost upgrades: Monzo Business. Free plan, with invoicing and tax pots from £9 a month.
- For international payments: Revolut Business or Wise Business.
Comparison at a glance
| Account | Monthly fee | Paid plans | Protection | MTD tools |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tide | Free (Lite) | Smart £12.49, Pro £27.49, Max £69.99 | Accounts powered by ClearBank; eligible deposits FSCS-protected up to £120,000 | Free on all plans |
| Starling Bank | No monthly fee | Optional add-ons | Eligible deposits FSCS-protected up to £120,000 | Free, built in |
| Monzo Business | Free | Pro £9, Team £25 | Eligible money may be FSCS-protected up to £120,000 | Free on all accounts |
| Revolut Business | From £10 (Basic, on the plans page we checked) | Grow from £30, Scale from £90 | Check Revolut's terms for your account | Check with Revolut |
| Wise Business | No monthly fee; £50 one-off fee for account details | Pay as you go | E-money, safeguarded rather than FSCS-protected | Not a focus |
What matters most for a sole trader
- Monthly fee versus usage fees: a free account can cost more than a paid one if you make lots of transfers or deposit cash. Check the fees for what you actually do.
- Cash and cheques: if customers pay in cash, check how deposits work and what they cost. Starling, for example, charges £3 or 0.7% (whichever is higher) per deposit on its sole trader account.
- Protection: money in a UK bank account is usually covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) up to £120,000 per eligible depositor per banking licence. E-money accounts are safeguarded instead, which works differently. You can check a firm on the FSCS protection checker.
- Making Tax Digital: sole traders and landlords with qualifying income over £50,000 have had to use MTD for Income Tax since 6 April 2026, with the threshold falling to £30,000 from April 2027 and £20,000 from April 2028, according to HMRC. Built-in MTD tools can save you buying separate software. See our guide to accounting software for sole traders.
- Accounting integrations: if you use Xero, QuickBooks or FreeAgent, check the account connects to it.
The accounts in detail
Top pick
1 Tide: free account with the most built-in tools
Tide is a business financial platform aimed at sole traders and small companies. Its current accounts are powered by ClearBank, and Tide says eligible deposits are protected by the FSCS up to £120,000 across all accounts with ClearBank. Tide also says some members hold older e-money accounts provided by PrePay Technologies, which are safeguarded rather than FSCS-protected, so check which type you have. The free Lite plan includes a business account, UK card payments, Direct Debits, ATM withdrawals, cash and cheque deposits, payment links, Tap to Pay, basic invoicing and free Making Tax Digital tools. Paid plans add more included transfers, no foreign exchange fee on card payments abroad, a business phone number, extra accounts and accounting features.
Price checked 1 November 2026: Lite free; Smart £12.49 a month; Pro £27.49 a month; Max £69.99 a month.
Good points
- Genuinely free entry plan
- Free MTD tools on every plan
- Cash and cheque deposits available
- FSCS protection through ClearBank for eligible deposits
Watch out for
- Lite includes a limited number of bank transfers a month (5 in Tide's plan table)
- 2.75% foreign exchange fee on card payments abroad on Lite
- Xero connector needs a paid plan
2 Starling Bank: free account from a UK bank
Starling is a UK-licensed bank with a sole trader account that has no monthly fee. It includes Accounting Essentials with an HMRC-recognised Making Tax Digital tool, spending insights, Spaces for putting tax money aside and free connections to Xero, QuickBooks and FreeAgent. Support is available 24/7 by chat or phone. You must be 18 or over and UK-resident to apply.
Price checked 1 November 2026: No monthly fee. Cash deposits cost £3 or 0.7% of the deposit, whichever is higher, with limits of £5,000 a day and £20,000 a year on the sole trader account.
Good points
- No monthly fee
- FSCS protection up to £120,000 for eligible deposits
- Free built-in MTD tool
- 24/7 UK support
Watch out for
- Cash deposits carry a fee and annual limit
- Not an affiliate partner of ours, so no special offer through us
3 Monzo Business: free account with low-cost upgrades
Monzo's free business account is available to sole traders, landlords and directors of limited companies in the UK and includes free HMRC-recognised Making Tax Digital software. Pro, from £9 a month, adds invoicing, tax pots and integrated accounting with Xero, FreeAgent, Sage and QuickBooks. Team, from £25 a month, adds expense cards and bulk payments. Monzo says eligible money may be protected by the FSCS up to £120,000.
Price checked 1 November 2026: Free account; Pro from £9 a month; Team from £25 a month.
Good points
- Free plan with MTD software
- Low-cost Pro plan for invoicing and tax pots
- App-based with 24/7 help
Watch out for
- Invoicing needs a paid plan
- Not an affiliate partner of ours
4 Revolut Business: for multi-currency businesses
Revolut Business is strongest if you buy or sell abroad. Plans include a monthly allowance for currency exchange at interbank rates, with a 0.6% fee beyond the allowance and 1% outside market hours, plus allowances for local and international transfers. It also offers card acceptance from 0.8% + 2p. For a UK-only sole trader the monthly fee is harder to justify. Revolut shows different plans for some business types, so check the plans available for yours. Compare it head to head in Tide vs Revolut Business.
Price checked 1 November 2026: Basic £10 a month; Grow from £30 a month; Scale from £90 a month, on the business plans page we checked. Annual billing is cheaper on Grow and Scale.
Good points
- Strong multi-currency features
- Exchange at interbank rates within your allowance
- Card acceptance tools built in
Watch out for
- Monthly fee on the plans page we checked
- Fees apply outside allowances
- Check how your money is protected
5 Wise Business: for getting paid from abroad
Wise Business is not a traditional bank account but is popular with freelancers who invoice overseas clients. Registering is free; a one-off £50 fee unlocks account details to receive money in multiple currencies. Sending money starts from 0.24% depending on the currency, holding money is free and the card has free ATM withdrawals up to £250 a month. Wise holds money as e-money and safeguards it, rather than offering FSCS deposit protection.
Price checked 1 November 2026: Free to register; £50 one-off for account details; sending and converting from 0.24%.
Good points
- Receive in many currencies
- Transparent conversion fees
- No monthly fee
Watch out for
- £50 set-up fee for account details
- Not FSCS-protected
- Best used alongside a UK business account rather than instead of one
Which account should you choose
- You want a free account with tools built in: TideAd or Starling.
- You want a bank with no monthly fee and phone support around the clock: Starling.
- You want cheap invoicing and tax pots: Monzo Business Pro.
- You trade internationally: Revolut BusinessAd, or add Wise BusinessAd alongside a UK account.
How we compared these accounts
We compared plan prices, included features, deposit protection statements and Making Tax Digital tools on each provider's UK website on 1 November 2026. We have not opened these accounts for this comparison, and eligibility is decided by each provider. This is general information, not a recommendation for your circumstances. See how we review.
Sources we checked
All checked on 1 November 2026. Prices and features change, so confirm on the provider's site before you buy.
- Tide plans and pricing
- Tide: is my money safe
- Starling sole trader account
- Monzo Business
- Revolut Business plans (UK)
- Wise Business pricing
- HMRC: Making Tax Digital for Income Tax
- FSCS: check your money is protected