Best way to reduce banking fees

H

Homewardbound11

Registered User
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I only recently saw how much my banking costs in AIB. It’s averaging 180 euro per annum for just normal stuff . Given that AIB don’t give any interest for regular accounts
What are people doing to reduce their banking fees and which options are people choosing
-) I have a Revolut account but shy’D away from going full banking based of fear or scams . How much is it really saving if you move to full banking with them ie for standing orders , transfers, atm use, etc.
-) I have a trade republic account at 3.75 percent. So starting to move any cash out of AIB.

What I’d like is to remove my current credit card and also banking cards to reduce these government fees and then remove AIB all together .
Just looking for peoples opinions .
 
It doesn't matter if it's revolut or AIB, you will still have to pay the government fees for card use.

180 seems very high, are you counting the fact that you aren't earning interest to come up with that number?
BOI charge 6 euros per month for a current account, so possibly that's a better option than AIB?

Personally I wouldn't be happy to go all-in on online banking. I keep a few thousand in BOI for the next couple of months spending, and all savings in trade republic.
 
No not taking into acccount anything other than fees . Typically I would use the App but cleverly AIB have not included the fees in the app . You have to go online to see your fees .

An example would be Mostly consumed by
Debit card purchased 80 euro . Account maintenance 18euro. Direct debits 12. SEPA credits 12. I thought SEPA was free . Direct debits 15. Cash withdrawals was small at 8 euro . Non AIB roughly 8. After that is was a few euro here and there .
 
Wow - that is a lot - I didn't know AIB charged like that.
BOI is a lot simpler - 6 euro per month covers everything, all contactless and card transactions, debit and credit transfers, card replacement, even getting a cashier's cheque if one were needed.
You will pay extra for cash withdrawals from ATMs, but that's government duty and applies to all providers.
 
Knuttell said:
N26 is a far superior banking app. Been with them 5years and zero complaints
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I signed up for n26 relatively recently - but seems good so far. Mostly I still use BOI for day to day, but was thinking of using it for general spending, and BOI for getting paid and direct debits only.
Not a fan of revolut - always seems to be pushing products at you in a messy user interface.
 
I also use N26, use EBS free account for payment in & ATM, then s/o set up to N26 for day to day and several 'spaces' accounts for other purposes. Costs me 40 euro pa, quite happy with it, EBS is basic but only has one transaction in and half a dozen out per month.
 
Homewardbound11 said:
I only recently saw how much my banking costs in AIB. It’s averaging 180 euro per annum for just normal stuff . Given that AIB don’t give any interest for regular accounts
What are people doing to reduce their banking fees and which options are people choosing
-) I have a Revolut account but shy’D away from going full banking based of fear or scams . How much is it really saving if you move to full banking with them ie for standing orders , transfers, atm use, etc.
-) I have a trade republic account at 3.75 percent. So starting to move any cash out of AIB.

What I’d like is to remove my current credit card and also banking cards to reduce these government fees and then remove AIB all together .
Just looking for peoples opinions .
Click to expand...
Hey @Homewardbound11

I totally get where you're coming from with the AIB fees. I’ve been dealing with the same issue myself. The fees can really add up! I’ve got a Trade Republic account too, and I’m using their debit card. It’s been decent so far. I also use Trading212 cause their interest rates are higher than Trade Republic.

I tried opening an account with ESB, but their process was so bureaucratic that I ended up giving up on it. For now, I’ve switched my salary to Revolut and barely use AIB anymore to cut down on those fees while I search for a better solution. I’m also looking for a bank with physical branches.

As for Revolut, moving to their full banking services could save you quite a bit. They’re generally lower on fees compared to traditional banks, and their fees for things like standing orders and transfers are quite competitive. ATM withdrawals might have some limits, so it’s worth checking those details.

Would be great to hear what others are doing too!

Cheers!
 
I wouldn't use Revolut for anything larger than a 100eur and def wouldn't use it for my salary....It's fine until everything goes frank spenser and you get scammed.
 
Homewardbound11 said:
What I’d like is to remove my current credit card and also banking cards to reduce these government fees and then remove AIB all together .
Just looking for peoples opinions .
Click to expand...
1. Do you have mortgage? If you do (and not with AIB), do you think you could switch over to AIB (If it is easy to do)? AIB Mortgage customer get free banking.

2. Not sure what age you are, if 66 and above, you get free banking with AIB.

3. You mentioned you have credit card.. You also mentioned you have about 80 Eur worth of Debit Card transaction. I'd suggest keeping the credit card but get it switched over to the AIB Platinum Credit Card (If you meet the criteria), they pay you 0.5% on all spend above 5K Eur threshold in a year. If you try to shift as many payments over there as possible instead of your debit card, that means after the initial 5K, if you spend 6K after that, it will pay for the stamp duty itself. Credit card transaction is free for purchases (Don't do cash withdraw with Credit Card, you will be charged an arm and a leg for it), This way, your 80 Eur Debit Card fees will come down very quickly..

4. Use ESB + Revolut. ESB for salary and direct debit. Revolut for day to day spending (Or credit card mentioned above would be more ideal if you are getting paid). Either way, keep minimum amount of money in Revolut until you need it then top up on the fly.
 
Thanks everyone . Some really good advice from you all . I’ll also look into EBS. Fortunately I don’t have a mortgage now thank god so that rules out free banking with AIB.
I Got into looking at Revolut last night as I’m on the plus plan so I should be eligible for the 2 percent interest at least in a standard savings account . Then I got to wonder at what stage does it become worthwhile .ie the 40 euro standard charge per year .

So close to just moving to Revolut . I have the bulk of savings now in trade republic .

Then I saw this post on Reddit and again making it more confusing .

 
Ualtar said:
Hey @Homewardbound11

I tried opening an account with ESB, but their process was so bureaucratic that I ended up giving up on it. For now, I’ve switched my salary to Revolut and barely use AIB anymore to cut down on those fees while I search for a better solution. I’m also looking for a bank with physical branches.

As for Revolut, moving to their full banking services could save you quite a bit. They’re generally lower on fees compared to traditional banks, and their fees for things like standing orders and transfers are quite competitive. ATM withdrawals might have some limits, so it’s worth checking those details.
Click to expand...

I attempted to open a MoneyManager account with EBS as well, but I'm lost as to how I get set up on online banking with them... The codes required don't seem to have come in the post.

Meanwhile, I have a BOI credit card (and closed the current a/c with them a few years ago), N26, Revolut, Trade Republic.
I never pay interest on the credit card, I always make sure to make payments covering the balance on the statement. I don't mind the 30eur tax per year when I have a free overdraft of 3000. I switched to the Aer Lingus credit card but I think I will switch back to basic.
N26 is great for the 5 ATM withdrawals per month (older basic account holders have 5, 3 now) and it's better that I lodge money to the credit card immediately for the most part so I can top up Revolut and transfer it back to N26 to keep in instant savings. I'm not sure about direct debits as I always these days do manual payments of bills using Trade Republic so that I get the saveback for the ETF savings plan. Revolut do free top ups but only 200eur of ATM withdrawal so for me both N26 and Revolut are essential.
 
My yearly fees were in or around yours a couple of years ago and I have it down to under €40 for the whole year by doing the following things:

- One large transfer monthly to Revolut for my estimated monthly total of all direct debits and cash I might need
- Daily spending on the credit card & move all monthly subscriptions to credit card
- Never use my AIB debit card
- Use Revolut for all direct debits, transfers to other accounts etc.
- AIB account is only really used for incoming pay, payment of credit card and Revolut transfer each once per month.

I know it seems like a lot of work but I just got into the habit of it now. Hope it helps to see how someone else managed to get their AIB banking costs down significantly. They really add up but I do like the security of a traditional bank and I like their app.
 
OrangeLavender said:
My yearly fees were in or around yours a couple of years ago and I have it down to under €40 for the whole year by doing the following things:

- One large transfer monthly to Revolut for my estimated monthly total of all direct debits and cash I might need
- Daily spending on the credit card & move all monthly subscriptions to credit card
- Never use my AIB debit card
- Use Revolut for all direct debits, transfers to other accounts etc.
- AIB account is only really used for incoming pay, payment of credit card and Revolut transfer each once per month.

I know it seems like a lot of work but I just got into the habit of it now. Hope it helps to see how someone else managed to get their AIB banking costs down significantly. They really add up but I do like the security of a traditional bank and I like their app.
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I did something similar. Dropped the fees massively. But then I realised I was still paying for AIB current account and actively trying not to use it. So I moved to BOI. Slightly higher monthly charge, but without being hit with additional costs every time you do anything
 
We closed our bank accounts with AIB and BOI last year. We use the credit union now to have wages paid in and pay all our bills that way. We have a joint credit card account with avant (one €30 gov fee per annum). We use the CC for all our day to day spending and it is cleared each month. We also have Revolut for ease of some payments /split bills on nights out and the likes.
 
This is super frustrating topic.

EBS is a waste of time, need to do hand written notes to overpay a mortgage. So bureaucratic

I went 95% Revolut 18 months ago, but recently reduced my balance there because of so many negative stories about lack of support when scammed - and I have seen how sophisticated some scams are that I am not arrogant enough to think I can't get stung, even as someone who is very aware.

However the irish banks are a joke, and are a million miles behind fintech

Went to branch to open a joint account with wife in AIB this week, you have to present physical documents even if applying online, and the time to do so expires. Like why, just why do I need to go present physical documents when modern banks don't.

It gets worse, when we went in they declared they needed to put us down for an appointment and pulled out a paper diary and biro with their appointments. Like what the actual hell - a severe contrast to its "modern floor layout".

I told my wife if they couldn't do it today I was not going to rejoin AIB out of principle. She made a fuss and they eventually reviewed our documents - again they had to go and take photocopies, like what planet are they operating on where they need photocopies in 2024? Buy an iPad and take a picture.
 
I get salary paid i to revolut, will be able to avail of their new offering from end of this month whereby get rewards for having certain amnt transferred in each month.

I then transfer an amount to AIB to cover mortgage (to ebs) and some other outgoings.

I use revolut for day to day stuff and am happy so far with it.fees low, some rewards.

Wary of being scammed but take precautions and see it as a risk regardless of where i bank. As for customer service, this another drawbk to revolut but havent needed it yet so no impact to date and likelihood/impact going fwd i see as low. All in all revokut/aib combo works for me. Thanks.
 
We had to leave Ulster when they closed. Moved to Bank of Ireland and did everything via their app and bar a couple of minor glitches, it was easy enough. Didn't have to visit a branch. That included a joint account. Have to say the BoI app is not a patch on the Ulster one but I've gotten used to it.

Having said that and having tried Revolut recently as back up for a foreign trip, it offered me very little if anything I couldn't get from BoI. BoI contact centre have been very helpful when I needed them as well.
 
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