Lunar vs N26 vs Revolut 2026 — EU Neobank Showdown

The European neobank landscape in 2026 is more fragmented than headline coverage suggests. Three names that surface repeatedly in cross-border comparisons are Lunar (Danish-licensed, Nordic origin), N26 (German-licensed, originally Berlin), and Revolut (Lithuanian-licensed, originally UK-incorporated). Each has carved out a distinct positioning and each has a different fit for users based in Poland.

This article compares all three on regulation, fees, FX, savings, cards, investing, app UX and the practical implications of holding a non-PL IBAN as a Polish tax resident.

Quick Answer / TL;DR

• Licenses: Lunar = Danish FSA (Finanstilsynet) bank license. N26 = BaFin (German) full bank license. Revolut = Lithuanian central bank full bank license (Revolut Bank UAB, with a Polish branch).
• Deposit insurance: Lunar covered by Garantiformuen (DK, ~EUR 100k). N26 covered by EdB (DE, EUR 100k). Revolut covered by VIDB (LT, EUR 100k).
• IBAN: Lunar = DK. N26 = DE. Revolut = LT default, PL via Polish branch (the only one of the three to offer a domestic PL IBAN).
• Fees: All three have free tiers with rationed allowances and premium tiers in the EUR 9-15/month range; pricing scales with travel/insurance perks.
• Polish availability: Revolut is fully available with PL IBAN. N26 is fully available but with a DE IBAN. Lunar's Polish availability remains limited.

Comparison Table

Regulation and License Structure

This is the most underappreciated dimension, even though all three end up at the same EUR 100k deposit insurance ceiling.

• Lunar Bank A/S is licensed and supervised by the Danish FSA (Finanstilsynet), with deposits covered by Garantiformuen up to roughly DKK 750,000 (about EUR 100,000 at prevailing EUR/DKK rates).
• N26 Bank SE holds a full German banking license from BaFin (Bundesanstalt für Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht), with deposits covered by the Entschädigungseinrichtung deutscher Banken (EdB) up to EUR 100,000.
• Revolut Bank UAB holds a full bank license from the Bank of Lithuania, with deposits covered by VIDB up to EUR 100,000. The Polish branch (Revolut Bank UAB Oddział w Polsce) operates under that same license but issues PL IBANs.

For the average retail user, the three guarantees are functionally equivalent. For users who want to spread sovereign and regulatory exposure across DK/DE/LT, holding more than one of these is one path.

Fees Breakdown

All three operate tiered subscription models. The free tiers are genuinely usable but rationed; the premium tiers bundle insurance, lounge access and similar travel perks.

Lunar: Free tier covers basic banking with capped ATM allowances; Pro adds higher allowances and travel features at roughly DKK 49-79/month; Premium layers on insurance and a metal card at roughly DKK 99-149/month. The non-Nordic pricing in EUR varies by market.

N26: N26 Standard is free; N26 Smart at EUR 4.90/month adds spaces, MoneyBeam and small perks; N26 You at EUR 9.90/month adds travel insurance and partner discounts; N26 Metal at EUR 16.90/month adds a metal card, priority service and extended insurance.

Revolut: Standard is free with the tightest allowances; Plus ~EUR 3.99/month; Premium ~EUR 9.99/month; Metal ~EUR 14.99/month; Ultra ~EUR 55/month (top tier with concierge, lounge passes and partner subscriptions).

In strict like-for-like terms, N26 Metal at EUR 16.90/month and Revolut Metal at ~EUR 14.99/month are the closest direct comparison; both bundle a metal card, comprehensive travel insurance and elevated allowances. Lunar Premium sits in between, depending on the exchange rate.

FX and International Transfers

Lunar offers fee-free FX within monthly allowances on Pro/Premium tiers in the Nordic markets, with small markups beyond. Wire/SWIFT-style international transfers fall outside the SEPA zone and are charged separately.

N26 historically charges 1.7% on non-EUR card transactions on its free Standard tier (cash withdrawals included), with reductions or eliminations on higher tiers. EUR-denominated SEPA transfers are free regardless of tier.

Revolut offers interbank-rate FX with a 0.5%-1% weekend markup and a 1% markup beyond the monthly free allowance on Standard. PLN is a first-class supported currency, which makes Revolut the most natural fit for Polish-based users with PLN balances.

For Polish residents who need PLN-EUR conversion at competitive rates, Revolut is generally the most predictable of the three. N26 supports SEPA transfers in PLN but does not maintain a PLN balance natively; Lunar's PLN handling outside its Nordic core markets is limited.

Savings Products

The three approach savings differently:

• Lunar Save in Denmark advertises rates in the 3%-4% range on Pro/Premium tiers, capped at stated balance thresholds. Because Lunar is a deposit-taking bank, these are bank deposits covered by Garantiformuen.
• N26 Instant Savings (rebranded over time, sometimes called "Money" or similar in different markets) has paid headline rates around 2.6% on EUR balances for Standard users, with higher rates on premium tiers. As bank deposits under N26 Bank SE, they are covered by EdB.
• Revolut Flexible Accounts deliver yields in the 3.0%-3.5% range on EUR via partner money market funds, with limits tied to subscription tier. These are MMF exposures, not bank deposits — a meaningful structural difference for risk-aware users.

For users who value the bank-deposit structure (covered by deposit insurance) over MMF exposure (which is generally lower risk but not the same legal substrate), Lunar and N26 deliver true deposits. Revolut delivers MMF exposure under a different protection regime.

Cards and Daily Banking

All three offer plastic, virtual and metal cards across their tiers. Acceptance is universal on Mastercard or Visa networks.

The IBAN dimension is where Polish users typically feel friction. A DK IBAN (Lunar) or DE IBAN (N26) works under SEPA but can trigger compatibility issues with Polish employers, ZUS and US payment systems that hardcode PL prefixes. Revolut, via its Polish branch, is the only one of the three to issue a domestic PL IBAN — historically this resolves the vast majority of such issues.

Investing

• Lunar Invest in the Nordics routes through partner brokers (e.g. Saxo in earlier integrations) for stocks and ETFs. The product is functional for buy-and-hold but lighter on advanced features.
• N26 has expanded its investing offer through N26 Crypto (in some markets) and partnerships for stocks/ETFs, with the depth varying by country. The investing layer is generally lighter than Revolut's.
• Revolut Invest is the deepest of the three on retail investing — stocks, ETFs, commodities and crypto in one app, with fractional shares and recurring buys.

None of the three offers IKE/IKZE — Polish tax-advantaged investing wrappers are restricted to Polish brokers (https://www.mbank.pl, https://bossa.pl, BM Pekao).

App UX and Customer Service

Lunar is widely praised for clean Scandinavian app design, calm typography and a "less is more" navigation pattern. Customer service is phone-and-chat in core markets; thinner outside the Nordics. Polish language coverage is limited.

N26 has spent years iterating its core "Spaces" metaphor and the app remains one of the most readable in the segment. Customer service is in-app chat with phone available on higher tiers. Polish language support is solid.

Revolut offers the densest feature surface in one app — banking, FX, cards, savings, invest, crypto, commodities, business products. The trade-off is that the app is more cognitively heavy than Lunar or N26. Customer service is in-app chat with response-time tiering by subscription level. Polish language support is comprehensive.

Polish Investor and User Perspective

For a Polish tax resident, the structural points are:

• Belka tax (19%) applies to capital gains and interest income from all three providers; reporting is via PIT-38 with NBP conversion rates.
• No Polish withholding at source — the user is responsible for self-assessment of any interest or gains.
• None of the three offers IKE or IKZE. Polish tax wrappers are restricted to Polish-licensed brokers.
• IBAN compatibility: Revolut's PL IBAN advantage is real and often decisive for daily-banking use. Lunar (DK IBAN) and N26 (DE IBAN) can run into edge cases with Polish institutional systems.

A common Polish setup is to hold Revolut as the daily PL-IBAN account, N26 or Lunar as a secondary EUR-focused account for travel or EUR savings, and a separate Polish broker account (https://bossa.pl, mBank Brokers) for IKE/IKZE.

Tracking your portfolio across brokers: Once you hold accounts at two or three neobanks plus a Polish broker, reconciling net worth and burn rate gets messy. Freenance pulls balances from all of them and projects your Financial Freedom Runway — the number of months your liquid net worth covers your current monthly expenses.

When is Each One Best?

Revolut wins when:

• You need a PL IBAN for salary/ZUS/US compatibility.
• You want banking, FX, invest, crypto and savings under one roof.
• You value Polish-language support and wide currency support.

N26 wins when:

• You are based in Germany or want a German-supervised bank.
• You value the Spaces/MoneyBeam UX and clean German banking design.
• You prefer bank-deposit savings under EdB protection.

Lunar wins when:

• You are resident in Denmark, Sweden, Norway or Finland.
• You value Scandinavian app design and a Danish FSA-supervised bank.
• You prefer the simplicity of a calmer feature surface.

FAQ

Which neobank is safest from a deposit insurance perspective? All three reach the EUR 100,000 ceiling under their respective national schemes (DK Garantiformuen, DE EdB, LT VIDB). Numerically equivalent for retail users; users with balances above EUR 100k typically split across providers.

Can I get a PL IBAN with N26 or Lunar? No. N26 issues DE IBANs and Lunar issues DK IBANs. Only Revolut (via its Polish branch) offers a domestic PL IBAN.

Which has the best EUR savings rate? Historical comparison places Lunar and Revolut roughly in the 3-4% range on EUR (with caveats around balance caps and tier requirements). N26 has been somewhat more conservative on headline rates (around 2.6% on Money).

Is Lunar available in Poland? Lunar's primary markets are Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland. Polish residency support is limited and depends on documentation and onboarding rules at the time.

Which one has the best investing offer? Revolut Invest is the deepest of the three, with stocks, ETFs, crypto, commodities and fractional shares in one app. Lunar and N26 offer lighter investing layers through partner integrations.

Do I have to pay Belka tax on interest from any of them? Yes. Polish tax residents are liable for 19% Belka on interest and capital gains, regardless of which of the three pays the income. None withhold Polish tax at source — self-assessment via PIT-38 is required.

Pricing Worked Examples

To make the three-way comparison concrete, consider a Polish user spending EUR 2,500/month across various contexts: salary in PLN, holiday card spend in EUR while travelling, occasional GBP purchase from a UK e-commerce site, and ATM withdrawals while abroad.

Scenario A — Free tier user, EUR 1,500/month FX exposure, EUR 300/month ATM withdrawals while travelling:

• Revolut Standard: EUR 500 over the free FX allowance at 1% = EUR 5 in FX markup. EUR 100 over the EUR 200 free ATM allowance at 2% = EUR 2 ATM fee. Total: ~EUR 7/month.
• N26 Standard: No free FX allowance for non-EUR card transactions; 1.7% on EUR 1,500 of non-EUR = EUR 25.50. Five ATM withdrawals free per month included. Total: ~EUR 25.50/month.
• Lunar Free: Limited FX free allowance in EUR equivalent (varies by market); typical free Lunar tier in DK gives a few thousand DKK of free FX before small markups. Total: ~EUR 3-10/month for a moderate user, depending on configuration.

Scenario B — Premium tier user with same usage:

• Revolut Metal at EUR 14.99/month: Free FX and ATM allowances cover the use case; subscription is the dominant cost. Effective monthly cost: ~EUR 15.
• N26 Metal at EUR 16.90/month: Free FX on non-EUR; subscription dominates. ~EUR 17/month.
• Lunar Premium at ~DKK 99-149/month (~EUR 13-20/month): Similar pattern. ~EUR 13-20/month.

Analysis suggests the three premium tiers converge at roughly EUR 13-20/month total cost, with the choice driven by feature mix (travel insurance terms, partner perks, customer service depth) rather than price. The free tiers diverge more meaningfully, with Revolut's tighter allowances becoming expensive at higher FX volumes and N26's 1.7% being uncompetitive for heavy non-EUR card use.

Cross-Border Friction Notes

Polish residents who hold accounts at any of the three frequently report similar edge cases:

• Salary credit from PL employer: PL IBAN (Revolut only of the three) is accepted universally. DK IBAN (Lunar) and DE IBAN (N26) are accepted under SEPA but some legacy payroll systems flag them or require additional bank documentation.
• ZUS payment: Polish social security payments work best from PL IBAN. From DE/DK IBAN they are technically possible via SEPA Direct Debit but some users report friction.
• US tax office (urząd skarbowy) refund: Tax refunds historically come to PL IBAN only — non-PL IBANs are typically rejected. A separate PL bank account is the standard workaround.
• Faktura VAT compliance: For B2B users running działalność, the "rachunek bankowy zgłoszony do białej listy VAT" requirement applies — only Polish-supervised entities can register. Foreign IBANs (DE, DK, LT non-branch) cannot appear on the białej liście. This is the single biggest reason a PL IBAN matters for self-employed users.

For users with primary income from Polish sources, the practical conclusion is that a PL IBAN account (Revolut's Polish branch is one option; Polish banks are others) sits at the centre of the daily-banking stack, with N26 and Lunar layered on for travel, EUR savings or specific cross-border use cases.

Business Account Notes

Each provider offers a business account product with different scope:

• Revolut Business: Mature multi-currency business account with PL IBAN option via the Polish branch; widely used by Polish jednoosobowa działalność and sp. z o.o. setups.
• N26 Business: Available in supported countries including parts of the EU; DE IBAN; popular among German freelancers and Polish digital nomads based in Germany.
• Lunar Business: Strong product in Nordic markets; outside the Nordics availability is limited.

For Polish self-employed users (jednoosobowa działalność), Revolut Business is the most practical of the three because of the PL IBAN and biała lista VAT compatibility.

Sources

• Danish Financial Supervisory Authority (Finanstilsynet) entity register.
• BaFin (Bundesanstalt für Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht) entity register for N26 Bank SE.
• Bank of Lithuania entity register and supervisory disclosures for Revolut Bank UAB.
• Garantiformuen (Danish deposit guarantee fund) coverage statements.
• Entschädigungseinrichtung deutscher Banken (EdB) coverage rules.
• VIDB (Indėlių ir investicijų draudimas) public scheme documentation.
• Lunar, N26 and Revolut pricing pages and terms of service, accessed Q2 2026.
• Narodowy Bank Polski daily average exchange rate tables.
• Krajowa Administracja Skarbowa PIT-38 reporting guidance for foreign-source capital income.