Ranking of virtual credit cards in Belgium
Only one Belgian credit card exists in virtual form, the Buy Way Mastercard, whose number appears in the app before the plastic arrives. Everything else available from Belgium is a virtual debit card. Seven offers read off the issuers' official pages on 14 September 2026.
Fees checked on 14 September 2026
In brief
- Buy Way is the only issuer established in Belgium handing out a virtual Mastercard number you can use immediately; it is a credit facility, at an annual percentage rate of 14.50% on its representative example of EUR 1,500.
- No big Belgian bank, not ING, KBC, CBC, Belfius, BNP Paribas Fortis, Argenta or Beobank, issues a standalone virtual card to individuals: they digitise the physical card into Apple Pay or Google Pay.
- Revolut's single-use card is the only one available in Belgium. It goes into no mobile wallet, refuses pre-authorisations, and its number regenerates if you do not use it within twenty-four hours of displaying it.
- Five of the seven offers cost nothing: Revolut Standard, N26 Standard, Wise, bunq Free and the Trade Republic Virtual card.
- The free FX allowance changes everything: EUR 1,000 a month at Revolut, EUR 1,000 per calendar year at bunq Free with 3% beyond, no allowance at all on N26 card payments, and 0.2% from the first euro at Aion Bank.
- Aion Bank is the only Belgian-incorporated bank in the panel, at EUR 46.80 a year; its website has moved under the UniCredit NV/SA name while the app is still called Aion.
- 01
Revolut Standard
8.7/10Annual feeFreeNon-euro0% up to EUR 1,000 of FX per month, then 1%NetworkVisa - RevolutPros : The only provider on the Belgian market offering two families of digital cards: multi-use cards that go into Apple Pay and Google Pay, and a single-use card whose number regenerates after every payment. Creating one costs nothing and the card works a second later, before you have even ordered a plastic one.
Cons : The single-use card carries four limits the bank states without highlighting them: no mobile wallet, no withdrawals, no pre-authorisation so no subscriptions, hotels or car rentals, and a number that regenerates if you display the details without using them within twenty-four hours. Free FX stops at EUR 1,000 a month, then a 1% fair-use fee applies.
The best compartmentalising tool available in Belgium, provided you keep the single-use card for one-off purchases and hold a multi-use card for anything billed every month.
- 02
N26 Standard
7.9/10Annual feeFree (first virtual card)Non-euro0% on card payments worldwideNetworkMastercard - N26Pros : No FX fee on card payments, with no monthly or annual cap: it is the only offer in the panel that puts no counter on foreign currency at all. The virtual card is available the moment the account opens, before the plastic arrives, and deposits are covered up to EUR 100,000.
Cons : The free account carries a single virtual card. The six virtual cards on the fee grid are reserved for the Smart, Go and Metal plans, at EUR 4.90, 9.90 and 16.90 a month. The physical card costs EUR 10 on Standard and non-euro withdrawals are charged 1.7%.
The one to take for paying in foreign currency without watching a ceiling. A single virtual card compartmentalises nothing: separating subscriptions means moving to Smart and accepting EUR 58.80 a year.
- 03
Wise (digital card)
7.4/10Annual feeFreeNon-euroMid-market rate plus conversion fees shown before the transactionNetworkVisa - WisePros : The digital card costs nothing, is created in seconds and can be held up to three at a time alongside the physical card. Conversion fees appear before you confirm rather than on the statement, and they taper on larger amounts. Withdrawals are free up to EUR 250 a month.
Cons : Above EUR 250 of monthly withdrawals, every extra euro costs 2.69%, the highest withdrawal rate in the panel. The physical card is EUR 7 and a replacement EUR 4. Wise is an electronic money institution authorised by the UK FCA, not a bank: funds are safeguarded, with no deposit guarantee.
The best pick for anyone holding several currencies at once who wants the price of the conversion before clicking. Avoid it as a cash withdrawal tool.
- 04
bunq Free
7.0/10Annual feeFreeNon-euroStandard rate up to EUR 1,000 of foreign-currency spending per calendar year, then 3%NetworkMastercard - bunqPros : The no-monthly-fee account gives you a digital credit card, created in the app and funded by you, with no interest and no annual charge. It goes into Apple Pay and Google Pay, every payment shows up the second it happens, and spending limits are set from the phone.
Cons : The free FX allowance runs by calendar year, not by month: EUR 1,000 for twelve months, then 3% on every transaction after that. It is the only annual counter in the panel and the steepest penalty rate of the seven. bunq is a Dutch bank, so the deposit guarantee falls under the Netherlands scheme.
An honest digital card for spending in euros, and a poor calculation as soon as you pay regularly in dollars or pounds. That annual counter empties faster than you expect.
- 05
Aion Bank, Light membership
6.6/10Annual feeEUR 3.90/month, i.e. EUR 46.80/yearNon-euro0.2% on all transfers and payments in foreign currencyNetworkMastercard - Aion Bank (UniCredit NV/SA)Pros : The membership includes five virtual Mastercard debit cards, addable to Apple Pay and Google Pay, with adjustable spending limits and instant freezing from the app. The 0.2% FX commission applies from the first euro, with no quota to watch. It is the only Belgian-incorporated bank in the panel.
Cons : The membership is compulsory: EUR 46.80 a year before a single payment, where six competitors ask for nothing. A plastic card costs EUR 5 on top. And the brand has become hard to read, between a website moved under the UniCredit name and an app still called Aion.
The lowest FX rate on a virtual card in Belgium, and the only one you pay for up front. Worth it from roughly EUR 6,000 of yearly foreign-currency spending against a Revolut Standard plan, never against N26.
- 06
Trade Republic Virtual card
6.2/10Annual feeFreeNon-euroNot quantified on any readable Belgian sourceNetworkVisa - Trade RepublicPros : The Virtual card costs nothing, activates automatically when ordered, needs neither a PIN nor a delivery address, and goes straight into a mobile wallet. Every payment triggers 1% Saveback reinvested into a savings plan, capped at EUR 15 a month for EUR 1,500 of spending from the cash balance.
Cons : Saveback requires a savings plan of at least EUR 50 a month: without it the benefit drops to zero. Worldwide withdrawals are free, except below EUR 100 where EUR 1 is charged, which penalises small amounts. The account is a brokerage account first, and the FX commission appears on no readable Belgian page.
A decent virtual card for someone who already holds the account and funds a savings plan. Opening a brokerage account to obtain a card number is a detour with no payoff.
- 07
Buy Way virtual Mastercard
5.4/10Annual feeNo fixed annual fee, card charge of 0.02% of borrowed capital per monthNon-euroECB exchange rate marked up by 2.50% outside the euro zoneNetworkMastercard - Buy Way Personal FinancePros : The only card in this ranking that is a credit card in the Belgian sense of the term, and the only virtual number issued by a lender established in Belgium. Once the contract is signed, the number, expiry date and CVC appear in the Buy Way Mobile app; the plastic card follows by post within ten working days.
Cons : This is an open-ended credit facility. The representative example published by the lender gives an annual percentage rate of 14.50% on EUR 1,500, with a variable borrowing rate of 14.23%. Usage is billed line by line: EUR 6.50 per ATM withdrawal, 1% with a EUR 4.50 minimum to move money to your bank account, and a 2.50% markup on the exchange rate outside the euro zone.
The right answer to the question asked, and the dearest of the seven. It stands up if you wanted a Belgian credit line anyway, never if all you wanted was a disposable number for an online purchase.
Which Belgian bank issues a virtual credit card?
Just one, Buy Way. Once the credit application is approved and the contract signed, the Mastercard number, its expiry date and its CVC appear in the Buy Way Mobile app, and the plastic card arrives by post within the following ten working days.
The lender, Buy Way Personal Finance SA, is authorised by the FSMA under number 019542a. Its representative example covers an open-ended credit facility of EUR 1,500, at an annual percentage rate of 14.50%, with a variable borrowing rate of 14.23% and card charges of 0.02% of borrowed capital per month.
Usage is then billed action by action. The user guide dated September 2025 prices an ATM withdrawal at EUR 6.50, a transfer to your bank account at 1% with a EUR 4.50 minimum, a card replacement at EUR 4, and the markup applied to the exchange rate outside the euro zone at 2.50%.
Paying 14.50% a year to obtain a virtual number strikes me as a poor trade, and the comparison takes one line: the six other offers in this ranking hand you the same number for nothing. The card still makes sense for anyone who wanted a Belgian credit line anyway, and none for anyone after a disposable number.
One obligation specific to Belgian law sits on top: the zeroing rule. Article VII.95 of the Code of Economic Law and the Royal Decree of 14 September 2016 require the balance to return to zero for at least twenty-four hours, by a date printed on the monthly statement. Miss it and the facility is suspended, then reported to the negative section of the National Bank's Central Individual Credit Register. An approved debt mediation service or the local public welfare centre steps in well before that point.
This site's guide to virtual cards explains the mechanism and tokenisation. This ranking scores seven offers on the real twelve-month cost and on how many cards each one allows.
Sources: FPS Economy, consumer credit - Buy Way, Mastercard user guide (PDF, September 2025) - Virtual credit cards in Belgium, the guide - Belgian credit card interest rates
The big Belgian banks do not issue a separate card number
ING, KBC, CBC, Belfius, BNP Paribas Fortis, Argenta and Beobank all let you add your physical card to Apple Pay or Google Pay. The wallet then builds a token backed by the card you already hold.
A token is not an independent number. Deleting the token does not delete the card, and a breach that hits the card hits the token too. The KBC page on paying online, read on 14 September 2026, describes authentication by card reader, by app and by QR code, and nowhere mentions a virtual card for individuals.
Sources: KBC, paying online - Apple Pay in Belgium, what works
What does a virtual card cost in Belgium?
Nothing at five providers out of seven. Revolut Standard, N26 Standard, Wise, bunq Free and the Trade Republic Virtual card are free to create and free to hold, as read on 14 September 2026.
Aion Bank and Buy Way charge, each in its own way. Aion asks EUR 3.90 a month, EUR 46.80 a year, and includes five virtual Mastercard cards. Buy Way takes no fixed annual fee, but card charges of 0.02% of borrowed capital per month, which only bite if you carry a balance.
The annual fee is not the line that decides, though. Take EUR 2,000 of online purchases billed in dollars, spread over a year: N26 Standard and Revolut Standard take nothing, the first because it applies no FX fee on payments, the second because EUR 2,000 spread over twelve months stays under the EUR 1,000 monthly allowance. Aion takes EUR 4. bunq Free takes EUR 30, because its free allowance runs by calendar year and the next EUR 1,000 is charged 3%.
So the same amount produces a bill of EUR 0 to EUR 30 depending on the issuer, none of whom charges an annual fee at all. The shape of the allowance, monthly or annual, is what creates the gap.
Sources: Wikifin, the FSMA's financial information portal - What a Belgian credit card really costs
Does a single-use card really protect you better?
On the number, yes. On the use, far less than advertised.
Revolut is the only issuer available in Belgium offering a card whose number regenerates after each payment: a number harvested in a data breach is already expired by the time it is resold. Its help page, read on 14 September 2026, also sets out the limits. The single-use card covers one online payment only, goes into neither Apple Pay nor Google Pay, allows no withdrawals and refuses pre-authorisations, which rules out subscriptions, hotel bookings and car rentals in one go. One last detail, rarely repeated: if you display the card details without using them within twenty-four hours, the number regenerates and the one you wrote down is worthless.
Those four restrictions are missing from most Belgian presentations of this product, including this site's earlier guide, which named only one of them.
One point does reassure, and the issuer states it plainly: a refund still reaches you even if the card is no longer active or the number has changed since the purchase.
For anything billed every month, the multi-use card remains the right tool. A card dedicated to one service, deleted the day you cancel, stops the debit without going through a support desk.
Sources: Safeonweb, Belgium's official online security information - Revolut, what a virtual card is - Paying for online purchases by credit card
Where does a virtual card get refused?
At a car rental desk, first. Most branches ask for a physical card in the driver's name to take the deposit imprint, and a clerk who wants to see plastic will not settle for a phone screen. Some hotel receptions apply the same rule at check-in.
Unattended machines next: self-service fuel pumps, toll gates, car parks and cash machines all want a chip inserted. A virtual card added to a mobile wallet works anywhere contactless is accepted, and nowhere else.
The habit that settles all three cases fits in one sentence: keep a physical credit card for deposits and machines, and keep the virtual card for online payments.
Which virtual card fits what you actually do?
One-off purchases on sites you do not know: Revolut Standard, for its single-use card, as long as you accept that it serves once.
Regular payments in foreign currency: N26 Standard, the only offer with no FX allowance on card payments.
Several currencies held at once: Wise, which shows the price of the conversion before you confirm.
Separating budgets or subscriptions: Aion Bank, five virtual cards and 0.2% FX, if EUR 46.80 a year is justified in your case. Otherwise N26 Smart, for EUR 58.80 a year and six cards.
bunq Free suits spending in euros and turns expensive beyond EUR 1,000 of foreign currency a year. Trade Republic is only worth it if the account already exists.
Curve is not in this ranking, for lack of a readable Belgian fee schedule: the published amounts are in pounds sterling and no page converts them for Belgium. No official figure in euros, no item.
What does Belgian law say if a virtual card number is hacked?
The same rules as for a physical card. Book VII of the Code of Economic Law caps your share at EUR 50 for unauthorised transactions occurring before notification, and brings it to zero afterwards, barring fraudulent behaviour or gross negligence on your part.
The useful step differs by issuer. Card Stop, on 078 170 170, blocks cards from affiliated Belgian issuers, which covers the Buy Way Mastercard, and Buy Way separately publishes its own blocking line on 02 320 25 95, reachable around the clock according to its user guide. For the six foreign providers in the panel, freezing runs through the app, in seconds and without a phone call.
Filing a police report still helps: a disputed fraudulent use moves faster with an official record. And the refund of a disputed transaction follows the network's chargeback procedure, which is separate from notifying the issuer.
Sources: National Bank of Belgium - Card Stop - Credit card security in Belgium
How we score.
Membership or annual fee, physical card issuance charge, and any account imposed to get access.
Simultaneous virtual cards included in the base offer, adjustable limits, freezing and deletion from the app.
Commission applied to an online purchase billed outside the euro, and the shape of the free allowance, monthly or annual.
Whether a number that regenerates after each payment exists, and the real extent of its restrictions.
Credit or debit, acceptance for pre-authorisation, and the issuer's deposit guarantee regime.
Sources
Fees read off the issuers' official pricing pages on 14 September 2026. They can change without notice: always check the issuer's page before subscribing.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a virtual credit card issued by a Belgian bank?
Just one: the Buy Way Mastercard, whose number, expiry date and CVC appear in the Buy Way Mobile app as soon as the contract is signed. In law it is an open-ended credit facility, with an annual percentage rate of 14.50% on the EUR 1,500 representative example the lender publishes.
Which virtual card costs least to use outside the euro zone?
N26 Standard, which applies no FX fee on card payments, with no monthly or annual cap. Aion Bank takes 0.2% from the first euro but charges EUR 46.80 of membership a year. The dearest in the panel is Buy Way, whose exchange rate is marked up by 2.50% outside the euro zone.
Does Revolut's single-use card work for a subscription?
No. It covers a single online payment and refuses pre-authorisations, which rules out subscriptions, hotel bookings and car rentals. For a recurring debit you need a multi-use virtual card, which you can delete on the day you cancel.
What should you do if a virtual card payment is declined?
First check whether it is a pre-authorisation, in which case a single-use card is always rejected. Then check that the card limit has not been reached and that the card is not frozen in the app. At a chip-insert machine or a rental desk, only a physical card gets through.
Who refunds fraud committed on a virtual card number in Belgium?
The issuer, under the same rules as for a physical card. Book VII of the Code of Economic Law caps your share at EUR 50 for unauthorised transactions before notification, and at zero for those after it, barring fraudulent behaviour or gross negligence. Freeze the card in the app or with the issuer, then file a police report.
Does Aion Bank still exist in Belgium?
Yes, but under another name. On 14 September 2026, aion.eu pages redirect to unicredit.be, and the Light membership page carries the UniCredit NV/SA mention, a Belgian credit institution headquartered in Saint-Josse-ten-Noode. The mobile app is still called Aion and Light remains at EUR 3.90 a month.