Money
The best student bank accounts for 2024
The best student bank accounts for 2024
Getting a student account can be an exciting time – particularly if you haven’t had much experience managing your own money before.
The best account choice will depend on your preferences, so think about whether a bank has a branch in your university town, should you want to visit with any questions.
One provider might offer a student account perk that particularly suits you – such as a student railcard, which could save you a lot of money if you’re moving a long way from home.
Weigh up the pros and cons of each option, as we highlight some of this year’s best features.
The best rates
It’s quite unusual for a student current account to pay interest on the account balance – possibly because of the assumption that many students will spend much of their time in their overdraft.
But, if you know you’re unlikely to go into negative numbers, your best bet is TSB, which pays a generous rate of 5pc on balances up to £500. Elsewhere, Lloyds Bank pays 2pc on balances up to and including £5,000.
With Halifax, you can earn 0.5pc on any account balance.
The best overdraft limits
The most generous interest-free overdrafts are with NatWest and RBS, offering up to £3,250 in the third year of study. In year one and two, they both offer up to £2,000, limited to £500 in the first term of year 1.
Below this, HSBC and Nationwide Building Society offer up to £3,000 in the third year of study. In year one, they both offer up to £1,000, rising to £2,000 in year two.
Lloyds Bank’s student account offers an interest-free tiered overdraft of £1,500 in years one to three, which can be extended to £2,000 if you’re studying for longer, available for years four to six.
A 0pc overdraft is particularly handy for students, who may have expenses to pay such as rent before they receive any student loans or grants. However, care must be taken to ensure you don’t breach the overdraft limit, or you could be liable for fees and interest of up to 40pc.
Some banks offer overdrafts that are “guaranteed”, while others offer “up to” overdrafts, which depend on your credit record.
The HSBC student account offers a guaranteed £1,000 interest-free overdraft in the first year, but the higher limits aren’t guaranteed in later years.
Katie Brain, banking expert at Defaqto, said: “Most students need access to an arranged overdraft to help with their living expenses. It is always important to remember this is a debt that needs to be paid back, so use it sparingly.
“Some providers also require a minimum amount to be credited to the account each term to qualify for an overdraft or extended amount.”
Santander, for example, will automatically give you a £250 overdraft, rising to £1,500 in the first year if you pay in at least £500 every four months. Your overdraft will then automatically increase each year.
CryptoCurrency
Coinbase’s cbBTC surges to third-largest wrapped BTC token in just one week
According to data from CryptoQuant, cbBTC circulation supply has outpaced long-established players seven days after launch.
CryptoCurrency
Bitcoin options markets reduce risk hedges — Are new range highs in sight?
Bitcoin options market positioning shifted as BTC price shot through the $60,000 to $63,000 level.
CryptoCurrency
Ethereum is a 'contrarian bet' into 2025, says Bitwise exec
Ether price could be on track for another correction into a triple-bottom, marking the beginning of a big rally into 2025.
CryptoCurrency
Blockdaemon mulls 2026 IPO: Report
CryptoCurrency
SEC asks court for four months to produce documents for Coinbase
The financial regulator requested an extension until February 2025 to review “at least 133,582 unique documents” as part of discovery motions with Coinbase.
CryptoCurrency
‘Silly’ to shade Ethereum, the ‘Microsoft of blockchains’ — Bitwise exec
Ethereum is still home to the most active crypto developers and is the most attractive chain to build applications on top of for big companies, argues Bitwise’s Matt Hougan.
-
Sport9 hours ago
Joshua vs Dubois: Chris Eubank Jr says ‘AJ’ could beat Tyson Fury and any other heavyweight in the world
-
News1 day ago
You’re a Hypocrite, And So Am I
-
News10 hours ago
Israel strikes Lebanese targets as Hizbollah chief warns of ‘red lines’ crossed
-
Sport9 hours ago
UFC Edmonton fight card revealed, including Brandon Moreno vs. Amir Albazi headliner
-
CryptoCurrency8 hours ago
Ethereum is a 'contrarian bet' into 2025, says Bitwise exec
-
Technology8 hours ago
iPhone 15 Pro Max Camera Review: Depth and Reach
-
Science & Environment12 hours ago
How one theory ties together everything we know about the universe
-
Science & Environment20 hours ago
Sunlight-trapping device can generate temperatures over 1000°C
-
News7 hours ago
Brian Tyree Henry on voicing young Megatron, his love for villain roles
-
Science & Environment23 hours ago
Quantum time travel: The experiment to ‘send a particle into the past’
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
2 auditors miss $27M Penpie flaw, Pythia’s ‘claim rewards’ bug: Crypto-Sec
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Arthur Hayes’ ‘sub $50K’ Bitcoin call, Mt. Gox CEO’s new exchange, and more: Hodler’s Digest, Sept. 1 – 7
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Treason in Taiwan paid in Tether, East’s crypto exchange resurgence: Asia Express
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Leaked Chainalysis video suggests Monero transactions may be traceable
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Journeys: Robby Yung on Animoca’s Web3 investments, TON and the Mocaverse
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Louisiana takes first crypto payment over Bitcoin Lightning
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Are there ‘too many’ blockchains for gaming? Sui’s randomness feature: Web3 Gamer
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Crypto whales like Humpy are gaming DAO votes — but there are solutions
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Help! My parents are addicted to Pi Network crypto tapper
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
$12.1M fraud suspect with ‘new face’ arrested, crypto scam boiler rooms busted: Asia Express
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
‘Everything feels like it’s going to shit’: Peter McCormack reveals new podcast
-
Science & Environment12 hours ago
Future of fusion: How the UK’s JET reactor paved the way for ITER
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
SEC sues ‘fake’ crypto exchanges in first action on pig butchering scams
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Fed rate cut may be politically motivated, will increase inflation: Arthur Hayes
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Decentraland X account hacked, phishing scam targets MANA airdrop
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
CZ and Binance face new lawsuit, RFK Jr suspends campaign, and more: Hodler’s Digest Aug. 18 – 24
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Bitcoin miners steamrolled after electricity thefts, exchange ‘closure’ scam: Asia Express
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Cardano founder to meet Argentina president Javier Milei
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
CertiK Ventures discloses $45M investment plan to boost Web3
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Memecoins not the ‘right move’ for celebs, but DApps might be — Skale Labs CMO
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Dorsey’s ‘marketplace of algorithms’ could fix social media… so why hasn’t it?
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Telegram bot Banana Gun’s users drained of over $1.9M
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Low users, sex predators kill Korean metaverses, 3AC sues Terra: Asia Express
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
SEC asks court for four months to produce documents for Coinbase
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Blockdaemon mulls 2026 IPO: Report
-
News7 hours ago
“Beast Games” contestants sue MrBeast’s production company over “chronic mistreatment”
-
News7 hours ago
Sean “Diddy” Combs denied bail again in federal sex trafficking case in New York
-
News7 hours ago
Brian Tyree Henry on his love for playing villains ahead of “Transformers One” release
-
Technology3 days ago
YouTube restricts teenager access to fitness videos
-
Science & Environment12 hours ago
‘Running of the bulls’ festival crowds move like charged particles
-
Politics23 hours ago
What is the House of Lords, how does it work and how is it changing?
-
Health & fitness2 days ago
Why you should take a cheat day from your diet, and how many calories to eat
-
MMA9 hours ago
UFC’s Cory Sandhagen says Deiveson Figueiredo turned down fight offer
-
MMA9 hours ago
Diego Lopes declines Movsar Evloev’s request to step in at UFC 307
-
Football9 hours ago
Niamh Charles: Chelsea defender has successful shoulder surgery
-
Football9 hours ago
Slot's midfield tweak key to Liverpool victory in Milan
-
Fashion Models8 hours ago
Miranda Kerr nude
-
Politics8 hours ago
Labour MP urges UK government to nationalise Grangemouth refinery
-
Science & Environment12 hours ago
Rethinking space and time could let us do away with dark matter
-
Entertainment7 hours ago
“Jimmy Carter 100” concert celebrates former president’s 100th birthday
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
SEC settles with Rari Capital over DeFi pools, unregistered broker activity
-
News7 hours ago
Joe Posnanski revisits iconic football moments in new book, “Why We Love Football”
-
Health & fitness2 days ago
When Britons need GoFundMe to pay for surgery, it’s clear the NHS backlog is a political time bomb
-
Science & Environment22 hours ago
Quantum to cosmos: Why scale is vital to our understanding of reality
-
Science & Environment1 day ago
How to wrap your mind around the real multiverse
-
Technology3 days ago
Trump says Musk could head ‘government efficiency’ force
-
Science & Environment22 hours ago
X-ray laser fires most powerful pulse ever recorded
-
Science & Environment21 hours ago
How indefinite causality could lead us to a theory of quantum gravity
-
Science & Environment20 hours ago
Doughnut-shaped swirls of laser light can be used to transmit images
-
Science & Environment19 hours ago
Why we are finally within reach of a room-temperature superconductor
-
Science & Environment18 hours ago
Black holes scramble information – but may not be the best at it
-
Science & Environment18 hours ago
The galactic anomalies hinting dark matter is weirder than we thought
-
Science & Environment9 hours ago
We may have spotted a parallel universe going backwards in time
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Telegram CEO cannot leave France, OpenSea receives Wells notice, and more: Hodler’s Digest, Aug. 25 – 31
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Five crypto market predictions that haven’t come true — yet
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Solana unveils new Seeker device, says it’s not just a ‘memecoin phone’
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Crypto scammers orchestrate massive hack on X but barely made $8K
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Bitcoiners are ‘all in’ on Trump since Bitcoin ’24, but it’s getting risky
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Real-world asset tokenization is the crypto killer app — Polygon exec
-
Science & Environment12 hours ago
Jupiter’s stormy surface replicated in lab
-
Politics12 hours ago
Owen Paterson loses ECHR appeal against report that preceded downfall | Owen Paterson
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Binance CEO says task force is working ‘across the clock’ to free exec in Nigeria
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Elon Musk is worth 100K followers: Yat Siu, X Hall of Flame
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Bitcoin price hits $62.6K as Fed 'crisis' move sparks US stocks warning
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Beat crypto airdrop bots, Illuvium’s new features coming, PGA Tour Rise: Web3 Gamer
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Bitcoin bull rally far from over, MetaMask partners with Mastercard, and more: Hodler’s Digest Aug 11 – 17
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
VonMises bought 60 CryptoPunks in a month before the price spiked: NFT Collector
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Vitalik tells Ethereum L2s ‘Stage 1 or GTFO’ — Who makes the cut?
-
CryptoCurrency9 hours ago
Ethereum falls to new 42-month low vs. Bitcoin — Bottom or more pain ahead?
-
Business9 hours ago
Thames Water seeks extension on debt terms to avoid renationalisation
-
Business8 hours ago
How Labour donor’s largesse tarnished government’s squeaky clean image
-
Business8 hours ago
UK hospitals with potentially dangerous concrete to be redeveloped
-
Business7 hours ago
Axel Springer top team close to making eight times their money in KKR deal
-
News7 hours ago
Sean “Diddy” Combs denied bail again in federal sex trafficking case
-
News7 hours ago
Brian Tyree Henry on voicing young Megatron, his love for villain roles
-
Politics7 hours ago
Why is Sue Gray at the centre of a new political storm? | Sue Gray
-
News6 hours ago
Woman sues Florida sheriff after mistaken arrest lands her in jail on Christmas
-
News11 hours ago
Church same-sex split affecting bishop appointments
-
Politics2 days ago
Trump says he will meet with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi next week
-
Science & Environment13 hours ago
Physicists have worked out how to melt any material
-
Politics24 hours ago
Keir Starmer facing flashpoints with the trade unions
-
CryptoCurrency2 days ago
Bitcoin reclaims $60K and ‘this time is different,’ says analyst
-
Technology10 hours ago
Fivetran targets data security by adding Hybrid Deployment
-
News2 days ago
Why is XRP price up today?
-
Science & Environment1 day ago
Elon Musk’s SpaceX contracted to destroy retired space station
-
Science & Environment2 days ago
Our reality seems to be compatible with a quantum multiverse
-
Money1 day ago
What estate agents get up to in your home – and how they’re being caught
-
News9 hours ago
Freed Between the Lines: Banned Books Week
-
Technology3 days ago
Musician charged with using bots to boost streaming revenue
-
Technology2 days ago
NYC using drones to warn residents of floods
You must be logged in to post a comment Login