Applied Bank VS UFB Direct

Which bank is better for you?

  • Financial Rates: 1.0 Star Icon
  • Customer Service: 3.5 Star Icon
  • Website Experience: 3.0 Star Icon
  • Bank Fees: 3.5 Star Icon
0.02%APY
Savings/MMA
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Pros:

  • Variety of different personal accounts
  • Low opening required amounts
  • Checking and saving rates are not tiered
  • Business accounts offered

Cons:

  • Accounts have low-interest rates
  • Jumbo CDs do not offer higher rates
  • Accounts have monthly fees
  • High interest in MMA requires a large sum
  • Financial Rates: 5.0 Star Icon
  • Customer Service: 3.5 Star Icon
  • Website Experience: 5.0 Star Icon
  • Bank Fees: 4.0 Star Icon
4.01%APY
Savings/MMA
Advertiser Disclosure
Star Icon Star Icon Star Icon Star Icon Star Icon

Pros:

  • Low required amounts to open an account
  • No minimum balance or monthly fees
  • Earn American Airline miles
  • High interest rates on accounts

Cons:

  • No branch locations
  • Highest interest rate requires large sum
  • MMA has a fee and large opening deposit
  • Business accounts and CDs not offered
Applied Bank Review

Applied Bank has a variety of different personal accounts. There are basic savings, checking, and money market accounts. Checking accounts for people over 50 are available. There are specific savings accounts for youth and specific goals like a vacation. CDs, loans, and credit cards are available through Applied Bank.

Most Applied Bank accounts have a low opening required amount. The savings and checking account requires $100 to open. The club savings account only requires $10 to open. The money market account requires $500 to avoid a fee and earn interest. The CDs require $1,000 to open. The checking account for those over 50 does not have required amounts.

The interest rates for Applied Bank checking and savings accounts are not tiered. The savings account only requires $100 to earn the most competitive rates. The Club Savings account only requires $10 to earn competitive rates. The checking account requires $1,000.

Applied Bank offers business accounts. They offer checking accounts, loans, and lines of credit for businesses. They also offer merchant processing options in select states. Online banking is available for business accounts.

Interest rates for Applied Bank accounts are low. The rates are similar to your typical brick and mortar bank rates. Even the CDs rates are low. The most competitive interest rates are the Club and youth saving accounts. Those rates are higher than the other savings account. They are still much lower than other online-only accounts.

Applied Bank offers jumbo CDs. These CDs require at least $95,000 to open. The interest rates for the jumbo CDs are not any higher than the regular CD interest rates. The jumbo CD terms range from six-months to five-years. Those CDs are available for businesses, nonprofits, and personal deposit accounts.

Applied Bank accounts have a monthly fee if you do not keep a minimum amount in the accounts. The amounts required to avoid the fee are low. The checking and savings accounts require $100. The money market requires $500. The monthly fee is $10 per account per month if minimum balances are not met. The only fees for CDs are for withdrawing money before the maturity date.

The highest interest rates for the Applied Bank money market account requires a large sum. To earn the most competitive rate requires $25,000 in the account. Amounts over $500 earn interest, just a much lower rate. Any amount over $25,000 earns the highest rate.

Read the full Applied Bank review.

UFB Direct Review

UFB Direct checking and savings accounts have a low required opening amount. The opening deposit is only $100. To receive the highest interest rates, you must keep a certain amount in the accounts. If the balance is below the set amount, you will earn a lower interest rate, but not be charged a fee.

Most UFB Direct accounts do not have a monthly maintenance fee. UFB Direct savings and checking accounts are free. There is no monthly fee and no amount required to keep in the account.

Earn miles for everyday purchases with the UFB Airline Rewards Checking account. When you use your debit card for purchases, you earn miles. Earn one mile for debit transactions over $3.00. The miles go toward American Airlines. You can earn up to 120,000 per calendar year. UFB Direct may add more airlines in the future.

The interest rates on UFB Direct accounts earn very competitive interest rates. The savings, checking, and money market accounts earn some of the highest rates on the market. For some accounts, you must keep a high balance in the account. However, if you do not have that set amount in the account, you will earn a lower rate. The lower rate on those accounts is still much higher than your typical brick and mortar banks rates.

There are no branch locations for UFB Direct. It is an entirely online bank. To talk to customer service, you can call a 24-hour phone line. You can reach customer service through mail or email. You can access everything about your account online.

Certain balances are required to earn the highest interest rates on the UFB Direct savings accounts. The basic savings account requires $20,000 in the account to earn the highest interest rates. The Premium savings account requires $25,000 to earn the highest interest rates. Any amount lower than the required amount will still earn interest, just a much lower rate.

The UFB Direct money market account has a monthly fee and a large sum required as the opening deposit. The monthly fee is $10 a month. Waive the fee by keeping a balance of $5,000 in the account. The required opening deposit is $5,000. You will earn interest and can write checks from the MMA.

UFB Direct does not offer business accounts or CDs. The accounts offered are a personal checking, saving, and money market account. There are options for loans, but not business accounts or CDs.

Read the full UFB Direct review.

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