N26 You Replaces N26 Black

In our review of N26 Bank, we praised the app and bank account as one of the best new digital banks we’ve seen, particularly for those who travel a lot.

However, one of the downsides of the service we noted was that the paid plans were either fairly expensive or lacked features. It seems that N26 had a similar thought, as they recently replaced their Black tier with N26 You. The new service already has some great perks, with several more to come.

Out with the Black

According to N26, the new You account is ‘a seamless, personalized banking experience’. As they wrote in a recent blog post, the N26 You account ‘should also reflect your financial needs and personal preferences, expressing who you really are, wherever in the world you may be.’ That’s a fairly lofty set of ambitions, and some of the proposed features certainly seem appealing.

On the surface, many of the standard features are the same as with the N26 Black account. You can sign up using the app in just eight minutes and are provided with a contactless Mastercard.

It costs £4.90 per month in the UK and €9.90 per month in other European countries. This difference is because UK customers are not eligible for the free travel insurance, which is a huge shame.

Some of the other features that overlap with the old Black account are:

• Free ATM withdrawals anywhere in the world. You’ll get the Mastercard exchange rate on non-sterling transactions. Basic (free) account holders must pay a fee of 1.7% per withdrawal.
• Up to 10 Spaces. N26 accounts come with Spaces, sub-accounts that act like savings accounts (except you don’t get interest on funds in them). A standard account gives you two.

In with the You

There are also differences between the old and new accounts, although some of these are yet to launch.

The most notable ones include:

• Your choice of card colour. Instead of the standard back card, customers can now choose from five different colours, including Aqua, Rhubarb, Sand, Ocean and Slate.
• Additional cards. If you want to keep a spare card when you’re travelling or at work, you’ll soon be able to order an extra Mastercard to keep with you.
• Partner benefits. Perhaps the most exciting addition is the ‘hand-picked discounts’ that you’ll be able to take advantage of soon. Companies such as WeWork, Hotels.com, and GetYourGuide have already signed up. However, there are no firm details of the exact discounts available.

Overall, this set of features is fairly impressive. It gives an extra level of personalisation and convenience to a service that’s already gained a stellar reputation. And, with banks such as Monzo upping their game, everyone else has to keep up. The partner discounts are particularly intriguing and we'll keep you updated once more details arise.

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