Account Types
Before explaining how to open yours Revolution tale and how to best use it, I want to tell you about the various types of accounts available.
- Standard (free) - is the basic Revolut account. Offers a free UK account; a free euro IBAN account; the ability to shop in over 150 currencies at the interbank exchange rate; exchange without hidden commissions in 30 fiat currencies up to 6.000 euros per month and withdrawals from ATMs without commissions up to 200 euros per month. More info here.
- Premium (7,99 euro / month) - offers all the benefits of the Standard account plus exchange without hidden commissions in 30 fiat currencies with no monthly limit; withdrawals from ATMs without commissions up to 400 euros per month; international medical insurance; flight and baggage delay insurance; Global Express / Priority Card Delivery; priority customer support; immediate access to 5 cryptocurrencies; the ability to request a premium card with an exclusive design; the ability to generate disposable virtual cards and access via loungekey pass. More info here.
- Metal (13,99 euros / month) - offers all the advantages of the Premium account plus withdrawals from ATMs without commissions up to 600 euros per month; exclusive Revolut Metal cards; the possibility of obtaining up to 0,1% Cashback in Europe and up to 1% outside Europe on every payment made by card. Plus, it gives you access to a concierge to better manage your lifestyle. Learn more here.
All accounts provide the ability to create virtual cards to be used for online payments and with Apple Pay (if using iPhone); there currency conversion; monitoring of exchange rates international; advanced statistics on their spending habits; the setting of budget mensili global or for various categories of expenditure; L'immediate sending and receiving of money between Revolut users; the ability to carry out bank transfers e recurring payments; the creation of virtual piggy banks to set aside the money needed to carry out their own projects (even those of the group); the trading; the donations and access to cryptocurrency (available for Premium and Metal users or by inviting their friends to try Revolut).
For more details, read on: in the following lines, I will explain how to open your account and how to access all the main features of the Revolut app. I assure you that this is really a breeze!
How to open a Revolut account
Now that you have all the information you need about Revolut, are you ready for open your account. The procedure, as already mentioned, is extremely simple, fast and can be performed directly from a smartphone.
The first step you must take, therefore, is to download the official Revolut app on your phone: to do this, connected to the Revolut website, enter your cellphone number in the field phone number and click on the button I accept the invitation.
You will then receive an SMS with the link to download the Revolut app for Android or iPhone. The application download procedure is the standard one provided for any other app: you simply have to press the button Ottieni / Installa of your smartphone store and wait for the application to be downloaded and installed automatically. If you are using iPhone, you may need to authorize this via Face ID, Touch ID, or entering your Apple ID password.
Once installation is complete, start the Revolut, by selecting its icon on the home screen or in the drawer of your phone, and enter yours telephone number in the form that is proposed to you. Next, hit the button Continue, create a pass code (i.e. an access code) for your account and wait for the receipt, via SMS, of a 6-digit verification code by Revolut: once you have received the code, type it in the field on the screen, in order to verify your mobile number and continue with the account opening procedure.
The next step is to fill in the form with your personal data: legal name, last name e date of birth. After entering them, press the button Continue and provide yours home address, filling in all the fields on the screen. Once you have also passed this step, press the button Done.
Now you need to provide yours primary email address, press the button Next, accept the receipt of notifications by Revolut (useful to be aware, in real time, of the expenses made and all the operations related to the account) and choose whether add funds immediately to the account using one of the supported cards or Apple Pay (if you use an iPhone) or if you postpone this step by pressing on the item Not now which is located at the top right.
What you need to do now is verify your identity. Press, therefore, the appropriate button visible on the screen and indicate, through the drop-down menus that are shown to you, yours nationality and type of document you want to use to perform the procedure: you can choose between national / state identity card o passport.
You therefore consent to the use of camera and take a picture first to the side front and then to Retro of your document, indicating for each shot if the card is legible or if you wish take a new photo.
If you are using the identity card in paper format, be sure to follow these steps: photograph the two internal pages of the identity card, then cover e Retro of the same. Another tip: remove the plastic card holder. This reduces the risk of reflections that disturb the quality of the photo.
Once the documents are uploaded, you need to take a Selfie. Then press the button Continue Revolut app, make sure your face is perfectly included in the oval space you see in the center of the screen and take the shot. Then check that your face is clearly visible, that your expression is neutral and confirm by pressing the buttons My selfie is clearly visible and clear e I understand and agree (to reply to the message telling you that the verification of your documents will take place within 24 hours).
At this point, you have to choose whether to get one physical letter or a virtual card. The physical card allows you to make purchases both online and in physical stores, to obtain detailed analyzes on your expenses, offers an integrated budgeting system and the possibility of making purchases abroad without commissions. You can choose between one carta standard (with delivery starting from € 5,99 or free, by activating one of Revolut's paid accounts) or one Metal letter (for Revolut Metal customers only), with the ability to customize the appearance of both.
The virtual card, on the other hand, is totally free and allows you to make purchases only online; it can also be used in physical stores, but only through Apple Pay (therefore only in stores that accept contactless POS payments). Revolut Premium and Metal users can also create disposable virtual cards.
Once you have chosen the card to request, set a PIN for the latter, press the button Done and, if you are using an iPhone, choose whether to add it to Apple Pay or whether to postpone this operation by pressing on the item Not now, located at the top right.
Mission accomplished! You have now opened your Revolut account and can start using it. The verification of the documents, as already mentioned, will take place within 24 hours of opening the account and you will be notified directly from the app (as well as via SMS).
How to use Revolut
Once you open your account, you are ready to find out how to use Revolut. So open the Revolut app on your smartphone and log in (using the code you set during registration or, if your smartphone supports them, fingerprint or face recognition).
The home screen of the application presents a general overview of your account, with a graph related to revenue e outputs, the list of latest movements and the buttons for add funds, convert currency and view i details on account (IBAN, BIC, account balance etc.). At the top, then, there is the icon of one arrow, through which to view rates, convert currencies and monitor stocks, and the icon of a magnifying glass, to search in the latest movements.
At the bottom, however, there is the menu to navigate in the various sections of the app: Accounts, to view the screen I mentioned earlier with the account overview; Stats, to view advanced statistics on your expenses and set your budget; Payments, to send and receive payments; Map, to manage the cards associated with the account and request others e Dashboard, with the quick access menu to the other functions of the app (conversion rates, vault, trading, donations, etc.).
If you haven't yet added funds to your account, you can do this very easily by using a carta Visa/MasterCard, Apple Pay (if you have an iPhone with a card linked to this service) or a bank transfer. In the first two cases, the credit will be instant, in the case of the transfer it will take 1-5 days.
To proceed, go to the section Accounts of Revolut, press the button Add funds, at the top left, type theamount you want to add to your account (min.10 euros) and press on the item Change (bottom right) to choose the instrument with which you want to transfer the funds: Transfer funds to your Revolut account, if you want to view the IBAN to which to make the transfer; Use Apple Pay, if you have an iPhone and a card linked to this service, or Add Visa or MasterCard, to associate a card with the account and use it to transfer funds to Revolut. If you choose the card, you will then have to fill in the form with all the data relating to the latter (number, Expiration date e CVV).
Once you have chosen your payment method, if you have opted for paper o Apple Pay, confirm the transfer of the funds and a message will indicate that the operation was successful. For the transfer, however, you will have to provide through thehome banking of your bank and wait 1-5 days to receive the credit on Revolut.
Do you want keep your expenses under control? In this case, I recommend that you move to the section Stats of Revolut, where you can view a detailed report of your expenses during the month o from the beginning (i.e. since you started using the app), divided into categories and with forecasts related to the releases that will be there in the future. To customize the start date of the statistics, click oncalendar icon located at the top left.
To consult the list of expenses you have made based on the category you belong to, instead, select the card Category and choose one of the many categories available (eg. transfers, utilities o transport). Also, I point out that by selecting the tabs Retailer e Country, you can analyze your expenses based on these criteria.
Very useful, then, the function Global budget, which allows you to set a global budget limit or for individual spending categories, so as not to exceed your monthly budget. To use it, tap on the item Global budget, specify the figure of your monthly budget and press the button Done, to save the changes. If, on the other hand, you want to set a budget for various spending categories, move to ON the relative levetta all'opzione Budget categories and act on the various categories of expenditure available: expenditure, Shopping, restaurants, transport and so on.
As regards sending and receiving money, it's all so simple that you don't need to say much. By going to the section Payments of Revolut, in fact, you can find three tabs relating to all the actions you can perform.
There is the card Send, through which you can send money to contact Revolut (the Revolut "R" button), do a Bank transfer, send a payment link email to other people or send money to Revolut users around you; the board Request, with which to request the payment of a sum to contact Revolut (the Revolut "R" button), send a payment link by email to other people, split the bill with another user or detect a Revolut user around you; finally there is the card Program., which allows you to set scheduled payments to contacts, bank accounts, etc. and set one repetition on a daily, weekly or monthly basis.
Other than that, you can pay online and in physical stores using the card associated with your account (also via Apple Pay, se hai un iPhone).
To manage the cards associated with your account, go to the section Map of Revolut, select the paper of your interest and choose the operation to be performed: Block the card, to lock / unlock the card; Unlock CVV, to unlock the CVV after exceeding the 3 failed attempts threshold or Limit, to set the monthly spending limit on the card. If you are using an iPhone, the button Add to Apple Wallet will allow you to add the card to Apple Wallet and, consequently, to Apple Pay.
To request a new card, instead, press the button + located at the top right and choose whether to request one virtual card (free) or a royal card (with delivery starting from € 5,99 or free, by activating one of Revolut's paid accounts).
By pressing the icon instead (...) present above each card, you can assign a label or remove it from Revolut, while pressing on thepencil icon you can reorder the cards associated with your account.
Another extremely interesting function of Revolut is the one called Vault, which allows you to accumulate savings to achieve certain goals, be they personal or group (for example a vacation or the purchase of a smartphone). To use them, go to Dashboard Revolut and select the item first Vault and then that Add Vault from the page that opens.
Choose, therefore, whether to create a Personal Vault or Group Vault (in this case, you will then need to select the Revolut contacts to add to the Vault), type the name of theobiettivo you want to reach and tap the button Continue.
Next, indicate the sum you want to save, press again on Continue and choose whether or not to activate therounding of small change, in order to automatically put aside the rounding of how much you will spend with Revolut.
Finally, press the buttons Create vault e One last thing and indicates how much would you like to set aside each day / week / month to achieve your goal. From now on, you can manage your Vaults by going to the section Dashboard > Vault by Revolut.
If you are intent on doing the trading, know that Revolut also offers this possibility. But be careful, because Revolut does not provide investment advice and you will have to take all the decisions and risks of the case (in trading the gain may even be less than the original investment).
That said, if you are convinced to go ahead and become a shareholder in companies of the caliber of Google, Facebook, Amazon e Tesla (with investments starting from 1 euro), go to the section Dashboard > Trading of Revolut, tap on Start and follow the tutorial that is proposed to you.
Then choose the company to invest in, press on Create account and follow the instructions on the screen to make your investment. More info here.
Are you interested in the world of cryptocurrency and you would like to be able to exchange sums of money in cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum e Litecoin? If so, go to the menu Dashboard > criptovalute e unlocks this functionality by becoming a Revolut Premium / Metal customer or by inviting your 3 friends to open a Revolut account. More info here.
If you don't know how to upgrade to Revolut Premium o Metal, go to Dashboard and press on the item Update, located at the top.
Finally, I point out the availability, always within the Dashboard of Revolut, of features such as donations, to donate money to organizations and associations of various kinds; the passes for lounge airport (for Revolut Metal users only); there Concierge services (for Revolut Metal users only) and the insurance for devices and people.
To take advantage of each function, all you have to do is press on the relevant item and follow the instructions on the screen: nothing could be easier!
For more information
If you need more information on how Revolut works, you can consult the informative articles contained in the app and on the official website of the service.
To proceed from the app, go to the Dashboard of the latter, click on the symbol (?) present at the top right and use the search bar displayed at the top to search for the topics of your interest. Alternatively, select one of the topics listed in the center of the page or tap on the item Ask our community, for assistance on the Revolut forum.
If you prefer to work from a computer, connect to the Revolut Help Center and use the search bar, at the top, or the items at the bottom (Add funds to Revolut, Recharges, Card payments etc.) to find the topic of your interest. To access the forum and submit your doubts to the Revolut community, connect to this page instead.
Do you need direct contact with Revolut operators? No problem: open the Revolut app, go to the Dashboard and tap on the symbol first (?) present at the top right and then on the item New chat, present below (Premium and Metal customers have a higher priority).
Alternatively, you can contact Revolut's automated phone line at +44 2033228352 to request card blocking or other assistance.
Article created in collaboration with Revolut.
How Revolut works
