Comparison

Starling vs Cuvva

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Starling

A digital banking app offering free personal and business accounts with robust security features and 24/7 UK-based customer support. Manage all your finances, from everyday spending to savings and bills, all from your phone.

Highlights
  • Free personal and business accounts
  • Joint and under-16 accounts
  • Habit-building savings tools (Spaces)
  • 24/7 UK customer support
  • Advanced security controls
  • Fee-free spending abroad
  • Instant transaction notifications
Features
Read full description

Best-in-class banking, designed for your phone and life in the 2020s. Our free, habit-building bank accounts help millions of people be good with money. Apply for a free bank account directly from your phone – in minutes. Industry-leading digital banking security. • 24/7 UK-based customer support from real people. • Manage your account security with simple controls in the app. • FSCS protection up to £120,000. • Verify if it’s us calling you, with call status indicators in the app. One app. Everyday banking. From personal to joint to business banking, bring your finances under one roof: • Personal account: Spend, organise, save with the habit-building bank account. • Joint account: Bills, budgets or just getting brunch: it’s better together. • Business account: Pay no monthly fees, 24/7 UK customer support and free invoicing and accounting tools. • Under 16s: The free debit card for kids, managed from your account. • Student account: Budget with Spaces, spend abroad with no fees and apply for an interest-free overdraft. Easy mobile banking that just works. • Branchless and fully online. • Open and manage your account entirely from your phone. • Spend abroad like a local with no fees from us. • Get an instant notification every time you spend or receive money. Build life-changing habits with game-changing features. • Organise your finances by setting money aside into virtual ‘change jars’, aka Spaces. • Get instant notifications every time you spend. On holiday? Get notifications in both currencies. • Put your bills on autopilot so you only spend what’s actually available. • Make every penny count by rounding up payments to the nearest pound. • Get a clearer picture of your spending with our AI-powered features. Starling Bank Limited (trading as Starling) is registered in England and Wales (No. 09092149), 5th Floor London Fruit And Wool Exchange, 1 Duval Square, London, United Kingdom, E1 6PW. We are authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority under registration number 730166.

About

Cuvva

Get temporary car or van insurance for durations from 1 hour to 28 days. Easily borrow or lend vehicles, insure your own car short-term, or get cover for learning to drive. Manage all your policies conveniently within the app.

Highlights
  • Temporary car and van insurance
  • Cover from 1 hour to 28 days
  • Borrow or lend vehicles
  • Insure your own car short-term
  • Learner driver insurance
  • In-app policy management
Features
Read full description

Join the 1 million+ drivers enjoying quick and easy, temporary car, van and learner insurance with Cuvva. Download the Cuvva app, get a quote and be covered in minutes. Lend or borrow a car whenever you need to, or insure your own car until you sort out longer-term cover. Our fully comprehensive policies last from 1 hour to 28 days, so you can: - Drive your new wheels home from the dealership - Share the drive with friends on your next road trip - Borrow a car from your family or friends - Save on a removals van when you’re moving house by borrowing one yourself - Learn to drive for up to 6 hours a day with a provisional licence Whenever you need to get behind the wheel, we’ve got you covered. Once you’re insured, you can manage everything within the app. So, whether you need to book a policy in advance or extend your cover, you can sort it all from your phone. The best part is you don’t have to own a car to drive one. With Cuvva, it’s just as easy to get affordable insurance on someone else’s car as it is to insure your own. That’s why we’ve sold over 10m policies (and counting). Cuvva is authorised and regulated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority. Our FCA reference number is 690273. You can check our details on register.fca.org.uk.

Screenshots

Starling4 screens
Cuvva4 screens

Verdict

The call

Starling and Cuvva both sit at 4.9 stars, but that hides the real split: 74% of Starling's written reviews are positive against 48% of Cuvva's. Starling also leads on ratings volume (2.8K vs 52) and device support (3 vs 1). On price, rating, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Starling holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Starling has 2.8K ratings behind it against 52, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 74% of Starling's written reviews are positive against 48% of Cuvva's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly weekly. Both last shipped on November 11, 2026.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Starling versus Cuvva: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterStarlingCuvva
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.9 (2.8K ratings) — better4.7 (52 ratings)
Positive reviews74.5% of reviews — better48.2% of reviews
Number of ratings2.8K — better52
Update frequencyWeeklyWeekly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS15.0 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size561 MB111 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSTARLING BANK LIMITEDCuvva Limited

Customer experience

Starling

All ratings2,808 ratings
Positive97.4%
Neutral0.9%
Negative1.8%
Written reviews1,638 reviews
Positive74.5%
Neutral4.1%
Negative21.4%

Cuvva

All ratings52 ratings
Positive90.4%
Neutral5.8%
Negative3.8%
Written reviews226 reviews
Positive48.2%
Neutral4.0%
Negative47.8%

User reviews

Starling

From 2.8K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Easy to use app
  • 🚀 Instant transactions
  • 🔒 Secure banking
  • 💡 Useful features like Spaces
  • 👍 Excellent customer service

Room to improve

  • 🐛 App crashes and freezes
  • 🔒 Overly strict security measures
  • 💰 Fees for cash deposits
  • 🚫 Inability to open certain account types
  • 🚫 Declined payments with no explanation

Cuvva

From 52 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 💯 Excellent service
  • ⚡ Quick and easy to use
  • 💰 Affordable prices
  • 🤝 Great customer support
  • 🚗 Convenient for temporary insurance needs

Room to improve

  • 🚫 Difficulty getting insured
  • 💰 Expensive pricing
  • 📢 Excessive notifications/ads
  • 🤖 Issues with AI/facial recognition
  • 🔒 Concerns about legitimacy and coverage

Bugs and requests

Starling

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Login issues after phone updates
  • Inability to record video for verification
  • App crashes on certain devices
  • Delayed or failed money transfers

Requested features

7 requests
  • Joint account cards with different designs
  • Ability to set up automatic transfers to savings
  • More customization options for Spaces
  • Integration with password managers
  • Showing pending payments in balance
Show 2 more
  • Daily balance history view
  • Ability to split transactions into categories

Cuvva

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • App freezing or crashing
  • Issues with photo uploads and verification
  • Inconsistent or incorrect quotes

Requested features

3 requests
  • Expand coverage to more vehicle types
  • Improve account management and cancellation options
  • Provide more transparency on pricing and policies

In-app purchases

None

Starling

No in-app purchases

None

Cuvva

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Starling free?
Starling is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Cuvva free?
Cuvva is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Starling or Cuvva?
Starling is rated higher. Starling averages 4.9 out of 5 from 2.8K ratings, while Cuvva averages 4.7 from 52 ratings.
Do Starling or Cuvva have ads?
Neither Starling nor Cuvva shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Starling or Cuvva?
Starling ships an update weekly, and Cuvva weekly. Most recently, Starling was updated on November 11, 2026 and Cuvva on November 11, 2026.

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