First Direct: £59 Free Cash
17 mins£208/hr
First Direct is a branchless UK bank offering current accounts and savings by app and phone.
Offer overview
Chris · Your personal guide
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Open a First Direct Regular Saver at a fixed 7%, a rate that can't drop during the term.
You need a First Direct 1st Account first, and to keep it open for the whole term.
Step by Step Guide
- 1Log in to First Direct online banking or the mobile app
- 2Navigate to Savings and select ‘Regular Saver’
- 3Choose your monthly deposit amount (£25 to £300 in multiples of £5)
Your first payment is taken from your 1st Account on the day you open, and a standing order is set up automatically for the same date each month
First Direct sets up the standing order automatically from your 1st Account
Note the payment date — it can’t be changed once set
- To change the amount, contact First Direct via the app, online banking, or phone before your next payment date
Only one payment per month is allowed, between £25 and £300
- Your standing order runs automatically from your 1st Account each month. To change the amount, contact First Direct before your payment date.
- You can pay between £25 and £300 per month (in multiples of £5). If you pay less than £300 in one month, you can make up the difference in future months.
- Keep your 1st Account open for the full 12 months — the standing order must come from this account.
After 12 months, your interest is added and the balance transfers to your First Direct Savings Account automatically
The maturity process can take up to 5 working days
- Once matured, move your money to the best available savings account — the Savings Account rate will be lower
Quick review
First Direct
Wondering whether First Direct is worth it beyond the bonus? Here is our honest take.
Customer service nerds, this one's for you. Quidsy has two live offers with First Direct: £210 free cash for switching your current account (£175 plus a £35 boost if you open by 2 December 2026), plus a 7.00% AER Regular Saver paying on £25 to £300 monthly deposits. The catch is you need the 1st Account open before the Regular Saver unlocks.
Chris' verdictYour personal guide, QuidsyIf customer service matters to you, First Direct is genuinely the best bank in the UK right now. They topped the January 2026 UKCSI Best Customer Service ranking across all 13 sectors the index covers, not just banking, and 97% of customers in Finder's awards said they would recommend the bank.
Phone support is 24/7 and you actually speak to a real person in Leeds, which sounds like a small thing until you have spent half an hour stuck on someone else's phone tree.
The 1st Account itself is one of the most useful current accounts in the market. No monthly fee, fee-free spending abroad, a £250 interest-free overdraft buffer, and access to a 7% Regular Saver once you are a customer. That Regular Saver alone is reason to switch and stay.
The only real downside is no branches, which matters for some people and not others. If you need to deposit cash regularly or want a face-to-face relationship with your bank, this is not the one. For everyone else, especially if you are already comfortable doing your banking on a phone, it is a strong recommendation, better than the high-street alternatives in almost every measurable way.
First Direct is a division of HSBC UK Bank plc, authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority (FRN 765112). Eligible deposits are protected by the FSCS up to £120,000.