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 and the Virtual Wallet Checking Pro with Spend account. These are PNC Bank’s online savings account and online checking account, respectively.
The Virtual Wallet Pro with Spend account, which functions as the online checking account, can also come packaged with the High Yield Savings, so that your reserve funds can grow with a solid APY. PNC Bank calls this packaged product the Virtual Wallet Pro with Spend, Reserve and Growth (a bit of a mouthful, we know).
If you open any of the Virtual Wallet accounts you can currently earn a bonus of $50, $200 or $300 depending on where you live and which account you open.
We ran several scenarios and detailed them below, but in general, the western states and cities are only eligible for the $200 bonus with the Virtual Wallet Pro with Spend account and the Midwest and Eastern states have that same $200 offer plus the option of either a $50 or $300 bonuses based on the type of account set up and the associated qualifying actions.
PNC Bank High Yield Savings Overview – 0.50% APY
PNC Bank is member FDIC and all deposits held at the institution are federally insured up to $250,000 per depositor.
PNC Bank High Yield Savings
| Account | Min Balance | APY |
| High Yield Savings | $1 | 0.50% |
To give this yield some context, the current national average for a savings account sits at just 0.07% APY and the top rates online are just touching 0.50% APY. That said, there are still a handful of specialty savings accounts like Sallie Mae’s SmartyPig or the Fitness Bank savings account that feature APYs around 0.70%.
Setting up, funding and managing your High Yield Saving account is fairly simple and straightforward.
To get started you will need the following:
- Driver’s License or State 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.
Funding the account can be done in three ways:
- Wire transfer from existing external bank account
- Check deposit via the PNC mobile app. This can only be done after you’ve enrolled in PNC online banking or mobile banking.
- A PNC checking account
The easiest and fastest way to get going is via a wire transfer. For this you will need the routing number and account number of your existing bank and bank account.
One 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 Virtual Wallet Checking Pro with Spend
The Virtual Wallet Checking Pro with Spend account is an online checking account in your virtual wallet. Like the high yield saving account, this account has no minimum deposit requirements and no fees.
It comes with a debit card and access to over 18,000 ATMs nationwide (locate them here). It also comes with ATM reimbursements of up to $20 per statement cycle. This is a generous out of network ATM reimbursement amount per statement cycle – especially given the coverage of PNC Bank and its own ATM network.
Virtual Wallet Checking Pro with Spend Features
| Item | Feature |
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
| Minimum balance | $0 |
| Monthly service fees | $0 |
| Debit Card | Free |
| Checks | Unlimited |
| ATMs | 18,000 in network |
| ATM reimbursement | $20 per statement cycle |
| Sign Up Bonus | $200 – with qualifying direct deposit(s) |
$50, $200 and $300 Bonus Details
As mentioned only the Midwest and Eastern states have the option for the $50 and $300 bonus. They also have the $200 bonus option that all the Western states have with the Virtual Wallet Checking Pro with Spend account mentioned above.
We ran this scenario in six major cities across the country:
- Seattle 98109
- San Francisco 94016
- Dallas 75001
- Chicago 60007
- New York City 10001
- Miami 33101
In Seattle, San Francisco and Dallas we found that only the $200 bonus offer was available.
In Chicago, New York, and Miami we found that same $200 offer available plus a $50 offer and a $300 offer. Details on each offer are listed below.
$50 Bonus for Virtual Wallet
Perhaps the easiest bonus to nab for those in eligible regions is PNC Bank’s $50 bonus is by opening the virtual wallet and establishing $500 in qualifying direct deposit(s) to the Spend account.
To qualify for this offer you must open the account between 12/1/20 to 12/31/20, and a qualifying Direct Deposit(s) must be received within the first 60 days. Your checking account must remain open in order for you to receive the reward, which will be credited to the eligible account within 60-90 days after all conditions have been met and will be identified as “Cash Trans Promo Reward” on your monthly statement.
$200 Bonus Offer
For the $200 bonus that is available everywhere. You will need to set up the Virtual Wallet Checking Pro with Spend account AND set up qualifying direct deposit(s) of $2,000 or more.
To qualify for this offer you must open the account between 12/1/20 to 12/31/20, and a qualifying Direct Deposit(s) must be received within the first 60 days. Your checking account must remain open in order for you to receive the reward, which will be credited to the eligible account within 60-90 days after all conditions have been met and will be identified as “Cash Trans Promo Reward” on your monthly statement.
$300 Bonus Offer
The $300 bonus that is available in Midwestern and Eastern States can be received by opening the Virtual Wallet with Performance Select account and
- setting up $5,000 or more in qualifying direct deposits OR
- $5,000 in average monthly balance in Spend and Reserve OR
- $25,000 in combined average monthly balance in PNC consumer deposits or investments.
To qualify for this offer you must open the account between 12/1/20 to 12/31/20, and a qualifying Direct Deposit(s) must be received within the first 60 days.
Final Thoughts
These are extremely noteworthy accounts and generous bonuses offered by PNC Bank.
The high yield savings account comes with an APY that is only beat by a handful of institutions and the Virtual Wallet with Spend account comes with a lucrative signing bonus of $200 plus the same ability to earn 0.50% APY on reserve cash.
For Midwestern and Eastern states only, we love the ability to earn $50 and $300 bonuses for the Virtual Wallet accounts, but the $300 bonus comes with much steeper direct deposit and/or average monthly balance requirements.