NatWest brings back £200 bank switching deal - is it the best on the market?

This NatWest bonus is no longer on the market. Please see our best bank switching guide for the latest deals. 

Bank switching bonuses came off the radar earlier this month, but large high-street players are returning with deals as they look to draw in more new customers.

Hot off the heels of Lloyds launching a £175 switch bonus this week, NatWest, the second high-street lender, has reappeared with its bank switching incentive this week.

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NatWest is offering a £200 bonus from today (15 February) when you switch to its current account. The deal also follows the recent rumoured sale of NatWest shares.

Figures from the Current Account Switch Service (CASS) showed that in the third quarter of 2023, NatWest gained the most number of switches (94,796) due to its £200 switching incentive previously launched in February 2023. Will it prove as popular this time round?

We look at how to get £200 free cash from NatWest and whether it's the best deal on the market. 

How to get the NatWest £200 bank switching deal 

New and existing customers who switch to a NatWest bank account will receive a £200 cash bonus. 

The NatWest bank accounts that are eligible in the offer include its everyday bank account or any of its reward accounts, which start from a monthly fee of £2. 

To complete the full switch, you will need to: 

• Open one of the eligible NatWest accounts online or via its mobile app and request a switch via the CASS. 
• Deposit £1,250 within 60 days of opening the account. 
• Log in to the NatWest mobile banking app within 60 days of opening the account. 

The £1,250 deposit does not have to be a lump sum- it can be made in multiple payments. 

Plus, the CASS will make the switch a seamless process by closing your old current account for you and moving any active direct debits or standing orders to your new NatWest account. 

You will not be eligible for this offer if you have received a switch incentive from NatWest, Royal Bank of Scotland or Ulster Bank since 1 January 2020.

Any switches made over the phone or in branch will also not be eligible for the £200 free cash. 

Is the NatWest switching incentive any good? 

NatWest’s £200 switching offer was the best deal on the market when it launched back in February 2023, and it continues to hold its title after today’s re-launch. 

That said, currently there are limited deals on the market, as NatWest is competing with one other lender- Lloyds and its £175 free cash. 

On the top level, NatWest already wins with its higher cashback bonus, offering £25 more than Lloyds. 

The other big difference is, the Lloyds accounts eligible for the offer are all packaged back accounts which come with a minimum £3 monthly fee, going up to £21 per month. 

Read more on how much the Club Lloyds monthly fees eat into its £175 cash bonus. 

Whereas with NatWest, you have the option to opt for its free everyday bank account, in which case you would snap up the full bonus. 

The lender has also included its reward bank accounts in the deal, the cheapest costing £2 a month. 

And with that, you can earn £4 cashback per month providing you have two active direct debits, plus £1 monthly cashback when you log in to its banking app. 

If you successfully do both, you would receive up to £60 cashback in a year. 

When you take the £200 free cash into account, the £60 cashback and the £2 monthly fee, in a year you would end up with £236 extra cash by switching to NatWest- and that’s still more than the £200 headline bonus.