Best multi currency and bank accounts for expats in 2026

If you live or work abroad in 2026, you’ll typically need 3 things from your money set-up: the ability to hold multiple currencies, to get paid like a local and to be able to do all that without paying extortionate fees. 

That’s where a good multi-currency account comes in, and they’re definitely not all built the same. So here are my 6 top picks and their key features.

My top 6 multi currency and bank account picks

The order of providers in the below list and following guide is in alphabetical order, not rank.

• Bunq – 20 currencies, 25 bank accounts across 7 European countries.
• Charles Schwab – USD account, unlimited ATM rebates.
• HSBC Expat / Global Money Account – open in USD, EUR or GBP. Hold up to 19 currencies in fixed-term deposit accounts.
• N26 – euros only. Up to 10 local accounts, across 24 countries.
• Revolut – hold 38 currencies. 3 local account details in GBP, USD, PLN.
• Wise – hold 50 currencies. 14 local account details.

Fancy watching the video instead? See my YouTube summary below:

How I reviewed these providers

I have both a Revolut and a Wise account so I can speak about those providers from first-hand experience. For the other providers, and in fact even for Revolut and Wise, I used the provider websites, FAQ pages and review forums to identify the key features, compare pricing and understand the experience of real users.

Let’s dive into my review of each provider.

A quick overview of our top picks

Check out the table below for a quick breakdown of our top picks:

Bunq

• How many currencies can you hold? 20+ currencies (incl GBP, USD, CNY, CHF)
• Local bank details? Up to 25 sub accounts, across 7 European countries (fees may apply)

Bunq is a popular multi currency account in Europe. You can hold over 20 currencies and set-up up to 25 sub-accounts with local bank details across 7 European countries including Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, France, Spain, Belgium and Ireland. 

Bunq charges a 0.5% network fee on top of the Mastercard exchange rate, so your total costs should be pretty clear. But there are weekend fees ranging from 0.15%-0.5% for any exchanges you make outside Monday-Friday.

Bunq does offer a free plan. But, to get all 25 local accounts and 10 fee-free foreign currency transfers, for example, you’d need Bunq Elite for 18.99 EUR a month.

Bunq is a fully-licensed bank and also has a lot of digital banking features like investing and savings – and you can earn interest on foreign currencies in an eligible savings account. Bunq is also a partner of Wise.

Charles Schwab

• How many currencies can you hold? 1 (USD)
• Local bank details? None

This is a bit different from the others. Charles Schwab is often mentioned in expat circles not as a multi currency wallet, but as a strong choice for US expats whose finances overseas are centred in USD. 

This is more of a brokerage account than a digital wallet, but there’s no monthly account fee and US citizens can open an account remotely so you can set it up on the road. There’s no fees for spending abroad, but probably the biggest draw for US expats is the unlimited ATM fee rebates, so they’ll pay you back for any charges you get hit with for withdrawing cash around the world. 

Schwab won’t charge you to receive money from abroad, but there is a 15-25 USD fee for wire transfers. So this account isn’t going to suit someone who needs to send money abroad regularly. 

HSBC Expat / Global Money Account

• How many currencies can you hold? 18-19 (in fixed-term deposit accounts)
• Local bank details? None

HSBC has a dedicated Expat Bank account, which you can open in USD, EUR or GBP. But this is a premium account with quite lofty eligibility criteria like being required to have investments or savings of 75,000 GBP, or being an existing HSBC Premier customer with at least 10,000 GBP to save or invest with HSBC Expat. 

With HSBC Expat, you can hold up to 19 currencies, but these are fixed-term deposits accounts. So they earn you interest from 1 month up to 3 years, but you typically can’t touch your money until the account term ends.

HSBC also has their Global Money Account, which lets you hold up to 18 currencies, send money in more than 50 currencies to 200 countries, with no HSBC fees or intermediary bank fees. 

If you’re loaded up with some savings and investments, and are eligible for the expat account, this is a multi-currency account worth looking into.

N26

• How many currencies can you hold? 1 (EUR)
• Local bank details? up to 10 accounts, across 24 countries

Like Charles Schwab, N26 isn’t technically a multi currency account, but it could be worth considering if you’re moving to or travelling around Europe. With N26, you can open up to 10 sub accounts, which give you access to local bank details across 24 European countries including Austria, Germany, France, Norway, Spain and Switzerland.

There’s a free account, but you will need to open at least a Smart account for 4.90 EUR a month to be able to open a sub account. And you can also upgrade for more features, cashback and better rates. N26 has a full German banking license, and is also a partner of Wise.

Revolut

• How many currencies can you hold? 38 currencies
• Local bank details? 3 currencies (GBP, USD, PLN)

Revolut is a multi currency account that does a lot – investing, savings, international money transfers, rewards.

With Revolut you can hold money in around 38 currencies and get local account details for most of them. On the free plan, currency exchanges with no additional fees are limited to 1,000 GBP a month after which fees apply and you have a 1% weekend fee for any exchanges you make outside Mon-Friday. If you want no limits on currency exchanges without additional fees, no weekend fees and no Revolut fees on international transfers it’s going to cost you 55 GBP a month on the top-tier Ultra plan. 

I think Revolut falls prey to the pitfalls of subscription models – you have to pay big bucks for all the good features. For expats, this means unless you upgrade to one of the more premium account options you’ll have to pay fees on weekend conversations, and get less competitive rates and limits on transfers and exchanges.

This bank allows you to manage your money abroad, set up a savings account, invest in commodities, and earn RevPoints as you spend, and could be a good option if you’re willing to pay a monthly premium. 

Wise

• How many currencies can you hold? 50 currencies
• Local bank details? 14 currencies

With Wise’s multi currency account, you can hold money in around 50 currencies, send money to over 160 countries, spend on your Wise card in over 150 countries and get paid like a local with local account details in over 14 currencies including GBP, USA and EUR. 

Wise charge the mid-market rate for conversions, which is the mid-point rate the market naturally sets, and keep their own provider fee separate. If you’re doing a transfer, you’ll also be able to see how long the process will take, so you can make sure it’s going to work for your time frame. But, saying that, 77% of Wise’s transfers are instant, and 89% arrive within the hour (In Q2 2026, 77% of transfers were instant (< 20 seconds)).

It’s free to open an account and free to spend using your debit card, and you can use Jars in the app to separate and organise your money. Wise is not a bank, but it is an authorised electronic money institution.