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Neon vs Revolut – October 2023 Comparison

Philippe

July 13, 2023

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If you compare Neon with Revolut, you are probably looking for a bank account for travel and for your transactions abroad.

It is indeed very interesting to consider these neobanks compared to traditional banks such as UBS or Credit Suisse because they generally offer better exchange rates with very little transaction fees.

Neon Bank is a neobank that offers a bank account with IBAN CH only in CHF, but with the possibility of making international transfers thanks to their partnership with WISE.

Revolut is a very popular neobank based in the United Kingdom, which also allows to have an account in CHF and sub-accounts in 29 currencies.

With Neon and Revolut you will have a free bank account and a free debit card.

Let’s take a closer look at what each neobank offers.

Neon vs Revolut Switzerland – Which neobank to choose

If you don’t have time to read this article, here is which neobank to choose according to your use

To find out how each criterion is judged, read on: we review important options for Switzerland (IBAN CH, transfers in CHF, TWINT) and abroad (withdrawals with the card, SEPA transfer fees, transfers in designs).

Neon vs Revolut Switzerland – Coupon Code

By opening an account with Neon you receive a welcome cash gift on your account, which is always appreciated.

On the other hand at Revolut, you get zero, zip, nada, zilch!

1 point for Neon

Neon vs Revolut Switzerland: The account

Here is a comparison of the features available from Neon and Revolut:

Neon therefore has a better offer in a Swiss context : IBAN CH, payments by QR and BVR, eBill and TWINT.

Revolut offers more currencies and – as we will see – also offers better prices for transactions abroad: Revolut is often cheaper than Neon by 0.50% to 1% on currency exchange.

1 point for Neon

Neon vs Revolut Switzerland – IBAN CH

As a neo-Swiss bank, Neon allows you to obtain a free bank account with personal IBAN CH.

On the other hand Revolut is a neobank based in the United Kingdom and with a banking license in Lithuania (LT).

At Revolut, as a Swiss resident you can get a free account with 2 IBANs: an IBAN LT and an IBAN CH, but the problem is that the IBAN CH is not a Personal IBAN: it is not in your personal name but in that of Revolut, which does not allow you to use it in all situations.

You will not be able to use Revolut to transfer funds to Flowbank for example, as Flowbank requires that funds are credited from an account in your name.

1 point for Neon

Neon vs Revolut Switzerland – TWINT

Neon allows you to use the TWINT app from UBS or TWINT Prepaid

Revolut does not offer and will probably never offer TWINT because it is a product only available in Switzerland.

1 point for Neon

Neon vs Revolut Switzerland – Debit card

At Neon the card is connected to your account in CHF and if you use it in a different currency, charges apply.

While at Revolut, the debit card is multi-currency, that is to say that you can use it indifferently for all the currencies available on your account, it will automatically charge the corresponding currency.

For example, if you have CHF and EUR on your account and you pay for a restaurant in France, the card will use the EUR available on your account.

There are therefore fees linked to the card which are different at Neon and Revolut:

For withdrawals in Switzerland the Neon card is therefore much more advantageous than the Revolut card because the limit is much higher: up to 1’000 CHF/day and 10’000 CHF/month.

For withdrawals abroad you must use the Revolut card up to 200 CHF/EUR then ut compare because the exchange commissions and fees are different: Neon applies 1.50% exchange commission and Revolut applies a surcharge of 0.50% during the week.

Let’s take the example of a 1,000 EUR withdrawal in 5 installments, during the week:

Another example with 1 single withdrawal:

For one-time withdrawals, Neon becomes cheaper than Revolutfrom 300 EUR..

1 dot everywhere

Neon vs Revolut Switzerland – Payments and transfer fees

Both Neon and Revolut Standard accounts are free.

Revolut also allows you to make SEPA transfers in EUR free of charge. On the other hand, Neon applies 1.50% on the EUR:

Revolut applies a surcharge of approximately 0.50% outside opening hours.

For international transfers, Revolut publishes in this document the fees for international transfers. The fees are different if the beneficiary’s currency is that of his country or not.

For comparison, here are the fees for international transfers:

For EUR in the SEPA zone, you must use Revolut which does not apply fees.

For USD and GBP, Neon will be cheaper than Revolut by up to around CHF 400, due to fixed Revolut fee of CHF 4

For all other currencies, Neon will be cheaper than Revolut by up to around CHF 600, due to Revolut’s flat fee of CHF 6

But to find out which is the cheapest between Neon and Revolut, you have to compare all the costs:

Example 1: Transfer of 5,000 EUR in Switzerland, from your CHF account

As Switzerland is part of the SEPA system, Revolut does not charge any transfer fees on payments in EUR in Switzerland . These fees will be the same for a payment in EUR in France or in a SEPA country in euros.

Example 2: Transfer of 10,000 USD in Switzerland, from your CHF account

Example 3: Transfer of 5,000 USD to the United States, from your CHF account

(*) Tests carried out during the week

If the issue of changing CHF to EUR is important to you, see our article How to Change Swiss Francs in Euros at the Best Rate.

1 point for Revolut

Revolut Switzerland – Trading

Both Revolut and Neon allow you to trade.

Neon remains cheaper than Revolut on Stock Trading. Revolut allows cryptocurrency trading, which Neon does not.

It should also be taken into account that Neon can easily edit a tax statement for your tax return, which will not be the case with Revolut.

If you are looking for a neobank to do Trading, see our Flowbank review which offers lower rates than Neon and Revolut.

1 point for Neon

Revolut Standard vs Revolut Premium

Unlike Neon, Revolut currently offers 4 plans:

• Standard – Free
• Plus – 2.99 CHF/month
• Premium – 7.99 CHF/month
• Metal – 13.99 CHF/month

The only advantage of the Plus compared to the Standard is to offer the delivery of the debit card and to be able to manage 2 child accounts <18.</ strong>

The Premium is more interesting because it reduces your costs and increases your limits:

• Withdrawal limit of CHF 400/month instead of CHF 200/month
• 0.00% instead of 0.50% exchange commission
• 1.50% instead of 2.00% commission on cyrptocurrency trading
• 0.50% instead of 1.50% commission on stock trading

The Premium account is therefore interesting from 1,600 CHF of monthly exchange (0.50% of 1,600 = 8).

Conclusion

In conclusion, Neon and Revolut are complementary because the Neon account offers features that are not available with Revolut (IBAN CH, eBill, invoices QR and soon TWINT) and is cheaper than Revolut in certain situations.

Our recommendation is to open a free account with each neobank and to have the 2 debit cards in your wallet. which will allow you to always benefit from the better conditions and to have a “back-up” if necessary.