Comparatively.
Just kidding!
I value app quality - but is it true? Is their app really better than the rest?
It was better than the high streets when they launched. Not sure where I’d rank it now.
Out of the other fintech banks, Starling’s is the worst for me. And whilst Starling’s has retained fundamentally that same interface (which I think is flawed) since they launched, everyone else has evolved and iterated over the years in an effort to keep trying to make the experience better.
None more so than the high streets and they’ve come a long way.
For a more objective assessment, there’s the built for mars case studies. They perform well functionally in those (It’s a performant and fast app on iOS), but are middling in the UI department. High street banks are improving their pitfalls faster and in greater volume than Starling are improving theirs.
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I’d say yes. It is fast, looks great and the versatility of the spaces feature is really, really useful.
Now that they’re paying 3.25% interest on anything in your main balance and spaces makes it even better.
I’ve used the Lloyds/Halifax app, the Nationwide app and the Monzo app and to me they are all vastly inferior to the Starling one. I’ve not used Chase, but I have no real desire to.
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Yeah it’s pretty good, I’d say. These things are very subjective tho. And to be completely honest none of them are bad any more; First Direct was a real laggard last time I used them 6 or 7 years ago but it seems fine now.
They still have some features which set them apart from high street banks too, ‘nearby payments’ is one I made a lot of use of back when going to a restaurant with colleagues was a more regular occurrence than it has been since 2020.
But I’ve switched away, so you can take it as read that these things just aren’t enough to retain me.
I think I’d say the same, but is that enough? (For me, no. But then I accept I am a peculiarity in having a dozen bank accounts and no legitimate answer to the question ‘which is your main account’.)
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When I left monzo, my choice was really between starling and chase. I went with the latter, because cash back and (I feel) the app is easier on the eye, but it was a close decision and the fuss over the covid loans was also a small factor.
I’m not that motivated by the cash back but it’s nice to have. If my Chase experience doesn’t work out, starling is likely to be my next stop.
I still have this aversion to Chase that I’ve had since they launched. I guess it stems from debit card payments failing back then and also DDs failing to be collected when I tried those. I still can’t help ranking them below Starling and Monzo.
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One question for those who use Starling: Do you use a credit card, or
…and if so, which one is most similar in experience to Starling.
I don’t see any credit card use as being comparable to using Starling as the current account (although I may be missing something in your question).
I use an Amex. The app has the instant notifications of Starling, but the apps serve slightly different purposes. The Amex app is mostly for checking transactions and wading through the cashback offers.
I have 17 current accounts, one of which is a practically dormant Starling account. I couldn’t identify a “main account” either, just the one which receives my income, prior to dissemination.
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any other way is a waste of money, yo.
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I’m sat here reading that in some form of awe 
you’re either extremely wealthy and have no choice but to distribute that wealth across multiple bank accounts, and fair play to you Sir if that indeed is the case, or you’re just completely addicted to banking, because in anyone else’s normal world, it isn’t normal to have 17 bank accounts 
, so you have some weird admiration from oneself 
It’s not weird or addictive behaviour at all, and that statement is offensive.
As has been explained to you, several times, it’s perfectly rational.
Halifax give you £5 three times
Natwest give you £3 and then same for a joint account
Same for RBS
Club Lloyds give you a reward worth £5 to £8 and another for a joint account
That’s 9 (and £30-40’s worth of monthly rewards), and there’s still DDs to get rewards on from Santander, and a handful of current accounts needed to access market leading savers with Nationwide, First Direct etc and then any number of TSB Spend & Save accounts which’ll yield £5 a piece.
Unless your definition of ‘weird behaviour’ and ‘addiction’ includes a fondness for being paid significant sums on an ongoing basis for a trivial amount of work, I really don’t see how it fits.
Nice backhanded compliment tho.
Perhaps better to consider this a matter of preference & move on folks.
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idk about trivial, having to spend 500 a month on the halifax card, setup direct debits across multiple accounts (at least 4 assuming RBS/Natwest solo/joint, not incl the santander stuff)
having to configure payments to each thing… having to make sure you log into RBS/Natwest monthly
but the rest of the sentiment, i guess i share
Thanks @Rexx, this topic has been discussed elsewhere here, and with gusto. It’s a personal preference. Nuff said.
So back to Starling, please?
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