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RBS is a traditional high-street bank offering three types of business bank account. All three accounts follow a ‘pay as you go’ system rather than charging a fixed monthly fee. This may suit your business if you do not make payments frequently.

The Start-Up Account is also transaction fee-free for the first 24 months, meaning it could be a good entry point to business banking as a new organisation.

However, unless you are an existing RBS personal or business customer, you won’t be able to open an RBS account in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, but instead be directed to NatWest (for customers in England and Wales) and Ulster Bank (for customers in Northern Ireland).

Promotion

RBS Start Up Business Account

Monthly Fee

Free
Card Purchase Fees

From free

Sterling transactions: Free | Non-Sterling transaction fee: 2.75%
Bank Transfer Fees

From 35p

No fees for first 24 months | Thereafter: Automated payments: 35p | Manual payments: 70p
Offer

24 months' free banking

This 'Startup business account' is available for businesses that have been trading for less than 1 year and have a projected or existing annual turnover of less than £1m.

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Key Features

No monthly fees
You are not charged a monthly fee to keep your RBS business account open.
FSCS protection
Your eligible deposits, up to £85,000, are protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).
24/7 customer service
You can ring the RBS call centre at any time to make basic business banking enquiries.
Overdraft and credit facilities
RBS offers business overdrafts, credit cards and loans.

Pros and cons of RBS Business Banking

Pros

All three RBS business accounts are free – there is no minimum monthly charge for keeping an account open.
There are no transaction fees for the first 24 months when using a Start-Up Account.
RBS claims that 80% of its customers open their business account on the same day as their application.
RBS call centres are open 24/7 for basic banking enquiries.
Eligible deposits of up to £85,000 are protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).
You can manage your account in a branch, over the phone, online and via the app.

Cons

RBS is less well-suited to a business based in England or Wales, as unless you have an existing RBS business or personal account, you will be directed to open a NatWest account instead. Businesses in Northern Ireland, meanwhile, are directed to open an account with Ulster Bank.
The RBS Start-Up Account – which offers 24 months’ fee-free banking – is only available to businesses that have been trading for less than a year, and have a turnover of less than £1 million.

The pros and cons featured here are chosen by us based on a combination of our expert, research-based opinions and an exclusive survey of UK business owners and decision makers. The survey was conducted on behalf of NerdWallet UK in December 2022 to identify the business bank account features that people feel are most important. They are unlikely to be the only product features and restrictions that you should consider. Pros and cons are subjective and you should align them to your own personal and business circumstances. Information was correct at the time of publication but may have changed since.

RBS business account full review

The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) was originally founded in Edinburgh in 1727, and now forms part of the NatWest Group PLC, which also includes NatWest and Ulster Bank. It offers an online and in-branch service to personal and business customers.

Looking at business banking in particular, RBS offers three different types of business bank accounts to suit start ups, established businesses, and charities and other not-for-profit organisations.

Start-Up Account

Royal Bank of Scotland’s Start-Up Account is for businesses that have been trading for less than a year, and have turnover of less than £1 million.

It comes with no monthly fee and no transaction fees for the first 24 months. Once that period has elapsed, you will be charged per transaction.

You can also apply for an arranged overdraft, use FreeAgent accounting software at no cost, and access Tyl to take payments online.

Business Account

The standard RBS Business Account is available for businesses who have a turnover over £1 million and have been trading for under or over a year, alongside businesses who have turnover of less than £1 million but have been trading for over a year.

It is a pay as you go account – this means that, while you will not pay a monthly fee to keep the account open, you will pay for each transaction you make.

It also comes with free accounting software FreeAgent, the option to hire Tyl, NatWest’s card machine, for online payments, a dedicated relationship manager (if eligible), and the ability to apply for an overdraft.

Community Account

If you are a charity or not-for-profit organisation, and someone on your application already has an RBS business or personal account, you can apply for a Community Account.

If your organisation’s annual credit turnover is less than £100,000, you can apply for free banking. If it is over £100,000, then you will pay per transaction at RBS’s standard tariff rates.

The Community Account also comes with free access to FreeAgent accounting software.

RBS business account features: at a glance

	Start-up Account	Business account	Community Account
Monthly fee	Free	Free	Free
Transaction fees	No, for the first 24 months. Yes, once the opening offer has elapsed.	Yes	No, if your turnover across accounts doesn’t go over £100,000. Yes, if turnover crosses £100,000.
Account management	Online, via an app, in a branch and over the phone	Online, via an app, in a branch and over the phone	Online, via an app, in a branch and over the phone
FSCS protection	Yes	Yes	Yes
Set-up time	Same day	Same day	Same day
Cash deposits	Yes (70p per £100 outside free period)	Yes (70p per £100)	Yes (70p per £100 if not eligible for free banking)
Cheques	Yes (70p per item outside free period)	Yes (70p per item)	Yes (70p per item if not eligible for free banking)
Access to other banking services	Yes	Yes	Yes
International payments	Yes	Yes	Yes
Customer services	0345 600 2230 (24/7) 24/7 secure messaging (digital banking and mobile app) RBS business WhatsApp	0345 600 2230 (24/7) 24/7 secure messaging (digital banking and mobile app) RBS business WhatsApp	0345 600 2230 (24/7) 24/7 secure messaging (digital banking and mobile app) RBS business WhatsApp
Multiple user access	Yes	Yes	Yes
Create and send invoices	Yes	Yes	Yes
Integration with accounting software tools	Yes (FreeAgent)	Yes (FreeAgent)	Yes (FreeAgent)

Where RBS business account stands out

Account perks: RBS accounts come with a variety of benefits, including free access to FreeAgent accounting software, the option to take online payments via Tyl, and, if you have a Business Account, the possibility for a dedicated relationship manager.

No monthly fees: Regardless of whether you open an RBS Start-Up Account, Business Account or Community, you will not pay a monthly fee to keep it open.

FSCS protection: Eligible deposits, worth up to £85,000 across all your banking accounts, will be protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).

Quick set-up: RBS claims that 80% of business current account customers can access their account on the same day as their initial application.

24/7 customer support: You can ring an RBS call centre to make basic banking enquiries 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Access to overdraft and credit facilities: If eligible, you can apply for a business overdraft, credit card and loan through your RBS business account.

Sole traders, limited companies, LLPs and charities: Not only are RBS business accounts available to sole traders, limited companies, and limited liability partnerships, they are also available to a range of charities and not-for-profit organisations. This includes clubs, societies, places of worship, and non-personal trusts.

Where RBS business account falls short

Access in England, Wales and Northern Ireland: Unless you have an existing RBS personal or business account, if you are based in England or Wales, RBS will direct you to open a NatWest account instead.

If you are based in Northern Ireland, meanwhile, you will be prompted to open an account with Ulster Bank.

Transactions: Unless you are within the 24-month free banking period with your Start-Up Account, or are a business with a Community Account and turnover of less than £100,000, you will pay for every transaction you make with RBS. This means it might not be suitable if you make a high volume of transactions.

Customer reviews: While RBS has strong reviews for its mobile app, it has a ‘Bad’ overall rating of 1.3 out of 5, based on over 700 reviews, on Trustpilot. These reviews are for RBS as a whole, not just its business services.

RBS business account customer reviews

RBS business customers have left reviews on a number of different platforms. These reviews vary greatly, from bad to very good.

It is important to note that the following reviews are from RBS customers overall, not just the bank’s business customers:

App Store: 4.5 out of 5, based on over 21,500 reviews
Google Play: 4.3 out of 5, based on over 64,300 reviews
Trustpilot: 1.3 out of 5, based on over 700 reviews

This information is correct as of 16 May 2023.

RBS business account eligibility

To be eligible for an RBS business account, you will need to:

be over the age of 18
have the right to be self-employed in the UK
be based in Scotland, England or Wales
have an existing RBS account (if based in England or Wales)
have not declared bankruptcy, or received a county court judgment (CCJ) or court decree

There are then specific requirements for each business account type:

Start-Up Account: You must have been trading for less than one year, and have a turnover of less than £1 million.
Business Account: You must have a turnover greater than £1 million and have been trading for under or over a year; or have a turnover of less than £1 million, and have been trading over a year.
Community Account: One of the named applicants will need to be an existing RBS business or personal account customer. You will only be eligible for free banking if your annual credit turnover is less than £100,000.

How to apply for a RBS business account

To apply for a RBS business account, you will need to take the following steps:

Select the RBS business account you want to apply for.
Submit an application form online or in a branch.
Provide RBS with the documents and information it requires, including your trading name, personal and business addresses, cash-flow forecasts, and countries you are registered in for tax purposes.
Wait to hear back from RBS.

Review methodology

At NerdWallet Ltd UK we base our reviews on the results of surveys we conduct to understand what key product features are important to those who use them, and align them to the product we review.

Product details reflect the information that was available at that time but may have changed since. We strive to give you a review on as many products as possible but it is likely there are others available that we have not reviewed. The review is our opinion, but it does not constitute advice, recommendation or suitability of your financial circumstances.

You can view our review methodology here.

About the Authors

Kristina Fox

Kristina was a writer at NerdWallet who focused on writing finance content for small businesses, as well as young people and students. A recent graduate trading French for finance, she…

Connor Campbell

Connor is a writer and spokesperson for NerdWallet. Previously at Spreadex, his market commentary has been quoted in the likes of the BBC, The Guardian, Evening Standard, Reuters and The…

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RBS Business Account Review

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