The hoax of current accounts in the first 8 months of 2026

The numbers speak for themselves: current account costs are increasing in the first eight months of 2026. This is generally speaking. Maintaining a current account, however, does not cost the same for everyone. A survey by Altroconsumo highlights an increasingly marked difference between those who use branch services and those who prefer to manage their accounts via the internet and apps. In the first case, expenses show an upward trend, while on the digital front the offers dedicated to younger people become more interesting. At the same time, the interest paid on the sums left in the account remains practically nil, while overdrafts and overdrafts become more expensive.

Comparison between three profiles

To compare the different offers, Altroconsumo used the overall cost indicator (Icc), a parameter defined by the Bank of Italy which allows the annual expenditure of an account to be estimated by considering commissions, services and operations carried out. The comparison examines three profiles: young people, families and pensioners, associated with an average level of operation. For traditional accounts, the operations envisaged for the profile at the counter were considered, while for online ones, reference was made to the digital operations established for each category. The survey compares the conditions available in January and those recorded in August 2026, based on the institutions’ information documents and information sheets.

The costs in detail

In essence, the item that weighs the most is that of the operations carried out with the intervention of bank staff. For traditional accounts the average ICC grows, with increases ranging from 0.35% for families to 0.49% for pensioners. Among the ten institutions examined, the increases recorded in the period concern Bper Banca and UniCredit, while the ordinary account maintenance fees have not undergone changes. In the case of UniCredit, the Genius account saw the cost of the ordinary, instant or periodic Sepa transfer arranged online or via self-service ATM increase from 1.20 to 1.30 euros. For a paper transfer at the counter the rate has instead gone from 11.50 to 11.80 euros.

The concrete effect on the overall cost was particularly evident for young people, for whom the ICC increased by 7.22%; the variation is 0.89% for families and 0.60% for pensioners. Bper has also adjusted the conditions of the Bper ondemand account: since July a commission of 0.25 euros has been introduced on Sepa direct debits, used for example to direct bills and subscriptions. The change leads the ICC to grow by 3.61% for pensioners and by approximately 2% for young people and families.

* ICC Giovani, according to the usage profile established by the Bank of Italy (164 over-the-counter transactions in one year)

* ICC Families, according to the usage profile established by the Bank of Italy (228 transactions in one year at the counter)

* ICC Pensioners, according to the usage profile established by the Bank of Italy (189 operations in one year at the counter)

Online management and young people

On balance, digital management continues to represent the most convenient alternative on average, but not all profiles benefit from the changes in the same way. The average ICC of young people is reduced by 6%, while for families and pensioners there are increases in costs. The tables show, for the latter two profiles, average increases of 10.45% and 6.17% respectively. Among the offers reported in the survey, N26 maintains a very low cost for all profiles, while Revolut and Buddy UniCredit have higher costs for the operations considered.

The most interesting part, however, concerns the initiatives aimed at under 35s. Isybank, the digital bank of the Intesa Sanpaolo group, eliminates the monthly fee for the IsyPrime account for this age group and also supports the stamp duty. In comparison, the ICC of the young profile goes from 150.70 to 31.90 euros, with a cut of 118.80 euros, equal to approximately 79%. However, the refund of stamp duty is not counted in the calculation of the Icc. ING has also chosen to make the cancellation of the fee for those under 30 of the Arancio Più current account structural, initially scheduled only until February 2026. For young people this change determines a reduction in the Icc of 30 euros. For families and pensioners, however, the cost remains zero when the credit of the salary or pension allows the monthly fee to be eliminated.

* ICC Giovani, according to the usage profile established by the Bank of Italy (164 online operations in one year)
** Online the first year for 5 euros
*** Stamp duty refund of 34.20 euros not included in the ICC calculation

* ICC Families, according to the usage profile established by the Bank of Italy (228 online operations in one year)
** Online first year at 12.36 euros

* ICC Pensioners, according to the usage profile established by the Bank of Italy (189 online operations in one year)
** Online first year at 12.36 euros

Not all online banks, however, have followed the same direction. With the new Fineco One Account, Fineco has eliminated the fixed fee but has increased some fees linked to the actual use of the account. Depositing cash or checks at UniCredit ATMs, which was previously free, now costs 2.95 euros for each operation. Furthermore, for families and pensioners, the multifunction credit card goes from 29.95 to 39.95 euros per year and the withdrawal of amounts lower than 99 euros increases from 0.80 to one euro. The result is a jump in the ICC of 49% for young people, 90% for families and 64% for pensioners. In other words, the absence of a fee does not necessarily mean that the account is cheaper: the costs for individual operations can compensate and in some cases exceed the savings.

It’s not just the commissions that are changing. In the period January-August 2026, the rates applied by some large banking institutions to debit uses also increased. The increases affect, in particular, the Prime account of Mediobanca Premier, the Mps mio and Modulo plus account of Monte dei Paschi di Siena and the Xme gold account of Intesa Sanpaolo. The situation is unbalanced: while the remuneration of the liquidity deposited in the account remains zero, those who go into the red have to bear double-digit interest. On average the rate reaches 17.97% in the absence of credit and 12.41% when credit is available. Compared to the previous survey, the two values ​​increased by 0.05% and 0.03% respectively.

It is also true that current account rates can change even within a few months. For this reason it is advisable to periodically check the information sheet, read the communications relating to contractual changes and compare your offer with alternatives that include, for example, bank transfers in the fee. The convenience of an account, in fact, does not depend only on the fixed monthly price, but on the set of operations that each customer carries out during the year.