Gone are the days when you would pay hefty fees only to withdraw cash from an ATM abroad or from ATM’s of other banks. Well, at least here in Europe and for those using debit cards we are going to talk about in this article.
Which one is the best travel debit card, you’ll ask.
Here in this article we compare 3 of the best.
All of them offering free cash withdrawals.
All coming with a well designed and intuitive mobile app.
By the way, these free debit cards are available to most of you living in Europe. And in some cases you don’t even have to pay any delivery fees. Just fill in the form online and get the card delivered to you. Sounds too good to be true?
Continue reading to learn more about these awesome travel bank cards.
Here they are - 3 of the best travel debit cards in Europe.
Free cash withdrawals: €200/£200 per month (Standard); €400/£400 per month (Premium); €400/£400 per month (Metal).
Monthly fee: Free (Standard); £6.99 (Premium); £12.99 (Metal).
Pricing & more details: revolut.com.
Launched in 2015, Revolut has often been called the best travel debit card in Europe.
And it’s easy to see why - free cash withdrawals in over 140 currencies are available also with a free account, instant top-ups, real time exchange rates, beautiful and easy to use app and the list grows only longer. As Revolut now also offers travel insurance, mobile phone insurance, personal loans, disposable virtual cards and cryptocurrency support.
And the interbank exchange rate is making the deal even sweeter.
Revolut prepaid card uses the interbank exchange rate, known also as the mid-market rate and the real rate. That’s the same rate banks use when swapping currencies between one another.
This rate is not some kind of secret.
You can see it also on Google and XE.com.
Free cash withdrawals: 5 free withdrawals per month, in euros; Unlimited free withdrawals in foreign currencies (N26 Black only).
Monthly fee: Free (Standard); €9.99 (N26 Black); Free (N26 Business).
Pricing & more details: n26.com.
N26 is Europe's first mobile-only bank. Being overall very similar to Revolut, N26 has a slightly different pricing model. And if you plan to make this card your primary debit card N26 may cost you less in the long run. Simply because of unlimited cash withdrawals available with N26 Black account. But only if you’ll be withdrawing more than a few hundred euro every month.
Apart from unlimited ATM withdrawals with N26 Black you get Mobile phone theft protection, travel insurance, Extended Warranty and Purchase Protection.
N26 uses the standard Mastercard exchange rates, which can be both better and worse than the interbank exchange rate used by Revolut.
Available in Europe. Coming soon to the UK and the US.
Free cash withdrawals: up to £200 per month (30 days).
Monthly fee: Free.
Pricing: transferwise.com.
Launched in 2011 TransferWise is a well-known money transfer service, backed by Sir Richard Branson. The company is based in the UK and since 2018 they are offering their own prepaid debit cards with no fees (no transaction fees). Currently Transferwise offers only the basic features, making it less preferable choice if you need also things like travel insurance and virtual cards.
Speaking of pros, using TransferWise you’ll get:
Same like Revolut, TransferWise uses the mid-market exchange rate whenever you withdraw cash in foreign currencies or make a purchase. But unlike Revolut TransferWise charges extra for currency exchange (between 0.35% and 2%).
What's the best debit card for travel?
Here is our opinion:
Overall - Revolut.
For frequent travelers, frequent business travelers - N26.
For professionals working with different international clients - TransferWise.
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