Rated #5 Best UK Company Formation Agent
Overall Rating:
9.3
Ease Of Use = 9.9
Value For Money = 9.8
Customer Support = 9.0
Services Offered = 8.6
PROS:
- Company registration for only £14.99
- Many company formations are processed within 1 business day, most within 48 hours
- Easy and simple 4-step application process
CONS:
- You have to open a Tide business account at the same time
- Only possible to set up limited company
- Only available to UK residents
- Only one director and one shareholder allowed
Tide Company Registration Review [Updated For 2025]- Tide is a digital business banking provider who also offers to register your company at Companies House.
They claim to offer your company formation and a business bank account for free. So our Tide Company Registration review will drill deeper to see what you can expect.
At A Glance
As a digital business banking provider, Tide’s main products are e-money accounts. As such, they are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
However, they also offer a company formation package, where they will register your company for only £14.99 with Companies House, if you open a business account with them at the same time.
And there aren’t any hidden fees. They will even pay the £50 Companies House fee for you.
The process is quick and simple. Your new company and business account will be set up in no time.
Which Company Formation Package Is Right For You?
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How Does The Tide Application Process Work?
Tide claims that their 4-step process is quick and simple, so in our Tide Company Registration review, we will have a closer look at how it works.
Find out for yourself if it is as easy as they say: here are the 4 steps:
Company Name
The first step is to decide on your company name. And take your time with this, because you want a name that will represent what your new business stands for.
Once you have made this decision, you use the search tool on the Tide website to check if your chosen company name is available or use our handy tool below:
Enter Details
When you are happy with your chosen name, and it is available, you need to enter your personal and business details.
The details that you will need are:
- your chosen company name
- personal details, such as address, date of birth and nationality
- the registered business address of your new company – this can be your home address, business address or even a virtual business address
Receive Your Limited Company Certificate
Once you have submitted your details, Tide will do the rest. They will register your company directly with Companies House and send you the incorporation certificate for your new limited company.
This can take as little as 1 business day. Most applications are processed within 48 hours. So you will be a new business owner in no time.
However, like other company formation agents, they are reliant on the speed of Companies House.
Access To Your Business Bank Account
At the same time, you will receive access to your new business bank account. It will only take a few minutes to open your new account with Tide.
Our Tide company registration review has found that if you are after a quick, no-frills way to register your new company and set up a business account, then this process certainly delivers that.
What Exactly Do You Get?
After looking at the process, our Tide company formation review will have a closer look at what you will get with their company registration package.
Company Registration For Only £14.99
Tide will register your new company with Companies House for just under £15. All you need to do is provide them with the necessary details, as mentioned above, and they will do the rest.
They will even pay the £50 incorporation fee for you, so the process will save you quite a bit of money and so much time and hassle. We really like that.
You will receive your certificate of incorporation by email as part of this package. Any additional company documents need to be requested directly from Companies House, which will cost £1 per document.
Tide Business Bank Account
The package also includes the opening of a Tide current account for business. You will also get access to their app, which allows you to manage your money on the go.
As part of our Tide company registration review, we will look at the bank account in more detail later.
Limitations
While it’s great that you can get your new company registered for such a low price, there are some limitations which you should consider before registering your new business with them.
Our Tide company formation review found that this package is currently only available for the registration of a limited company.
Other types of business, such as LLP or a charity, are not included in their registration packages at the moment.
Currently, Tide only offers the registration of a limited company with a single director, yourself. Additional directors have to be added directly through Companies House.
You can also only have one shareholder, which will be yourself. If you want to add more shareholders, you will have to do this by contacting Companies House directly.
Tide will also only register your limited company with one share issued, valued at £1. However, you can change this after your company has been registered, directly through Companies House.
Finally, this company formation package is only available to UK residents. And also, the registered office address needs to be in the UK.
Our Tide company registration review has also discovered that you can only register a limited company name that does not need additional documentation.
In this category fall company names where Companies House would ask for documentation that you are eligible to offer the service the name suggests.
For example, if you would want to register ‘Hill Doctor’s Surgery’, you would have to prove that you are a registered doctor. You would not be able to register a company name in this category as part of the Tide company registration package.
While there are quite a few limitations, most of them you can change yourself easily directly through Companies House, once Tide has registered your business.
Tide Business Bank Account
As the package includes business banking services, our Tide company registration review has looked at what you get and also highlights the pros and cons of the business account.
The business account that is included in this package has no monthly fee. These are some of the features you will get:
- access to Tide app for one person
- free business card for yourself
- further expense cards for your team cost £5 per month
- money transfers in and out of your account cost 20p per transfer
- ATM cash withdrawals cost £1
- manage direct debits
- create scheduled payments
- read access for team members
- app integrates with accounting software such as Sage, Quickbooks or Xero
- you can hold up to 5 business accounts
Advantages Of Free Tide Business Account
The biggest advantage in our opinion is that you don’t have to pay any monthly fees. Especially if you are a small business owner, money is probably tight, so not having to pay monthly fees for your business bank account is a plus.
We like the Tide app, as it is a handy tool to manage your money on the go. It allows you to schedule payments, create and send invoices, upload and auto-match receipts and manage your cards whenever, wherever you are.
We like that the accounting integration with a number of accounting software, such as FreeAgent, ClearBooks, Sage and Crunch, because it means you don’t have to worry about duplicating information.
Disadvantages Of Free Tide Business Account
The biggest disadvantage of the free business account our Tide company registration review found was the lack of phone support.
While you can get support via the app chat and email, if you want to speak to someone to sort out an issue quickly, you will have to upgrade to the Tide PLUS business account, which will set you back £9.99 + VAT per month.
This is one of the main issues that has been brought up in customer reviews. With the free bank account the customer service seems slow, as Tide can only be contacted via email or in-app chat.
Another disadvantage that has been highlighted in the customer reviews is that only one person can have access to the app and make payments.
Also, it appears that every card payment has to be approved in the app. So, if a team with an expense card wants to make a payment, but does not have access to the app, it can cause problems.
Business Accounts With Monthly Fees
Tide’s free business accounts are aimed at small businesses and start-ups. And you can upgrade your account if your business grows and your needs change.
The PLUS Business Account has a monthly fee of £9.99 + VAT. With this, you get all the benefits of the free account, plus these additional features:
- Priority in-app support
- Phone support
- 24/7 legal helpline
- Exclusive member perks
- 20 transfers in and out of your account for free per month
- 1 free expense card
The next level up is the CASHBACK account, which costs £49.99 + VAT per month. With this, you get the features of the PLUS account plus additional benefits:
- A dedicated team of account managers to support your business
- 0.5% cashback with your Tide card
- 3 free expense cards
- 150 transfers in and out of your account for free per month
You can upgrade your free business account at any time.
Fees
As already mentioned, the company formation service Tide offers only costs £14.99, if you also open a Tide bank account at the same time.
Tide will even pay the £50 incorporation fee. But it’s worth keeping in mind the limitations we have mentioned earlier in our review.
Tide Company Registration Reviews From Customers:
I have been using Tide for a few months for my small childcare business, everything is so easy and straightforward. I wish I had found it sooner.
5-Star review from Natalie Quenault via Trustpilot
The set-up process was quick and painless – always a bonus when you are setting up a small business.
4-Star review from Enitan Eboda via Trustpilot
I have recommended Tide business account by my mentor and so far so good. Tide helped me with setting up my limited company too, which was very quick process. Still getting used to the app and all settings but so far so good. Sent message to the team as had an enquiry had a response within 24hrs.
5-Star review from LR Art Ltd via Trustpilot
The Advantages
No Tide company registration review would be complete without having a look at the advantages of the service they offer. So let’s see what the benefits are:
Company Registration For Only £14.99
The biggest advantage is that you can set up your company for such a low price with Tide. All you have to do is give them the key details, and they do the rest, including paying the £50 incorporation fee.
Quick And Easy Process
The application process is a quick 4-step process that will take you hardly any time at all. And you could have your new business set up the same day, or within 48 hours at the latest.
Authorised Formation Agent
Tide is an authorised formation agent with Companies House, which means they are integrated with them. So you can be sure that you can trust them with your company formation.
This is good to know, because setting up your company is an important step, and you want to make sure that whoever you go with, you can trust them.
The Disadvantages
Our Tide company registration review has, however, also found some disadvantages:
Linked To Opening Tide Business Account
You can only get your company set up for £14.99 with Tide if you open a business bank account with them at the same time.
Limited Set-up Options
As we have already highlighted above, our Tide company registration review has found that there isn’t any flexibility in terms of company formation options.
You are limited to only being able to set up a limited company with one director and one shareholder. And you have to be a UK-resident to be able to take advantage of their company registration service.
Summary
We like that Tide offers a quick, easy no-frills way of setting up your company and getting a business bank account at the same time for less than £15.
While there are limited set-up options, most of these can be changed with Companies House directly after the company has been registered.
So, to conclude our Tide company registration review, we would recommend this service to anyone who wants to quickly set up their limited company for a small fee and get a bank account at the same time for free and who doesn’t mind making changes themselves later.
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