HesabPay review

HesabPay charges a monthly fee of AFN 15. That puts the account above the category norm, where the median monthly fee across the cards tracked here is €0 and the highest reaches €148.23. Weigh the fee against your own monthly card spend before you switch.

The card type is virtual, so HesabPay is a digital card rather than a piece of plastic. That works well for online payments and travel bookings, but a till that does not accept a phone will not work. Debit cards still make up 73.4% of the cards listed, with virtual ones at 5.4%.

HesabPay runs on visa. Across the cards listed on HodlCue, 57.6% run on Visa, while local networks cover a smaller share at 3.3%. Visa is the most widely accepted network for everyday spending and travel, so it is the safer pick abroad.

The feature list includes multi-currency and travel, so you can hold and spend in more than one currency without a separate account for each. That is the heart of who HesabPay suits: people who pay in a mix of currencies, or who travel and want one card to cover it.

Support runs on email and phone, so you can call as well as write. Phone is the more common channel for cards in this category at 66.4%, and a help centre is offered for 62.2%. Plan for email or a phone call rather than a live chat window.

HesabPay is headquartered in Afghanistan and was founded in 2016. That home market also explains the local monthly fee of AFN 15, which sits above rivals priced in other currencies, including Monzo Flex at £0 and Wise at £0.

Monzo Flex, Wise and Bitpanda list monthly fees of £0, £0 and €0, while HesabPay charges AFN 15. If the monthly charge is your main concern, those cards cost less to hold. If you want a virtual card built around multi-currency and travel use, the HesabPay feature list fits better.