Juno Review: Earn up to 5.00% APY on Checking

OnJuno

8

Overall

8.0/10

Strengths

  • High bonus rate
  • No minimum balance
  • No monthly fees for Basic account holders
  • Cash back on debit card purchases
  • Free in-network ATM usage

Weaknesses

  • Only checking accounts offered
  • Individual accounts only

Juno is a fully digital banking platform that’s backed by Sequoia and partnered with Evolve Bank and Trust, member FDIC. A value-driven company, Juno’s startup mission was to create fairer financial institutions that provide more benefits to customers. 

Their checking account offers a bonus rate of 1.20% APY, which is more than 20 times the national average. Although this is a bonus interest rate that can change at any time, it’s an attractive starting point for the new bank. 

Table of Contents
  1. Online Checking Account Options
    1. Basic
    2. Metal
  2. Juno Features
    1. Individual Accounts Only
    2. Signup Process
    3. Cash Back
  3. Who Is Juno Good For? 
  4. Juno Pros and Cons
    1. Juno Pros
    2. Juno Cons
  5. Juno Alternatives
    1. Discover® Cash Back Debit
    2. Ally Bank
    3. LendingClub Bank
  6. Conclusion

Online Checking Account Options

You can choose from one of two checking account products with Juno: Basic or Metal. Here’s a breakdown of the features of each type of account.

Basic

  • Minimum Opening Deposit: $0
  • Minimum Balance Requirement: $0
  • Monthly Fee: $0
  • Debit card: Free Virtual Debit Card (a physical card will be provided upon request)

The Basic account pays 1.20% APY interest (at this writing) on balances up to $5,000. Bonus drops to 0.25% on balances above $5,000. And you can earn cash back of 5% on debit card spending, up to a total bonus of $25 per year. 

There’s no fee for in-network ATM usage at the 85,000 Allpoint & MoneyPass ATMs. And Juno will give you one free out-of-network ATM usage per month as well.  

Metal

  • Minimum Opening Deposit: Minimum Direct Deposits of $500 per month
  • Minimum Balance Requirement: $0
  • Monthly Fee: $0
  • Debit card: Free Basic Metal and Virtual Debit Cards

The Metal account pays 1.20% APY interest (at this writing) on balances of up to $50,000. Bonus drops to 0.30% APY on balances above $50,000. You can earn cash back of 5% on debit card spending up to a total bonus of $150 per year. 

As with the Basic account, there’s no fee for in-network ATM usage. With the Metal account, Juno will give you three free out-of-network ATM reimbursements each month. 

Juno Features

Here are some Juno features you should know about. 

Individual Accounts Only

Juno only offers individual accounts at this time. However, they are working on adding more features to their account selections, including the capability to have joint ownership accounts. 

Signup Process

The signup process for Juno is entirely online. The application process is fairly easy, but be prepared to submit photos of your driver’s license for ID verification.

Cash Back

Juno offers cash back on some debit purchases – which is fairly hard to find in the banking world. You can select five stores from their list of merchants from which to earn cash back. 

These merchants are:

  • Shopping: Target, Walmart, Amazon, Best Buy, Home Depot
  • Subscriptions: Netflix, Disney+, HBOGO, Amazon Prime, Spotify, Headspace, Calm, Peloton
  • Groceries & Health: CVS Pharmacy, Walgreens, Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, Patel Brothers
  • Food & Drink: UberEats, Grubhub, Postmates, Doordash Taco Bell, Wendy’s, Chik-Fil-A, In-N-Out Burger, Dunkin Donuts, Blue Bottle, Starbucks 
  • Transportation: Lyft, Uber, Shell
  • Travel: Airbnb

So although the list of cashback merchants isn’t huge, and you can only choose five at any given time, the merchants they partner with are some of the most popular. So you are bound to find something you spend money on.

Who Is Juno Good For? 

Juno is good for anyone who needs or wants an individual checking account that functions entirely online. If you’re searching for cash back on debit card purchases and an account that pays a bonus rate, Juno meets those needs. 

They won’t serve your needs if you are looking for a full service online bank. They don’t offer other products such as savings accounts, credit cards, or loans.

Juno Pros and Cons

Here are some of the pros and cons you’ll want to consider if you sign up for Juno. 

Juno Pros

Juno offers several benefits for online banking aficionados who want individual-only accounts.

  • High bonus rate
  • No monthly fees for Basic account holders
  • No minimum balance
  • Free in-network ATM usage
  • Cash back on some debit card purchases

Juno Cons

Here are some of the hurdles you might find with Juno. 

  • Only checking accounts offered
  • Individual accounts only

Juno Alternatives

If you’re looking for an online bank that offers joint ownership accounts or has other options you may want, consider these Juno alternatives.

Discover® Cash Back Debit

Discover® Bank has a great online checking account with a nice cashback debit feature. With this account, you can get 1% cashback on all debit card purchases up to $3,000 per month. 

There’s no minimum balance or activity requirements, no monthly fees, free access to over 60,000 in-network ATMs, and other great banking features as well.

Learn more about Discover

Ally Bank

Ally Bank’s online checking account has no minimum balance requirement and no monthly fees. You get free access to Allpoint ATMs, and Ally will reimburse you up to $10 per statement cycle for ATM fees charged by other banks. 

You earn interest in Ally Bank’s Interest Checking account, and Ally has an interest-paying savings account too, which Juno doesn’t offer. Ally does offer a free debit card but there’s no cashback bonuses tied to it.  

Learn more about Ally

LendingClub Bank

LendingClub Bank, formerly Radius Bank, has a nice online checking account as well. Their Rewards Checking offers a decent interest rate on checking account balances.

You do have to open your account with at least $100, but there are no minimum balances to keep after that. However, note that you only earn interest on balances above $2,500.

You can earn cashback on debit card purchases with LendingClub Bank. Learn more about cash back and other features in our LandingClub Bank Review. 

Get started with LendingClub Bank

Conclusion

Juno bank is a new online banking platform with several attractive benefits. It pays an industry-leading interest rate, offers free ATM usage, and offers cashback on debit card purchases.

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About Laurie Blank

Laurie Blank is a blogger, freelance writer, and mother of four. She’s psyched about teaching others how to manage their money in a way that aligns with their values and has been quoted in Bankrate.

She's a licensed Realtor with Edina Realty in Minneapolis, Minnesota (also licensed in Wisconsin too) and has been freelance writing for over six years.

She shares powerful insights on her blog, Great Passive Income Ideas, that will show you how you can create passive income sources of your own.

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.

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