PayPaw vs Starling Bank
Both PayPaw and Starling Bank clear the checkouts our readers ask about most. Here is where the two part ways on fees and verification.
PayPaw issues on Prepaid (EUR · USD) via Apple · Go and Starling Bank on Mastercard; verification is No KYC at PayPaw versus ID + proof at Starling Bank; only PayPaw takes crypto top-ups.
Starling Bank is the more cost-effective option for everyday spending and travel thanks to its free virtual cards, no monthly fee, 0% foreign transaction fees. PayPaw is the better fit for power users who need crypto funding.
Side by side
| Field | PayPaw | Starling Bank |
|---|---|---|
| Card network | Prepaid (EUR/USD) via Apple/Google Pay | Mastercard |
| Card type | Crypto Card | Digital Bank / Neobank |
| KYC | No KYC | ID + proof |
| Card issuance fee | 3% + $2 flat | Free |
| Monthly fee | Free | Free |
| Top-up fee | — | — |
| FX fee | 2% (foreign currency conversion) | 0% (no foreign transaction fee) |
| Crypto funding | Yes (Solana: SOL/USDC/USDT/BONK) | No |
| AI tool support | — | ChatGPT / Claude / Midjourney |
| Risk level | High | Low-Medium |
| Our rating | 8.6 | 9.1 |
| User reviews | 284 | 437 |
| Best for | App Store / Play · Crypto funded | All-rounder · Ad spend |
A green left edge marks the side that holds the advantage on that row, where the data gives one.
Where they split
- Starling Bank costs less to keep open, so it is the one to reach for if you are watching your budget.
- If you wear several hats, Starling Bank is the more flexible of the pair.
- Prefer a short sign-up? PayPaw is the lower-friction option here.
- PayPaw can sit on a crypto balance; Starling Bank cannot, so the call depends on how you fund it.
- In our scoring, Starling Bank finished ahead of PayPaw — not by a mile, but enough to tilt a tiebreak.
- Starling Bank carries the lower risk flag in our file, which some users prefer for a primary card.
The two, compared
Run the numbers against your own usage. Starling Bank runs free to create plus no top-up fee per top-up; PayPaw runs about $3 plus no top-up fee. For one or two subscriptions the first column wins; for crypto funding, the second does.
Questions people ask
That depends on what you spend on. PayPaw scores 8.6/10 against Starling Bank's 9.1/10 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.
Starling Bank works out cheaper: no virtual card issuance fee, free account maintenance, 0% foreign transaction fee. PayPaw adds about $3 per virtual card, a 2% FX fee.
PayPaw asks for No KYC at signup; Starling Bank asks for ID + proof. If a light sign-up is the priority, the one with the lower KYC label is the faster route.
Both show up in 1 of the same test scenarios, including Blizzard Entertainment. 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
PayPaw and Starling Bank both landed in our top picks for 1 checkouts. Grouped by category so you can jump straight to the one you actually pay for:
🎮 Gaming 1
Their BIN ranges
Cards issued in 🇬🇧 UK — 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:
| Card | BIN | Network | Attempts | Cleared | Rate | Weeks tracked |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starling Bank | 558350 | Mastercard | 198 | 143 | 72% | 7 |