Finding The Best High Yield Savings Account: Rates, Features And Ease Of Use

For quite some time I’ve been meaning to get another high yield savings account for our family. We’ve had one online account through Countrywide Bank (now Bank of America) for a couple of years after we signed up when they had a high promotional interest rate. Their rate really isn’t that great anymore (less than 1% APR), and we’ve been meaning to move our money, but just never got around to it.

Our mortgage which we just refinanced is also through Bank of America and I decided I didn’t want our savings account to be at the same bank as our mortgage. I would prefer to keep them separate.

So this past week I’ve been researching to find out which banks have the current highest rates, which ones have the best features and which ones have a good reputation with others online. Here is what I’ve found.

Best High Yield Savings Account Rates

In doing my research I put together a table where you can see some of the accounts with the highest rates currently.   Here they are, along with links to their sites in case you’d like to check them out for yourself and sign up for your own account. (You can find a regularly updated savings account rate table on this new page)

Bank (updated 6/29/2018)	Open Account	Interest Rate (APY)	Min. Deposit	Details	Review
EverBank Yield Pledge Money Market Account		1.11 % APY	$1,500	There is a 1.60% Bonus Rate for the first six months. $1,500 initial-deposit requirement. No-fees for online banking with over $5000 balance. $8.95 monthly fee otherwise. You can make up to six withdrawals per month.	EverBank Bank Review
Ally Bank High Yield Savings		1.75 % APY	$0	Open with $0, no minimum balance. No monthly fees. Daily compounded interest for maximum earnings. Six withdrawals or transfers per statement cycle. FDIC insured. Named Best Online Savings Account by Money Magazine 2011-2012	Ally Bank Review & Ally Mobile App Review
CIT Bank Savings Builder Account		1.00 % APY	$100	$100 minimum balance to open or maintain account. No monthly fees, no transfer fees. Higher interest rate with $25,000+ balance.	CIT Bank Review
Discover Bank Online Savings Account		1.65 % APY	$0	$0 opening deposit plus no minimum balance. Set up automatic transfers from any checking or savings account. You can make up to six withdrawals per month.	Discover Bank Review
		1.75% APY	$1	No fees. No minimums. 24/7 account access by phone or web. They are FDIC insured.	American Express Bank Review
FNBO Direct Online Savings		1.75 % APY	$1	No minimum balance. No monthly fees. FDIC Insured. Named Best Place to Park Your Emergency Cash by Money Magazine.	FNBO Direct Online Savings Review
Capital One 360 Savings		1.60 % APY	$1	No fees. No minimums. unlimited sub-accounts. Accounts linked to your existing checking. 24 hour online account access through CapitalOne360.com	Capital One 360 Savings Review
Bank Of Internet		1.30 % APY	$100	Open with $100, no fees or balance requirements, free online statements, ATM card available, FDIC insured.
Zions Bank Savings		0.10 % APY	$100	Minimum balance of $1,000 to get the highest rate. They are FDIC insured and have over 125 brick and mortar branches.	Zions Bank Review
	0.01 % APY	$1	No minimum balance requirement. No monthly fees. Low initial depost of $1.	HSBC Direct Bank Review
E*Trade’s Complete Savings Account		1.50 % APY	$1	A $1 minimum deposit is required to open a new account. 6 withdrawal limit applies. No minimums. $15 per bank check request.

Everbank Has The Best Rate Right Now

Right off the bat it looks like that Everbank Yield Pledge Money Market account has the best interest rate currently at 2.07%.  It also has that unbeatable 3.01% bonus rate for 3 months. While it isn’t technically a high yield savings account, but a money market account, it still seems to have a lock on the best rate regardless. The only caveat for some I think might be the fact that the account has a minimum opening balance of $1,500, and an $8.95 monthly fee if your balance is below $5000.  For me that won’t be an issue since we’re transferring quite a bit more than that.  But it is something to keep in mind if you’re transferring a lower amount.  Still, the opening balance is still substantially lower than some of the other accounts like the ones from Discover Bank and WT Direct Savings.

Is The Best Rate Always The Best Option? How About ING?

I’m not convinced that the best rate will always mean that the bank is the best option.  After reading several reviews of Everbank, however, I’m pretty sure that it would be a good choice.  Still, I’m still considering using one of the savings accounts with a lower interest rate.  Why?  Because that bank has a solid reputation for having good service, having a wide range of features available to their account holders, and still having a decent rate of return. The interest rate is certainly higher than what we’re receiving now.  The bank I’m considering?  ING Orange Savings Account.

So why am I considering using ING? Having been around the personal finance blogosphere the last couple of years I’ve heard nothing but praise for ING and their orange savings accounts. People love all of the features that come with an account that most others don’t have. Some of them include:

• Opening additional savings accounts: opening new accounts in order to save for certain savings goals is really easy according to most sources.   Want to set up a savings goal for that new car 3 years down the road? Just set up an account and start funding it.  Want to save for that vacation next year? Set up an account and start saving!
• Automated transfers: Setting up automated transfers to fund your different savings goals is a piece of cake.  Making your budget automatic gives it a higher chance of succeeding!
• Great interface and solid security:  The ING interface is second to none, and makes banking easy.  Add to that the fact that their security is second to none and you have little to worry about when it comes to your money.
• Decent rates: while their rates may not be the best right now, they consistently have solid rates that will be competitive.

So Which Account Am I Opening?

So now that I’ve done a lot of the research I’m a bit up in the air about what to do. I like the higher interest rate of the Everbank account, and the fact that I’ll be more than doubling the amount of interest that I’ll be making every month. On the other hand I love the features and budgeting tools that are a part of the ING Orange Savings Account. I’m leaning towards opening an account at both banks.

At Everbank I’ll keep a majority of my money and start it accumulating a bit more interest. At ING I’ll start an account with the minimum deposit and use it as an account to budget and save towards certain savings goals. For example I’ll set up goal savings accounts for my estimated quarterly taxes, for Christmas expenses, for vacations, a car fund, and for yearly insurance expenses.  I’ll then setup automatic transfers every month to fund those different accounts.

What do you think?  Which online high yield savings accounts or money market accounts are currently the best in your eyes?  Which one would you suggest that I use?  Would you suggest that I avoid certain banks and why?