Which Belgian banks still offer a free current account in 2026?

Six current accounts stay at €0 a year in Belgium in 2026: Argenta Compte Green, Keytrade Keypack, CBC Pure Online, Belfius Beats Pulse, Hello bank! and Beobank Go. None charges an account maintenance fee, and all include the debit card. Yet the word "free" has a sharp edge: these accounts assume online management, and anything that spills off the screen — a paper statement, a branch visit, one withdrawal too many — takes a price back. Here are the ones that keep the promise, and on what conditions.

Which banks offer a current account at €0 a year in 2026?

Six providers, with different profiles. Test-Achats ranks Keytrade Keypack, Europabank Eco Pack and Argenta Green at the top of its free-account list; the three others complete the market's €0 offering.

Each includes the Bancontact debit card. Keytrade goes further: a free Visa card for the first year, free cash withdrawals in Belgium and the eurozone, and a bonus of 5 cents per card transaction. Argenta adds a free prepaid Mastercard and an optional credit card at €2 per month, free for under-25s. To place these zeros against the rest of the market: at KBC, the Compte de base is €30 a year and the Compte Plus €4.25 a month, or €51 a year; at ING, the Lion Account is presented at €0 but the full packages start around €47 a year.

The full ranking of Belgian banks shows these annual costs next to the savings rates each bank pays.

Does "free" really mean no fees at all?

No. An account at €0 is free on maintenance, not on everything around it. The difference between a good and a bad free account is decided on three lines nobody reads before signing.

First, the paper statement: the digital version is free everywhere, the printed version mailed to you is charged, often a few euros per envelope. Then counter operations: a transfer handed in on paper, or an operation done by a bank employee, costs more than the same thing online — when it isn't simply excluded from the free account. Finally, cash withdrawals: Belgian law requires at least 24 free withdrawals a year, but several free accounts count each withdrawal from the 25th of the year.

Do you have to go 100% online to pay nothing?

In almost every case, yes. Five of the six free accounts — Keytrade, Argenta Green, CBC Pure Online, Belfius Beats Pulse and Hello bank! — are online accounts, built for the app and the browser, with no dedicated adviser. That is the economics of free: the bank doesn't charge for maintenance because it doesn't put a branch to work for you.

The 2026 turning point shows this clearly at Argenta. The Compte Green stays at €0 a year, but the bank ended free paper transfers handed in at the branch. The account hasn't moved; it's the counter that became paid. In other words, free holds as long as you stay in front of a screen.

Only one keeps a foot in both worlds: Beobank Go, at €0 a year, keeps access to Beobank branches. The trade-off is visible in the grid: counter operations there are charged per item. It's the account for anyone who wants zero everyday fees without giving up the option of walking through a door.

Are neobanks a reliable free option?

Yes on price, with a reservation on the guarantee. N26, Revolut and bunq offer a €0-a-year base, payment card included. But two points are worth reading before you have your salary paid in.

First, the real price: the €0 covers the base tier. Premium cards, withdrawals beyond a monthly ceiling, and sometimes instant transfers cost money, exactly like the side lines of a Belgian account. Second, the deposit guarantee: it does cap at €100,000 per depositor, but it is issued by the country that licensed the bank — Germany for N26, Lithuania for Revolut, the Netherlands for bunq — not Belgium. In case of failure, it is the foreign guarantee fund that steps in. Nothing unusual within the European Union, but a nuance to know before putting everything there.

Our current-account comparator places these neobanks and Belgian banks side by side, real annual cost against real annual cost.

How do you check that an account is free for your use?

Open the tariff information document — every bank is required to publish it — and read four lines, not a brochure.

1. Account maintenance: it should show €0 for a free account. That's the starting point, not the conclusion.
2. Paper statement: multiply the price by the number of paper mailings you request in a year. Zero if you're all-digital.
3. Counter operation: multiply by the number of times you walk into the branch.
4. Cash withdrawal: check the free annual quota and the price beyond it, then count your real withdrawals.

The total of these lines is your real cost. If it stays at €0, the account is free for you. If it climbs, compare it with another free account whose profile fits your use better. The guide on how to choose your bank covers these criteria one by one, and our article on banking fees in Belgium in 2026 details the full calculation method.

Free account or paid account: which to choose?

A "free" bank doesn't exist in the strict sense: there are the ones you pay nothing to because you stay online, and the ones whose displayed zero turns into a few dozen euros the moment you print, visit the counter or withdraw too much. The right free account is the one whose paid lines don't concern you. Check it once, in January, when the tariffs are revised.

Sources

• Test-Achats — Best free current account in Belgium (accessed 31 July 2026)
• Comparatif-Compte-Courant.be — Argenta Green: free paper transfers at the branch are over (2026)
• Comparatif-Compte-Courant.be — Keytrade Bank's free current account: Keypack (2026)
• HelloSafe — Best free current accounts in Belgium in 2026 (2026)
• Guide-Epargne.be — Free current accounts in Belgium (2026)
• Belfius — Tariffs and rates in force at 01-02-2026 (February 2026)