Revolut

Pay in foreign currencies easily, online or abroad, for free

Revolut is a payment service available at your fingertips via your mobile phone. It allows you to spend money the way a normal MasterCard might, but it provides all of its services, such as store purchasing, top-ups and currency conversion, with no fees. It's similar to, and competes with, other alternative cards such as Number26's MasterCard.

The finer points of foreign exchange

Using Revolut is a simple experience. Once again, it essentially provides you with a MasterCard that you can use fairly effectively wherever you might be. The app itself provides all of the details you'd want to know from, say, a bank about your transactions. What it also does is convert the currency you use at authorization time: so for example, it uses a fixed exchange rates with a 1% risk premium on weekends.

A useful service for many

Overall, despite its small deficiencies, Revolut is useful in a number of cases. It could prove helpful to anyone who has poor credit but wants to pay in situations where a credit card is convenient or necessary. Monetarily, converting the currency you use at purchase time with Revolut can make a small difference in your favour, or it can cost you slightly more, than a standard credit. But overall, as long as you understand how it works and are willing to risk a small premium for its other advantages, this app just might be for you.