Revolut Premium Review: Is It Worth Upgrading Your Plan?

Are you considering upgrading to Revolut Premium?

The Revolut Premium card offers a lot more benefits than the free Standard plan.

But the truth is, it’s not going to be worth it for everyone.

In this Revolut Premium review, you’ll learn everything that the Premium plan has to offer to help you decide where you should upgrade.

You can also check out my complete Revolut Review to see everything that Revolut has to offer.

What is Revolut Premium?

Revolut Premium is a paid plan that Revolut offers.

It unlocks a lot of extra benefits for Revolut users.

The most significant benefit is the unlimited foreign exchange at the interbank exchange rate through the Revolut app. You’ll also get access to other exclusive features for:

• Travel benefits
• Security and protection
• Savings and investments
• Customer support

Revolut Premium is Revolut’s mid-tier plan that sits between the Free Standard plan and the higher-tier Metal plan.

Revolut Premium Review Of Key Features

Revolut Premium comes with a bunch of cool features.

I will do a Revolut Premium review of the top ones to help you decide if upgrading your plan is worth it.

It’s worth noting that Revolut offers different features depending on your country. I have covered each country as best as possible to point out individual features.

Let’s dive in!

Unlimited Foreign Exchange And Transfers

Foreign exchange fees add up when you’re overseas.

With Revlout Premium, that’s an issue of the past. You can send money overseas at the real international exchange rate. This means you can check the current exchange rate in Google and it will be very similar to what Revolut is offering.

I have found that Revolut’s exchange rate is better in some cases.

Need to send money overseas?

You can do direct bank transfers into over 140+ foreign currencies through the Revolut app at the interbank exchange rate. Your first 10 transfers each month on Revolut are free in most countries.

Revolut also allows you to hold money in 10+ fiat currencies. They can supply local bank account details so you can even receive money in foreign currencies.

This can save you a ton of money if you get paid in a different currency from your home currency.

It’s also possible to set up direct debit and recurring transfers on Revolut as well!

The unlimited foreign exchanges and transfers are what make Revolut Premium so attractive.

You will save a ton of money overseas while using the debit card and it certainly beats using traditional banks.

The Standard Revolut plan caps the amount of free currency exchanges you can make each month. If you use Revolut as your everyday debit card, the Premium plan will save you a lot of money.

The currency exchange benefits on Revolut are the best of any digital bank available at the moment!

No Fees On ATM Cash Withdrawals

Here’s the truth:

I hate paying ATM withdrawal fees. If you have ever stomached the $8 USD fee that Thailand banks charge to make an ATM withdrawal, you’ll know what I mean.

Revolut Premium members get free ATM withdrawals worldwide up to a certain amount. That means that Revolut won’t charge you any fees.

Unfortunately, you might still have to pay fees that the ATM charges, but you can even avoid this in some cases.

The amount you can withdraw depends on where you are from. Here’s a quick breakdown:

• United States – $1200 USD/month withdrawal limit
• Australia – $700 AUD/month withdrawal limit
• UK – £400/month withdrawal limit
• Europe – €400/month withdrawal limit

These limits are about double what the free Revolut Standard plan offers. The Standard plan also only allows you to make 4 ATM cash withdrawals per month.

After you reach the withdrawal limits, you will pay a 2% fee for each withdrawal you make.

This is a pretty good benefit because the withdrawal fees you end up paying on the Standard plan almost cover the Premium plan fees.

If you are traveling to a country where cards are not widely accepted, Premium will save you fees on ATM withdrawals.

One-Time Use Virtual Cards

All Revolut members get access to virtual cards.

These are basically debit cards that only exist within the app itself. You can use the card details to make transactions online without needing a physical card.

Revolut Premium members can unlock one-time-use disposable virtual cards.

That means once you use the card, it’s automatically deleted. Why would you need this?

Firstly it offers a new level of protection. If you make a transaction online and someone steals your card details, it doesn’t matter as much. They won’t be able to use those details again anyway.

Personally, I use it for online payment subscriptions that I’m not sure I want to automatically renew.

When I sign up for something, I put in my one-time-use virtual card so that it can’t be automatically renewed. This is just in case I forget to cancel the subscription if I decide I don’t want it.

Free Global Express Delivery

Most regular banks will only ever send a new credit or debit card to your registered home address.

Revolut will send it anywhere you happen to be!

That means if you’re traveling in a foreign country, Revolut will deliver the card directly to you. This alone is a huge benefit that I have taken advantage of multiple times.

With Revolut Premium, you get Free express delivery of your new card.

Express means you will receive the card within 1-3 business days. You’ll also get free tracking, so you always know where your new card is. I ordered my Revolut Premium card when we were in Bali, Indonesia and it took exactly 3 business days!

This is a big step up from the free Revolut Standard plan.

With Standard, you have to pay your card’s delivery cost and you only get Standard delivery times – usually about 7-11 business days.

LoungeKey Pass Access

Airport lounge access has become a big thing for travelers, remote workers and digital nomads.

And I get it…

Who wouldn’t rather sit in a comfortable lounge area enjoying good wifi and free food?

Ashley and I love a good lounge and we have used the Revolut LoungeKey Pass a number of times.

It gives you access to a network of over 1,000+ airport lounges worldwide.

This network basically includes at least 1 lounge (often 4-5) in every major airport in the world. It can even include smaller airports, especially in the US.

LoungeKey Pass isn’t free.

What’s the benefit then?

You can purchase lounge passes at a discount. Depending on the lounge, you will typically pay about $30 to $35 USD per pass. This is usually 50% to 30% cheaper than you would pay if you just walked up to the lounge.

For 3+ hour layovers, we almost always take a lounge and Revlout usually gets us the best deal.

We usually end up spending $15 to $20 on food and drinks anyway, so you might as well pay that bit extra and enjoy a comfortable lounge as well.

How does LoungeKey Pass work?

On the Revolut app, search for the airport you’re at (you can also buy the passes in advance).

Revolut will then display the lounges that you can access and the features of each lounge.

Now you just select the lounge you want and pay the fee. The fee is deducted from your Revolut balance. You’ll immediately get a QR code that you can take to the lounge and they will let you in. Easy!

The whole process is smooth and instant. While this feature isn’t going to be for everyone, it will save you money if you like to use Airport lounges.

Smart Delay Free Lounge Passes

Want a free lounge pass?

Smart Delay is a feature that can get you and someone else a free lounge pass whenever your flight is delayed by 1 hour or more.

Here’s how it works:

Insert your flight number and flight information into the Revolut app.

Revolut will track your flight and the moment it is delayed by for than 1 hour, they will issue you with 2 free lounge pass QR codes. You take the QR codes to the lounge and you’ll get access for free.

You do have to use the lounge passes within 48 hours. After that, they will expire.

The thing I love about this feature is that Revolut doesn’t try to be stingy. You just put the flight number in and Revolut does the rest. You don’t even need to tell them if your flight is delayed.

Everything is done automatically.

We got free lounge passes once with Smart Delay when flying from Mexico City to Merida as digital nomads. The flight was delayed by an hour and 30 minutes and Revolut delivered the free lounge passes instantly.

I was really impressed.

Travel Insurance & Medical Insurance

Premium Revolut members in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom and the United States get travel and medical insurance included in their plan.

Australian Premium Revolut users don’t have this benefit and it doesn’t look like Revolut is planning to add it anytime soon.

The above image is the insurance included in Revolut in the United States. Revolut travel insurance differs in benefits, deductibles and max limits in each individual country so make sure you double-check yours.

The Revolut Premium card travel insurance covers:

• Foreign accidental emergency medical expenses
• Emergency dental treatment
• Trip interruption and cancelation protection
• Delayed flights over 4 hours
• Delayed luggage over 4 hours
• Lost or damaged baggage protection

Having insurance included in your plan is a pretty significant benefit, but there are some criteria you need to meet.

Revolut Premium card only covers you for trips that don’t exceed 90 days. You also must have a return flight booked back to your home country.

Now for the big question…

Can you actually rely on Revolut Premium travel insurance?

Yes, you can as long as you meet the requirements to claim. But in all honesty, it’s not a great level of travel insurance. It’s not nearly as good as key competitors like the N26 black card or an AMEX credit card.

Make sure you check out their full policy before leaving for your trip to see if it’s right for you.

As digital nomads, the Revolut Premium insurance doesn’t work for us because we are gone for more than 90 days at a time. Instead, we use SafetyWing or Genki to cover us for travel insurance.

Looking for a good travel insurance provider as a nomad? These companies offer the best travel insurance for digital nomads. If you want a higher level of coverage you might prefer health insurance. Make sure you check out our complete guide on the best digital nomad health insurance.

Priority Customer Support

Support is a big issue on Revolut Standard.

It can take 4-12 hours for their customer service team to message you back. Have a time-sensitive issue? You could be in some trouble.

But that changes with the Revolut Premium Plan.

You get priority customer support which means you’ll get an instant reply. The level of customer service I have experienced has also been much better on Premium than when I was on the free Standard plan.

It’s certainly a significant benefit to getting issues sorted quickly.

Exclusive Premium Design Card

You can’t have a Premium plan without a better card, right?

Revolut Premium cardholders get to choose between 3 different Premium card colors:

• Black
• Grey
• Pink

You’ll also get an exclusive Premium card design so that people know you are a Premium cardholder. While it’s not as cool as the Metal card, I like that Revolut has done something to make Premium cardholders stand out.

Premium Security & Travel Protection

Revolut security features are excellent.

You can check out the in-app account security features here. But Premium UK and European plan members get a better level of protection while traveling.

The benefits include:

• Theft and purchase protection up to £2,500 per year
• Event ticket purchase protection up to £1000 for UK accounts and €1000 for European accounts per year
• 90-day purchase protection

These benefits offer a decent level of protection if someone steals your card while you’re traveling.

Savings & Investments

Revolut offers a number of saving and investment tools.

This includes:

• Crypto trading
• Stock trading
• Commodities trading
• Savings interest

Revolut Premium cardholders can trade cryptocurrency, stocks and commodities at a cheaper rate.

In the UK and Europe, you pay a 1.5% fee when trading, which is slightly better than the 2.5% that Standard members pay.

You can trade commission-free in the US and Australia anyway, so there are no extra benefits here.

Revolut US and UK Premium plan members also get a better savings rate. You will earn 0.07% APY (Annual percentage yield) on your savings in the United States and 0.40% annual interest paid daily with Savings Vaults in the United Kingdom.

While this isn’t amazing, you get some benefit from storing your money in a Revolut savings vault.

European Revolut members will start to earn interest on savings in 2022.

Revolut Australia doesn’t currently offer any interest on savings and there isn’t any plan to add it in at this stage.

Revolut Premium Pricing

Revolut Premium offers very affordable pricing.

This is how much the current monthly payment is:

• United States – $9.99 USD per month
• United Kingdom – £7.99 per month
• Europe – €8.99 per month
• Australia – $9.99 AUD per month

I think these plans are actually great value for money. The amount of benefits you get far outweighs the amount you pay. The money you save in foreign transactions alone can more than cover the cost of your monthly fee.

Here’s the problem:

You have to sign up for 12 months.

That means that you’re locked in for an entire year. What happens if you want to cancel early?

Revolut will charge you for 2 months as a dishonor fee. While that’s not the worst, it’s something to keep in mind if you are considering upgrading your account.

What if you want to upgrade to Revolut Metal?

You can upgrade your account to Metal at any time without paying any extra fees (except for the additional cost of the Metal plan). You only have to pay the dishonor fee when you downgrade to the free Standard plan.

Keep in mind that when you upgrade your plan from Premium to Metal, the 12-month period starts again.

You can also save 20% if you pay the entire year upfront instead of paying monthly. This is a good idea if you have the cash and are completely committed to Revolut.

Pros And Cons of Revolut Premium

As you can see, Revolut has done a good job of offering some solid benefits for the Premium plan.

Here’s a breakdown of the Pros and Cons of Revolut Premium:

Revolut Premium Pros

• Lots of great features that will benefit digital nomads, travelers and remote workers
• Not that expensive when compared with other travel cards and digital banks
• Unique and exclusive card design and choice of three colors
• Double the free ATM withdrawal limits for most countries including Europe, the UK and Australia
• Lower cryptocurrency and stock trading service fees at just 1.5%.
• Easy and fast plan upgrade process
• Express delivery of Premium card is only 2-5 business days

Revolut Premium Cons

• Have to commit to 12 months on the Premium Plan
• Travel insurance covers trips only up to 40 days
• Plan benefits can vary significantly depending on your country of residence

Revolut Premium vs Revolut Standard vs Revolut Metal

Looking for a direct comparison of all the plans that Revolut offers?

Here is a curated breakdown of the features and benefits of the Revolut Standard, Premium and Metal cards.

	Standard	Premium	Metal
Price	Free	$9.99/month	$16.99/month
Spend in currencies	150+	150+	150+
Hold in currencies	30+	30+	30+
Out-of-network ATM withdrawals	Up to $1,200/month	Up to $1,200/month	Up to $1,200/month
Crypto, Commodity & Stock Trading	Yes	Yes	Yes
Saving Account APY Earnings	0.05% APY (depends on country)	0.07% APY (depends on country)	0.07% APY (depends on country)
Free Card Delivery	Standard (5-10 business days)	Express (1-3 business days)	Express (1-3 business days)
Fee-free international transfers	10	10	10
Overseas medical insurance (depends on country)	No	Yes	Yes
Delayed baggage and flight insurance (depends on country)	No	Yes	Yes
Cashback (depends on country)	None	None	1% on foreign transactions. 0.1% on home currency transactions.
Card Design	Standard	Premium card with exclusive designs	Exclusive Revolut Metal card
LoungeKey Pass access	None	Yes, Discounted (about $30 USD per lounge pass)	Yes, Discounted (about $30 USD per lounge pass)
Free lounge passes for 1hr delayed flights	None	You + 1 Friend	You + 3 Friends
24/7 customer support	Standard	Priority	Priority

New Revolut Plus Card

Revolut has recently launched the Plus plan.

They have only rolled it out to UK and European citizens and residents. It costs:

• United Kingdom – £3.99 per month
• Europe – €3.99 per month

The extra benefits might be worth it for some people because the pricing is so low. The Revolut Plus additional features include:

• 24/7 priority customer support
• Better international ATM cash withdrawals
• £1,000/year limit purchase protection
• Higher interest on your savings

Personally, it hasn’t got me that excited because you might as well just make the jump to Premium at that point.

We will have to see if they roll it out to Australia and the United States in the future.

Wrapping It Up

Revolut is a great digital banking solution.

The Revolut Premium plan adds more benefits to the already great Revolut debit card and app.

But the main question…

Is it worth paying the fee and upgrading your plan to Revolut Premium?

Yes, if you are traveling regularly and use Revolut as your primary way to make everyday card payments, it’s a no-brainer in my opinion.

The unlimited foreign exchange and international transfers are big benefits that alone make it worth it. The extras can also be beneficial depending on your situation.

Sign up for Revolut Premium here.

It might even be worth you upgrading to the Metal card plan, which I am now on.

If you don’t travel regularly or mostly travel in your home country, Revolut Premium won’t offer as many benefits. This is especially true if you can’t take advantage of the included travel insurance.

Want to learn all the benefits you get with Revolut? Check out my full Revolut Review.

Frequently Asked Questions