AloStar VS FNBO Direct

Which bank is better for you?

  • Financial Rates: 4.0 Star Icon
  • Customer Service: 3.5 Star Icon
  • Website Experience: 3.0 Star Icon
  • Bank Fees: 5.0 Star Icon
No Rate Information
Advertiser Disclosure
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Pros:

  • Competitive interest rates
  • Low required amounts to open CDs
  • Accounts are entirely online
  • Shorter terms offer competitive rates

Cons:

  • Limited personal accounts offered
  • Customer service not available 24/7
  • No checks or debit cards offered
  • Must link to an external bank account
  • Financial Rates: 5.0 Star Icon
  • Customer Service: 3.0 Star Icon
  • Website Experience: 5.0 Star Icon
  • Bank Fees: 5.0 Star Icon
3.90%APY
Savings/MMA
Advertiser Disclosure
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Pros:

  • No monthly fees or required amounts
  • Accounts offer competitive rates
  • Low opening balance
  • Any amount earns highest interest rate

Cons:

  • No business accounts available
  • Interest rates for CDs low
  • Limited personal deposit accounts
  • Savings account must be linked
AloStar Review

AloStar CDs offer competitive interest rates. The interest rates are competitive with other online CDs. The rates are much higher than typical brick and mortar bank rates.

The CDs at AloStar have low required opening amounts. Each of the CDs require $1,000 to open. To earn the competitive interest rates, you must keep $1,000 in the account. There is not a fee if your balance falls below $1,000, but you will not earn interest on the balance.

CDs with AloStar are entirely online. You apply for the CDs online. Once you open an account, everything for the account is online. There are no branch locations. You can reach customer service by phone or email.

Usually with CDs, the longer the term the higher the interest rate. But, with AloStar some shorter terms offer more competitive rates. The 12-month, 18-month, and 24-month CD terms offer the most competitive rates.

There are limited accounts offered through AloStar. The only accounts offered are CDs. AloStar does not offer checking, savings, or money market accounts. The CD terms offered range from three-month to five-year terms.

AloStar customer service is not always available. You can contact customer service through email. Their hours are Monday through Friday from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time. On Saturday their hours are 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

The AloStar CD accounts do not offer debit cards or checks. The only way to access your money is through electronic transfers. You can transfer money during the grace period or after the CD reaches maturity.

To fund your AloStar CDs you must link the accounts to an external bank account. Once the accounts are linked you can make electronic transfers between the accounts. To avoid a fee, make withdrawals or deposits during the grace period or after the CD reaches maturity.

Read the full AloStar review.

FNBO Direct Review

The accounts offered through FNBO Direct do not have a monthly fee. There is not an amount required to keep in the account. There are no fees for not having that amount in the account each month.

FNBO Direct savings and checking accounts offer competitive interest rates. Those rates are competitive with other online-only accounts. They are much higher than your typical brick and mortar bank rates.

The amounts required to open FNBO Direct accounts is low. The savings and checking account only require $1 to open. The different CD terms all only require $500 to open. There is no set amount to keep in FNBO Direct accounts.

Any amount deposited in FNBO Direct accounts earns the highest interest rates offered. The interest is not adjusted based on the account balance. The minimum amount to open a savings and checking account is $1. Any amount over $0.01 earns the highest interest rate offered. The CD requires $500 to open.

There are no business accounts available through FNBO Direct. The only accounts offered are personal deposit accounts. There is a saving and checking account and different term lengths of CDs. The terms range from a six-month CD to a five-year CD.

The interest rates offered on the FNBO Direct CDs are lower than other online banks. They are not as competitive as FNBO Direct rates for their savings and checking accounts. Other online bank accounts offer more competitive interest rates for CDs.

There is a limited option of personal deposit accounts available through FNBO Direct. There is only one savings account, one checking account, and CDs. There are eight different CD term lengths. The terms range from six-month terms to a five-year term. There is no money market account offered.

The FNBO Direct savings account must be linked to a checking account. You must link an external account to transfer money electronically. You can link up to three external accounts.

Read the full FNBO Direct review.

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