Běžný účet

Air Bank Current Account (Běžný účet)

Air Bank is one of the banks that builds its current account around simplicity from the start: no conditions for free account maintenance, no mandatory minimum deposits, no complicated table of exceptions that you'd have to re-check every month. The current account is aimed at anyone looking for a standard payment account for everyday spending, without having to track whether they meet some monthly transaction limit, minimum monthly income, or a required number of card payments.

Air Bank has long marketed this product as an account without catches — and as the breakdown of specific fees below shows, the vast majority of everyday operations really do stay free of charge, regardless of how much money is on the account or how often you use it.

Fees and conditions

Account maintenance at Air Bank is free and comes with no conditions — you don't need to set up any regular incoming payment or keep a minimum balance, regardless of how long you've been a client or how much you usually keep on the account. On top of that, you can open up to 10 current accounts free of charge, not just in Czech koruna but also in euros and US dollars, which suits people with income or expenses in more than one currency — freelancers invoicing foreign clients in euros, for example, or families who want to keep everyday spending separate from savings held in another currency, without paying extra for a second, third or fourth account.

Domestic incoming and outgoing payments, cash deposits at a branch or via a deposit ATM, and withdrawals from nearly 2,000 Air Bank ATMs across the Czech Republic are all free as well — a dense network that covers everyday cash needs without a single extra crown. The bank also issues both a physical and a virtual payment card to the account free of charge, so you can pay either with the physical card or straight from your phone via a digital wallet.

Where fees do appear is cash withdrawals abroad: withdrawing from another bank's ATM within the EU costs CZK 35 per withdrawal, and outside the EU it's CZK 100 per withdrawal. Frequent travellers can cancel these fees with an add-on service costing CZK 100 per month, which allows unlimited withdrawals from foreign ATMs worldwide — in practice this flat-fee service pays off from roughly two withdrawals outside the EU per month (2 × CZK 100 = CZK 200 versus the CZK 100 flat fee), while for withdrawals purely within the EU (CZK 35 each) you'd need three or more withdrawals a month before the CZK 100 flat fee actually pays for itself. Other optional paid services include unlimited SMS account notifications for CZK 25 a month, or splitting a single payment into 3 instalments for a one-off CZK 50. None of these add-on services is mandatory, though — without them, running the account genuinely stays free, and their price is clearly stated upfront rather than buried in general terms and conditions.

Bonuses and the loyalty programme

Unlike some competing banks, Air Bank doesn't offer any cash sign-up bonus just for opening the current account itself — this is a product without an incentive reward for opening an account, not a time-limited marketing promotion you'd have to catch within a certain deadline. Anyone looking primarily for a one-off reward for switching banks won't find one with this particular account.

Instead, Air Bank rewards long-term loyal clients differently: as part of its loyalty programme it offers a bonus interest rate of 2.6% per year on a savings account up to a balance of CZK 500,000, plus a 0.1% discount on the mortgage interest rate. These perks are tied to other bank products (the savings account, the mortgage), not to the current account itself, so they're not a reason to open this account on its own — think of them more as a bonus if you plan to gradually use other Air Bank products too and would rather not split your current account, savings and home loan across several different banks.

Who the account suits

Air Bank's current account will appeal above all to clients who want a simple, free account with no hidden conditions and no need to monitor monthly activity, minimum income, or a required number of card payments. Thanks to the option of holding up to ten accounts in koruna, euros and dollars, it also suits people who regularly receive or send payments in a foreign currency and don't want to pay extra for currency conversion and maintaining a separate account — typically self-employed people with part of their income in euros, people working for foreign companies, or families who want to keep everyday spending separate from savings held in another currency.

On the other hand, clients who withdraw cash abroad frequently and don't want to pay CZK 35 or CZK 100 per individual withdrawal should factor in the CZK 100 monthly add-on service in advance, or look for an account that offers free withdrawals abroad as standard, with nothing to buy on top. Likewise, anyone whose main priority when opening a new account is a cash sign-up bonus won't get one from this particular Air Bank product, and should compare competing offers that do include a welcome bonus.

Pros and cons

• Pros:
• Account maintenance free with no conditions whatsoever
• Up to 10 accounts free of charge in CZK, EUR and USD
• Withdrawals from nearly 2,000 Air Bank's own ATMs free of charge
• Physical and virtual card at no cost
• Loyalty bonuses on a savings account (2.6% p.a.) and on a mortgage (-0.1%)

• Cons:
• No sign-up bonus for opening the current account
• Withdrawals from ATMs abroad are chargeable (CZK 35 in the EU / CZK 100 outside the EU) unless you pay for the add-on service
• Unlimited withdrawals abroad and SMS notifications are only available as paid add-on services

Summary

Air Bank's current account is a textbook example of an unconditionally free account: no minimum deposit, no mandatory income, no welcome bonus — but also no hidden fees for everyday use. Account maintenance, domestic payments, deposits, and withdrawals from the bank's own network of nearly 2,000 ATMs all stay free regardless of how you use the account — and that alone is still more the exception than the rule among current accounts. Anyone looking for a straightforward account for everyday spending in koruna and foreign currencies, and happy to rely on Air Bank's free ATM network in the Czech Republic, will find a solid choice here, with the option to later add a savings account or mortgage with a loyalty discount.

Anyone who frequently withdraws cash abroad, however, should work out in advance whether the CZK 100 monthly add-on service is worth it for them, or whether an account offering free withdrawals abroad as standard elsewhere on the market would suit them better. And anyone who values a cash welcome bonus above all when opening a new account won't find one at Air Bank — here the main selling point is zero cost for everyday banking, not a one-off bonus.