Novo vs Paycek
Two virtual cards people weigh up side by side. We put Novo and Paycek on the same rows so the difference is easy to see.
Novo issues on Mastercard and Paycek on Visa + Mastercard; verification is Business KYC at Novo versus No KYC at Paycek; only Paycek takes crypto top-ups.
Novo is the more cost-effective option for everyday spending and travel thanks to its free virtual cards, no monthly fee, 0% foreign transaction fees, no top-up fee. Paycek is the better fit for power users who need crypto funding.
Side by side
| Field | Novo | Paycek |
|---|---|---|
| Card network | Mastercard | Visa + Mastercard |
| Card type | Digital Bank / Neobank | Crypto Card |
| KYC | Business KYC | No KYC |
| Card issuance fee | Free | Free |
| Monthly fee | Free ($0 monthly, no minimum balance) | Free |
| Top-up fee | — | 1.5% |
| FX fee | — | 1.5% |
| Crypto funding | No | Yes (20+ currencies) |
| AI tool support | — | — |
| Risk level | Low | High |
| Our rating | 8.3 | 8.8 |
| User reviews | 926 | 138 |
| Best for | App Store / Play · Free issuance | App Store / Play · No KYC |
A green left edge marks the side that holds the advantage on that row, where the data gives one.
Where they split
- Paycek has the lighter onboarding; Novo will want more documents from you.
- Only Paycek takes crypto top-ups in our data — worth knowing before you decide.
- In our scoring, Paycek finished ahead of Novo — not by a mile, but enough to tilt a tiebreak.
- If risk rating weights your choice, Novo is the calmer of the two.
What sets them apart
Novo is the cheaper card to hold: free to create and no top-up fee, against free and a 1.5% top-up at Paycek. Paycek earns its keep only if you need crypto funding.
Questions people ask
That depends on what you spend on. Novo scores 8.3/10 against Paycek's 8.8/10 in our tests, but the two split on fees, KYC and crypto funding. Read the table above, then match it to the checkouts you actually run.
Novo works out cheaper: no virtual card issuance fee, free account maintenance, 0% foreign transaction fee, no top-up fee. Paycek adds a 1.5% FX fee, a 1.5% top-up fee.
Novo asks for Business KYC at signup; Paycek asks for No KYC. If a light sign-up is the priority, the one with the lower KYC label is the faster route.
Both show up in 2 of the same test scenarios, including PlayStation Network, Airbnb. They overlap on a good share of checkouts, so the choice between them matters most on those pages. Where one is accepted and the other is not usually comes down to the billing country and 3-D Secure handling.
Where both show up
Novo and Paycek both landed in our top picks for 2 checkouts. Grouped by category so you can jump straight to the one you actually pay for:
🎮 Gaming 1
🧳 Travel & Productivity 1
Their BIN ranges
Cards issued in 🇺🇸 US · 🇪🇺 Europe (EEA) — the country guides group every range we track from there.
What our charge log shows
Every count here is a real charge attempt we placed on that range, renewals included, with the gateway response recorded. Weeks tracked is how long the range has been in the programme: