Halocard vs Skrill

Halocard is a US-issued Visa credit card for customers in the US and 120+ countries. Outside the US? You don't need an SSN, a US address or a US bank account. Skrill's wallet is open in many countries, but its cards are regional. The Skrill Visa Prepaid Card is for residents of the United States with a verified account, and the virtual card also asks for a US phone number; the Skrill Prepaid Mastercard is for residents of the UK and authorised EEA countries. Neither Halocard nor Skrill runs a credit check: Skrill says its checks with credit reference agencies are for verifying identity only. Skrill's personal accounts are for personal use, with a separate sign-up for a business. See supported countries

Halocard works like a debit card: you spend the balance you load, with no credit line and no credit check, and a merchant sees a Visa credit card. Skrill's cards are a different kind: its terms say the card is not a credit card or a debit card, and that it holds no balance of its own but spends what is in your Skrill wallet. The US card is a Visa in US dollars, issued by Community Federal Savings Bank; the UK and EEA card is a Mastercard denominated in euros. Skrill advises against using its virtual Mastercard to book a hotel room or a flight or to rent a car, because those merchants usually want a plastic card. Check merchant acceptance

Skrill issues a virtual card instantly from your account, with its own number, expiry date and CVC. The first is free, and each further card or replacement costs $2.50 in the US and €2.50 in the UK and EEA; it doesn't confirm a limit on how many you can hold. Halocard plans include 3 to 60 cards at once, so giving every merchant its own card costs nothing extra, and annual plans add single-use cards. Compare Halocard plans

Halocard keeps one balance you top up by debit/credit card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, bank transfer, stablecoins, or crypto. A Skrill card is funded only through the wallet. In the US, Skrill charges nothing to add money from a linked bank account, by wire, with a Visa or Mastercard, or in cash through PaysafeCash, and its US card page says you don't need a bank account of your own. In the UK and EEA a bank transfer is free and most other methods carry a percentage fee that varies by country. Skrill lists no stablecoin or crypto deposits: crypto is something you buy and sell inside the wallet. See how to deposit

Halocard includes a US bank account with its own account and routing numbers, so you can receive salary, transfers from friends and family, and any other payment you'd send to a US checking account. ACH transfers arrive in 1 to 3 business days and domestic wires the same day, straight into your Halocard balance and ready to spend. Skrill is a wallet, not a bank account: its US terms describe a virtual account held with other members' funds at a bank, not an individual bank account in your name, so there is no account or routing number to give an employer. You add money by deposit and take it out by withdrawing to your own bank. US balances get FDIC pass-through insurance up to $250,000 at Community Federal Savings Bank when the conditions are met; in the UK and EEA the balance is electronic money, outside the deposit guarantee schemes. Send and receive USD payments

Skrill lets you lock and unlock a card in the app. On the US card you can also change the limits for ATM withdrawals and for purchases, from the website, up to a maximum Skrill sets, and its terms say you can't ask for that maximum to be raised. A US purchase can be declined when the billing address you give doesn't match the address registered on your Skrill account. With Halocard you set daily, weekly or monthly limits on each card, lock or cancel any card instantly, and choose the billing address and cardholder name on each card. See card spending limits

Both work in person. Every Halocard can go in Apple Pay and Google Pay for tap to pay, including at ATMs that accept phone wallets, and you can add a physical card, free with any annual plan or $100 on a monthly plan. Skrill's physical cards work in stores and at ATMs and go into Apple Pay and Google Pay. The US card costs $10 a year and $2.50 for each ATM withdrawal, and arrives in 5 to 10 business days; the UK and EEA card costs €10 a year and 1.75% at ATMs, with a €1 minimum, and arrives within 15 business days. Skrill's virtual Mastercard is for online and phone purchases only. Set up Apple Pay and Google Pay

Skrill pays no cashback, but card purchases earn Knect loyalty points, which you can exchange for cash vouchers and bonuses. In the US the rate starts at one point per dollar and rises with your Skrill level. Skrill's rules say points are not money and have no cash value, cap them per transaction, and cancel them after 12 months without a qualifying transaction. Halocard pays no cashback or points. What it pays is a referral commission: $5 to $25 a month for every friend you refer, for up to 12 months, and Essential is free with 3 referrals. See how referrals work

Halocard charges nothing on US-dollar purchases and 1.5% + $0.30 on others. Skrill's card fees depend on the card. On the US Visa card Skrill charges no fee on purchases, at home or abroad, $2.50 for an ATM withdrawal and $10 a year for the physical card; its 2026 fee disclosure lists no annual fee for a virtual card. On the UK and EEA Mastercard it charges €10 a year, 3.99% on foreign currency and 1.75% at ATMs. The wallet has fees of its own: $5 a month once a US wallet has gone 12 months unused, and €5 a month after 6 months in the UK and EEA, 1.5% for an instant bank transfer out in the US, and a percentage to withdraw to a bank in the UK and EEA. See all Halocard fees

Skrill has no monthly plan: the wallet and the first virtual card are free, and you pay per card and per use, from $2.50 for each extra virtual card to the annual fee on a physical one. Halocard plans are $12, $15 and $75 a month and include the cards: 3 to 60 at once, each with its own limit and billing address. Essential is free with 3 referrals, and each friend you refer pays you $5 or more a month. Compare Halocard plans

Halocard answers by chat, email, and phone on every plan. Skrill's US support page offers a chatbot around the clock, a message form it says may take 24 to 48 hours to answer, and a phone line for urgent help in working hours. It offers no live chat with a person. Visit the help centre

Skrill has run since 2001 and is regulated in each region it serves: as a money transmitter in US states, by the Financial Conduct Authority in the UK and by the Central Bank of Ireland in the EEA. Its 3.7/5 from 27,849 Trustpilot reviews is mostly about the wallet, and support that is hard to reach is a common complaint. Halocard names its company, card issuer, account bank and founder. About Halocard