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Best bank account switching deals December 2025
We round up the best deals for getting a cash bonus or other perks, with up to £200 available for some customers
If you're looking to boost your balance this Christmas, there are currently three switching deals available from Santander, Nationwide and First Direct.
Read on for a breakdown of the latest current account offers (ordered by newest first), how they compare and their key eligibility rules.
If you're thinking of switching to any of the accounts mentioned in this article, ensure you refer to the terms and conditions of the deal to make sure it's right for you.
Latest bank account switching incentives
- Santander: £200
- Nationwide: £175
- First Direct: £175
Santander: £200
Santander is offering £200 to new and existing customers who switch their main bank account, plus a free 12-month Kids Pass membership worth £40 for those opening a Santander savings account or cash Isa.
The £200 bonus is available when you switch to one of Santander’s eligible accounts – Everyday, Edge, Edge Up, Edge Explorer or Private – using the CASS.
- The Everyday account has no monthly fee and offers standard banking features.
- The Edge account costs £3 a month and pays 1% cashback (up to £10 a month) on selected household bills.
- The Edge Up account costs £5 a month, offering up to £15 a month cashback on bills plus 2.5% AER (variable) on balances up to £25,000.
- The Edge Explorer account costs £10 a month and adds travel and mobile phone insurance, 24/7 GP access and fee-free debit card spending abroad.
How to get £200: You’ll need to submit a full switch request through the CASS and complete the switch within 90 days.
To qualify, you must pay in at least £1,500 and set up two active direct debits, such as for bills or council tax. The £200 payment will be made within 90 days of meeting these conditions.
Other perks: Customers opening any Santander savings account or cash Isa can also claim a free 12-month Kids Pass membership worth £40 by paying in at least £100 within 30 days.
The membership offers discounts on family days out, restaurants, cinema trips and holiday activities.
You’ll receive a unique code through online or mobile banking within 30 days of crediting your account.
What's in the small print?: The offer is open to both new customers and people who already hold another Santander product, such as a savings account, mortgage or credit card. However, you must be switching from a current account held with another bank into a new Santander current account.
You won’t qualify if you already hold a Santander, Cahoot or Cater Allen current account, or if you’ve previously received a Santander switch incentive.
When the deal ends: No closing date has been confirmed, but the offer can be withdrawn at any time.
Is Santander a good provider? Santander ranked 19th out of 22 banks in our latest customer satisfaction survey, with a score of 71%. It earned four stars for its mobile app and online banking, and three stars for customer service overall. It scored two stars for its service in-branch, its telephone banking service and contacting customer services.
- Find out more: best banks and bank accounts 2025 – see what our experts thought of the Everyday, Edge and Edge Up accounts in their product analysis
Nationwide: £175
Nationwide is giving new and existing customers £175 when they switch their main bank account using the CASS. The switching incentive will be paid to those who move to one of Nationwide’s three main accounts:
- FlexAccount: This is Nationwide’s everyday bank account offering standard banking features, including making and receiving payments, withdrawing cash with a debit card, and setting up Direct Debits for bills.
- FlexDirect: This online-only current account offers standard banking features as well as 5% AER credit interest on up to £1,500, and 1% cashback (capped at £5 a month) on debit card spending for the first 12 months. If you combine the cashback and the switching offer, it totals £235 over 12 months.
- FlexPlus: This is a packaged account offering benefits including worldwide family travel insurance, mobile phone insurance, UK and European breakdown cover and commission-free usage abroad. This costs £18 a month.
How to get £175: To qualify, you will need to complete a full switch from your current bank using the CASS to one of the listed Nationwide accounts. The switch must have been started on or after 18 September, and needs to be completed within 28 days.
After this, the money will be sent directly to your account within 10 days. Your old account must have at least two direct debits to move over, and you'll need to pay at least £1,000 into the account within 31 days. You must also make one debit card payment within this timeframe.
Existing Nationwide customers can also qualify for the offer by requesting a full switch from another bank into an eligible account they already hold while the offer is active.
What's in the small print? You won’t qualify for the money if you've received a switching incentive for a sole or joint account since 2021.
However, you can still get the money if you previously took up the offer on a sole current account, and you’re now switching into a joint current account that hasn’t had the offer before – and vice versa. If you're switching into a joint account, you'll only receive one payment of £175.
When the deal ends: No end date has been confirmed by Nationwide, but the offer can be withdrawn at any time.
Is Nationwide a good provider? In our latest survey of banking customers, Nationwide ranked joint 4th with a customer satisfaction score of 84% and was the only Which Recommended Provider with physical branches across the UK.
The building society earned a five-star rating for its online banking and a four-star rating for its mobile banking, branch services, application process, contacting customer service and overall customer service. It scored three stars for its telephone banking service.
- Find out more: best banks and bank accounts 2025 – see which other banks have been named WRPs this year
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Compare and chooseFirst Direct: £175
First Direct is offering £175 to switch to its 1st Account.
The account comes with no monthly fee and offers a £250 interest-free overdraft buffer. However, if you borrow more than £250, you'll pay 39.9% EAR.
It also offers fee-free spending abroad. Before the bank scrapped its fees in 2023, customers used to pay 2.75% to withdraw cash or spend money abroad.
How to get £175: You’ll need to use the CASS to be eligible for the offer, and switch at least two direct debits or standing orders.
Other requirements include depositing a minimum of £1,000 into the account within 30 days of opening, and registering and logging in to digital banking.
What’s in the small print: This deal is available only to new customers who haven’t previously held a First Direct product.
You also won’t be eligible for this deal if you held an HSBC current account on or after 1 January 2018.
When the deal ends: There’s no end date listed for this deal, but it can be withdrawn at any point.
Is First Direct a good provider? First Direct consistently ranks among the top banks, . It got an impressive 84% customer satisfaction score in our latest survey, placing joint 4th out of 22 providers. It’s also been named one of our Which? Recommended Providers (WRPs).
First Direct earned the full five stars for its online, telephone and mobile banking service and its customer service in general, and four stars for contacting customer service.
As a division of HSBC, First Direct is covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), but it’s important to keep in mind that the £120,000 FSCS protection limit applies across both brands. If you have accounts with both First Direct and HSBC, ensure your total deposits across the two are below this threshold to stay fully protected.
- Find out more: best banks and bank accounts 2025 – see which other banks have been named WRPs this year
