I’ve upgraded my phone.
Monzo - what’s your email address? Enter it, 30 secs later I’m back into my account.
Starling - you appear to have a new phone, do you have the old one? No. What’s the number? Enter it. They send a code. I enter the code. ‘You’ve exceeded the maximum number of devices, you need to remove one, you can do this by using that device or contacting customer services’. But not in the app.
WTF
(I had exactly one device on it… the now erased previous phone)
Sounds a bit like Sky Go… delete device blocks new ones for 30 days 
Upgraded mine last week. One previous device. No problem
They must hate me 
Android or iPhone? I’m on the latter
iPhone 8
Stupid 20 chars!
Especially designed features (hurdles) for Monzo investors 
Starling also doesn’t allow gender-neutral titles (or no title) in their sign up process 
Don’t think it’s anything to do with being PC it’s about choice
Do you know what PC means by the way I am sorry but your little comment is just offensive
The lack of gender neutral titles really irritated me when I was signing up. I’d ideally prefer none wherever possible. 
(Before anybody asks, I have accounts at many different UK banks. 
)
The other extreme was I set up an account online with a firm recently who gave me not just Mr Mrs Miss Mstr Ms but about 20+ different possible titles including those for a military chaplin.
But did they allow non-career gender-neutral titles like Mx and Ind? If it’s the bank I’m thinking of, shockingly among all of that, they can’t include even Mx…
I challenge this comment. It is not about being politically correct; it’s about respecting people who identify differently.
They included, Mx, Rev, Fr, Bro, Sir, Lord, etc but not Ind.
Okay, then it isn’t the Spanish bank I was thinking of. Ind is pretty rare, I have tons of friends who use Mx and none who use Ind. It should just be a free text field, or optional, but meh.
They should have Freetext prefix and Freetext suffix with option to leave either or both blank
But I still liked the option I had at RBS of defining my name plus a second line of text for my debit card
I been using Starling for a while now. I enjoy using it mostly because the app is further ahead and I have found the customer support super fast and extremely helpful. I have paused my Monzo usage for a bit to really good Starling a fair go. I am most impressed.
However, even though Monzo is behind Starling in features at present will it be a case of good things come to those who wait? Or is it simply Monzo are just behind and in the end their app will be mostly similar to Starling? time will tell I guess?
Monzo and Starling still both have different cultures to me (lack of better of phrase). Starling still feels more like a traditional bank but that not a bad thing. Monzo does feel different and less bank like which is not a bad thing either.
Starling are really on a faster pace development cycle and time will tell now that Monzo is on a single app will they catch up.
I’m still torn. I came to Monzo and the community, culture and customer service is fresh and active and less bank like it.
I go to Starling and I get a feeling of the farmilar (legacy bank) but it’s legacy bank done right in and very modern app.
But then like recently Starling goes ahead and does that 10% cashback offer for new customers and you get a glimpse that under the paint maybe it’s just the bank you are trying to leave underneath?
I just hope I get a Monzo CA soon so I can truly compare both.
Exactly the same for me.
The recent piece about how they differ from other (legacy) banks I thought was inspired. I was right behind moving to them, my decision was made. Then this fiasco with the ‘will I won’t I get cashback’ soured that completely. I then also thought that this was a bit legacy ish and luckily my Monzo current account invite came last night. Just in time, so I will be giving this a go and look to close my Starling account. A real shame though as such promise, but also such a poorly planned/executed offer.
The Monzo app has so much promise too, with pots/goals, but also the idea of a universal cashback scheme, that might not come off, but there’s alway hope.
Give it a year, which is a lifetime at present rates, and I’m sure they’ll not look too different, each with their little quirks. Starling customers are raving about goals which they have just got, appears Monzo will have pots, so it will be down to personal choice I think.
Agreed. The cashback offer was a confusing mess of do I or do I not qualify. Up until that point I was warming up to Starling but then they do that. Which has poured a bit of cold water.
If Monzo is behind but does it right then that’s the one.
The appeal of Starling was it was further ahead of the development cycle.
Now the question is and an interesting thought experiment: if Monzo and Starling were the same feature wise and you have to choose based on UX and values of the bank who would win?
Everyone is different.
I don’t think they are. It’s just that they started earlier and created their app to a level before releasing it. They are painfully slow, it seems, on development.
Yes. It does make you wonder sometimes.