APY GUY: Maximize Your Savings & Earnings

Savings Accounts

E-Trade Premium Savings Account – Now 4.25% APY!

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E-Trade has teamed up with Morgan Stanley to offer banking products along with their well-renowned brokerage services.

This account is ideal for those who use E-Trade on the brokerage side and would like to earn a competitive APY (annual percentage yield) on uninvested funds.

Money can be moved seamlessly from brokerage account to premium savings account with easy access to your funds and quick deposits.

E-Trade’s Premium Savings account currently pays an APY of 4.25% on all balances and has no minimum deposit requirements or balance requirements to maintain.

To see if this account is right for you, continue reading our review below.

E-Trade Premium Savings Rate + Account Details

image credit: etrade.com

As mentioned the E-Trade Premium Savings Account has no minimum deposit requirement to open it nor any balance requirement to maintain it. That said, if you open the account and fail to fund it within 30 days, they will close the account.

Premium Savings Account Rate

Min. DepositAPY
$04.25%
APY = Annual Percentage Yield

To put this yield into context, the national average for a savings account and a money market account sit at just 0.42% APY and 0.63% APY, respectively, according to FDIC data.

There are, however, a few online banks and nationally available credit unions now paying over the 5.00% APY mark on variable rate savings accounts.

All funds are federally insured by the FDIC up to $500,000. This is double the normal coverage of $250,000 for deposits held at most banks and credit unions.

Compounding and Crediting Interest

The E-Trade Premium Savings account features daily compounding interest. Interest begins compounding on the date of your initial deposit and continues until the last full day prior to the withdrawal.

Interest is credited to your account monthly.

Opening the Account

The account is available to consumers nationwide and can be opened online in minutes. E-Trade also has branches in 17 states where you can stop by to open the account in-person if you’d prefer. Below are the following states in which E-Trade has branches. You can locate a specific branch here.

  • Arizona
  • California
  • Colorado
  • Washington, DC
  • Florida
  • Georgia
  • Illinois
  • Massachusetts
  • Michigan
  • Minnesota
  • New Jersey
  • New York
  • North Carolina
  • Oregon
  • Pennsylvania
  • Texas
  • Washington

Managing the Account

Once your account is open, you can transfer money between your brokerage account and the Premium Savings account easily and you’ll have instantaneous access to your transferred funds.

If you’re depositing funds via the mobile app, only a portion of your funds will be immediately available. You must wait until the 4th business day to access the full deposit. This is similar to Robinhood and other brokerage accounts with savings features.

E-Trade’s apps receive relatively high ratings. Their IOS app has a 4.6 out of 5 star rating with nearly 140k ratings and their Android app has a 3.9 out of 5 star rating with over 41k reviews.

How E-Trade Premium Savings Compares

E-Trade offers one of the highest yields on the market for brokerage accounts with FDIC-insured savings account options.

For comparison see the chart below:

BrokerageAPY on idle cash
E-Trade4.25%
Robinhood1.50% – or – 4.90% with Gold
SoFi4.50%
Fidelity2.72%
Interest rates surveyed August 17, 2023.

Final Thoughts

If you are already an active trader on E-Trade and are in the market for a savings account to park uninvested cash, then opening up the Premium Savings Account by E-Trade via Morgan Stanley is a no-brainer.

That said, if you’re just in the market for a high yield, FDIC-insured savings account or money market account without any brokerage account tied to it, then slightly higher yields can be found through a handful of online banks and credit unions with nationwide acceptance.

Capital One 360 Performance Savings – Now 4.30% APY!

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Having been founded in just 1994, it might come as a surprise that ​Capital One​ is the fifth-largest consumer bank in America today. They are a much newer institution than most of the other big banks like Citibank, Bank of America and Wells Fargo which were founded in the 1800’s and early 1900’s.

In 2011, while Capital One was primarily offering just credit cards and mortgages, they purchased ING Direct, a struggling multinational financial services corporation, and rebranded the accounts as Capital One 360 accounts.

Today, Capital One’s 360 products suite of online deposit accounts consists of:

  • 360 Performance Savings Account (Available for IRAs) – Variable rate of 4.30% APY
  • 360 CDs (certificates of deposit) – Fixed rates up to 4.85% APY (See 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

For the purpose of this review, we will focus on the Capital One 360 Performance Savings account, the IRA savings account and Kids Savings account. The 360 Performance Savings account is their most competitive offer but still isn’t as competitive as some of the yields provided by other FDIC-insured online banks.

That said, it does have some unique savings features and award winning apps and technology. Plus, the fact that it has no monthly maintenance fees or minimum deposit or monthly balance requirements make it widely accessible to a large swathe of people.

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 hefty cash bonuses. Today the account still earns a reasonable 4.30% APY and has some legacy features left over from the ING Direct days that are still quite useful.

Savings Rate

Minimum DepositMinimum BalanceAPY
$0$04.30%
APY = Annual Percentage Yield

To give the yield above some context, the national average for savings accounts sits at just 0.42% according to FDIC data, however, some online banks offer high yield savings accounts and money market accounts with rates above the 5.00% APY mark.

How Does Capital One 360 Performance Savings Compare?

Take a look at the table to see how the 360 Performance Savings account stacks up against other popular online banks and their high yield savings account offers.

BankAPYMin. Deposit
Citizens Access4.50%$0.01
PNC Bank4.65%$0.00
TotalDirectBank5.20%$25,000.00
UFB Direct5.06%$0.00
Capital One4.30%$0.00
Interest rates surveyed on July 31, 2023.

Separate Savings Accounts (formerly Buckets)

One of the more popular legacy features from ING Direct was the savings bucket feature. This allowed users to set up various “buckets” for money to be set aside for particular savings goals. This could be a vacation, a wedding, a downpayment for a house, etc.

Today, this feature still exists with the 360 Performance Savings account, but rather than having “buckets,” Capital One will just give you the option to set up multiple accounts.

If you have monthly direct deposits set up, you can then specify the amount you’d like to have flow into each account. All of the accounts would, of course, earn the same advertised APY.

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 transferred electronically between other Capital One accounts, external bank accounts, automatically via direct deposit from an employer or other income source, or by using the mobile check deposit feature.

Fees

Capital One 360 Performance Savings Account Fees

TypeFee
Account Maintenance$0
Outgoing Domestic Wire$30
Statement Copies$5 per statement
Cashiers Check at Capital One Location$10
Foreign Check Deposit at Capital One Location$0

Technically the 360 Performance Savings account only allows up to 6 transfers per statement cycle to a 3rd party or to any of your other deposit accounts at Capital One, however, in their fine print they have noted that they are not currently enforcing this rule and will email clients if/when they choose to do so again.

There are also no limits set for the number of transfers that you may make into your account.

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

Minimum DepositMinimum BalanceAPY
$0$04.30%
APY = Annual Percentage Yield

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

Minimum DepositMinimum BalanceAPY
$0$00.30%
APY = Annual Percentage Yield

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 Customer Sentiment & Reviews

Capital One has won several awards for their technology over the years and their ratings in the app stores are a testament to their user centric focus and commitment.

On IOS, they have a whopping 4.9 stars out of 5 based on over 7.5 million consumer ratings and on Android they have a still respectable 4.6 stars out of 5 with over 1.47 million reviews.

All 360 accounts can be managed 100 percent digitally through their mobile apps. Download the Apple app or Android app or simply use the online portal.

We should also note that 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 level of 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 someone 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.

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.

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.

Capital One 360 Performance Savings FAQs

Still have questions about the Capital One 360 Performance Savings account? See what other consumers are asking around the web as well as our responses below.

Does Capital One 360 Have a Money Market Account?

No. At this time there is no money market account option in the Capital One 360 deposit account suite.

Is Capital One 360 Performance Savings a Good Option?

In terms of usability, you’ll be hard pressed to find another savings account with more highly rated mobile apps.

In terms of savings rates, Capital One doesn’t currently perform that well. Many online banks are now offering rates near or over 5.00% APY (annual percentage yield) following the Fed’s most recent rate hike.

What is the Routing Number for Capital One 360 Accounts?

The routing number for Capital One 360 deposit accounts is 031176110.

UFB Direct Savings Account – Now 5.06% APY!

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UFB Direct is a division of Axos Bank. Both banks are fully digital, online banks that have no physical branches.

They also share the same FDIC insurance (certificate #35546), so if you currently have a deposit account with Axos Bank that balance amount will count towards your FDIC limit with UFB Direct as well.

UFB Direct offers two variable rate deposit accounts with highly competitive yields. These are:

  1. Priority Savings account
  2. Priority Money Market account

Both currently hold the same APY (annual percentage yield) of 5.06% however, there are a few notable differences between the two accounts which we’ll go over in our review below.

Priority Savings Account

ufbdirect.com

UFB Direct’s Priority Savings account was launched back in August of 2022 originally as a “Rewards Savings” account then was rebranded as the “Elite Savings” account before settling on “Priority Savings” account.

It has zero monthly maintenance fees and no monthly direct deposit requirements to earn the advertised interest rate and APY.

It also comes with no minimum deposit requirement.

Rate

Balance TierAPY
$0 – $9,999.995.06%
$10k – $24,999.995.06%
$25k – $49,999.995.06%
$50k – $99,999.995.06%
$100k +5.06%
APY = Annual Percentage Yield

Although all balance tiers pay the same yield currently, this may change in the future.

To put this yield into perspective, the current national average for a savings account sits at just 0.42% APY according to FDIC data.

The most competitive variable-rate savings accounts, however, are offering yields just above the 5.00% APY mark.

How Does UFB Direct’s Priority Savings Account Compare

Take a look at the table below comparing UFB Direct’s Priority Savings account versus other competitive online savings account offers.

BankMin. BalanceAPY
Citibank$1.004.05%
Citizens Access$0.014.50%
PNC Bank$1.004.65%
UFB Direct$0.005.06%
Interest Rates (APYs) surveyed on July 26, 2023.

Compounding and Crediting Interest

Interest on the UFB Direct Savings account is compounding daily and you start earning interest on the same business day that they receive your funds.

Interest is credited back to the account monthly and can remain for further compounding or can be transferred to an external account which has been set up for direct deposit.

Deposits and Withdrawals

If funding the savings account via ACH transfer please allow 2 – 3 business days before your account is actually opened.

Once you set up an external account for direct deposit into your UFB Priority Savings account, you will be able to make free direct deposits at your convenience.

You are limited to 6 withdrawals per month per federal regulation D.

Features

✅ Free ATM card to make cash withdrawals from your Priority Savings account.

✅ Digital tools for 100 percent remote banking.

✅ Free transfers between external bank account and UFB Direct Priority Savings account.

✅ SMS messaging to access your account when you’re without any internet connection.

✅ Mobile Check Deposit for depositing physical checks via your smartphone.

Priority Money Market Account

UFB Direct’s Priority Money Market account comes with the same APY as the Priority Savings account. The major difference between these two is that the money market account comes with a minimum balance requirement of $5,000 to avoid a $10.00 monthly fee.

Rate

Balance TierAPY
$0 – $9,999.995.06%
$10k – $24,999.995.06%
$25k – $49,999.995.06%
$50k – $99,999.995.06%
$100k +5.06%
APY = Annual Percentage Yield

To put this yield into perspective, the current national average for a money market account sits at just 0.63% APY per FDIC data.

UFB Direct uses the same daily balance method for compounding the interest on your Priority Money Market account. Dividends are paid monthly as well.

📌 Please Note – There is no complimentary ATM card associated with the Priority Money Market account.

How Does UFB Direct’s Priority Money Market Account Compare

Take a look at the table below comparing UFB Direct’s Priority Money Market account versus other competitive online savings account offers.

BankMin. BalanceAPY
CFG Bank$1,0005.17%
Northern Bank Direct$5,0004.95%
TotalDirectBank$2,5004.95%
UFB Direct$5,0005.06%
Interest Rates (APYs) surveyed on July 26, 2023.

Final Thoughts

UFB Direct’s Priority Savings account and Priority Money Market account both come with extremely competitive yields that are among the highest in the country at the moment.

The Priority Savings account appears to be the more attractive offer of the two as it comes with no minimum deposit or balance requirements and no monthly fees whereas the money market account requires you to maintain a $5,000 balance to avoid a $10/month fee.

The free ATM card and free transfers between direct deposit accounts add to the convenience of the Priority Savings account as well. These are features many online savings accounts do not offer.

Popular Direct CD Rates – Now up to 5.38% APY!

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Popular Direct is the online division of Popular, Inc. – a global financial services provider headquartered in Puerto Rico.

Depending on where you live you may see variations of this name. For example, they operate as Banco Popular in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, and as Popular Bank in the U.S.

In this article, however, we’ll just be discussing the online division, Popular Direct, and their FDIC-insured savings products.

Like most online-only banks, Popular Direct is open membership and easy to join from a computer or mobile device.

Popular Direct is able to provide better rates on its savings products than most traditional banks, but its product suite is minimal. They offer just an “Ultimate Savings” account and standard CDs at this time. Both of which come with steeper than usual minimum deposit requirements.

We’ve also learned that Popular Direct will place a 60 day hold on any withdrawals for new accounts. So if you planned on moving funds in or out of their high yield savings account within 60 days of opening it, you may want to look elsewhere. Popular Direct notes that this is a security measure and your funds will still accrue interest during the holding period.

Popular Direct CD Rates + Account Details

image credit: populardirect.com

Popular Direct certificate accounts are now much more competitive than they were in early 2023. Their short term CD rates feature some of the highest yields anywhere in the country as per the time of this writing.

CD Rates

CD TermAPY
3 month4.75%
6 month5.35%
1 year5.38%
18 month5.15%
2 year4.80%
3 year4.75%
4 year4.30%
5 year4.60%
APY = Annual Percentage Yield

To give the annual percentage yields above some context, the national average for 1 year CDs and 5 year CDs sit at roughly 1.72% APY and 1.37% APY, respectively, according to FDIC data.

How Much Can You Make with a Popular Direct CD?

The amount of money you can earn with a Popular Direct CD is going to depend on your deposit size, the CD’s term and its going APY (annual percentage yield).

Take a look at the table below which displays potential earnings on a few of Popular Direct’s CDs assuming a deposit size of $50,000.

CD TermAPYEarnings
6 months5.35%$1,320.07
12 months5.38%$2,690.00
2 years4.80%$4,915.20
5 years4.60%$12,607.80
Earnings = Sum of all interest payments through maturity.

How Do Popular Direct’s CD Rates Compare?

To get a better idea of how Popular Direct’s best CD rate compares to some of the other top CD rates offered by FDIC-insured online banks, then take a look at the table below.

BankBest CD Rate (APY)
Ally Bank5.00%
Ivy Bank5.00%
My Banking Direct5.15%
TIAA Bank5.25%
Popular Direct5.38%
CD rates surveyed on July 24, 2023.

Minimum Deposit Requirement

A steep minimum deposit requirement of $10,000 is required to open an account. Interest is compounded daily and credited monthly. Unfortunately with Popular Bank CDs, you may not withdraw credited interest prior to maturity.

Grace Period

The automatic renewal grace period on one of these accounts is 10 days after the date of maturity. Fees for early withdrawal from a Popular Direct certificate of deposit account are quite high.

Early Withdrawal Penalties

Early withdrawal:

  • from a term of less than 91 days will cost you 89 days’ interest,
  • from a term of 91 days to 12 months will cost you 120 days’ interest,
  • from a term of 12 to 36 months will cost you 270 days’ interest,
  • from a term of 36 to 60 months will cost you 365 days’ interest, and
  • from a term of 60 months or more will cost you 730 days’ interest.

Popular Direct High Yield Savings Account APY + Details

Popular Direct savings accounts are federally insured by the FDIC up to the applicable limits and can be opened with just $100.

Savings Account Rate

Min. DepositAPY
$1005.05%
APY = Annual Percentage Yield

A Popular Direct Ultimate Savings account will earn you an APY of 5.05%. To put this in perspective the average yield for a savings account nationwide is hovering around 0.42% APY with the top yields from online banks just inching over the 5.00% APY mark.

You’ll want to note all potential fees before opening a savings account with Popular Direct.

  1. If you close your account within 180 days of issuance, you’ll be charged a $25 fee.
  2. A monthly dormancy fee of $5 is applied to accounts that have been inactive for 12 months.
  3. An excessive withdrawal fee of $5 is charged for every deposit or transfer over the federally-enforced 6 transaction limit.
  4. A low balance fee of $4 is charged if account balances dip below $500.

Interest is compounded daily and credited monthly.

To transfer money into this account, you will need to link an external account with another bank. You can then initiate an ACH electronic transfer or set up direct deposit. From there, you may transfer funds electronically from a savings account to a certificate account as long as this doesn’t cause you to exceed the monthly transaction limit.

Banking Experience and Customer Sentiment

There aren’t a lot of customer reviews for Popular Direct, but don’t expect too much from this institution based on the reviews that have been left. Out of 90 ratings on DepositAccounts, Popular Direct scored an average rating of 2 stars and 53 of the user reviews left were paltry 1-star ratings.

Most customer complaints seem to be about untrustworthy service with some users reporting deceitful representatives and broken contracts. Aside from that, the majority of customers are displeased with the dropping interest rates on Popular Direct deposit products and inexplicably frozen accounts. As for positive reviews, people like the competitive rates—especially those available a couple of years back.

Overall, people aren’t happy with Popular Direct’s web and mobile banking platforms either. The Popular Direct app has 1.7 stars on Google Play and 1.4 stars on the App Store. The online banking portal and apps have been described as “astonishingly terrible,” and “buggy.”

Other online-only banks that offer ATM or branch access to their customers have an edge over Popular Direct, as Popular Direct accounts can only be managed via online banking, mobile banking, and ACH authorizations through linked external bank accounts.

There is no Popular Direct ATM network in the U.S., but even if there were, members wouldn’t be able to use it. As of right now, Popular Direct doesn’t have a checking account in its product suite and might not any time soon. This means no debit or ATM cards.

To contact customer service and get the most appropriate service or answers, visit the Popular Direct website and find the link that most closely relates to your needs. The general customer care line is 1-(800)-274-5696 and representatives can be reached in this way 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You can also get help by selecting the “Contact Us” link via “Support” through the website and sending a service request or sending mail to the address below: Popular Bank Attn: Popular Direct Products P.O. Box 4884 Miami Lakes, FL 33014

You will not be able to get the help you need through Popular Bank or Banco Popular if you are an online-only user, so be mindful of this.

Popular Direct Certificate of Deposit FAQs

Still have questions about Popular Direct’s CD rates? Take a look at what other consumers are asking around the web as well as our responses below.

Is Popular Direct a Legitimate Bank?

Yes, Popular Direct is an FDIC-insured online bank. They are a subsidiary of Popular Bank, based out of Puerto Rico, and offer U.S. consumers a high yield online savings account and 8 term CDs with maturities ranging from 3 months to 5 years.

What is Popular Direct’s Routing Number?

Popular Direct’s routing number is 113007835.

Does Popular Direct Offer a Checking Account?

No. At this time Popular Direct does not offer a checking account or debit cards.

PNC Bank High Yield Savings Account – Now 4.65% APY!

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PNC Bank is the 7th largest bank in the United States by assets with nearly $381 billion in total and the 5th largest bank in the US by branch network with 2,459 branches across 21 states and the District of Columbia.

They offer a full suite of banking services for personal, small business, corporate and institutional clients that cover everything from loans and borrowing to savings and wealth management.

For the purpose of this review we will focus on the personal High Yields Savings account.

📍 Please Note – This account is only available online in eligible markets where PNC Bank does not have physical branch locations. Those U.S. states are as follows:

  • Alaska
  • Arizona
  • Arkansas
  • California
  • Colorado
  • Connecticut
  • Hawaii
  • Idaho
  • Iowa
  • Louisiana
  • Maine
  • Massachusetts
  • Minnesota
  • Mississippi
  • Montana
  • Nebraska
  • Nevada
  • New Hampshire
  • New Mexico
  • North Dakota
  • Oklahoma
  • Oregon
  • Rhode Island
  • South Dakota
  • Tennessee
  • Utah
  • Vermont
  • Washington
  • Wyoming

To see if PNC Bank’s High Yield Savings account is right for you, continue reading our review below.

PNC Bank High Yield Savings Rate + Account Details

PNC Bank is member FDIC and all deposits held at the institution are federally insured up to $250,000 per depositor or $500,000 on joint accounts. There is no minimum deposit requirement to open the account, but you’ll need to have at least $1.00 to start earning interest. If your account remains open and unfunded for 180 days PNC Bank may close the account.

High Yield Savings Rate

Minimum DepositAPY
$04.65%
APY = Annual Percentage Yield

To give this yield some context, the current national average for a savings account sits at just 0.42% APY according to FDIC data. That said, top rates from online banks are inching up to the 5.00% APY mark.

How Does it Compare

Take a look at the table below. We’ve pitted PNC Bank’s high yield savings account rate vs a handful of other popular online banks and their high yield savings account rates.

BankMin. DepositAPY
Apple (via Goldman Sachs)$04.15%
Bask Bank$04.85%
Capital One$04.15%
First Foundation Bank$1,0004.85%
PNC Bank$04.65%
Rates surveyed July 13, 2023.

How to Open the Account

Setting up your PNC High Yield Savings account, as well as funding and managing it are simple and straightforward and can be done completely online by anyone 18 years old or older.

To get started, navigate here.

Be sure to have the following items handy:

  • Driver’s License, State ID or Military ID
  • Social Security Number

On top of this, they will also request several pieces of information about yourself such as your full legal name, residing address, telephone number, e-mail address, etc.

How to Fund the Account

Funding the account can be done in four ways. These are as follows:

  • Online Banking – Enroll in online banking and schedule recurring deposits to your high yield savings account. This can be set up from an existing PNC Bank account or an external bank account.
  • Mobile Banking – Download the PNC banking app (links below) and deposit checks on the go.
  • Wire transfer from external bank account. You’ll need your bank or credit union’s routing number plus your bank account number where the funds will come from.
  • By Mail – Send physical checks along with your account name and account number to the following address: PNC BANK, P.O. Box 8108, Philadelphia, PA 19101-8101

Once your account is all set up, you can manage it from a mobile phone, tablet or desktop computer using PNC online banking or one of their native apps. You can download their IOS app or Android app using the links provided.

PNC Bank High Yield Savings Account FAQs

Still have questions about PNC Bank’s High Yield Savings account? See what others are asking around the web along with our responses below.

Does PNC Bank offer a health savings account?

Yes. PNC Bank does offer a health savings account. You can learn more about that product here.

Does PNC Bank offer a money market account?

Yes, but the yields are very low (between 0.02% and 0.05% APY) and you’ll either need to maintain a minimum balance of $5,000 or have it linked to a PNC Bank checking account to avoid a $12 monthly service fee. You can learn more about PNC Bank’s money market account here.

How Often Does PNC Bank Issue Savings Account Statements?

PNC Bank issues savings account statements monthly. You will be notified by email when your statement is ready to view.

How much do you need to open a Savings Account with PNC Bank?

The High Yield Savings account can be opened online with $0. It does, however, need a minimum balance of $1.00 to earn the advertised APY. If you open an account and do not fund it for 180 days, PNC Bank may close the account.

Final Thoughts

PNC Bank’s online savings account is currently one of the more competitive offers on the market after being relatively lackluster for a long time.

If you’re looking for a respectable savings rate at PNC Bank, then the high yield savings account is their most attractive offer. PNC Bank’s CD rates, while on the rise, still remain relatively low compared to yields offered by other online banks and nationally available credit unions.

Citi Accelerate Savings – Now 4.05% APY!

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Citibank, the retail banking division of Citigroup, kept their high yield “Accelerate Savings” account competitive during the low rate environment we had prior to 2022.

Today, in our rising interest rate environment, the Citi Accelerate Savings rate remains well above the national average but Citi has struggled to be a rate leader as other online savings accounts have caught up and surpassed them.

Plus the fact that this account needs to be opened in conjunction with another Citibank account makes it more of a burden than other alternatives on the market.

To see if the Citi Accelerate Savings account is right for you, continue reading our review below.

Related: Citibank’s CD rates, while currently lower than what you can find with online banks, have the highest yields of all the big banks (Wells Fargo, Chase, Bank of America and US Bank).

Citi Accelerate Saving Account Rate + Details

image credit: citi.com

The Citi Accelerate Savings account is only available in select markets, however this market has expanded since Citi launched the account. As of January 2023, residents in all states except New York and select markets in Florida and Illinois are eligible.

Accelerate Saving Rate

Min. to earn APYAPY
$1.004.05%
APY = Annual Percentage Yield

📌 Please note: This rate varies by region. The rate we’ve listed below is accurate in the regions we surveyed which included Florida, Pennsylvania, Colorado and Washington state. You’ll have to check your own individual zip code here to see the rate available in your region.

To put this yield into perspective, the current national average for a money market account and a savings account sit at just 0.61% APY and 0.42% APY, respectively, according to recent FDIC data.

That said, some of the highest yielding variable-rate accounts from FDIC-insured online banks and nationally available credit unions are now inching up to the 5.00% APY mark.

Additional Citi Accounts Required

Prior to setting up your Citi Accelerate Savings Account you’ll need to first open one of Citibank’s 6 banking packages and meet some monthly requirements to avoid fees. Keep in mind there may be fees on both the checking side AND the Citi Accelerate Savings side if criteria isn’t met.

Below are the 6 packages to choose from. All come with the Citi Accelerate Savings Account:

  1. Citigold – For high net worth clients. In order to have a Citigold Account Package, you must have at least $200,000 across eligible linked deposit, retirement and investment accounts. There are no monthly service fees for Citigold clients on the checking or Accelerate Savings side.
  2. Citi Priority – Also tailored to higher net worth individuals or joint account holders. Package includes a regular or interest checking account and Citi Accelerate Savings Account upon opening. Must maintain a combined average monthly balance of $50,000+ in eligible linked deposit, retirement and investment accounts to avoid a $30 monthly service fee.
  3. The Citibank Account – Package includes a standalone Citi Accelerate Savings Account upon opening. Link to a regular or interest checking account and maintain required balances to help avoid monthly service fees. Must maintain a combined average monthly balance of $10,000+ in eligible linked deposit, retirement and investment accounts to avoid a $25 monthly service fee.
  4. Citi Elevate Account – Package includes an interest checking account and Citi Accelerate Savings Account upon opening. To avoid a $15 fee on the checking side, you’ll need to keep a monthly balance of at least $5,000. If your Citi Accelerate account is not linked to your checking account you’ll need to maintain a $500 average balance in it to avoid a $4.50 monthly fee.
  5. Basic Banking/Access Account – Package includes a standalone Citi Accelerate Savings Account upon opening. To avoid a $12 monthly service fee, you must either make one qualifying direct deposit AND one qualifying bill payment per statement period OR maintain a combined monthly average of $1,500 in linked accounts. As with the Elevate Account, if your Citi Accelerate account is not linked to your checking account you’ll need to maintain a $500 average balance in it to avoid a $4.50 monthly fee.

Compounding and Crediting Interest

Interest is compounded daily and paid to your account monthly.

Accessing Your Money

Citi customers have free access to more than 65,000 ATMs as well as 723 branches here in the United States alone. There are also plenty of online options to access and manage your money.

Citibank has taken pride in building industry-leading digital banking products and tools. In 2018 Citibank was named (again) as the “World’s Best Digital Bank” by Global Finance.

Once you have your username and password, you can login anytime, anywhere to your account here.

You can also download their native app(s) on IOS or the Google Play Store.

The app has over 3.3 million user reviews on IOS devices and holds a 4.9 star rating out of 5.

The app has over 942,000 user reviews on Andriod devices and holds a 4.7 star rating out of 5.

Depositing Funds

There are a number of ways to deposit funds into your Citi Accelerate Savings account. These include:

  • ATM deposit
  • Direct Deposit
  • Check by Mail
  • Electronic bank transfer
  • Local Citi branch
  • Mobile Deposit
  • Wire transfer

Funds from Citi savings account deposits are typically available immediately if made before cutoff times around 6-7pm EST. Any deposit made after this time is generally available the next business day.

Withdrawing Funds

If you would like to withdraw funds from your Citi Accelerate Savings account, first transfer them to your Citi checking account that was required upon opening. You can do this via the Citi apps (links provided above), online, over the phone or at a local branch.

Once the money is in your Citi checking account you can withdraw cash at a local ATM with the debit card that came with your checking account. You can also perform a wire transfer or electronic bank transfer just be sure to take note of the associated fees that may come with these services.

Citi Accelerate Savings Account FAQs

Still have questions about the Citi Accelerate Savings account? See what other consumers are asking around the web along with our responses below.

Is the Citi Accelerate Savings Account FDIC-insured?

Yes. Citibank is member FDIC and deposits held in all Citibank accounts (cumulatively) are federally insured up to $250,000 per depositor.

How can I close my Citi Accelerate Savings Account?

The easiest way to close the account is to speak with your account manager and get the required form needed. Once you’ve filled out the account closure form, return it to your representative and transfer the remaining funds out of the account to $0 the balance.