Tide vs Mettle

Who owns what — the licence question

Mettle is owned and operated by NatWest Group. Account services are provided by National Westminster Bank plc, which means eligible Mettle deposits sit within NatWest's banking licence and are FSCS-protected up to £85,000 — but that £85,000 limit is shared across all your NatWest-group balances (NatWest, RBS, Ulster Bank, Mettle combined per depositor). Tide is a financial platform, not a bank: business bank accounts are issued via ClearBank (a licensed UK clearing bank, FSCS-eligible) or as Tide-issued e-money (safeguarded under UK e-money rules, not FSCS-protected). For most sole traders running modest balances the practical difference is small; for anyone keeping more than £85,000, splitting balances matters either way.

Eligibility — Mettle is narrower

Tide opens sole traders, limited companies, partnerships and a number of other structures. Mettle is tighter: sole traders and single-director limited companies only, both UK-resident. If you have multiple directors, a partnership or a more complex structure, Mettle is not currently an option and Tide is the obvious default. This eligibility gap is the single most common reason businesses choose Tide over Mettle on day one.

Pricing — both have a real free plan

Mettle is genuinely free. There is one plan, no monthly fee, free UK transfers and free FreeAgent accounting for active users. Tide's Free plan is also £0/month with 20 free UK transfers; paid tiers (Smart £12.49, Pro £27.49, Max £69.99) add more included transfers, Expense Cards, enhanced invoicing and priority support. For a sole trader on low UK volumes, both are effectively £0/month. Once you need integrated company formation, multi-user expense cards or more than 3 invoices a month, Tide starts to earn its paid tier.

The FreeAgent factor

Mettle's strongest single feature is free FreeAgent. FreeAgent normally costs £19–£33/month for sole traders or limited companies, and Mettle gives it to active users at no charge — that's effectively £200–£400/year of value if you'd otherwise pay for it. Tide integrates with FreeAgent (and Xero, QuickBooks) but does not pay your subscription. If FreeAgent is your accounting tool of choice, Mettle has a real cost advantage. If you use Xero or QuickBooks, this advantage disappears and the comparison turns on tooling and the sign-up offer.

Tooling and day-to-day UX

Tide is more SME-tooled out of the box: integrated company formation (Mettle has none), Expense Cards on paid tiers for staff, deeper categorisation, Tide Instant Saver for retained cash, and a more developed invoicing workflow on paid tiers. Mettle keeps the app simple — invoicing, pots, a card and FreeAgent — which is exactly the appeal for solo operators who want a clean, free account with bookkeeping handled. Neither is bad; they're optimised for different users.

Cash, transfers and ATMs

Mettle does not accept cash deposits at all — a deal-breaker for any business that handles cash. Tide accepts cash via PayPoint and the Post Office with percentage fees. Both offer Mastercard debit cards; UK ATM withdrawals carry a per-withdrawal fee at Tide, while Mettle is free at UK ATMs within reasonable limits. Both clear UK transfers via Faster Payments and pay HMRC at parity.

The sign-up offer

Mettle does not run a structured sign-up cashback offer. Tide currently runs REFER200 — up to £200 cashback when you complete £100 of card spend in 30 days and deposit £5,000 into Tide Instant Saver for 30 days. For anyone whose decision is otherwise close, the offer is the tie-breaker.

Pick Tide if…

You're a partnership, multi-director Ltd or not Mettle-eligible; you want integrated company formation; you need Expense Cards for staff; you use Xero or QuickBooks rather than FreeAgent; or you want the £200 REFER200 cashback for first-year cash flow.

Pick Mettle if…

You're a UK-resident sole trader or single-director Ltd, you want a free account backed by NatWest's banking licence, and you'd genuinely use the free FreeAgent subscription. The combination of "free + FreeAgent + FSCS via NatWest" is hard to beat on pure cost if you fit the eligibility window.

Run both?

A growing pattern is Tide for operations and the cashback in year one, with Mettle held as a free secondary account for FreeAgent and a clean backup. There's no fee at either to keep the account dormant, and many UK sole traders end up doing exactly that.