The ultimate guide to Revolut in Ireland: How does it work?

Heard about Revolut, but not really sure what it is or how it works? Don’t worry, this guide is here to help you. We’re going to run through what there is to know about Revolut including the services, fees and how it operates.

We’ll also let you know about the Wise Account, a viable alternative that’s also available to people living in Ireland.

Wise: Manage +40 currencies
In one account 💰

What is Revolut and how does it work in Ireland?

Revolut is a financial services provider that caters to individuals, as well as businesses.

These are some the services that are available to personal Irish customers²:

• Individual, joint and under 18 accounts
• Cards
• International transfers
• Payments
• Budgeting and analytics tools
• Crypto, commodities and stock investments
• eSIM
• Loans
• Insurance

Is Revolut a Bank in Ireland? Regulatory Insights

Revolut has a banking licence for the EEA (European Economic Area), meaning it operates as a bank in Ireland.¹⁵

Revolut Bank UAB is incorporated and licensed in Lithuania, and is regulated by the Bank of Lithuania and the European Central Bank as a credit institution.¹ This bank has established a branch in Ireland, which offers services to Irish customers.

One type of account you can have with Revolut is a current account, and it's the focus of this article. That’s a fairly standard type of bank account in Ireland, used for storing, spending and withdrawing money.

Revolut card in Ireland

With a Revolut account you can get a physical card as well as virtual cards which are generated through the app.⁸

It’s possible to customise the appearance of the physical card and depending on your plan it will be made of plastic, metal or be platinum plated.²

Revolut offers Visa or Mastercard? Understanding the card options in Ireland

Depending on your location and card type, you may be able to choose if you want a Revolut Visa debit card or Revolut Mastercard debit card.⁹

The options that are available at the time will be displayed in the app before you order your card; if it’s possible, you can choose.

How to get a Revolut card in Ireland?

To order a card simply open a Revolut account then go to the app, select the section for cards and follow the prompts.

Here’s the costs associated with ordering a physical Revolut card for each of the plans:

Revolut Plan	Card cost	Replacement card cost
Revolut Standard³	1st Standard card is free + delivery cost	Replacement cards are €6 + delivery cost
Revolut Plus⁴	1st card is a free Standard or Plus card 2nd card is a free Standard or Plus card	1 free replacement card every subsequent year Additional replacement cards are €10
Revolut Premium⁵	1st card is a free Standard or Premium card 2nd card is a free Standard or Premium card	1 free replacement card every subsequent year Additional cards are €10
Revolut Metal⁶	1st card is a free Standard or Metal Premium card 2nd card is a free Standard or Metal Premium card	Additional cards are €10 for Standard or €40 for Metal
Revolut Ultra⁷	1st card is a free Ultra, Premium or Standard card, or €40 for a Metal card 2nd card is a free Ultra, Premium or Standard card, or €40 for a Metal card (if you don’t already have one)	Additional cards are €10 for Standard, €40 for Metal or €50 for Ultra

For all plans, Revolut virtual cards are free to generate.⁷ If you want a special edition or custom physical Revolut card it’s possible to get one, but the fee varies so can only be confirmed in the app at the time you want to order the card.

Can you withdraw money from Revolut in Ireland? 🏧

You can withdraw money using a Revolut card but you are limited to €3000 or equivalent per 24 hours.¹⁰

This is what it costs to withdraw money for each of the Revolut plans:

Revolut Plan	Withdrawal Fees
Revolut Standard³	Free up to 5 ATM withdrawals or €200 per rolling month (whichever comes first), then a fee of 2% of the withdrawal value (minimum €1)
Revolut Plus⁴	Free up to €200 per rolling month then a fee of 2% of the withdrawal value (minimum €1)
Revolut Premium⁵	Free up to €400 per rolling month then a fee of 2% of the withdrawal value (minimum €1)
Revolut Metal⁶	Free up to €800 per rolling month then a fee of 2% of the withdrawal value (minimum €1)
Revolut Ultra⁷	Free up to €2000 per rolling month then a fee of 2% of the withdrawal value (minimum €1)

It’s worth noting that if you have a Basic Bank Account with Revolut you get free withdrawals with no limit.³

🔎 Read also: Revolut alternatives in Ireland

Understanding Revolut fees and plans in Ireland

Revolut has tiered pricing with 5 different plans that give you access to different features, perks and fee structures.

Revolut plans in Ireland

These are the 5 different plans Revolut offers Irish customers, and what each one costs per month²:

• Standard: Free
• Plus: €3.99 /month
• Premium: €8.99 /month
• Metal: €15.99 /month
• Ultra: €45.00 /month

To give you an idea of the differences, here are some of the features and perks associated with each plan. There are also a few differences in the fees and free allowances, which we’ll go into later.

	Free European account	Exclusive card	Cashback on card payments	Global medical insurance
Revolut Standard	Yes	No	No	No
Revolut Plus	Yes	Personalised Plus card	No	No
Revolut Premium	Yes	Personalised Premium card	No	Yes
Revolut Metal	Yes	Personalised metal card	Yes	Yes
Revolut Ultra	Yes	Platinum plated card	Yes	Yes

Revolut fees in Ireland

The fees and free allowances for Revolut tend to vary depending on which plan you select. At the base level is the Standard plan.

Here’s some of the fees Revolut charges account holders on the Standard plan, comparing it with what Wise charges Wise Account holders for context:

Service	Revolut Standard³	Wise Account (personal)
Account maintenance	Free	Free
Currencies available	Hold 36 currencies in the account¹⁴	Manage +40 currencies in the account
Getting a card	Free + delivery cost	€7
Virtual card	Free	Free
ATM withdrawals	Free up to 5 ATM Withdrawals or €200 per rolling month (whichever comes first), then a fee of 2% of the withdrawal value (minimum €1)*	Free to withdraw up to €200 per month in 2 or less withdrawals. Over €200 per month is €0.50 per withdrawal + 1.75%*
Pay	Free if you have the currency in your account	Free if you have the currency in your account
Receive money	Free for bank transfers to your EUR and GBP¹⁵ account details	Free for AUD, EUR, GBP, HUF, NZD, RON, SGD, TRY, USD (non-wire, non-Swift) and CAD (non Swift)
Currency exchange	Variable fee depending on the currency + 1% fair usage fee applied when the exchange limit of €1000 per month is exceeded	Variable fee starting from 0.35% depending on the currency

* Providers will not charge you for withdrawals, but some additional charges may occur from independent ATM networks.

Revolut international transfers

With Revolut you can send money to over 160 countries in more than 70 currencies.¹¹ For more details you can read our step-by-step guide on how to send money with Revolut, but in summary there are four main ways:

• Bank transfer
• Card transfer
• Peer transfer to other Revolut users
• Mobile wallet transfer

Revolut exchange rate: How does it work?

Revolut uses the "Revolut exchange rate" for their currency conversions and when applicable an exchange fee is added to this.³

On top of the exchange fee there are two other Revolut fees to know about: the fair usage fee and weekend fee.

The fair usage fee is applied when customers exceed their plans' exchange limit.

Revolut fair usage
Standard Plan	Fair use limit of €1000 per month, with a 1% for amounts over this
Plus Plan	Fair use limit of €3000 per month, with a 0.5% for amounts over this
Premium, Metal and Ultra Plans	No fair use limit

⚠️ The Revolut weekend fee is a 1% surcharge for exchanging currencies on the weekend, which is 5pm Friday to 6pm Sunday, New York time.¹² This fee applies no matter which plan you have.

In comparison, Wise does things a bit differently, and exchanges currencies using the mid-market exchange rate, the one you normally find on Google.

Wise doesn’t have a fair usage limit, and there are no additional fees for exchanging currencies on weekends.

Exploring Revolut business accounts 💼

Like we said at the start, Revolut caters to personal and business customers. It also offers different plans both for companies and freelancers.

Here’s some of the services Revolut business customers can access¹³:

• Multi currency account
• Card
• Transfers
• Spend management tools
• Payment gateway
• POS tools
• API’s
• Software integrations

Wise also offers an account to business customers with many of the same features as Revolut. There is a one-time registration fee of €50 but no monthly costs to keep your account.

You can pay employees, get paid and manage your cash flow overseas in more than 40 currencies.

Alternative to Revolut: Manage +40 currencies with the Wise Account

If you like the concept of Revolut it’s worth taking a look at Wise, an international money specialist that’s licensed to offer services in Ireland.

With a Wise Account you can hold money in more than 40 currencies and spend it in over 150 countries. You can also get local account details in 9+ currencies including EUR, GBP, AUD and USD. With these details you can send and receive money like a local.

The Wise debit card makes regular spending simpler, and you can also create virtual cards.

The Wise card will use local currency first if it is available in your Wise Account. If not, it employs smart technology to automatically convert your money, always at the mid-market rate.

Open your Wise Account
for free 🚀

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Pros and cons of using Revolut in Ireland

To sum it all up, here are some of the potential pros and cons of using Revolut in Ireland:

Pros ✅	Cons ❌
Multiple plans gives you more choice Can be a cost effective way to send, store and spend in multiple currencies Comes with additional features including cash back, insurance and investment trading.	Varying fee structures can make it difficult to know what’s right for you Additional fees for exchanging currency on weekends apply to all plans Keeping track of the fair usage limit may be frustrating for users of the Standard and Plus plans

🔎 Read also: How to close a Revolut account in Ireland

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Sources:

1. Revolut - Revolut Bank UAB branch in Ireland - Personal terms
2. Revolut - Plans
3. Revolut - Personal Fees (Standard)
4. Revolut - Personal Fees (Plus)
5. Revolut - Personal Fees (Premium)
6. Revolut - Personal Fees (Metal)
7. Revolut - Personal Fees (Ultra)
8. Revolut - Cards
9. Revolut - Can I choose between Visa and Mastercard
10. Revolut - What is the ATM withdrawal limit?
11. Revolut - Transfers
12. Revolut - Currency exchange fees
13. Revolut - Business
14. Revolut - What are the supported currencies for holding and exchanging?
15. Revolut - What account details are available for me?
16. Revolut - Is Revolut a bank?

Sources checked on: 5 May 2024