What is Curve?
Let’s start by saying what Curve isn’t.
curve card is NOT a bank account. It is NOT like Revolut, Monzo, N26, Starling, or Monese. If you take out a Curve Card you are NOT getting a ‘current account on a card’.
The curve is simply an intermediary card, a Mastercard to which you can link all of your existing Visa and Mastercard payment cards.
curve card has some other unique features:
Cash withdrawals are charged as a PURCHASE. Yes, a cash withdrawal on your Curve debit Mastercard will be recharged as a purchase to your linked Visa or Mastercard. This is FREE for £200 per 30-day period on the free card. Note that Tesco Bank and NatWest / RBS do NOT allow credit cardholders to make free cash withdrawals via Curve. Other banks may do the same in the future, or indeed may do so already and we haven’t picked up on it.
Overseas purchases are converted without an FX fee from Monday to Friday (except for free Curve Blue which is capped at £500 per 30-day period of free FX transactions with a 2% fee beyond that). This is a better deal than using a separate free ‘no rewards’ credit card with 0% FX fees because you still earn rewards on the underlying linked card. On weekends and UK public holidays, a 0.5% fee is added for € or $ transactions and 1.5% for other currencies.
ALL miles and points Mastercard and Visa credit cards carry a 3% foreign exchange fee. By using Curve as an intermediary, you will now pay as little as 0% in FX fees and still earn miles and points.
What are the Curve Card limits?
Irrespective of the limits on your underlying cards, Curve has its daily, monthly, and annual limits. Your limits are increased as Curve begins to ‘trust’ your behabehavior
These are the maximum limits you can get according to the website, although some people have been more:
Daily spend (inc ATM withdrawals) – £3,750
Daily ATM withdrawal cap – £1,000
Monthly spending limit (on a rolling 30-day basis) – £20,000
Annual spending limit (on a rolling 12-month basis) – £50,000
You may not get this limit from Day 1 but, as you begin to use the card, your limits will be increased. Feedback from readers who have pushed for increases is that you will struggle to get a limit beyond £50,000 if you purely paying HMRC and making ATM withdrawals. You stand a better chance if you are putting day-to-day spending through the card.
What are the three different types of Curve Card?
There are three different Curve Cards you can get:
The basic curve card (Curve Blue) is FREE – in fact, Curve will pay you £5 for trying it out if you use my referral code of OQB4J
Curve Black costs £9.99 per month and allows unlimited foreign exchange recharging and provides some travel and insurance benefits
Curve Metal costs £14.99 per month or £150 per year and has a choice of three cool metal cards to choose from, allows unlimited foreign exchange recharging, pay-per-use airport lounge access, and a broader range of travel and insurance benefits
How to apply for your Curve Card (free if you choose Blue)
To sign up to Curve, simply go to this page of their website to download the app. The easiest thing to do is order the free Blue card and then think about upgrading to Black or Metal once you are familiar with it, although you can start immediately on Black or Metal if you want.
The curve will pay you £5 for trying it out if you use my referral code of OQB4J – a £5 cash credit will be added to your Curve Rewards balance. If it doesn’t, add the code when you register your details in the app – you will see a box to insert it.
Once you have received your card, you can link it to your ‘miles and points earning’ Visa and Mastercard products and start spending.
How to choose the right Curve Card for you
What are the features of free Curve Blue?
Curve Blue is free – free to apply and free to operate.
This page of the Curve website compares the three different types of Curve Card.
Curve Blue fee: None
Card: Plastic, not metal
Availability: UK residents and various other EEA countries
Foreign exchange fees: £500 per 30-day period for no fee (0.5% fee $ or € and 1.5% fee for other currencies applies to transactions made on a Saturday, Sunday, or a bank holiday) with a 2% fee thereafter
ATM withdrawals: Overseas: £200 per 30-day period for free, 2% thereafter / UK: £200 per 30-day period fair use cap
1% cashback from three retailers for the first 90 days of membership. This is on top of the rewards you will earn from your underlying card.
Even users of the free Curve Blue can pay any debit card bill and have it recharged as a purchase for free to a linked Visa or Mastercard. There are no usage limits except for the day/month / annual limits imposed by Curve which are increased as you become ‘trustworthy’.
For most HFP readers, the free Curve Blue will be good enough.
What are the features of Curve Black?
curve Black fee: £9.99 per month, no annual option
Card: Plastic, not metal
Availability: UK residents and various other EEA countries
Foreign exchange fees: Unlimited transactions with no fee (0.5% fee $ or € and 1.5% fee for other currencies applies to transactions made on a Saturday or Sunday)
ATM withdrawals: Overseas: £400 per 30-day period for free, 2% thereafter / UK: £200 per 30-day period fair use cap
These are the key benefits. There are other benefits that I do not value highly but which some readers may find useful:
Gadget insurance (maximum value £800 with a £50 excess)
1% cashback from six premium retailers for the first 90 days of membership. This is on top of the rewards you will earn from your underlying card.
This card can be attractive to Head for Points readers. Let’s look at a couple of key areas:
You can charge all of your spendingpendings to miles or points earning card whilst paying 0% FX fees, which should lead to a sharp increase in your points earning
You can charge some day-to-day debit card spending to Curve and turn it into spend which earns miles, points, and ‘spend-related target bonuses’.