Monzo/Starling Banking/Revolut

Caporegime
Joined
24 Oct 2012
Posts
25,052
Location
Godalming
In my second week of using Starling now.

The "me" side of it and the positive influence it's had on me:

First off let me say that I am absolutely awful with money. If I see something and I want it, I buy it there and then. I don't budget, I don't save, I just spend all the time. I tried doing the spreadsheet thing a couple of years ago but lost interest within a week as it was tedious to fill it in.

Enter Starling. I now put a fixed amount on it every week and that's my money. It's forcing me to consider every purchase I make and it's opened my eyes in terms of what I blow money on. Before if I was hungry I'd run to the nearest food joint and just buy whatever tickled my fancy. This would easily cost me £5-£10 every time. As an example, recently I was hungry and there was a Burger King nearby. I looked at the menu and would've eaten about £7 worth of food before, however knowing my budget I had to get crafty. I downloaded the app and stuffed my face for £3.50. I picked up a water at a supermarket nearby so I was fed and sorted for £4. That's one example of many. This week I'll be catching the bus to work instead of the tube as it's half the price.

If you, like me, suck with money then this might be what you need. Obviously there are other ways to achieve the same goal but this one clicked with me. To be my age and earn the money I do there's absolutely no excuse to reach the end of the month with a low bank balance. Obviously most people will be good with money and be taught these things from a young age but my upbringing was very different from he norm so I guess learning how to handle money was one of the things I missed out on.

On to the card and app itself:

The card is contactless obviously. I've used it everywhere I usually would a bank card and have yet to find a place that doesn't accept it or where it doesn't work. My local off licence wanted to charge me 50p for a transaction (which is illegal but that's a can of worms for another thread) thinking it was a credit card but I simply refused and he accepted it. I don't know if it incurs the same charges as a credit card, maybe someone can confirm. The app is very easy to use, shows exactly what you've spent and where. It also categorizes everything so you can see where you're spending what which is a massive help. I didn't know how much I spent on crap food until now.

Suffice to say this has changed the way I see things and I now have a considerably fatter bank account even after just two weeks.
 
Caporegime
Joined
24 Oct 2012
Posts
25,052
Location
Godalming
Revolut currently offering first card for free till the 11th March (normally £5) - https://blog.revolut.com/how-to-order-a-free-card/


Awesome thanks, just signed up and ordered a card. This will be great for buying crypto with no fees. I have however already noticed that it's permanently trying to upsell me things and has ads so it'll be used for crypto and travel only. I despise having stuff shoved down my throat.
 
Soldato
Joined
11 Oct 2011
Posts
3,334
Location
UK
Got monzo the other day. Was really surprised to see the app isn't password protected in any way.

Ok you need the card pin code to transfer money anywhere... But just surprised me to see anyone can browse about your balance and transaction history if they have your unlocked phone
 
Commissario
Joined
23 Nov 2004
Posts
41,899
Location
Herts
Got monzo the other day. Was really surprised to see the app isn't password protected in any way.

Ok you need the card pin code to transfer money anywhere... But just surprised me to see anyone can browse about your balance and transaction history if they have your unlocked phone
Something's not right there, I always have to enter my pin or use my thumb to unlock the app.
 
Associate
Joined
17 Feb 2010
Posts
298
Got monzo the other day. Was really surprised to see the app isn't password protected in any way.

Ok you need the card pin code to transfer money anywhere... But just surprised me to see anyone can browse about your balance and transaction history if they have your unlocked phone

Dont unlock your phone for them?
 
Soldato
Joined
18 Oct 2002
Posts
7,492
Location
Maidenhead
I dont have to use authentication with starling, but I do have fingerprint screenlock on my phone

edit: actually it seems to be time linked to when I unlocked the phone - if I just unlocked it then starling doesn't request a password. However if I've left it a while unlocked then it does.
 
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