Comparing Current Versus Greenlight Financial App
Current and Greenlight are two well-known and trusted financial institutions that provide a range of useful services and products for customers. Both companies offer debit cards for kids. Their products for kids come with user-friendly tools for parental control that parents can rely on to teach their children a thing or two about spending and the importance of smart banking habits. Their debit cards are best referred to as training tools that help your kids learn a lot about financial responsibility, money management, and good spending habits. The cards encourage transparency for spending, limits, transactions, and financial literacy for both kids and parents.
- Greenlight – is the best choice for those who are interested in more than just saving and spending. The Greenlight offers a financial learning center, investment options, cash back rewards, card personalization, and a VIP status card. There are no age restrictions and it cost more than the Current.
- Current – is best for families with kids over 13 years old. It’s a great online banking option and financial tool to teach teens about everyday spending, savings, and responsibilities.
Table of Content
- Greenlight Debit Card for Kids
- Current Debit Card for Teens
- Similarities: Greenlight vs. Current
- Subscriptions, Plans, and Fees
- Differences: Greenlight vs. Current
- Ratings and Reviews
- Similar Offers and Alternatives
Detailed Comparison Table
| Current | Greenlight | |
|---|---|---|
| Company Behind | Finco Services, Inc. | Greenlight Financial Technology, Inc. |
| Founded | by Stuart Sopp, June 2015 | by Johnson Cook, Timothy Sheehan, 2014 |
| Banks With | Choice Financial Group The Bancorp Bank Metropolitan Commercial Bank | Community Federal Savings Bank |
| Business Category | FinTech Banking Services | FinTech Financial Services |
| Virtual Card | No | Yes |
| Physical Card | Yes, Current Visa | Yes, Greenlight Mastercard |
| Custom Card | No | Yes, $9.99 |
| VIP Card | No | Yes, Black. Bold. Modern. For Max Kids. |
| Deposit Options | – Direct Deposit – Bank Transfer | – Direct Deposit – Bank Transfer – Debit card |
| Best Suitable | Teens (13 years old and up) | Kids and Teens (No age restriction) |
| Plans | 3 | 3 |
| Investing | No | Yes (Needs plan upgrade) |
| Savings | Yes (4% APY) | Yes (up to 2% plus Parents Set/Paid) |
| Checking Account | Yes (Basic, Premium) | Yes |
| Rewards | No | Yes, 1% Cash back |
| Spending Goals | Yes | Yes |
| Allowances | Yes | Yes |
| Chores | Yes | Yes |
| Financial Education | No | Yes |
| ID Theft Protection | No | Yes |
| Cell Phone Protection | No | Yes (Limit to 5 kids) |
| Apps | App Store, Google Play | App Store, Google Play |
| Contact Email | support@current.com | support@greenlightcard.com |
| Customer Service | (888) 851-1172 | (888) 483-2645 |
| Support Availability | 24/7 | 24/7 |
| Opening Minimum | No | No |
| Foreign Transaction Fee | Yes, 3% | No |
| Mobile Payment Options | Apple Pay | Apple Pay Samsung Pay Google Pay |
| ATMs | 55,000+ Fee-Free Allpoint ATMs | 55,000+ Fee-Free Allpoint ATMs |
| ATM Fees | In-network: $0.00 Out-network:$0.00 | In-network: $0.00 Out-network:$0.00 |
| FDIC Insured | Yes | Yes |
| Years in business | 7 | 8 |
| Number of Employees | 100+ | 250+ |
| Address | 217 Centre St Ste 180 New York, NY 10013-3624 | 303 Peachtree St NE STE 4300 Atlanta, GA 30308-3266 |
| Review | – | Greenlight Review |
| More | Current Visa Debit Card | Greenlight Debit Card for Kids |
| Comparisons | Current vs Extra | Greenlight vs Famzoo |
| Claim this offer | Claim this offer |
One of the important similarities that both debit cards for kids share is that both financial instruments have almost the same parental controls. Each debit card comes with a user-friendly mobile app that gives parents total control over their kids’ card accounts and spending limits. Parents get to decide the daily amount their kids can spend and choose the retailers where they can shop. However, there are a few differences that you should keep in mind when making a selection. Below is a quick breakdown of how both debit cards work.
Greenlight Debit Card for Kids
Greenlight debit cards for kids are perfect for teaching your young ones about investing, giving, saving, and earning. The company’s cards provide your kids with access to three separate accounts for giving, saving, and spending. The savings account is quite interesting as it can earn interest that the parents pay. Parents decide on the percentage they are willing to pay on the first of each month. The cards come with full parental control features that allow them to:
- Turn the card on and off;
- Determine the places where their kids can use the card;
- Track their kids’ spending;
- Set up purchase roundups to motivate their kids to achieve savings goals.
Greenlight debit cards also provide parents with access to Parent’s Wallet. This feature allows you to add money to your kids’ cards using your debit card or bank account. You can either allow your children to transfer money or set up automatic weekly transfers.
Current Debit Card for Teens
As an online bank, Current also offers debit cards for teens. Parents have complete control over the card’s usage by using a mobile app to track their teens’ daily spending and determine where their kids are allowed to use their cards. With the Current debit card, parents have the liberty to decide on how much their kids can spend daily and set up automatic transfers to add money to their kids’ accounts daily, weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly.
Current provides two accounts that your kids can use for saving and spending. Parents can set savings goals for their kids using the Savings Pods features. There’s also an option to set up roundups to save the difference on the nearest dollar with each transaction. In addition, Current also allows parents to set a daily spending limit and turn the card on or off.
Similarities: Greenlight vs Current
Even though there are fundamental differences between the two debit cards, there are also quite a few similarities worth mentioning:
- Both services offer user-friendly mobile apps;
- Both debit cards provide options for intuitive money management;
- Parents can set up spending limits, savings goals, and allowance transfers according to their needs;
- Both debit cards give both parents and kids a decent level of freedom to make better, smarter financial decisions.
If you don’t want your kid to spend all their money on Amazon shopping or gaming, you can influence their money management and spending decisions by setting limits.
While Current is compatible with Apple Pay only, Greenlight works with Samsung Pay, Google Pay, and Apple Pay. Both cards have no initial deposit requirements and allow users to accumulate small amounts of money.
Subscriptions, Plans, and Fees
| Current | Greenlight | |
|---|---|---|
| Plan 1 | Teen Banking Free | Greenlight 30 days trial $4.99 per month per family (up to 5 kids) |
| Plan 2 | Basic Checking No Free Trial $4.99/ month | Greenlight + Invest 30 days trial $7.98 per month per family (up to 5 kids) |
| Plan 3 | Premium Checking No Free Trial $4.99 + / month | Greenlight Max 30 days trial $9.98 per month per family (up to 5 kids) |
Differences: Greenlight vs Current
Here is a list of the most significant differences between the two services you should keep in mind before deciding which one to choose.
Greenlight allows you to invest. Compared to Current, Greenlight offers two fantastic features that parents can use for investing. With Greenlight Max or Greenlight+, parents get the option to teach their kids about money management by investing small amounts and earning interest.
Greenlight offers more security. With the Greenlight Max plan, users get quite a few protections, such as Identity theft protection; Cell phone protection (limited to five kids); and Purchase protection.
You can add money to the Greenlight kid’s account using your debit cards. Current allows you to reload and fund your kid’s account with your bank account. On the other hand, Greenlight offers more flexibility by allowing you to use both your bank accounts and debit cards to fund accounts.
While current is for teens only, Greenlight is for all ages. Greenlight has no age requirement, while Current requires your kid to be at least 13 years to qualify.
Current doesn’t require minimum/maximum balance. While Current doesn’t require a deposit minimum or maximum, Greenlight has a few requirements, such as making an initial deposit to your Parent’s account and a minimum deposit that ranges based on whether you’re using a debit card or a bank account.
Current and Greenlight Ratings and Reviews
| Current | Greenlight | |
|---|---|---|
| Trustpilot* | 4.0 stars (1,994 reviews) | 4.2 stars (3,740 reviews) |
| Apple Store* | 4.7 stars (120K ratings) | 4.8 stars (219K ratings) |
| Google Play* | 4.6 stars (131K ratings) | 4.1 stars (18.1K ratings) |
| BBB Ratings | B | – |
| BBB Accreditation | Not BBB accredited | – |
| BBB Reviews* | 1.54 stars (56 reviews) | – |
| MarketProSecure | 4.0 stars (16 reviews) | 4.3 stars (142 reviews) |
| Review it | Review Current Visa | Review Greenlight Mastercard |
| Try it | Try it |
Bottom Line
After comparing Greenlight vs Current we can confirm that both offer excellent services and products for teaching your kids about the importance of money management. Which one you choose depends on your money management preferences.
Current is an excellent choice for parents who just want to provide their teens with some money for shopping, gas, lunch, etc. Current has no activation fees, no transfer fees, no overdraft fees, no minimum balance, and a low annual fee.
Greenlight, on the other hand, comes with a higher price than Current but provides more options for teaching your kids valuable lessons on money management, such as educational content on how to earn interest, among many other things.
Other Similar Offers and Alternatives
| Offer | Issuer | Free trial | Monthly Fee | Plans | Best for | Application |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GoHenry Mastercard | CFS Bank | 30 days | $3.99 / month | 1 Plan | Customer Support | Claim this offer |
| BusyKid Visa | MVB Bank | – | $3.99 / month | 1 Plan | Spend Controls | Claim this offer |
| Till Visa | Coastal Community Bank | Unlimited | $0 | 1 Plan | Teach Budgeting | Claim this offer |
| FamZoo Mastercard | SouthState Bank | up to 60 days | from $2.5 / month | 4 Plans | Financial Education | Claim this offer |
| Axos Checking Visa | Axos bank | Unlimited | $0 | 1 Plan | First Checking | Claim this offer |
