Prepaid cards
Compare the best prepaid cards with MoneySuperMarket and find the right deal for you - whether you're spending overseas,
looking to improve your credit rating, or simply want to earn cashback and rewards.
Everyday prepaid cards - Ordered by cards which incur the lowest first year costs for an upload of
£500 with eight transactions of £37.50 each and four ATM transactions of £50 each, includes any
special or introductory offers.
Monthly fee
Free —
Card fee
Free —
Transaction fee
Free —
UK ATM fee
Free —
International ATM fee
Free —
- FREE UK ATM Withdrawals, FREE Purchases, NO Monthly Fee
- Instant online approval. No credit check to apply
- iDraft up to £250 and £1000 Direct Debit cover available – subject to approval
- You must be a UK resident aged 18 or over
MoneySuperMarket customers receive £10 upon first load of £50. This offer is only available through MoneySuperMarket.com. T&Cs apply.
Monthly fee
Free —
Card fee
Free —
Transaction fee
Free —
UK ATM fee
Free —
International ATM fee
Free —
- Your salary, bank transfer or benefits can be paid in directly to your Pockit account by sharing your account number and sort code with your company or benefit provider. You can also pay in cash at over 28,000 PayPoint stores across the UK.
- You'll get a Contactless Mastercard that you can use to shop in-store and online where Mastercard is accepted. When you use your card you can save up to 10% when you spend at cashback retailers.
- Keep track of your spending and manage your money with real-time notifications on your phone. Check your live balance within the mobile app to stay on top of your money.
- Pockit is a prepaid card, not a bank. Prepaid cards are not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).
- You'll need to be a UK resident and aged 18 or over to open an account.
- You will need to pay a fee of £0.99 to pay in cash, withdraw cash, to make national and international transfers and there will be a £0.99 monthly membership fee.
Prepaid cards for Euros - Ordered by biggest saving to customers based on making 10 purchases of €50 and five ATM transactions at €100 each
- The first travel money card that connects directly to your high street bank account: no top-ups, no pre-pay, no leftover balance.
- Works with all leading high street banks and supports all currencies. No hidden fees like weekend or dormant charges.
- You can choose to contribute a part of your savings on bank charges to plant trees and offset the environmental impact associated with your travels.
- You must be over 18 years old, a UK resident, and have a UK bank account.
- You can withdraw a maximum of £500 per month from international ATMs. UK ATM withdrawals not allowed.
- Free to top-up via debit card
- FREE card when you load over £100. T&Cs apply
- There is a fee of 3.5% when card is used out of the Eurozone
- Lock in exchange rates in advance for up to 10 currencies, the rate shown above is GBP-EURO
- No international ATM fees
- Contactless payments
- Usage in a country in a different currency to what is loaded on the card results in a 5.75% foreign exchange conversion fee
- Although Travelex do not charge ATM fees, some operators may charge their own fee or set their own limits. Check the ATM before using
- There is a monthly inactivity fee of £2 per month, should the card become dormant for 12 months
Prepaid Cards
Prepaid cards work a little differently to other types of plastic. Although you can use them to make purchases or withdraw cash in the same way as a debit or credit card, the key difference is that they need to be loaded up with cash in advance – and you can then only spend the balance on the card.
There are a number of benefits to using a prepaid card, so it pays to compare your options carefully and select the right one for your needs.
Advantages of prepaid cards
Prepaid cards usually fall into two categories – pay monthly and pay-as-you-go. Pay monthly prepaid cards charge a monthly fee, but in return you pay lower transaction fees than you would with a pay-as-you-go card, and often, you will also be given rewards or cashback on your spending.
Pay monthly prepaid cards are more suited to those who regularly spend on their card, while pay-as-you-go options are more suited to those who only make a handful of transactions on their card each month.
Because you can only spend the money you've pre-loaded onto your prepaid card, they are a great choice for those on a budget, for parents who want to keep an eye on their children's spending, or even for businesses.
But another benefit of prepaid cards is that they don't require a credit check and, as a result, they are easier to get hold of than credit or debit cards. This means they can be a good option for those with a poor credit score or no credit history at all. Some prepaid cards will also allow you to add a 'credit builder' service to your card which will help you to improve your credit rating.
What's more, certain prepaid cards can even be used as an alternative to a bank account, allowing your salary to be paid onto them.
Prepaid cards can also be a handy addition to your wallet if you're holidaying abroad. This is because a number of cards allow you to pre-load them with foreign currency and then side-step the expensive fees charged by many debit and credit cards for use overseas.
Disadvantages of prepaid cards
Prepaid cards can be riddled with fees, so it's important to read the small print carefully.
In particular, you should watch out for monthly fees, charges for loading funds onto your card, fees for withdrawing cash or spending on your plastic, and inactivity fees – which kick in if you don't use your card for a number of months.
Finally, unlike credit cards, prepaid cards are not covered under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974. This protects credit card purchases between £100 and £30,000 against a retailer going bust, or your goods arriving faulty or damaged. This protection was extended up to £60,260 under the 2011 Consumer Credit Directive.
More prepaid cards options
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