Thursday, 2 May 2024
There’s no shortage of checking account bonus offers, with everyone from small local banks to the big household names offering hundreds of dollars to new customers. Banks know it’s hard to get you to leave your old bank, especially when you’re comfortable with the accounts you have. But what better way to entice you than with a big cash bonus?
You’ll find these bonus offers attached to more checking accounts than savings accounts. After all, checking accounts are a crucial part to banking, as they allow you to easily access your money for purchases and transfers.
That’s not to say there aren’t any opportunities to earn money with a new savings account. We’ve found five of the best savings account bonus offers as of the date of publishing. It’s easy to go straight for the highest amount, but pay attention to the bank and the account you’re getting ready to open. Make sure it’s a bank you actually want to do business with.
Further, double check that you’ll be happy with the new account for months to come. It can take months to meet the offer requirements and even longer to actually receive the bonus. If there’s a monthly fee on the account, you could be stuck paying that unnecessary fee, especially if you can’t meet the balance requirements to waive it. You may not even be happy with the interest rate on the account, which might make the savings account bonus offer not entirely worth it.
To find the best savings account bonus offers, we looked for the highest bonus amounts offered. Below, you’ll find the five biggest bonus offers on savings accounts being offered. Offers are current as of this publication date and we will update the article periodically to show the freshest ranking.
Offer rules: If you open a new Capital One 360 Money Market account with an opening deposit of at least $10,000, you can snag up to $500 in bonus cash. The money needs to be new-to-Capital One and deposited within the first 10 days of account opening. The balance you maintain in the account for the following 90 days will determine your bonus reward. If you maintain between $10,000 and $50,000 for those 90 days, you earn a $200 reward. If your balance stays at $50,000 or higher, you earn a $500 reward. If your balance dips below $50,000 at any time during that period, you’ll earn the lower reward even if you boost it back up with another deposit.
Who’s eligible: You cannot redeem this savings account bonus offer if you have or had a Capital One savings product after Jan. 1, 2016. For those who do qualify, you’ll need to enter the promotional code CELEBRATE to snag the offer when you open the new account.
Account details: The Capital One 360 Money Market account is on our list of the best money market accounts out there. It earns at a competitive rate on balances of $10,000 and over. Lower balances also earn interest, just not at quite a high rate. Plus, the account is free to use, as there are no monthly maintenance or ATM fees.
Offer rules: New Discover customers can benefit from a $200 bonus by opening a Discover Online Savings account and depositing at least $25,000 into the account by March 18, 2019.
If you can’t meet that minimum amount, you can earn a $150 bonus instead by depositing at least $15,000 into the new account by March 18, 2019.
Bonuses will be credited to your account by April 1, 2019.
Who’s eligible: You must be a new Discover customer to qualify for this savings account bonus offer. You must not have had a savings account that was co-branded or an affinity account provided by Discover either.
You can apply for the offer with the code “MM219” either online or by phone.
Account details: Discover’s Online Savings Account earns at a competitive interest rate on all balances. There’s no monthly service fee and Discover promises no hidden fees. You’ll only face a charge for excessive withdrawals, stop payments, insufficient funds and outgoing wire transfers. Discover will waive the first excessive withdrawal, insufficient funds or stop payment fee you encounter each calendar year. Keep in mind that these bonuses are considered interest and will be reported on a 1099-INT form.
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Offer rules: In another bonus offer from Chase, you can get $150 when you open a new Chase Savings account. You’ll need to deposit at least $10,000 in new money (not previously held with Chase or its affiliates) within 20 business days and maintain at least that minimum balance for 90 days.
Want to do more banking with Chase and open a Chase Total Checking account, too? Opening both a new checking and savings account can get you a $350 bonus, as long as you follow the above savings account rules and set up direct deposit on your new checking account.
Who’s eligible: You’re eligible for the Chase Savings account bonus offer if you are not already a Chase savings customer. You also cannot have had an account that was closed within 90 days or with a negative balance.
If you close this new savings account within six months after opening, Chase will deduct the bonus amount from the account at closing.
Account details: The Chase Savings account earns interest at a nominal rate, which isn’t ideal for savings growth. There is a $5 monthly fee on the account. You can waive the fee with one of the following, each statement period:
You could also face a $5 fee for each excessive transaction you make over the six-transfer limit per statement cycle.
Offer rules: Opening a new Associated Bank Money Market account can get you a $100 bonus. You’ll need to deposit at least $10,000 in new money (held outside Associated Bank) at opening and maintain at least that much in the account for 90 days to receive the bonus.
If you also want an Associated Bank Packers Checking account, you can earn another bonus of $175. This requires an opening deposit of $100 in new money and at least three online bill payments or one direct deposit at least least $300 within 45 days of account opening.
Who’s eligible: You can redeem this savings account bonus offer online or by taking the coupon sent via email to an Associated Bank branch. This offer is limited to one per household. Households who have or have had an Associated Bank Money Market account within the last six months do not qualify. You must be 18 years or older to apply for the bonus.
If you close the new account within 12 months of opening, Associated Bank can deduct the bonus amount from your funds at closing.
Account details: The Associated Bank Money Market account is a true money market account with the ability to write convenience checks and access Associated Bank and MoneyPass ATMs. It earns interest, too, at pretty modest rates. You can boost your rates by having a higher balance and by having a qualifying Associated checking account.
The money market account does charge a $16 fee, which you can waive by maintaining a $1,000 minimum balance.
Offer rules: When you open a new First Tennessee Money Market Savings account with at least $2,000 you have a chance at earning a $50 bonus. To snag the offer, you must also deposit a total of at least $5,000 in the first 30 days of account opening. Your deposits must be made from accounts outside of First Tennessee Bank.
Who’s eligible: To redeem the offer, you can open the account online with the Promo code “SVSC50.” You can also visit a First Tennessee branch and present a copy of the offer. You must be a resident of Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, Tennessee or certain parts of Virginia (Bristol, Weber City, Gate City) to qualify. You must also be a new customer to the bank, meaning households with current consumer savings accounts or accounts closed within the past 12 months at First Tennessee Bank or Capital Bank cannot redeem the offer.
Account details: The bank’s Money Market Savings account earns interest according to balance tiers, so the higher your balance, the higher the rate. Overall, however, the rates are relatively low and you’ll need $250,000 or more to earn at the highest level.
You can access your Money Market Savings funds through ATM or check. There is a $9 monthly fee on the account. You can waive the fee with either a qualifying checking account or if your total combined balance in First Tennessee accounts is at least $5,000.
When looking for the best online savings accounts, you won’t find much overlap here. Bonus offers tend to come from brick-and-mortar banks, as incentives for you to place your deposits with them.
Online banks still win by and large. But don’t let these financial carrots mislead you into thinking they are the best on the market — many of the best accounts are being offered by online banks these days. Online accounts tend to have the highest interest rates and the lowest fees — what more could you want? That’s why you’ll find most sign-up bonuses being offered by brick-and-mortar banks.
Know the pros and cons. You should figure out whether it’s worth it for you to open a new account with a traditional bank just for a bonus offer. Don’t forget, you can’t open a new account for a bonus offer and close it immediately. Qualifying for and receiving the bonus takes months. You could even lose your bonus offer if you close the account too soon. Plus, a savings account bonus offer is a short-term boost in savings, rather than the ongoing growth of a high-yield account. It won’t help your savings situation if your new account charges a monthly fee that you can’t waive, either.
Factor in fees. If you do desperately want to snag a couple hundred dollars by opening a new account, make sure you won’t be paying a monthly fee for the months you have the account. That way, you won’t lose any of that bonus right off the bat. Again, double check the account’s closing terms to ensure you won’t lose the bonus at closing, either. It’s also important to be able to meet the account’s minimum balance requirements. It may not make sense for you to keep $10,000 in a low-earning account just to earn a $200 bonus, for example.
Do the math. Let’s say you do deposit and maintain $10,000 in a new savings account that has an interest rate of 0.01%, which is typical of brick-and-mortar savings accounts. After a year, you’ll have earned $1 in interest. Add that to your $200 bonus and you can add a whopping $201 to your savings. Now, if you were to forgo the bonus offer and deposit your $10,000 into a high-yield savings account with a 2.25% APY, you’ll earn just over $227 after a year (with monthly compounding) — a better savings boost than the savings account bonus offer.
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Source: https://www.magnifymoney.com/blog/best-of/savings-account-bonus-offers/
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