UK’s best and worst banks for current accounts revealed

Close up of a woman's hand paying with her smartphone in a cafe — *Monzo has been crowned the best bank for retail banking*

(Image credit: D3sign via Getty Images)

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The winners
The losers
How to pick the best current account

Monzo, Starling, Nationwide and First Direct have been crowned the best current account providers in Great Britain.

The latest survey results from research firm Ipsos reveal how likely customers are to recommend their current account provider to friends and family based on ‘overall service quality’.

Monzo and Starling topped the rankings, with the two challenger banks scoring 79% and 76%, respectively.

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Nationwide, known for its Fairer Share payment and Branch Promise, and HSBC-owned First Direct came in joint third place, scoring 75%.

Best UK banks – the winners

Ipsos regularly surveys both personal and business banking customers to gauge how likely they would be to recommend a provider to loved ones.

The biggest banks and building societies are ranked and placed into four categories: personal current accounts in Great Britain, personal current accounts in Northern Ireland, business banking services in Great Britain and business banking services in Northern Ireland.

Thousands of banking customers were surveyed between July 2025 and June 2026 to get the latest rankings.

The results below show the proportion of customers surveyed from each provider who would be ‘extremely likely’ or ‘very likely’ to recommend their provider to friends and family.

Best current account providers in Great Britain

1. Monzo: 79%

2. Starling: 76%

3. Nationwide: 75%

3. First Direct: 75%

Best current account providers in Northern Ireland

1. Monzo: 82%

2. Starling: 79%

3. Nationwide: 76%

Best business account providers in Great Britain

1. Monzo: 85%

2. Starling: 83%

3. Mettle (NatWest): 82%

Best business account providers in Northern Ireland

1. Ulster Bank: 61%

1. Danske Bank: 61%

3. Santander: 53%

Best UK banks – the losers

These are the providers ranked the worst across personal current accounts and business accounts in the survey.

Worst current account providers in Great Britain

1. Royal Bank of Scotland: 48%

2. Virgin Money: 49%

3. TSB: 54%

Worst current account providers in Northern Ireland

1. AIB: 44%

2. Bank of Ireland UK: 45%

3. Santander: 55%

Worst business account providers in Great Britain

1. Santander: 48%

2. Bank of Scotland: 53%

3. TSB: 56%

Worst business account providers in Northern Ireland

1. Bank of Ireland UK: 42%

2. AIB: 45%

An AIB NI spokesperson said: “AIB NI is committed to delivering a reliable and professional service for all our customers.

“We continue to invest in enhancing our services, including our digital banking experience and strengthening our customer support, so we can provide a positive banking experience for personal and business customers across Northern Ireland."

A Santander spokesperson said: "We take customer feedback very seriously and are continuing to invest in our business banking proposition, including improvements to our digital services, customer support and relationship management."

A TSB spokesperson said: "We will always take on board the feedback of customers as we continue to improve our services and meet their banking needs."

MoneyWeek asked Bank of Ireland UK, Bank of Scotland, Virgin Money and Royal Bank of Scotland to comment.

How to pick the best current account

Recommendations are one way to choose the best current account for you, but there are other factors to consider too.

If you want added perks such as cashback on spending, travel insurance or even airport lounge access for a monthly fee, you could opt for a packaged bank account.

If you want to earn interest on your balance, you should opt for a current account paying competitive interest rates.

Some banks only let you access savings accounts with high interest rates once you have opened a current account with them, so sometimes that can be a good reason to choose a certain provider.

Factor in whether you want face-to-face customer service interaction as well – some banks, including Monzo and Starling, don’t have physical bank branches where you can go with any queries.

Meanwhile, plenty of banks and building societies offer cash switching bonuses to customers moving current accounts from another provider.

In any case, research is key and make sure you’re comparing the best deals on the market to get the one that best suits your needs.

Sam has a background in personal finance writing, having spent more than three years working on the money desk at The Sun.

He has a particular interest and experience covering the housing market, savings and policy.

Sam believes in making personal finance subjects accessible to all, so people can make better decisions with their money.

He studied Hispanic Studies at the University of Nottingham, graduating in 2015.

Outside of work, Sam enjoys reading, cooking, travelling and taking part in the occasional park run!