Best High-Yield Online Savings Accounts: 5.36% APY (March 2024)

The cornerstone of any good financial system starts with finding a savings account that works for you.

The best savings accounts offer high-yield interest rates, even higher in 2022 as the Fed increases rates, and don’t require you to maintain a huge minimum balance to avoid fees.

I.N.G.? Ing? For a while, no one knew!

How do you find a good savings account? Look to online banks.

My first online savings account was with a little-known Dutch bank, ING (which is an acronym for Internationale Nederlanden Groep, recently acquired by Capital One). Everyone was skeptical about online banking back then.

Today, online savings accounts are common. The interest rates are much higher than brick and mortar banks. The services are far easier to use.

Below, we have a list of online savings accounts with the highest interest rates. They are all FDIC-insured. They are as safe as a ‘regular’ bank except they pay way more in interest. You can confirm that by searching the FDIC’s Bank Find tool and confirming the FDIC numbers listed.

These banks are presented in no particular order (we try to list it in interest rate order but sometimes they change on us and we haven’t readjusted the list), but all provide value in terms of helping you build a strong financial foundation.

Table of Contents
  1. Western Alliance Bank – 5.36% APY*
  2. Customers Bank – 5.26% APY
  3. CloudBank – 5.26% APY
  4. Blue FCU – 5.15% APY
  5. CIT Bank — 4.65% APY
  6. Barclays Bank — 4.35% APY
  7. Discover Bank — 4.25% APY
  8. Capital One 360 Performance Savings – 4.35% APY
  9. Ally Bank — 4.35% APY
  10. American Express® Personal Savings — 4.35% APY
  11. Marcus by Goldman Sachs — 4.50% APY
  12. Alliant Credit Union — 3.10% APY
  13. Common Questions about Online Savings Accounts

🔃Updated February 2024: Updated with current interest rates and re-ordered the list to reflect the new rates. We also added a new bank to the list that may be familiar to rate watchers – Western Alliance Bank. This time, we are working directly with them and they sport the highest rate on the page.

The content on this page is accurate as of the posting date; however, some of the offers mentioned may have expired or changed.

If you are simply looking for the highest yield, you may want to consider no penalty CDs right now. The yields there can be much higher and you get the flexibility of withdrawals anytime.

Western Alliance Bank – 5.36% APY*

Western Alliance Bank is an FDIC insured commercial bank (FDIC #57512) with more than $70 billion in assets and a very competitive high yield savings account, called the High-Yield Savings Premier, currently offering 5.36% APY. Western Alliance Bank is based out of Phoenix, AZ and this offer is available nationwide.

This account with Western Alliance has no account activity or maintenance fees and interest accrues daily and is paid monthly. The minimum opening deposit is $500.

A high interest rate, no fees, and a reasonable $500 minimum – this is a great option if you need a high yield savings account and want to work directly with a bank.

👉 Learn more about this offer

* 5.36% APY (annual percentage yield) is accurate as of 01/17/2024 and subject to change at the Bank’s discretion. Minimum deposit required to open an account is $500 and a minimum balance of $0.01 is required to earn the advertised APY.

Customers Bank – 5.26% APY

Customers Bank was founded in 2009 and is a community bank with over $22 billion in assets. They are FDIC insured and are offering our list-leading rate of 5.26% APY through the Raisin platform.

Like with all other banks on Raisin, there is no monthly maintenance fee, no minimum balance, and the interest is compounded daily and credit monthly. You can open an account with just $1.

👉 Learn more about Customers Bank

CloudBank – 5.26% APY

CloudBank 24/7 is an FDIC insured bank and a division of Third Coast Bank SSB. They offer a variety of deposit products but it’s their savings account that is getting the attention today, currently offering 5.26% APY through the Raisin platform.

This account has no monthly maintenance fees and interest in compounded daily and credited monthly. The minimum opening balance is just $1.

A high interest rate, no fees, and a $1 minimum make this a great option if you need a high yield savings account.

Third Coast Bank SSB is based out of Humber, TX and has been in business since 2008. They have 17 locations within the state of Texas but through Raisin, anyone can open an account and earn their high rates.

The only downside with this account, and it’s a function of being part of Raisin, is that there’s no associated checking account. You have to transfer funds in and out of Raisin to use them.

👉 Learn more about CloudBank

Blue FCU – 5.15% APY

Blue Federal Credit Union is a credit union that is currently offering a high interest rate of 5.15% APY on their money market deposit account. This is not technically a “savings account” because it’s at a federal credit union but rather a money market deposit account, but for all practical purposes it serves the same function.

Since it is a credit union, your funds are protected by NCUA deposit insurance and not FDIC insurance. It is also offered through the Raisin platform.

The only downside with this account, and it’s a function of being part of Raisin, is that there’s no associated checking account. You have to transfer funds in and out of Raisin to use them.

👉 Learn more about Blue FCU

CIT Bank — 4.65% APY

CIT Bank is a division of First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company (FDIC #11063). It is their online bank division and it offers every deposit product conceivable, from online savings to money market to no-penalty CDs. They have low minimums, no monthly service fees, and some of the highest yields available.

Their “Savings Connect” account is their savings account product and pays an interest rate of 4.65% APY on all balances. The minimum to open the account is just $100 and there are no fees to maintain it.

👉 Learn more about CIT Bank

Barclays Bank — 4.35% APY

Barclays is a British based international banking corporation and the online bank is part of their US subsidiary, Barclays Bank located in Delaware (FDIC #57203).

Their online savings account product has a competitive interest rate, no minimum balance to open, and to earn interest you need to keep enough such that the interest rate earns you a penny each period (so you won’t earn fractional interest, this is typical).

Barclay’s has a competitive lineup of Certificates of Deposits too, with terms as short as 3-months and up to 60 months. The rates are competitive with other online banks.

Barclays offers savings and CDs but does not offer a checking account.

👉 Learn more about Barclays

Discover Bank — 4.25% APY

Discover Bank Logo

Discover, the credit card folks, also have an online bank!

Discover® Bank (FDIC #5649) may not be a familiar name to you but they’ve been actively insured by the FDIC since 1934. Their savings account has one of the highest interest rates, no maintenance fees, and no minimum balance.

The checking account also has no minimum balance, access to over 60,000 ATMs in the ATM network, plus a generous reward structure. You can earn 1% cash back on up to $3,000 in debit card purchases each month, pay a bill online, or write a check that clears (up to 100 such cashback transactions a month).

This is the first bank on the list that offers all three deposit products – checking, savings, and CDs. In terms of convenience, it’s one of the best.

Sometimes, Discover Bank will offer a cash bonus for this account. This Discover Bank promotion page will list any offers we know about.

(click here for our in-depth review of Discover Online Savings Bank)

👉 Learn more about Discover Bank

Capital One 360 Performance Savings – 4.35% APY

I’ve had a Capital One 360 Performance Savings account ever since it was an ING Direct account – a testament to how good of a bank I think they are. I liked how easy it was to open new accounts and manage my money there – plus it offers a competitive interest rate. Sometimes, we list Discover higher because you get a similar rate plus some bonus cash (when a promotion is available) but Performance Savings is comparable.

Capital One 360 has the added bonus of being part of Capital One, which makes management of your bank account easy if you already have Capital One credit cards. I enjoy having a lot of different services under one login because it’s just easier to manage.

Another added bonus is that Capital One often offers a bonus on new accounts.

Ally Bank — 4.35% APY

Ally Bank (FDIC #57803) is the online bank I use (I consider them the best online bank, which is why I use them) and I’ve been a fan of theirs for years. I opened my account shortly after they rebranded from GMAC (General Motors Acceptance Corporation) in the late 2000s.

Their savings account has a solid interest rate, no maintenance fees, and no minimum balance.

Their CD rates are also competitive, the early termination period is only 60 days on a short-term CD (versus the more typical 90 days), and they often give you an interest rate bonus if you roll your maturing CD into a new one.

They offer a free checking account with no minimum balance, they refund up to $10 in ATM fees each statement, have a large ATM network, and they have a competitive interest rate on the checking account too.

Their app is solid too. It has all of the typical bells and whistles plus a great remote deposit feature for when you have checks to deposit. If you need to deposit checks and don’t want to use the app, there are postage-paid deposit envelopes for you to use too (absolutely free).

Finally, they also offer an integrated brokerage accounted called Ally Invest. This gives you access to a low-cost stock broker too that offers free stock trades too.

(read our full review of Ally Bank)

👉 Learn more about Ally Bank

American Express® Personal Savings — 4.35% APY

You are probably more familiar with their credit cards than their savings account but American Express National Bank (FDIC #27471) has been in business since 2000, when American Express sold their previous banking division to Standard Chartered.

American Express® Personal Savings is their high yield savings product. They also have certificates of deposit as well but they do not have a checking account, you are permitted to link up to three of those from external banks.

We have a full review of American Express Personal Savings.

👉 Learn more about American Express Personal Savings

Marcus by Goldman Sachs — 4.50% APY

Marcus by Goldman Sachs (FDIC #33124) is the online bank of Goldman Sachs, most well known as an investment banking firm. They do quite more than that and Marcus by Goldman Sachs handles their online bank offerings.

They currently have some of the highest interest rates for savings accounts and they have no minimum deposits and no transaction fees (there do not appear to be maintenance fees either).

It is only a savings account though, no associated checking available.

Here’s a full review of Marcus by Goldman Sachs to give you a full scope understanding of their offer.

👉 Learn more about Marcus

Alliant Credit Union — 3.10% APY

Alliant Credit Union is the only credit union on this list and they are NCUA insured (NCUA is the equivalent of the FDIC for credit unions, same protections and same amounts – NCUA #67955).

The account minimum to open is $5 (but they will give you $5 to open an account!). The interest rate is available if you have $100 or more in your account and there are no maintenance fees if you elect e-statements (many of the online banks do not even offer paper statements, so this is not a huge distinction). They have 80,000+ ATMs in their network.

The same terms exist for their checking account too but their interest rate on the checking account is slightly higher than many others. There is no minimum balance required on the checking account and you can get $20 in ATM surcharge refunds per month.

Why bother including a credit union? Because this credit union offers two remarkable products – a Kid’s Savings Account and a Free Teen Checking Account. They are joint accounts with perks to help teach your kids responsible money habits – a fantastic idea.

👉 Learn more about Alliant Credit Union

Common Questions about Online Savings Accounts

Here are a few questions I get asked a lot when it comes to these online savings accounts.

How do online savings accounts work?

Online savings accounts are just like regular savings accounts. The big difference is that many of the banks that offer online savings accounts don’t have physical locations you can visit. Your main point of contact is through an app or online banking.

Many of the banks also offer online checking accounts that work just like regular checking accounts. The app will usually let you deposit checks by taking a picture of the front and back. You can access your money through a regular ATM and many banks have partnerships with national ATM networks like Allpoint.

Why should I get an online savings account?

If online savings accounts are just like savings accounts without physical locations, what’s the benefit of getting an online savings account? They have much higher interest rates. If you ever look at the interest rate of a regular bank, it’s usually ridiculously low.

For example, as of this writing, the interest rate at Bank of America’s savings account is 0.01% APY. It’s basically zero and it has been for a long time. Ally Bank’s interest rate is 4.35% APY.

Online banks tend to have much lower fees too. Ally Bank doesn’t have a maintenance fee and no minimum balance. Bank of America’s Core Checking has a $12 monthly fee that is waived if you maintain a balance of $1,500 or have a qualifying direct deposit of $250+.

Are online savings accounts safe?

Yes, 100% safe. Online banks are FDIC insured and so your money is as safe in those banks as they would be in a traditional bank. Your funds are protected up to $250,000 by the FDIC. If the bank fails, the FDIC will get you your money back.

As for protection against fraud, they often have security precautions in place to prevent many of the different types of fraud. Many banks offer two-factor authentication, to confirm your identity, as well as plenty of notifications. You can set up your bank to notify you every time there is a transaction, a service not many banks offer.

How many savings accounts can I have?

There is no limit to how many savings accounts you can have but you will receive a Form 1099-INT from every bank that pays you more than $10 in interest. You may not want to deal with so many forms when it comes time to do your taxes!

Other Posts You May Enjoy:

Don’t Cut Coffee, Cut This Instead

Financial experts love talking about how you should skip your coffee and invest it instead... but that's unrealistic. See how you can find other expenses to cut that won't make you miserable all day!

8 Cheapest Family Cell Phone Plans

Cell phone plans with major cell phone carriers can cost up to $70 or more per line, which is why it's so important to find more affordable options, especially if you have a family and require multiple lines. The following family cell phone plans offer unlimited data, along with a range of other features at an affordable price.

If You Want to Get Rich, You Better Do It Slowly

Slow and boring have their place. In fact, slow and boring are often some of the most reliable ways of doing anything. Whether you're building a house, growing your wealth, or just trying to get fitter - slow and steady wins the race.

How to Lower Your AT&T Cell Phone Bill

AT&T is one of the biggest cell phone carriers in the nation. If you're a customer and paying full price, there may be ways for you to reduce your bill with a few of our tips.

About Jim Wang

Jim Wang is a forty-something father of four who is a frequent contributor to Forbes and Vanguard's Blog. He has also been fortunate to have appeared in the New York Times, Baltimore Sun, Entrepreneur, and Marketplace Money.

Jim has a B.S. in Computer Science and Economics from Carnegie Mellon University, an M.S. in Information Technology - Software Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University, as well as a Masters in Business Administration from Johns Hopkins University. His approach to personal finance is that of an engineer, breaking down complex subjects into bite-sized easily understood concepts that you can use in your daily life.

One of his favorite tools (here's my treasure chest of tools,, everything I use) is Personal Capital, which enables him to manage his finances in just 15-minutes each month. They also offer financial planning, such as a Retirement Planning Tool that can tell you if you're on track to retire when you want. It's free.

He is also diversifying his investment portfolio by adding a little bit of real estate. But not rental homes, because he doesn't want a second job, it's diversified small investments in a few commercial properties and farms in Illinois, Louisiana, and California through AcreTrader.

Recently, he's invested in a few pieces of art on Masterworks too.

>> Read more articles by Jim

Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, not those of any bank or financial institution. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.

Reader Interactions

Comments

About the comments on this site:

These responses are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.

  1. Mr. Freaky Frugal says

    Funny, I used to work for ING Direct and then very briefly for Capital One 360. Then was definitely a change in culture when Capital One took over.

    These days I use Ally and I’ve been very happy with Ally’s rates and service.

    • Jim Wang says

      I was kind of excited when Ally acquired TradeKing, it put two services I enjoyed under one umbrella.

  2. Paul Andrews says

    Great summary, Jim! I started reading the intro on your home page, and as soon as I read “Acronym” and “Orange”, I knew you were talking about ING. I was torn back when I was moving to an online bank between ING and Ally, but I also ended up going with Ally.

    I’ve actually written to them a few times about setting up an affiliate program, but unfortunately I don’t think I have the clout to get them to move on it. But I know lots of bloggers that love Ally, and would love to promote them more. I’m thinking we all need to band together and see if we can get them to create a program. Granted, I’ll keep promoting them, regardless.

    • Jim Wang says

      I wonder if they’ll start dabbling because they acquired TradeKing and kept that affiliate program as Ally Invest, so maybe that’ll get them into the space!

  3. DC @ Young Adult Money says

    Surprised to see Goldman Sachs on the list, but that’s cool that they have a high interest account. Lots of good options on this list. Hard to complain about 1%+ for a savings account.

    • Jim Wang says

      I know! 1% is fine… but you are still behind inflation. But you’re less behind than 0.05%!

  4. sagar nandwani says

    Plan out savings goal for yourself and think about setting up an automatic deduction from your bank account each month to go towards your savings.

  5. JR says

    I use Ally and Cap 1 360 .

    I’m looking to open another online saving account but I can’t find a bank that will allow the account to be under revocable living trust.

    Ally is the only bank that allows it. I don’t want to keep more than FDIC insurance limits in one bank.

    Any ideas ?

    • Jim Wang says

      1. Until now, I’d never heard of them before. (this is the biggest reason)
      2. I am leaning towards banks with a larger footprint (large geographically or online) and brand recognition, because people are hesitant to open a bank account from a company they’ve never heard of. Another bank I didn’t list was CIT Bank, which is lesser known but has a competitive APY and a $100 new account bonus.

    • Jul says

      hi jim,
      i am considering amex personal savings with 1.55% APY. the fine prints stated that the rates are subject to change at any time without notice. is it common for these banks to change the rates? do they usually stay constant (minimal fluctuation is understandable) or can they change drastically? TIA for your time!

      • Jim Wang says

        Savings account interest rates are not set in stone (unlike certificates of deposit) but they usually stay fairly constant. With the Federal Reserve raising rates recently, the trend for interest rates on savings accounts will go up.

        You may see 0.25% increases (or decreases, but in early 2018 this seems extremely unlikely) – but it won’t be like a sudden drop to 0% or anything crazy.

  6. Ellie says

    You should also list All American Bank – it doesn’t have the geographical footprint you mentioned but they offer a 1.75% money market and a 2.25% checking account – at those rates they are worth mentioning.

  7. C McGee says

    Hi Jim,
    Thanks for your current update. I too currently have savings accounts at Cap One 360 as I left my savings there when it transferred from ING. After doing some research and reading your posts, I am trying to find the best option to move from Cap One 360 to a higher interest rate for savings. I have a small amount <$500 now to put in savings to get started. Why do you choose Ally over the other online banks with higher interest rate? If I am basically using these accounts to save for my son a car, he turns 15 this summer so I have a year or so to help pay 1/2 or 1/3, and to save for education after high school, should I look into a CIT Bank or maybe even a CD? I had considered Synchrony as an option with 1.55% HYS. As for a 529, I am unsure if I can open an account since my son's father, non-custodial parent, opened one without my consent. What are the best options for me to save for his college or technical school? Since my current husband told me I have to figure out how to pay for my son's car and college, I have to get this ball rolling fast and maybe find another husband (just kidding).

    • Jim Wang says

      I chose Ally because it had the highest interest at the time. The differences in rate are so small now that it’s not worth the hassle of switching. I don’t know if a CD is worth the lock-up period though. Half a percent on $500 is $2.50 so you can decide whether the hassle is worth it.

      • c McGee says

        Thanks for your reply. Too bad Cap 1 isn’t competing for customers. I’ll definitely be adding to that savings whenever possible but I need to start somewhere. I did see where one credit union was offering a 5.12% on your 1st $1000 at DCU but seems like a bait and switch and it drops to 0.05% afterwards. Anyway, thanks for your research.

        • Jim Wang says

          It’s hard to “compete” for customers on interest rate, you have to be a lot higher for people to move and then you start running into other problems like how you can afford the higher interest rate. There are rewards checking accounts and “kasasa” checking accounts (named after the company that runs them on behalf of small community banks and credit unions). They give a higher interest rate when you make X transactions a month with their debit or credit card. Those transactions collect fees and they pass some of that onto customers.

  8. Robert says

    Good information in this article but I’m going to stick with the 28 day T-bill. No third party (bank) counter-risk, your money is invested with the government, the same place they will go if a major bank goes bust and kills off the FDIC, much like the defunct FSLIC in the 1980’s. Our savings is divided into quarters with each quarter reinvested each week. This gives you 13 cycles in a year (52/4=13) and is currently paying out at 2.2% APR. It has been rising all year and we believe will likely continue to do so with the massive buys of capital the government is sucking out of the economy to fund their deficits. As the cycles are so short, we aren’t locked into a vehicle like a CD that penalizes you for an early withdrawal, and we minimize losses of ongoing increases in interest by only being locked in for 28 days, easily catching the rise in as close to real time as possible. You only need $100 to start and invest in $100 increments. In the off chance the federal government would be at risk of default, something that hasn’t happened in 200 years, we are on a short enough time frame to get your money out before the real damage hits. Thanks again.

  9. Seth says

    Do you have any feedback for online savings accounts with Citizens Access. It looks like their APY is a bit higher than any of the options posted here, and I was wondering if there are any cons to choosing that bank over the others.

    • Jim Wang says

      None that I can see, it’s actually the first I’ve heard about them before. Citizens Access is FDIC insured, a division of Citizens Bank, and they have a solid APY. I say go for it!

  10. karim says

    Hi Jim,

    Nice blog! Do you have any credit/debit card with Ally? if so, what is your point of view about it? I’m planning to open a saving account with them and put my house down payment money to work a little. However, will it be easy to pull out that money when needed with a minimum fee?
    Thanks and happy holidays!

    • Jim Wang says

      Hi Karim – I have their debit card and I use it as an ATM card. They reimburse me ATM fees up to $10 per statement but I rarely use it more than once a month.

  11. Marcello says

    Great article Jim! I have a question for you. I currently have a Capital One 360 savings account at 1%, so hence why I have been doing my research and came across your article. I am considering the Amex savings at 2.1% since I already have a card with them, figured it would be under one roof. But then read that there is no app to go with that account? Also considering a money market with Capital One 360 at 2%. I purely am switching over for the APY that is higher. Which of those two would you recommend?

    • Jim Wang says

      I don’t have an AMEX account so I don’t know about the app but Capital One 360 is a great account. You can open several savings accounts quickly, so you can save towards different goals, and the interface is pretty good.

  12. MMM says

    Ally bank reduced their interest rate for Savings Account to 1.7% today (Nov 13). This is a second drop within a 30-40 day period from 1.9%. While the rate may still be better than some other banks, something seems to be drastically wrong at Ally to warrant 2 consecutive drops within a short time period. I had also called out the 1.8% drop the first time on this website.

    • Jim Wang says

      The Federal Reserve recently lowered their federal funds target rate, which is why banks are now all lowering their interest rates.

  13. DELMA j RUBIN says

    Hello Jim, I wanted to take a moment and thank you for the wealth of helpful information you provide. I am in the market for a high yield banking amount and a great credit card. the information you provided has greatly helped me in making a decision. Being knowledgeable has allowed me to make good money decisions. Keep the information coming. I have been thinking about long term and short term investing and would appreciate any information you can share.

  14. Ken Rempe says

    Jim, I had to reach out and comment on the information and service you provide to your on line admirers. I noticed that you started with ING bank, and wanted to let you know that I also opened and account with them in January 2007. Their interest on savings and Orange CD’s were very good at the time and helped us accumulate a good amount of interest. Just wanted to let you know that I will continue to look for online banks with Savings and CD rates in the current economic climate. Thanks for what you do!

As Seen In: