Pixpay FR review
Updated September 28, 2026 · SumCue Editorial Team · Facts checked September 26, 2026
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Our verdict
Pixpay is a French debit account built for kids, and parents who want a child to carry their own pocket money card will find the fit closer than the price suggests. The sticking point is the monthly fee of €2.99, which keeps costs above the free accounts on this page.
Pros and cons
Pros
- The stated audience is kids, so the card, the app and the rules are built around a child rather than adapted for an adult.
- The card is a debit card, so purchases come out of the balance already in the account rather than a credit line.
- It runs on mastercard, the network most French adults already carry, so acceptance in shops and at cash machines is ordinary.
- Support runs on chat and help centre, which pairs a quick live answer with written detail a parent can check later.
Cons
- A monthly fee of €2.99 falls due whatever the card is used for, where bunq lists €0 a month and Wise lists £0.
- Foreign spending carries a conversion fee of 2% on every payment, and the card sits 165 in a table of 258 brands on that fee.
- Support runs on chat and help centre, so there is no phone line for a parent whose child is stranded at a cash machine abroad.
- The rewards type is none, so card spending earns nothing back and the monthly fee cannot be offset by a rebate.
Who it suits
- Parents in France who want a child to hold a card and manage pocket money loaded from home.
- Families whose spending stays in the euro, so a conversion fee of 2% is rarely met.
- Households happy to pay €2.99 a month for an account designed around kids.
Who should look elsewhere
- Anyone choosing on cost alone: bunq lists €0 a month, so a standing fee is hard to justify next to it.
- Households whose child pays in foreign currency often: Wise lists £0 a month, while every foreign payment on Pixpay carries 2%.
- Parents of older children: the Varo Believe Secured Credit Card lists $0 a month and is a credit card, where Pixpay is a debit account for kids.
Everyday use
Pixpay gives a child a card that works like an adult one, which is the point of a pocket money account. The card type is debit, so money comes out of the balance in the account and a child cannot run past what has been loaded. The network is Mastercard, the same one most French cards already run on, so the card is accepted in ordinary shops and at cash machines without any special arrangement. Support runs on chat and help centre, and both channels suit a household where the person asking questions changes from day to day. Chat settles the small things while a parent is at work, such as a blocked card or a lost one, and the help centre holds the written detail a parent will want later, such as how fees apply and what the card does at the till. There is no credit element to manage, no interest to watch and no bill arriving at the end of a cycle. The everyday work is loading money, handing over a card and watching what leaves the balance.
How it compares on our data
On our data, Pixpay sits 367 in a table of 422 brands on monthly fee, and 165 in a table of 258 brands on currency conversion fee. The monthly fee position sits deep in a field where many cards are free, so that number shapes the cost of holding the account. The conversion position sits past the midpoint of its own table, so foreign use is priced above the typical card there as well. Read the monthly fee position as a standing cost accepted by opening the account, and the conversion position as a running cost paid only when the card leaves the country. The two positions together explain why the account gets chosen for what it does rather than what it costs. They describe price, not product: a ranking cannot tell you how a parent sets limits or how quickly a chat answer arrives. It only says the fee is high and the conversion fee sits above the middle.
Fees and FX
The recurring price is a monthly fee of €2.99, due whatever the card is used for, so a dormant account still carries it. On top of that sits a currency conversion fee of 2%, added whenever the card is used in a currency other than the euro balance, so a foreign purchase carries an extra layer of cost. Keep the two apart when you budget. The monthly fee is certain and arrives every month; the conversion fee is decided at each till and only appears when money leaves the country. A child spending locally pays the fee each month and never meets the conversion rate, while a family that pays abroad pays both on the same purchase. What justifies the fee is not the pricing but the design: the account is shaped for a child, with a card a young hand can use and a parent who can see the balance. The fee list stays short, with a single conversion rate rather than a scale of rates, which makes a foreign purchase easy to cost before it happens. The point to settle before you open it is what happens to the monthly fee if the account goes unused.
Using it abroad
Abroad, the card works normally and costs more than normal. Acceptance is not the problem: the network is Mastercard, so the card goes through the same terminals and cash machines as any other card in the home country. The price is the issue, because the conversion fee of 2% is charged on foreign spending, on top of whatever a local cash machine or a foreign merchant adds. The fee applies per payment rather than per trip, so a child handed a wallet for a week abroad pays it on every purchase, however small. Paying in euros inside the euro area keeps the fee out of the way, so it bites hardest in places outside it. The Mastercard network also means a foreign payment looks ordinary on a statement, which makes the conversion cost easy to overlook after the fact. Wide acceptance is not a cheaper rate, and a family that travels regularly will notice the fee long before the card is refused anywhere. For a single holiday the cost is a line item; for a child who travels often it is a running charge rather than a single cost.
The company behind it
Pixpay is a French operation, headquartered in France and founded in 2019. A company of that vintage is still building its record, and the support setup shows where the effort goes: chat and help centre. Live chat suits a household where questions are small and frequent, a lost card, a blocked payment, a top up that did not show, and a parent can usually get an answer while the problem is still in front of them. The help centre carries the detail a search cannot settle, such as how fees apply and what the card does in a shop. Both channels keep the cost of serving a child account low, which matters for a product priced as it is here, and neither asks anyone to travel anywhere. The founding year and the headquarters say nothing on their own about how a balance is treated, so the practical safeguard is a small balance on a card a child carries. The same two facts read from either side give convenience and a shorter track record.
How Pixpay FR compares
8.4 vs 9.4
8.4 vs 9.0
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8.4 vs 9.0
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8.4 vs 9.0
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8.4 vs 8.4
8.4 vs 8.0- 8.4 vs 8.0
Where Pixpay FR is available
Countries from the brand (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
Frequently asked questions
How much does a Pixpay account cost each month?+
The account carries a monthly fee of €2.99, charged every month whatever the card is used for. For comparison, bunq lists €0 a month and Wise lists £0. If the card sits unused at home, the fee still falls due, so budget it as a standing cost rather than one that follows spending.
What does Pixpay charge when the card is used abroad?+
Foreign spending adds a currency conversion fee of 2% on each payment, on top of any charge from the foreign shop or cash machine. Paying in euros inside the euro area avoids the conversion. The fee applies payment by payment, so a week of small purchases abroad multiplies it instead of covering the trip at a single rate.
Is the Pixpay card a debit card or a credit card?+
It is a debit card, so money comes out of the balance held in the account. A child cannot spend beyond what has been loaded, and there is no borrowing to service at the end of a month. That suits a pocket money account, where the ceiling is set by whoever loads the money rather than by a credit limit.
Who is a Pixpay account designed for?+
The stated audience is kids. The account gives a child a card of their own, with money loaded from home and the balance visible to a parent, which is the usual pattern for a child's pocket money card. It is not aimed at adult banking, so a grown child looking for a full current account will find the design too narrow.
How do I reach Pixpay support?+
Support runs on chat and help centre. Chat is the quick route, and the help centre holds the written detail behind each policy, fee and limit. There is no phone line, so anything urgent, such as a card blocked overseas, has to go through chat or be worked out from the help centre.
Does the Pixpay card earn cashback or points?+
The rewards type is none, so card spending earns nothing back. Spending is worth it for what it buys, and the €2.99 monthly fee cannot be offset by any rebate. A family that treats a card as a small earning tool will find nothing here, since the value sits in the account design rather than the rewards.
Where is Pixpay based, and how long has it run?+
Pixpay is headquartered in France and was founded in 2019. A business of that age is still establishing itself and has a shorter record of holding customers' money than the long established banks. Read the current terms before loading a balance, and keep the amount on the card modest while you get to know how it behaves.
How does Pixpay compare with bunq and Wise on price?+
Pixpay charges €2.99 a month, while bunq lists €0 and Wise lists £0, so on standing cost it is the priciest of the three. The conversion fee of 2% is the second number to weigh, especially if the card will be used outside the euro area. The trade is a child shaped account for a higher bill.
Sources
- hello.pixpay.fr/grille_tarifaire.pdf checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Support channels
- socialcompare.com/en/review/pixpay checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Currency conversion fee
- techcrunch.com/2019/11/29/pixpay-is-a-challenger-bank-for... checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Monthly fee
“Pixpay costs 2.99 euros per month per card”
- finextra.com/newsarticle/33889/french-teen-banking-startu... checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Headquarters, Rewards type
“French teen banking startup Pixpay raises EUR3.1m”
- pixpay.fr/app/uploads/2021/12/202108_CP_alerte100K-2.pdf checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Card network
- pixpay.fr/app/uploads/2021/12/202111_CP_pixpayespagne-2.pdf checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Audience, Card type, Founded
Compiled from 6 source pages, checked September 26, 2026. We did not open an account.
Not confirmed yet: Free ATM withdrawals, Protection.