The difference between virtual, digital and disposable cards
A virtual card is stored on your phone and can be used to pay in stores or online. It has its own unique card number, expiry date, and CVC. A digital card is a copy of your physical bank card that’s stored on your phone. Digital cards have the same card number, expiry date, and CVC as your physical bank card. Both can be added to your digital wallet and can be used with Apple Pay or Google Pay. A disposable card is a virtual card that can only be used once.
Link them to a Space for ultimate clarity
Other premium customers can link up to 6 virtual cards to any of their Spaces. This way you can pay directly from sub-accounts with dedicated spending categories. Groceries? There's a cookie card for that. Travel — have you seen the suitcase? Budget, spend, and save with visibility, flexibility, and your own personal flair.
The benefits of virtual cards
Leave your wallet at home
Virtual debit and credit cards are secure, simple to use, and save you the inconvenience of having to carry your wallet around.
Stay in control
You can instantly lock and unlock your virtual card from your phone at any time, without losing access to your physical bank card.
Manage subscriptions
Use a dedicated virtual card for all your subscriptions to easily keep track of your recurring payments.
Instant activation
You don’t have to wait for your card to arrive in the mail — start using it from the moment it’s created.
Pay securely — online and in-store
Pay with your N26 virtual card using Apple Pay and Google Pay, anywhere contactless payments are accepted. It's easy to use, secure, and effortlessly mobile. All N26 physical and virtual cards are tokenized before they’re added to Apple Pay or Google Pay, which simply means that your sensitive card information is always stored securely.
Security you can count on
Instant push notifications
Pair your N26 account to your smartphone and get real-time alerts on all account activity, ensuring that only you have access to your money.
Your money, your settings
Instantly turn on or turn off online payments, ATM withdrawals, payments abroad, and more in your N26 app.
Advanced 3D Secure
Benefit from extra security against fraud, thanks to a two-factor authentication step that protects your online purchases.
Protected up to €100,000
Thanks to our full banking license, the funds in your N26 account are protected up to €100,000 by the German Deposit Protection Scheme.
Get a virtual card — for free
All N26 Standard customers get one free virtual card with its own card number, while premium users get up to six cards for free, and can choose from all six designs. Shopping online? Enjoy extra peace of mind by not having to share your main card’s details. Paying in-store? Tap and go by adding your virtual cards to Apple Pay or Google Pay.
FAQs
A virtual debit card is exactly like a physical debit card, just in digital form. You can use it for online purchases or add it to Apple Pay or Google Pay for secure, contactless in-store purchases.
A virtual debit card can be used just like you would use a physical bank card. In addition to online purchases, you can use a virtual card for contactless payments in stores by adding it to Apple Pay or Google Pay. You can also use it to withdraw cash at cash machines equipped with contactless NFC technology.
All virtual debit cards are electronically encrypted to protect you from banking fraud. With N26, all our cards are enabled with Mastercard 3D Secure, which verifies your identity with two-factor authentication when making online payments.
All N26 Standard and N26 Business customers can add one additional virtual card to their N26 account for free, while N26 premium customers get up to six cards for free and can choose from all six card designs. Just head to the ‘Cards’ tab in your N26 app and tap 'Get an additional card'. Select 'Virtual' and tap 'Choose', then agree to the terms and conditions and tap 'Generate virtual card'.
A prepaid debit card is not linked to a bank account. Once you run out of money on the card, you need to top it up with additional funds. In contrast, a virtual card is linked to your bank account and can be used just like a normal debit card. N26 offers virtual cards, but not prepaid debit cards.
When a virtual card has the same number as your physical bank card, it’s often referred to as a digital card—because it’s a digital version of your physical card. Virtual card usually refers to a card that only exists in digital form and is not linked to any physical card.
All N26 premium accounts let you add a digital version of your physical N26 debit Mastercard to your digital wallet. All N26 Business and N26 Standard customers can add one virtual card to their accounts with no extra cost, while premium customers can add up to six virtual cards to their accounts. Every virtual card has its own card number and can be locked without affecting your main card.