Having been founded in 1994, it might come as a surprise that ​Capital One​ is the fifth-largest consumer bank in America today. Capital One is much newer compared to other big banks and this shows in the way the institution embraces technology and innovation.

In 2011, Capital One—at the time a bank offering mostly just credit cards and mortgages—purchased ING Direct, a struggling multinational financial services corporation, and rebranded these accounts as Capital One 360 accounts. These became a suite of online savings, checking, and certificate products that are separate from Capital One products, and Capital One 360 became the bank’s online sector.

Today, the Capital One 360 product suite includes the following FDIC-insured products:

• The 360 Performance Savings Account (Variable rate of 3.40% APY)
• 360 CDs – now up to 5.00% APY (Fixed rates, see the rates here)
• 360 Checking (Variable rate of 0.10% APY)
• Kids Saving Account (Variable rate of 0.30% APY)
• Money Teen Checking (Variable rate of 0.10% APY)

In this review we’ll cover the variable rate savings accounts including the 360 Performance Savings account, the 360 IRA Savings account and the Kids Savings account.

Capital One 360 Performance Savings Account Rate + Details

The Capital One 360 Performance Savings account is what brings many people to the digital institution, and it’s no secret why. The account is open to pretty much anyone, and in the past, has come with very noteworthy cash bonuses. Today the account still earns a reasonable 3.40% APY.

Savings Rate

To give the yield above some context, the national average for savings accounts sits at just 0.35% according to FDIC data. However, there are some banks offering savings rates above the 4.00% APY mark following the Fed’s latest 0.25% rate hike at the culmination of their January 31st and February 1st meetings.

Compounding Interest

Interest is compounded and paid monthly. Interest is returned to the Performance Savings account when paid.

A 360 Performance Savings account is easy to open and can be created in about 5 minutes. Funds can be easily transferred electronically between other Capital One accounts or external bank accounts.

Fees

Capital One 360 Performance Savings Account Fees

In accordance with federal regulation D, you may make no more than six transactions—withdrawals or transfers—into or out of this account in a month. All Capital One 360 deposit products are FDIC insured up to $250,000 per depositor.

Capital One IRA Savings Account

Capital One offers a variable rate online savings account designed for your IRA (individual retirement account) or Roth IRA.

360 IRA Online Savings Rate

If you don’t already have an IRA or Roth IRA with Capital One you will need to open one of these first. Navigate to the 360 IRA Online Savings page and click on the option suited for your needs.

Traditional IRAs and Roth IRAs have many differences. In a nutshell, contributions to Traditional IRAs may be done before taxes are withdrawn from your paycheck, and earnings within the account are then taxed once the funds are withdrawn (presumably, incrementally starting at retirement).

Roth IRA’s are basically the opposite in that contributions are made with your after-tax earnings, and withdrawals from the account upon retirement can be made tax-free.

You may want to consult with your tax advisor before coming to your final decision.

Capital One Kids Savings Account

These accounts are great for kids learning the value and discipline of saving money. You’ll have to have another account set up before opening the Kids Savings Account, but once you do, you’ll be able to schedule automatic allowance deposits and keep track of transactions.

Kids Savings Account Rate

On top of the general features mentioned above, there are some neat savings tools for you and your kid(s) to use. For example, you can create individual accounts based on each of your kid’s savings goals so they can watch their money grow.

On the down side, this is one of Capital One’s deposit accounts that hasn’t seen its yield increase with the rising interest rate environment.

Capital One 360 Banking Experience & Reviews

Out of a staggering 63,534 customer reviews on WalletHub, Capital One scored a respectable 3.7 stars out of 5. This might just seem average, but 61% of all reviews of the bank were either 4 or 5 stars, so it’s safe to say that most Capital One customers are happy with their banking experience. Capital One is especially popular for its excellent travel and rewards credit cards—how the bank got its start—and is often recognized for going above and beyond for its customers. 

Though most banks and credit unions claim to care more about their customers’ satisfaction and well-being than anything else, few prove it to the extent that Capital One does. In fact, Capital One’s personalized customer support and “customer-centric culture” is so superior to the standard that Forbes published an article (since removed) about it. And for the most part, there are no major complaints against the bank worth noting.

To reach customer support, you can call 1-(877)-383-4802 for general help or track down the specific help center best suited to help you with a problem. For 360 support, call 1-(800)-289-1992 if you’re a new customer and 1-(888)-464-0727 if you’re an existing customer; both lines are available from 8 AM to 11 PM 7 days a week. You can also tweet @AskCapitalOne.

All 360 accounts can be managed 100% digitally through the very highly-rated Capital One mobile app for Apple and Android devices or through the easy-to-use and comprehensive online portal. And although Capital One 360 is technically separate from its brick and mortar parent, the bank is not online-only, so customers of the digital bank can expect to have about the same access to customer service, branches, ATMs, etc. as customers of the traditional bank. 

You can do everything you could possibly need to do with your money—from funding to withdrawals—entirely from your phone or computer, but maybe you’re a person that also wants to be able to walk into a branch or up to an ATM to manage your money too. Unlike many online banks, Capital One 360 lets you do that. 

As a Capital One 360 customer, you will have access to over 39,000 surcharge-free ATMs and over 900 branches/cafes. Branches, however, can only be found in eight U.S. states, so accessibility could be considered limited for a bank but is still far better than most online-only institutions.