The Best Bank Accounts in Spain in just one more click

Things to know about Spanish Bank Accounts

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Just a quick 2 min read about the most common issues we see with our readers:

Which bank account to choose and how to do it?

As detailed in the image above, there are four important points to look at to choose the best account:

• An account that does not charge commissions. Most banks already offer commission-free accounts, although in exchange for certain requirements. Some entities will force us to link income in the account to avoid commissions, while others will only ask us to operate 100% online.
• An account with simple requirements to meet. If the account we are going to open has conditions, we must make sure we can always meet them. Otherwise, we may start paying costs for the account.
• An account with many ATMs. It is important that the bank where you are going to open a new account has a wide network of ATMs to be able to withdraw cash wherever you go.
• An account that suits my operations. This criterion will suit you. We may be interested in a 100% online account that does not require us to go to a branch to carry out operations, or one that allows us to go to a branch from time to time for certain queries. We must choose the account that best suits our way of operating with the bank.

The most searched questions on Spanish bank accounts:

What operations do the payroll accounts allow?

The same operation as a current account. Payroll accounts allow you to associate cards, make transfers, withdraw or deposit money, have deposits or receipts deposited directly into your account or contract other products.

Will I have to pay commissions if I stop entering the payroll?

No. Not all of the top-ranked payroll accounts will charge us if we fail to enter a payroll. Some accounts offer the possibility of avoiding costs when depositing unemployment benefits or making transfers to the account from another bank.

How do I change the bank payroll?

It’s very simple, you just have to inform your company and give them the new account number where you want to start collecting your payroll.

What if my payroll is temporary, is a payroll account right for me?

It depends on the conditions of the payroll account that we choose, but generally, in these cases we are interested in an account that does not have requirements of linking to avoid costs. The ranking of the best accounts without a payroll is of interest to us if our salary is temporary.

Criteria for making the rankings

To create the rankings of the best accounts from FUNDGECKO we use different variables that are updated daily whenever there is a change in the banking offers:

1. The advantages. The top positions in this ranking of best accounts are occupied by the accounts that offer the most profitability or gifts in the form of cash in exchange for the payroll, they have benefits even if we do not have income…
2. The opinions of the consumers. The experience of our users with the different financial products is the most faithful reflection of the reality of the banking market.
3. The analysis of FUNDGECKO experts. Our experts analyse the banking market in Spain, its trends and characteristics in order to select the best current offers.

How to Open a Bank Account in Spain

Traditionally, Spanish banks have seperated their account offerings into resident and non-resident bank accounts. Luckily however, modern fintech bank accounts (Such as EVOBanco) and the few banks that have improved their online banking options (BBVA) have simplified this massive pain in the @$$ for expats.

However, out of a sense of completeness, here are the requirements you need if you want to open an account with brick-and-mortar banks.

A Non-resident Account

However, if you would like to open a non-resident account with a brick and mortar bank in Spain this is what you need:

• A valid, current passport or national identity card if you’re an EU citizen.
• A document that proves your address in Spain, such as a utility bill that is less than three months old, or a recent bank statement from another Spanish bank.
• A document proving your employment status. A payslip, tax return or a government document showing you are unemployed or receiving a state pension will suffice.
• A ‘Certificado de No Residente’. This confirms that you are non-resident. They are available from Spanish police stations.

A Resident Account

If you’d like to open a resident account in Spain with a brick and mortar bank, you will need:

• A valid, current passport or national identity card if you’re an EU citizen
• A document that proves your address in Spain, such as a utility bill that is less than three months old, or a recent bank statement from another Spanish bank.
• Your NIE number and document (You can get these at a police station)
• Proof of your employment status (such as an employment contract, a student card or unemployment paperwork).

An Online Account

With an online account you’ll have, better usability, less requirements and lower costs in general than a brick-and-mortar bank. Online banks often travel extremely well. The providers have zero or very low fees for transactions, enable various account numbers or seperate accounts for each currency or geography.

The one main drawback is that it becomes difficult to deposit cash into an online account. You will need a partnered Bank or in some Cases such as Liberbank its own physical locations. Withdrawing cash however works everywhere.

Here is what you’ll need for an online bank account:

• Proof of identity: Some form of Photo ID. Passport or national ID works perfectly
• Proof of residency: Ideally some utility bill or recent rental contract.

The process for opening an online bank account is nearly always the same (Our favorite is BBVA due to its speed and simplicity)

Step 1

You can login and create an account in the App or Website.

Step 2

You will be asked to verify phone, email etc and be asked to send in pictures of your photo ID and proof of residence. (Some accounts have a video call integrated where this happens, it takes about 10 minutes).

In general this part is very simple and user friendly

Step 3

After a few minutes, your documents will likely have been accepted and you will have a fully functioning, working bank account with an IBAN and Swift code. Congratulations!

I do recommend ordering a debit card (all providers offer them) to use with your brand new bank account. It will take 5-10 days to arrive wherever you decide to send it.

About this page

What this page is for: This page is created to guide those who want to open a new account. With this ranking users can compare the offer of the best accounts on the banking market according to the opinion of experts and FUNDGECKO users.

Source: The information regarding the main features of the accounts has been obtained thanks to the market research carried out by our experts on a daily basis.

Methodology: the data concerning the conditions of the accounts have been obtained through mystery shopping, communication from the banks and the conditions of their contracts.

About FUNDGECKO: we are an online comparator composed of a team of specialists in financial research. Through our portal, the user can compare different personal finance and home economics products, as well as access quality information that will allow them to choose the product that best suits their profile.

Notice: the services we offer are totally free for the user. FUNDGECKO obtains its income from advertising and its featured products to offer its users a completely free service.

Wrapping Up

Now that you have an overview of the best places to get your bank account setup in Spain and a nice tutorial on what you need.

Remember, shop around the options to see which has the best fit for you and prepare your documentation.

All the recommendations you’ll have found here will work perfectly for getting an operational bank account in Spain.

Our Goal is to help get your financial life in order wherever you are in the world and we are here to help, free of charge.