Incard vs Revolut Business: which UK business account suits you?

At a glance

The biggest difference: bank vs e-money

This matters more than any fee. Revolut Business in the UK is provided by Revolut Bank UK Ltd, a bank. Its Business Terms say eligible deposits are protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) up to £120,000 across everything you hold with it.

Incard is not a bank. Incard Ltd is authorised by the FCA as an Electronic Money Institution (firm reference number 1027309). Your money is safeguarded: Incard keeps customer funds in segregated accounts at authorised banks, or covers them with an insurance policy, separate from its own money, and doesn't lend or invest them. Incard states plainly that funds in your account are not protected by the FSCS. If an e-money firm fails, safeguarded funds go back to customers through an insolvency process. That can take time, and the amount returned depends on what is in the safeguarded pool. You also earn no interest on e-money balances.

Many businesses use an e-money account for spending and keep larger reserves with a bank. If you plan to hold large balances, take this into account.

Monthly fees and plans

Incard

Incard says yearly billing saves 15%. Plus is shown from £169 a month when billed yearly, and the pricing page currently lists the first month free on Grow and Plus. Extra users and extra IBANs cost £12 a month each, and extra virtual cards £2 a month. Local transfers outside your allowance cost £0.30. International transfers outside your allowance cost at least £5 (SHA) or £20 (OUR). The chargeback fee is £25.

Revolut Business

UK transfers outside the allowance cost £0.20. International transfers cost £5 each outside the allowance, and guaranteed SWIFT (OUR) transfers cost £20. Every plan includes one free plastic card per authorised person. The Expenses app costs £8 per active team member a month, and Payroll £3. Enterprise pricing is custom.

Cashback: is it worth paying for a higher plan?

Cashback is Incard's main selling point. Incard describes it as uncapped on eligible debit card spending at merchants on its eligible brand list, with rates that vary by category. The Revolut Business fee schedule we checked doesn't list a card-cashback rate, so we haven't assumed one.

A quick sense-check before you upgrade within Incard (simple arithmetic, not a forecast):

• On the Free plan, £5,000 a month of advertising, software or travel spend at 1% returns about £50 a month. Other eligible spending earns 0.5%.
• Grow costs £49 a month and adds 0.25 percentage points on advertising, software and travel, and 0.5 points on other eligible spend. On cashback alone, it pays for itself at roughly £19,600 a month of category spend, or £9,800 of other spend. Below that, upgrade only if you need the extra users, IBANs, FX allowance or API access.
• Plus starts at £199 a month for at least 1.5%. On cashback alone, it breaks even against Free at roughly £39,800 a month of category spend, or £19,900 of other spend.

If your business card spend is low, a cashback account won't do much for you. Be realistic about how much you'll put through it, or try your own mix in the cashback calculator.

Foreign exchange and international payments

Both providers charge 0.6% for currency exchange above your monthly interbank allowance, and more outside market hours. Incard's allowance on its free plan (£5,000) is larger than Revolut's on Basic (£1,000). On the mid-tier plans both allow £15,000. Revolut's Scale plan allows £60,000, which is more than Incard Plus starts at. The Incard FX cost calculator shows which Incard plan suits your monthly volume.

Incard holds GBP, EUR and USD. It says you can send money in 30+ currencies and spend on the card in 150+. Incard can also fix exchange rates in advance with forward contracts, for a fee. Revolut lets you hold 25+ currencies, which is the stronger choice if you get paid in many currencies.

Who can open each account

Incard onboards UK limited companies and LLPs, UK registered sole traders and freelancers, and Swiss GmbH, AG and sole-trader businesses. Its help centre says onboarding in the EEA is paused and expected to resume in 2027. Public sector bodies, cooperatives, charities, foundations and trusts are not accepted. There is also a long list of restricted industries, including crypto and blockchain, gambling, alcohol and tobacco, construction, travel booking and multi-level marketing.

Revolut Business says UK applicants need a fully incorporated, active company, and it points sole traders and freelancers to Revolut Pro, a separate product. Its Business Terms are worded differently for existing sole-trader customers, so confirm your legal form with Revolut if that applies to you. Charities, trusts, foundations and non-profits are not eligible.

Incard Flex Cards

Incard's homepage describes Flex Cards as “Spend now. Pay in 42 days with 0% interest. Earn cashback while you wait. No credit check.” The pricing page doesn't say which plans include Flex Cards or what the repayment terms are. Read Incard's terms for the feature before you rely on it for cash flow. We haven't seen an equivalent on Revolut's UK Business plan pages.

Getting started

Both applications are online. Revolut says its form takes about 10 minutes, then it reviews your application. Incard's process involves business details, proof that you can act for the company, an ID check, accepting the terms and, often, extra documents requested by email before a decision. Our Incard profile lists the application steps and what to prepare.

Our verdict

Incard is the better fit for UK and Swiss businesses with steady card spending, especially on advertising, software and travel, that want cashback, a free plan and team cards. Sole traders can open one too. The trade-off is that it is not a bank, and the industry restrictions are strict.

Revolut Business is the better fit if you want FSCS-protected bank deposits, many currencies, or tools for taking payments, payroll and expenses, and if cashback isn't a priority.