Revolut vs Wise 2026: Hvilken er best for pengene dine?

*Last updated: April 2026*

Revolut and Wise are the two most popular financial apps in Europe, and increasingly worldwide. We use both. Thomas keeps Revolut as his main spending card. I (Øyvind) lean on Wise for international transfers and holding multiple currencies. But which one is actually better?

We tested both side by side for 60 days, sending money to five countries, spending on the cards daily, and comparing every fee we could find. Here is the honest result.

The Core Difference

Revolut wants to be your everything-app for money. It does transfers, spending, savings, crypto, stocks, insurance, and more. Wise wants to be the best at one thing: moving money across borders at the real exchange rate.

This fundamental difference shapes every comparison. If you want simplicity and the lowest transfer fees, Wise wins. If you want an all-in-one financial hub, Revolut wins. But the details matter, so let us dig in.

Exchange Rates Compared

This is the big one. We sent £500 to five countries — Poland (PLN), the US (USD), Norway (NOK), Thailand (THB), and Australia (AUD) — using both Revolut (Standard plan) and Wise on the same day.

Wise was cheaper in four out of five corridors. The difference was small for major currencies (USD, EUR) — typically £1-3 on a £500 transfer. For exotic currencies like THB, the gap widened to around £6-8. Revolut charges a weekend markup of 0.5-1% on most currencies, which Wise does not. If you transfer on weekdays and stay under Revolut's free tier limit, the difference shrinks considerably.

The Hidden Costs

Revolut's Standard plan gives you £1,000 of fee-free exchange per month. Beyond that, there is a 0.5% markup. Wise charges a transparent fee on every transfer (typically 0.4-0.7% depending on the corridor) but gives you the real mid-market rate with no markup.

For regular small transfers, Revolut's free tier is hard to beat. For larger or frequent transfers, Wise's transparent pricing usually works out cheaper. We detail more corridor-specific findings in our cheapest international transfers article.

Card Spending Abroad

Both cards work well abroad. We used them across six countries during our testing period.

Revolut's Standard plan gives you £1,000 of fee-free card spending abroad per month. After that, a 0.5% fee applies. Premium and Metal plans raise or remove this limit. The card is accepted everywhere Visa or Mastercard is — Revolut offers both depending on your region.

Wise charges a small conversion fee (typically 0.4-0.6%) on every card transaction, but it is always transparent. There is no monthly limit to worry about. The Wise card is generally Visa.

For moderate spending abroad, Revolut's free tier wins. For heavy international spending, the maths depends on your volume and plan.

App and Features

Revolut's app is packed. Budgeting tools, savings vaults, crypto trading, stock investing, premium subscriptions, lounge passes, insurance — it is a financial super-app. The interface is slick but can feel overwhelming. We sometimes struggle to find settings buried three menus deep.

Wise's app is cleaner and more focused. Multi-currency balances, transfer history, card controls, and not much else. It does what it does without clutter. For people who want simplicity, Wise is more pleasant to use daily.

Savings and Interest

Revolut now offers savings vaults with competitive interest rates in several markets. Wise offers interest on held balances through its Assets feature, investing your money in low-risk funds. Both are decent, but neither replaces a dedicated savings account. Check our best savings accounts guide for higher rates.

Business Use

Both offer business accounts, and both are popular with freelancers. Revolut Business has more features (expense management, team cards, integrations). Wise Business is simpler and cheaper for pure international payments. For businesses with complex needs, Airwallex is worth considering — we cover it in our business bank accounts roundup.

Customer Support

We contacted both with a genuine question. Revolut's chatbot tried to deflect us to help articles three times before connecting us to a human. Once we got through, the agent was helpful and resolved our issue in under five minutes. Total time: about eight minutes.

Wise's support was more straightforward. We reached a human via chat in about four minutes. The response was clear and the issue resolved quickly. Total time: about six minutes.

Neither offers phone support on basic plans, which is frustrating if you have an urgent issue. Revolut's premium plans include priority support and phone access, which is a genuine advantage if you are willing to pay.

Security and Regulation

Both are properly regulated, but their structures differ.

Revolut holds a UK banking licence (via the Bank of Lithuania for EU customers) and offers FSCS protection up to £85,000 for UK customers. Wise is an Electronic Money Institution, not a bank. Your money is safeguarded (held in ring-fenced accounts) but not covered by FSCS deposit protection in the same way.

This is an important distinction. For large balances, Revolut's banking licence provides stronger protection. For transfer and spending use, the difference is less significant in practice.

Who Should Choose Which

Choose Revolut if you want:

• An all-in-one financial app

• Crypto and stock trading in the same place

• Fee-free spending abroad (within limits)

• Premium perks like lounge access and insurance

Choose Wise if you want:

• The cheapest international transfers

• Transparent, predictable pricing

• A simple, clean experience

• Multi-currency accounts without complexity

**Or use both.** That is what we do. Thomas uses Revolut for daily spending and Wise for large international transfers. I use Wise as my primary multi-currency account and Revolut for the premium travel perks. There is no rule that says you have to pick one.

The Verdict

If we had to recommend just one to a friend moving abroad or travelling frequently, we would say Wise for pure transfers and Revolut for everything else. But honestly, the best setup is both. They are free to open, and each excels where the other is merely good.

Important Disclaimer

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