Press

Online savings accounts yield 6x more than traditional savings accounts

A new study from GoBankingRates.com compares online and traditional minimum deposit requirements and interest rates on savings, checking, money market and CD accounts.

LOS ANGELES, CA (September 18, 2013) — GoBankingRates.com found that online savings accounts and certificates of deposit (CDs) offer higher yields and require lower minimum deposits, on average, than banks and credit unions offering traditional, offline accounts. Online savings account rates are 618 percent higher and online CDs are 58 percent higher than traditional versions of the same products. However, conventional checking and money market accounts offer equal or higher yields and lower minimum deposits than online versions of the accounts, on average.

See the full study here http://bit.ly/14aSoOf.

“Everyone is losing money,” said Casey Bond, managing editor of GoBankingRates.com. “Interest rates on savings products aren’t even keeping up with inflation, so if you want to get the highest yield available, at least get a savings account that is online.”

Find the best interest rates in your city at http://www.gobankingrates.com/local-banks/.

Account Type: Average Minimum Deposit Requirement; Average APY

Online Banking Products:

  • Savings: $458; 0.79% APY
  • CD: $1,694; 0.49% APY
  • Checking: $4,174; 0.18% APY
  • Money Market: $8,557; 0.14% APY

Banking Products from Traditional Financial Institutions:

  • Savings: $825; 0.11% APY
  • CD: $3,383; 0.31% APY
  • Checking: $4,020; 0.18% APY
  • Money Market: $6,467; 0.17% APY

Quick Facts

  • Average minimum deposit requirements for online savings accounts are 55 percent less than that of traditional savings accounts, while average minimum deposit requirements for online CDs are 50 percent less than that of traditional CDs.
  • Checking account yields are the same across online and traditional banking options and only vary slightly ($154) in terms of minimum deposit required.

The highest online rates available today from brick-and-mortar financial institutions include:

  • Checking: Bank of the Sierra (California); 1.25% APY
  • Savings: Rockport National Bank (Massachusetts); 5.00% APY
  • One-year CD: TEXAR Federal Credit Union (Texas); 1.25% APY
  • Money Market: Choice Financial Group (North Dakota); 1.00% APY

About This Study
This study was compiled using the GoBankingRates.com database, which is powered by Informa Research Services, Inc., and aggregates interest rates from more than 4,000 local, national and online financial institutions. Approximately 26,000 deposit products were reviewed. Rates belonging to online banks with no physical branch locations were omitted. All rates are as of Sept. 9, 2013, and assume a deposit of $10,000 or less.

To see the full study, visit http://bit.ly/14aSoOf.

About GoBankingRates.com
GoBankingRates.com (http://www.gobankingrates.com/) is a personal finance website that connects consumers with the best interest rates nationwide on savings, checking, money market and CD accounts, as well as auto loans. GoBankingRates.com’s editors have been featured on several top media outlets such as U.S. News, Yahoo! Finance, Forbes, The Street, Huffington Post and more.

More News