Virgin Money review
Updated September 28, 2026 · DebitCue Editorial Team · Facts checked September 26, 2026
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Our verdict
Virgin Money suits UK readers who want a free everyday account and foreign spending at a currency conversion fee of 0%. The provider pairs a debit current account with a cashback credit card, so the same name covers day to day money and borrowing, and the account costs nothing to keep.
Key facts
- Best for
- A UK account for daily spending that costs nothing to hold and nothing to change money abroad.
- Monthly fee
- £0 (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Currency conversion fee
- 0% (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Card type
- Debit (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Legal entity
- Nationwide Building Society (trading as Virgin Money) (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Headquarters
- United Kingdom (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Support channels
- Phone, Email, Help-centre (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Features
- Travel
- Official website
- virginmoney.com
Credit cards
- APR
- 27.9% (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Currency conversion fee
- 0% (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Rewards type
- Cashback (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Balance transfer intro period
- 21 months (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Balance transfer fee
- 2.95% (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Perks
- Up to 21 months 0% interest on balance transfers, Up to 21 months 0% interest on purchases, Money transfer option, Virgin Money Cashback offers in the credit card app, 24/7 in-app chat support with Redi, Virgin Money Rewards and Virgin Red offers (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Card kind
- Credit (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Legal entity
- Nationwide Building Society (trading as Virgin Money) (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Headquarters
- United Kingdom (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Support channels
- Phone, Email, Help-centre (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Features
- Travel
Apps and profiles
- Get the app
- App Store
- Elsewhere
- XLinkedInfacebook.com
Pros and cons
Pros
- The current account carries a monthly fee of £0 and a currency conversion fee of 0%, so holding it and spending abroad are both free.
- Balance transfers run interest free for 21 with a fee of 2.95%, a cheap way to clear old card debt.
- Support runs on phone, email and help centre, and the card side adds round the clock in-app chat support with Redi.
- The card pays cashback rather than points or miles, and lists a money transfer option among its perks.
- The account is flagged for travel, and the currency conversion fee of 0% is the reason that works.
Cons
- The credit card charges 27.9%, so a balance left past the interest free window of 21 is expensive to clear.
- Cashback belongs to the credit card, so debit account holders lean on Virgin Money Rewards and Virgin Red offers instead.
- A monthly fee of £0 and a currency conversion fee of 0% apply to the current account, while the card side runs on 27.9%, so the two halves need judging separately.
Who it suits
- Readers in the UK who want an everyday account with a monthly fee of £0 and a currency conversion fee of 0%, so a trip costs no more to run than a week at home.
- Anyone clearing an old balance, who can move it for a fee of 2.95% and pay no interest for 21.
- People who want a debit account and a cashback card from one provider, with phone and email support (phone, email and help centre) when a payment needs checking.
Who should look elsewhere
- Chime Card (Secured Visa Credit Card), for readers who want a card tied to a deposit; its monthly fee of $0 comes with that secured card rather than lending at 27.9%.
- Varo Believe Secured Credit Card, for readers whose limit should track a deposit; its monthly fee of $0 comes with a secured card instead of credit at 27.9%.
Fees and FX
The current account carries a monthly fee of £0 and a currency conversion fee of 0%, so the costs people check first are both nil. Keeping the account open costs nothing, and spending in another currency does not add a markup on top. That matters most if your money moves between currencies, because a conversion charge repeats itself on every trip abroad rather than happening once. Read next to a provider that charges for holding the account and again for the conversion, the saving here is the whole decision. The practical effect is simple: a holiday costs what the same shopping costs at home.
Rates and card terms
The card charges 27.9% on borrowing, and that is the figure to read before anything else. An interest free balance transfer window of 21 softens it for one purpose: moving an existing balance across and paying it down without interest. Outside that window the same rate applies to whatever is left owing, month after month. So the card rewards discipline rather than carry. Clear the balance each month and the rate is a number you never meet. Leave money on it and that rate sets the cost of the year, so a repayment plan matters more here than the rewards.
Everyday use
The card is a debit card, so purchases come straight out of the money in the current account and nothing is owed at the end of the month. That makes the account easy to picture: the account is the pot, the card is how you empty it. If a payment looks wrong, support runs on phone, email and help centre, so a phone call, an email or the help centre are all open. Between them, the card type and the support lines are what you touch most, and neither asks for more than the account itself to work.
The company behind it
The provider is Nationwide Building Society (trading as Virgin Money), based in the United Kingdom, and authorised and regulated by the Prudential Regulation Authority under licence 106078. The same UK rules therefore apply to the money in the account, and the same support channels, phone, email and help centre, sit behind both the current account and the card. Because the provider is a building society, the money sits with a UK mutual rather than with a payments app, and the name on your statements is a building society rather than an app brand. For a reader weighing who holds the money, that is the part to check.
How Virgin Money compares
9.5 vs 9.4
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Where Virgin Money is available
- Available
- United Kingdom
- Licence in United Kingdom
- Prudential Regulation Authority (106078), checked September 26, 2026
Countries from the brand (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
Frequently asked questions
What does the Virgin Money current account cost to run each month?+
The current account has a monthly fee of £0, so there is no charge for keeping it open. Spending abroad is covered by a currency conversion fee of 0%, which means changing money on a trip does not add a markup either. The two figures most people compare before choosing an account are the two this one keeps at nil.
Is there really no extra charge when I use the card abroad?+
The currency conversion fee on the current account is 0%, so the amount that leaves your balance is the amount the card screen showed, with nothing added by the provider. You still pay what the shop or restaurant charges, and the exchange rate a network offers can move. Virgin Money simply does not layer a foreign transaction charge on top of it.
What interest rate does the Virgin Money credit card charge?+
The card charges 27.9% on purchases and on any balance you carry. Treat that as the price of borrowing rather than the price of using the card, because it only bites if the balance is not cleared each month. The card also offers an interest free balance transfer window of 21, which is where the rate stops being the figure that matters to you.
How long is the balance transfer offer, and does it cost anything to move a balance?+
The interest free period on balance transfers runs for 21, and moving a balance across carries a fee of 2.95%. The transfer is cheap but not free, and interest stays away only while you pay the balance down inside the window. Plan that payoff before moving the money, because anything left afterwards is priced at 27.9%.
Is this a debit card or a credit card?+
Virgin Money offers both, and they work differently. The current account comes with a debit card that spends money already sitting in the account. The all round card is a credit card offering cashback and an interest free balance transfer period, so that one needs a repayment plan. Most people keep the first for daily spending.
What rewards does the Virgin Money card pay?+
The card pays cashback, which is the simplest reward shape to read on a statement. Alongside it, the listed perks include a money transfer option, Virgin Money Cashback offers in the credit card app, Virgin Money Rewards and Virgin Red offers, and round the clock in-app chat support with Redi. Nothing has to be kept or tracked to earn it.
How do I get help if a payment or transfer goes wrong?+
Support runs on phone, email and help centre, so a phone call, an email and the help centre cover most problems, with in-app chat support with Redi on the card side. The same channels serve the current account and the credit card, so there is one set of contacts to learn. If a card is blocked or a payment needs checking, the phone line is the quickest route.
Who runs Virgin Money, and which regulator watches it?+
The account is run by Nationwide Building Society (trading as Virgin Money), a building society based in the United Kingdom. It is authorised and regulated by the Prudential Regulation Authority under licence 106078, so UK regulatory rules apply to the provider. Support for both the account and the card comes through phone, email and help centre, and the same entity stands behind each of them.
Is this account aimed at people who travel?+
The account is flagged for travel as one of its features, and the reason sits in the currency conversion fee of 0%. Someone who spends in another currency pays nothing to change money, which is usually the cost that decides whether a travel account is worth keeping open. The paired credit card also lists a money transfer option among its perks.
Sources
- uk.virginmoney.com/cards/products/all-round-cards checked September 26, 2026
Backs: APR, Balance transfer fee, Balance transfer intro period, Card kind, Perks, Rewards type
“All round credit cards. Representative example: If you borrow £1,200 at a purchase rate of 27.9% (variable) a year, your representative APR is 27.9% APR (variable).”
- uk.virginmoney.com/current-accounts/compare-accounts checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Features, Monthly fee
“A debit card which works worldwide”
- uk.virginmoney.com/current-accounts/pca checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Card type, Currency conversion fee
“a contactless debit card that works worldwide”
- uk.virginmoney.com/legals checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Headquarters, Legal entity, Support channels, Licences
“Head Office: Nationwide House, Pipers Way, Swindon, Wiltshire, SN38 1NW”
Compiled from 4 source pages, checked September 26, 2026. We did not open an account.
Not confirmed yet: Free ATM withdrawals, Protection.
Virgin Money
A UK account for daily spending that costs nothing to hold and nothing to change money abroad.