Whether your own bank isn’t giving you the deals which are right for you or because you’re taking charge of your finances and realising you want more than your current provider offers, switching bank accounts in the UK is a far less painful process than many realise.
Using the Current Account Switch Service (CASS), banks are able to seamlessly transfer your funds, your payee details, your direct debits and more in just a matter of days – without you having to go back and forth between old and new, telling them what you want.
And what’s more, in some cases the battle for new clients means they will offer significant rewards to leave your current bank, often in cash and sometimes with other bonuses attached, such as higher rates of interest in a new savings account. Here are the best current account offers on the market in January 2025 – if any are of interest, be sure to check the terms and conditions to make sure they suit your personal circumstances and ensure you can fulfill the criteria or you may not get the full reward.
First Direct: £175 for switching
For initial reward plus bonuses, First Direct come out on top of the current offers.
Open a 1st account and you’ll not only get £175 cash, but also access to a regular saver account paying a hefty seven per cent – this compares well with other regular savings account rates which were available at the start of the month. The rate is fixed for a year and other terms are attached with this separate saver account.
For the current account, there’s also a £250 zero per cent overdraft attached, subject to credit checks.
This offer is only open to customers who have not had a First Direct account of any kind before, including mortgages, and you cannot have opened an account with HSBC since 2018. The account must be opened in-app.
Regular conditions for most switch service cash offers apply: you have to pay in £1,000 within 45 days of switching and your switch from your old account must include at least two direct debits. These conditions apply in most switching service cases, to one extent or another.
More details can be found here.
Nationwide Building Society: £175 for switching
A building society rather than a bank but the same premise applies for Nationwide, who are also offering £175 to move to their current account.
Their FlexDirect current account allows you to save 5 per cent on money in your account up to £1,500 for the first 12 months after opening. That equates to over £75 interest earned for the year if you have a minimum of that amount in all year.
For those who have more beyond that amount and want an additional savings account, their rate is 6.5 per cent, while a zero per cent overdraft is offered subject to conditions for up to £50. You can also earn up to £5 a month cashback for spending.
The offer isn’t available to those who have switched into a Nationwide account or received switch cash already from them since August 2021.
More details, including other accounts for Nationwide with different terms but also £175 for switching, plus what you need to do after switching to claim the cash, are here.
Santander: £150 for switching
Offering a number of different options to suit different customers, Santander are offering £150 to leave your current bank account provider.
There is an everyday account with no fee, an optional overdraft and no minimum monthly amount which must go into the account (after the initial £1,500 within 60 days required for setup and cash offer), then two further accounts which offer more benefits, but are charged at £3 and £5 per month respectively.
Those added benefits include cashback on bills, access to higher interest rate savings accounts and free use of the debit card abroad.
Santander say the switch offer isn’t available if you’ve already had an incentive payment to switch to a Santander current account before.
More details on these accounts, and others Santander offer such as for students, can be found here.
Barclays: 25,000 Avios points
Slightly different and not for everybody, but high net worth individuals can earn 25,000 Avios points by using the switch service to move to Barclays as long as they are not already customers.
Valuing Avios points is always slightly tricky due to the variable nature of what they can be redeemed against, but generally they are marked as around 1p per point.
There is also a monthly Avios boost of 1,500 points and 7,000 additional points on your account anniversary – or a cabin upgrade – and airport lounge membership. This is bundled into perks which cost £12 a month.
For this account, a £75,000 annual salary or have six figures saved or invested with Barclays are requirements, along with other conditions which are viewable here.
The current account switch offer market is at times a competitive one and constantly changes, with new banks offering new products all the time. We have updated information every month on Independent Money and you can join our free newsletter, too. Just head to this link, select “lifestyle” and choose Money to sign up for the best weekly financial news, advice and ideas.
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