Skrill vs Revolut: Our 2022 comparison. Which is better? Find out below.

Skrill and Revolut are both pretty well-known names in e-commerce and online banking. If you’re trying to figure out which is best for you, you’re in the right place! So today, we're going to be covering the most important aspects of each. What are Skrill and Revolut, what do they offer to users, and is there a clear winner, one way or the other?

Let’s see which is the best choice for you, shall we?

Today's Topics Include:

• What is Revolut?
• What is Skrill?
• Is Skrill or Revolut Better?
  • Skrill:
  • Revolut

Now, let’s get you some answers!

Skrill vs. Revolut: The Breakdown

There is a lot to remember here, so read carefully. We’ll start with the simple stuff and move into the more complicated bits shortly, yeah?

What is Revolut?

Revolut is a relatively recent (2015) e-commerce and fintech startup that is in the running for competition with the industry’s largest names, such as Payoneer, Skrill, PayPal, and (unsurprisingly) traditional banks. They’re regulated by both United States and United Kingdom governmental bodies, and allow users access to commission-free stock trading.

Revolut has also recently gotten into crypto trading and savings accounts for those without access to traditional bank accounts.

What is Skrill?

Skrill (formerly MoneyBookers) is a longstanding digital wallet and e-commerce site established in 2001. They operate in well over 120 countries, have access to 40 currencies, and are regularly used by both businesses and individuals alike.

Although primarily an e-wallet for the gambling, trading & forex industry, Skrill can also be used to invest in cryptocurrency, trade foreign currency, and process payments in both physical and virtual storefronts with near-instant, extremely secure payment processing.

Is Skrill or Revolut Better?

This is a hard question to answer directly, as it will vary on your needs. As such, I’m going to give you a few pros and cons and break down some of the most commonly-used services on both platforms so you can make an informed decision based on your needs.

First up is Skrill.

Skrill Basics

Skrill is a long-standing name in e-commerce and online wallets. As such, they’ve had the time that Revolut simply hasn’t had to build their offering and provide service to a wide range of users in numerous countries.

While Skrill offers business accounts, its primary focus (and its largest strengths) lie in what they offer to individual account holders.

So what makes Skrill, well, Skrill?

• Skrill is the de-facto leader in payment processing for the gambling industry
• Skrill is free to use and register for; VIP levels and various benefits can be unlocked by spending more on the platform.
  • (Or, alternatively, you can instantly get VIP Silver when you link your Skrill account through Volume Kings.)
• Skrill provides detailed documentation of all transactions to all users
• Accepted Payments with:
  • Credit, debit, and (Skrill) prepaid cards
  • Virtual cards and wallets (Google, Apple, and Samsung Wallets)
  • Bank transfer (one-time or verified ACH)
  • Check out our “Paying With Skrill” article for more information

Skrill Pros

• Extremely secure

• Fast (near-instant) payment processing with most forms of payment

• Prepaid card
  • Can be used with brick-and-mortar retailers and virtual merchants anywhere Mastercard or Visa is accepted.
  • Can be used to withdraw your Skrill wallet funds from ATMs

• Wide application - both mobile and desktop, Android and iOS.

• Both business and individual accounts are available on Skrill, whereas Revolut only offers individual accounts.

• High-quality mobile app
• Extremely broad coverage to use Skrill for online gambling & gaming.

Skrill Cons

• No live customer service or support*
  • *They do have an (occasionally useful) chatbot, named Sophia and offer VIP-first support for VIP users.

• Long verification process
  • Takes up to 5 business days.
  • Unlike Revolut, you can still use an unverified account for rudimentary, highly limited transactions such as sending money to a friend on Skrill. The limits can be as low as $135 a month (or your local currency’s equivalent amount) on withdrawals, deposits, and transfers.

• Skrill is slightly less established in the United States, only recently bringing the prepaid card and other features to users in the States.
  • Skrill users in the U.S. cannot (in most cases, with rare exceptions) gamble online with Skrill funds due to local gambling laws.

Revolut Basics

Let’s talk sheer basics for Revolut really quickly. There are a number of shared features between Skrill and Revolut, so we’ll start with what makes each unique and cover their similar features in the “Shared Features” subsection below.

So what makes Revolut, well, Revolut?

• Revolut has live customer support during normal business hours (9 a.m. to 5 p.m. PST)

• There is a $32 monthly subscription fee to use Revolut

• Accepted payments:
  • Money transfer
  • Cryptocurrency payment
  • Business bank accounts
  • Online banking
  • Virtual debit/credit cards

All in all, Revolut is primarily focused on mobile banking, card payments, money remittance, and foreign exchange (forex). They offer a prepaid card and P2P payments, and aim to do all of the above safely, securely, and with the proper support.

Revolut is primarily geared towards individual users, though they do offer quite a few features that allow companies a great deal of both control and integration possibilities for their finances.

Revolut Pros

• Secure

• Fast to send/receive payments

• Lots of integrations

• Live customer service - something Skrill still lacks

• Physical and virtual cards that can be used both at online merchants and brick-and-mortar retailers

• Can use cryptocurrency to make payments

• Online banking

Revolut Cons

• Monthly membership fee

• Fewer integrations than Skrill

• Fewer payment gateways than Skrill

• Very little documentation is offered for transactions

Conclusion

All in all, which platform between Skrill and Revolut is better for you will depend on your needs. If you’re a business owner trying to get a bit more security and control over your finances, Revolut is likely the better option. But if you’re just trying to operate as an individual, Skrill is cheaper to register (free), has lower fees on average, and offers a number of services that Revolut doesn’t.

At the end of the day, you’ll need to make the decision that suits your needs - but it wouldn’t hurt to open an account on both… right?