Triodos Bank 4+

I am an environmentalist working in NGO sector so I decided to give this bank a go. It was a good feeling to know that I could also make a difference through banking.

However, the bank is years behind what we got used to from mainstream banks in terms of online and app functionality and light years behind online banks such as Starling, Menzo or Revolut. Managers at TRIODOS bank obviously think that we are tree hugging cavemen and do not want to build a bank that we not only feel good about but also love.

Be prepared for online banking interface from 1990s and an app you cannot really do much with. Login with idiotic Digi pass so good luck if you forget to take it on holiday. No Apple Pay integration so you need to carry plastic everywhere. Transfer times are ridiculous as you need to wait hours for the money or till next day when you transfer in the afternoon. These days it should be instant. Other banks cannot verify the account so you get warnings of some spam. These are just few reasons after having this account for a few days for which I am dying to switch asap.

Good luck TRIODOS. I am keen on your mission but there is only so much ignorance and mediocracy I can cope with. You are very short sighted business.

I recently opened a current account with triodos. I like the ethical stance and transparency around where they invest their money, but I was concerned their online banking and mobile app offering would not be up to scratch, so I was keen to evaluate the app first before fully committing to switching.

Having evaluated the app for a few days I have to say I'm fairly impressed. It was quick and easy to set up once I received my digipass. All the functionality you would expect (viewing balances on accounts, viewing and searching on transactions, payee management and making payments) is there. The interface is refreshingly clean, uncluttered and intuitive. I like the ability to filter by credits, debits and upcoming payments. The duplicate payment detection to ensure you don't accidentally pay the same person the same amount twice is also a nice touch. They have clearly thought about (and by the sounds of it much improved) their mobile app offering.

Overall I would say this is an excellent banking app which is more than enough to meet everyday banking needs, and in my personal view is more enjoyable and uncluttered to use than the mobile app from my current (mainstream) bank.

I quite like the bank but £3 a month is hard to justify with such a basic app that removes the Face ID after each update so you have to set it up again & you still have to pay a small fortune in foreign transaction fees despite paying £3 a month for the account…they are relatively transparent about this but I think if you’re paying £3 a month it should cover everything in terms of a basic account, considering switching to the Co-op where they’re willing to pay me to have an account with them!