Best Neobanks in Austria (2026)
Updated: | Found helpful by 8 others
Revolut is the best neobank for most people in Austria: a €0 Standard account that opens without an Austrian address and holds 29 or more currencies at the interbank rate, though it issues a Lithuanian LT IBAN. N26 is the fully English alternative with no minimum income, Trade Republic pays 2.50% on cash, and bunq adds multi-IBAN sub-accounts. All four are app-only banks with a full banking licence, so deposits are covered to €100,000 by the German, Lithuanian or Dutch scheme. None of them issues an AT IBAN.
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Sorting changes the order of the provider cards below.
Our overall pick below is Revolut.
Revolut Bank UAB, Lithuania
1. Revolut
Best-in-class multi-currency wallet at interbank FX rates for residents earning in multiple currencies.
Open your Revolut accountStandard is free. Ultra costs €65/month. Paid tiers as of November 2026, from revolut.com/en-AT.
- Type
- Bank (Lithuanian licence)
- Fees
- €0 Standard, €3.99 to €65/month
- Currencies (Best)
- 29+ at the interbank rate
Verify the current price on the provider site.
Pros
- 29+ currencies at the interbank rate on weekdays
- Full EU banking licence with €100,000 Lithuanian cover
- Opens without an Austrian address
Cons
- Weekend FX surcharge, so avoid Friday-evening conversions
- Complaints run to the Lithuanian supervisor, not the FMA
Best for Frequent travellers and multi-currency users who want strong FX and travel perks
N26 Bank SE, Germany
2. N26
A fully English account you can open on a passport before you have an Austrian address.
Open your N26 accountStandard is free. Paid tiers as of November 2026, from n26.com/de-at/konten-vergleichen.
- Type
- Neobank (BaFin, DE)
- Fees
- €0 to €16.90/month
- Standard account (Best)
- €0, no income or activity rule
More details
- English support
- Yes, fully English app
- ATM
- 3 free a month, then €2
- Physical card
- €10 on Standard, included on Smart, Go, Metal
- Complaints
- BaFin and the German ombudsman, not the FMA
Verify the current price on the provider site.
Pros
- €0 Standard with no minimum income and no activity rule
- Opens on a passport, before you have an Austrian address
- No FX surcharge on card payments
Cons
- German DE IBAN: FinanzOnline's standard field only takes AT
- Documented pattern of automated account freezes lasting days
Best for Residents wanting a mobile-first current account with excellent UX and Apple/Google Pay from day one
Trade Republic Bank GmbH, Germany
3. Trade Republic
A German bank with a DE IBAN whose cash account pays 2.50% and whose card adds no fee on payments in other currencies.
Open your Trade Republic account- Type
- Neobank (BaFin, DE)
- Fees
- €0 custody; €1 per order
- Cash interest (Best)
- 2.50% since 16 September 2026
More details
- Investor compensation
- German, 90% to €20,000
Verify the current price on the provider site.
Pros
- €0 custody and €0 savings-plan execution from €1 a month
- 2.50% on cash since 16 September 2026
- 24/7 phone and chat support in 8 languages since April 2026
Cons
- KESt on cash interest is not withheld, so the E1kv annex is still yours
- No incoming depot transfer, and outgoing transfers drop your acquisition costs
Best for Residents who want a German bank account that pays interest on cash, with a low-cost ETF broker in the same app
bunq B.V., Netherlands
4. bunq
Full Dutch banking licence with €100,000 deposit protection, multi-IBAN sub-accounts, and one of the highest EU savings rates.
Open your bunq account- Type
- Neobank (Dutch licence)
- Fees
- €0 to €18.99/month
- IBANs (Best)
- Multiple IBANs and sub-accounts
Verify the current price on the provider site.
Pros
- Full Dutch banking licence with €100,000 DGS protection
- Multiple IBANs and sub-accounts for budgeting
- One of the highest savings rates among EU neobanks
Cons
- NL IBAN, not Austrian AT
- No Austrian-specific integrations such as EPS
Best for Savers and freelancers wanting multiple IBANs, sub-accounts, and a high EU savings rate under Dutch deposit protection
What Is a Neobank?
A neobank is an app-only bank with a full banking licence: it gives you a current account with its own IBAN and a debit card, and the deposit guarantee of its home country covers your money to €100,000. Four providers in Austria pass that test: N26 and Trade Republic from Germany with a DE IBAN, Revolut from Lithuania with an LT IBAN, and bunq from the Netherlands with an NL IBAN.
Three apps people often call neobanks fail that test. Wise runs on a Belgian e-money licence: it safeguards your balance apart from its own funds, with no deposit guarantee. We cover it in our money transfer guide. Bitpanda holds an Austrian e-money and payment-services licence under FMA supervision, also with no deposit guarantee, and its account is not a Girokonto. It belongs in our crypto exchanges guide. Curve is a card aggregator that bundles the cards you already have, not an account.
How Do Neobanks Compare to Austrian Banks?
| App | Licence | IBAN | Deposit guarantee | Entry price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| George (Erste Bank) | Austrian bank | AT | €100,000, Austrian | s Kompakt €3.89/month |
| Mein ELBA (Raiffeisen) | Austrian bank | AT | €100,000, Austrian | Bonus Smart €2.99/month after 12 free months |
| N26 | Bank, Germany (BaFin) | DE | €100,000, German | Standard €0 |
| Revolut | Bank, Lithuania | LT | €100,000, Lithuanian | Standard €0 |
| Trade Republic | Bank, Germany (BaFin) | DE | €100,000, German | €0 custody, €1 per order |
Prices as of October 2026 from the provider price lists cited on this page and on our commercial banks guide. Raiffeisen prices vary by regional bank; the figure shown is Raiffeisen Stadtbank Wien.
Neobanks beat Austrian banks on price and currency exchange, and Austrian banks win on the AT IBAN, the Austrian deposit guarantee and the Austrian complaint route. George from Erste Bank and Mein ELBA from Raiffeisen cost €2.99 to €3.89 a month, while N26 and Revolut start at €0. The practical answer for most residents is both: an Austrian account for salary and rent, a neobank for travel and transfers.
The bank apps have closed much of the feature gap. Erste Bank und Sparkassen was named Austria's best bank 2026 by Euromoney, which cited George Invest with fractional shares and the Hey George AI chatbot. Raiffeisen builds crypto into its account instead of leaving it to a separate app: the Girokonto Bonus Smart lists crypto access next to Mein ELBA, Apple Pay and Google Pay.
A common setup follows from the table. The Austrian account takes the salary, the rent direct debit and the FinanzOnline refund, because its standard bank-detail field only accepts an AT IBAN. Revolut handles foreign currencies at the interbank rate, and Trade Republic can hold the ETF savings plan next to a cash account paying 2.50%. For transfers in other currencies, see our money transfer guide.
Who Can Open Each Neobank, in English, and What Does Its Card Cost Abroad?
| App | Who can open (residence) | English app and support | Card payment outside the euro |
|---|---|---|---|
| N26 | Residents of N26's supported countries, Austria included; 18+ | Yes: app, ID check and support in English | €0: real exchange rate, no surcharge |
| Revolut | Residents of the EEA, Austria included, and a few other countries | Yes: English app and help centre | Free up to €1,000 a month on Standard, then 1%; 1% more at weekends |
| Trade Republic | Permanent residents of a country where it operates, Austria included; no US persons | Yes: English help pages; phone and chat in 8 languages | No extra fee: Visa's exchange rate |
| bunq | No residence rule published on bunq.com | Yes: full English support | Mastercard rate plus 0.5%; on bunq Free, 1.5% after €1,000 a year |
Sources: each provider's own terms, price list, fee page or help centre, linked from the app name (N26 price list for Austria of 26 June 2026, bunq pricing sheet of 15 October 2026, Revolut Standard fees, Trade Republic help centre), checked 21 October 2026. Card fees are for the free plan; paid plans lower or remove them.
None of the four neobanks requires an Austrian address. Three name the countries they serve, Austria included, and bunq publishes no residence rule. Abroad, N26 and Trade Republic add no fee on card payments in other currencies. Revolut is free up to €1,000 a month on Standard, and bunq adds 0.5%.
Can You Use N26 or Revolut in Austria?
Yes. N26 Bank SE (Germany, BaFin) and Revolut Bank UAB (Lithuania) both serve Austrian residents cross-border under an EU banking licence, with a €0 Standard account and €100,000 deposit cover from their home schemes. The catch is the IBAN: N26 issues a DE IBAN and Revolut an LT IBAN. Both are valid for every SEPA payment, and refusing them breaches Art. 9 of Regulation 260/2012.
Where the foreign IBAN still causes friction is narrow and predictable. FinanzOnline's standard field takes only an AT IBAN, so a tax refund to N26 or Revolut needs the foreign-account route. Some payroll systems and landlords push back, which you can report to the FMA. Austrian EPS online payments run through Austrian banks, so neither app offers them. Complaints follow the licence: an N26 dispute goes to BaFin and the German ombudsman, a Revolut dispute to the Lithuanian supervisor.
Revolut accounts for Austrian residents carry a Lithuanian LT IBAN, and the IBAN shown under account details in your app is the one payroll and FinanzOnline will see. For the full fee, FX and support comparison, read our Revolut vs N26 guide.
Which Neobanks Offer an IBAN-AT?
None of the four neobanks issues an Austrian IBAN, and the honest answer in September 2026 is that the AT IBAN comes from an Austrian bank rather than a neobank. Here is where each option actually sits, along with the guarantee scheme behind it:
- easybank easy gratis: AT IBAN, €0 a month once €400 lands in it, Austrian cover to €100,000. The cheapest real Austrian salary account.
- bank99 smartkonto99: AT IBAN at €1.99 a month with no income condition, plus cash service at about 1,700 Post locations.
- Erste Bank George and BAWAG KontoBox: AT IBAN with an app as good as any neobank, at €3.89 and from €1.99 a month respectively.
- N26 (DE, still the case for Austrian customers in 2026), Revolut (LT), Trade Republic (DE) and bunq (NL): no AT IBAN. SEPA works, and refusing a valid euro IBAN breaches Art. 9 of Regulation 260/2012, but FinanzOnline still only takes an AT IBAN in its standard field.
When an AT IBAN Actually Matters
- Salary payments: Some Austrian payroll systems still struggle with DE or LT IBANs despite EU rules.
- Public benefits and tax refunds: Family allowance (Familienbeihilfe) and AMS payments process fastest to an AT IBAN, and FinanzOnline's standard bank-detail field only accepts one, so a refund to a foreign IBAN needs the foreign-account workaround.
- Rent and utility direct debits: Some Austrian landlords and utility providers prefer AT IBAN for SEPA mandates. See our cost of living guide for typical monthly outflows.
The IBAN country and the deposit guarantee are two separate questions. N26 still issues German DE IBANs to customers in Austria in 2026, and that balance is covered to €100,000 by the German scheme. bunq gives you a Dutch NL IBAN, and that balance is covered to €100,000 by the Dutch scheme instead. Neither changes what FinanzOnline accepts in its standard field.
What residents report
- ○ N26 IBAN in Austria: Asked whether N26 offers Austrian IBANs, the answer in the thread was no: Austrian customers still get a German DE IBAN. (r/n26bank, 2024)
- + N26 as a joint account: A couple using N26 as their shared account said the German IBAN never caused trouble for salary or direct debits in daily life. (r/FinanzenAT, 2025)
- − N26 account frozen: A customer in Germany had an N26 account holding about €450 frozen without warning, with support reachable only by chat and no answer for days. The report is from the German market, but the app is the same. (r/Finanzen, 2024)
- ○ FinanzOnline and a foreign IBAN: A Revolut customer got a refund account accepted by entering the Lithuanian IBAN as foreign bank details in the FinanzOnline profile, because the standard field takes only Austrian IBANs. (r/FinanzenAT, 2025)
- ○ Trade Republic tax handling: Users confirmed Trade Republic became steuereinfach in Austria around late April 2025, but warned that the annual tax report has occasionally been miscalculated and is still worth checking. (r/FinanzenAT, 2025)
Paraphrased from public posts, each dated and linked. A small sample, not a representative survey.
What Changed at Neobanks in the Last 24 Months?
| Provider | Date | What changed | What it means for you |
|---|---|---|---|
| N26 | Since 2021, more in 2024 | BaFin special commissioner over money-laundering controls, with further requirements imposed in 2024 | Automated security freezes remain the main complaint; keep a second account |
| Trade Republic | 24 April 2025 | Became steuereinfach in Austria for securities income | Shares and ETFs: KESt withheld. Cash interest: still not withheld, so it goes on your E1kv |
| Trade Republic | 18 March 2026 | About one hour of failed logins at a volatile market open, reported by WirtschaftsWoche | You could not trade or move cash in that hour; an app broker is not a place for money you need instantly |
The change that matters most for Austrian users is about tax rather than fees. Trade Republic has withheld Austrian KESt on securities since 24 April 2025, which ended the yearly E1kv work for shares and ETFs, but not for the 25% on cash interest.
The risk side has not moved. N26 still works under BaFin requirements over its money-laundering controls, and the outage at Trade Republic on 18 March 2026 shows that an app can lock you out at the worst moment. Neither is a reason to avoid these neobanks. Both are reasons to keep your rent and salary on a second account with a deposit guarantee.
What Happens When a Payment Goes Wrong?
This is the section that decides which app should hold your rent money. A wrong debit has to be refunded without delay whoever your provider is, and where the bank is at fault it also owes the resulting charges and interest. What differs is who enforces it. An N26 complaint runs to BaFin and the German ombudsman, and a Revolut complaint to the Lithuanian supervisor. Only an Austrian licence puts the case in front of the Austrian Bankenschlichtung, which is free for consumers and works in German.
The second thing to check is what happens if the provider itself fails. N26, Revolut, bunq and Trade Republic all sit under a national deposit guarantee at €100,000, from Germany, Lithuania and the Netherlands respectively. E-money apps such as Wise do not: your balance is safeguarded in segregated accounts, which is a different and weaker promise. The practical rule for Austria is simple: keep the rent and the salary at a bank with a deposit guarantee.
One structural risk is worth naming because it is documented rather than anecdotal: N26 has a recurring pattern of automated security freezes that lock users out for days, and BaFin has had a special commissioner at the bank since 2021 with further requirements imposed in 2024. That is not a reason to avoid the app. It is a reason not to make it your only account.
Review scores show the same split between the app and the edge cases. N26 has a Trustpilot score of 4.1/5 from 41,494 reviews as of September 2026, against 1.3 on app.n26.com. Most users never meet a freeze; the ones who do write about it.
| The rules behind this page | ZaDiG § 80 |
|---|---|
| Law | ZaDiG 2018, § 80: what the bank owes you for an unexecuted, defective or late payment |
| Regulator | FMA account section, and the OeNB for payments |
| Free tool | Bankenschlichtung, the banking ombudsman, free for consumers |
| Your right | An unauthorised debit must be refunded without delay and the account restored (§ 67 ZaDiG 2018). Where a payment is not executed, executed defectively or executed late, the bank is liable for it and owes the charges and interest you incurred (§§ 80, 82 ZaDiG 2018). Report it as soon as you notice, and at the latest within 13 months of the debit (§ 65 ZaDiG 2018). Taking the complaint to the banking ombudsman costs you nothing. |
| Applies since | 1 June 2018 |
Entity References
Full factual profiles for each brand covered on this page:
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you receive Austrian salary into N26?
Yes, technically. N26 issues a German DE IBAN, which is valid for SEPA payments across the EU. The practical friction is elsewhere: FinanzOnline's standard bank-detail field only accepts an Austrian IBAN, so a tax refund needs the foreign-account workaround, and individual payroll systems still push back. Refusing a valid euro IBAN is unlawful under Art. 9 of Regulation 260/2012, and you can report it to the FMA.
Do you need an AT IBAN to work in Austria?
Officially no. Art. 9 of EU Regulation 260/2012 bans IBAN discrimination within SEPA, so a German DE IBAN from N26, a Lithuanian LT IBAN from Revolut or a Dutch NL IBAN from bunq must be accepted. In practice FinanzOnline, some payroll systems and some landlords still expect an AT IBAN. The cheapest fix is a second Austrian account: easybank easy gratis is €0 once €400 a month lands in it, and bank99 smartkonto99 costs €1.99 with no conditions. See our account opening guide for step-by-step setup.
Are neobanks regulated by the FMA?
No. None of the four neobanks on this page holds an Austrian licence. N26 and Trade Republic are licensed by BaFin in Germany, Revolut Bank UAB by the Bank of Lithuania, and bunq B.V. holds a Dutch banking licence. All passport into Austria under EU rules, but the complaint chain follows the licence: an N26 dispute runs to BaFin and the German ombudsman, a Revolut dispute to the Lithuanian supervisor. Only an Austrian licence puts your case in front of the FMA and the free Austrian Bankenschlichtung.
Which neobanks support ELBA or EPS?
Austrian payment systems like EPS (eps-Überweisung) and bank-specific online banking like ELBA (Raiffeisen) require participation from Austrian banks. Neobanks generally do not support EPS natively, which matters when paying Austrian e-commerce, taxes, or municipal services. N26, Revolut and bunq can still pay via SEPA, but some Austrian government portals only accept EPS or credit card.
Are neobanks covered by a deposit guarantee?
Yes. All four neobanks on this page hold a full banking licence, so deposits are covered to €100,000 by the home country’s scheme: the German one for N26 and Trade Republic, the Lithuanian one for Revolut and the Dutch one for bunq. E-money apps such as Wise are different: they safeguard your balance apart from their own funds, which is not a deposit guarantee.
What can you do if your neobank or bank account is frozen?
Ask in writing for the reason and file a formal complaint with the provider first. If that fails, the route depends on the licence. For an Austrian bank, go to the Gemeinsame Schlichtungsstelle der Österreichischen Kreditwirtschaft, which is free, and then to the FMA. For N26, the chain runs through BaFin and the German banking ombudsman, for Revolut through the Bank of Lithuania. Escalations take days to weeks, so the real protection is a second account at a different provider (as of October 2026).
Which neobanks can you open without living in Austria?
None of the four requires an Austrian address. Revolut serves residents of the EEA and a few other countries, N26 the residents of its supported countries and Trade Republic permanent residents of the countries where it operates. bunq publishes no residence rule on its site. The three that publish a rule need an address in a country they serve, not necessarily Austria (provider terms, October 2026).
Official Sources
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