Bangor Savings Bank VS SmartyPig

Which bank is better for you?

  • Financial Rates: 2.0 Star Icon
  • Customer Service: 5.0 Star Icon
  • Website Experience: 4.0 Star Icon
  • Bank Fees: 4.5 Star Icon
No Rate Information
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Pros:

  • Variety of personal deposit accounts
  • Business accounts available
  • Competitive interest rates on CDs
  • Most accounts have low opening amounts

Cons:

  • High opening required amount for MMA
  • Tiered interest rates
  • Accounts only for certain residents
  • Some accounts require a checking 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
No Rate Information
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Pros:

  • Free savings account
  • Tiered Interest Rates
  • Set up multiple goals
  • Direct withdrawals

Cons:

  • Only offer one type of account
  • Six withdrawals allowed per month
  • Maximum account balance
  • One external funding source allowed
Bangor Savings Bank Review

Bangor Savings Bank offers a variety of personal deposit accounts. They offer three checking accounts and savings and money market accounts. Those accounts include a savings account for kids and one for the holidays. Bangor offers CDs that range from three-month terms to five-year terms.

Bangor Savings Bank offers a wide variety of business accounts. Those accounts include business checking and savings accounts. They offer business credit cards and insurance options. Bangor offers cash management and payroll services for businesses.

The Bangor Savings Bank CDs offer competitive rates. The interest rates for these CDs are competitive with other online CDs. The terms range from three months to five years. The amount required to open each CD is $500.

Most Bangor Savings Bank accounts have low required amounts to open. Each of the checking accounts requires $25 to open. Two savings accounts also only need $25 to open. The CDs each need $500 to open.

The Benefit Money Market and Market Rate account have high opening required amounts. These accounts each need $5,000 to open and to earn interest. Balances below $5,000 do not earn interest. There is a $10 monthly fee if the Market Rate account drops below $5,000. The Benefit Money Market does not have a monthly fee.

Some Bangor Savings Bank accounts have tiered interest rates. To earn the most competitive rate for the MMA requires an account balance of $100,000. The savings account requires $25,000. Amounts under that balance earn interest, just not the most competitive rate.

Bangor Savings Bank accounts are not available to anyone across the United States. Only residents of Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont can open an account. You can open some accounts online if you are a resident of one of these states. A few accounts require visiting a branch location.

Some accounts require having a Bangor checking account first. To open the Benefit Savings and MMA requires having a Bangor checking account. Once you have a checking account, you qualify to open these other accounts.

Read the full Bangor Savings Bank review.

SmartyPig Review

SmartyPig accounts do not have monthly maintenance fees. There is not a required amount to keep in the account. The first initial deposit to open the account is $25.

This savings account offers tiered interest rates. This means the more money you have in the account, the more interest you will earn. The interest rates do not vary much between tiers. The difference from a low amount to the higher amount is around 0.05%.

With this SmartyPig account, you can set up different savings goals. The savings accounts can be long-term, like saving for a college education. They can also be short term, like saving for a mountain bike or birthday party. You can transfer money from your SmartyPig primary account to different savings goals.

The best way to save money is to set up direct withdrawals. You set up when you want the money to come out of your account and how much to withdraw. Then, SmartyPig does the rest. Once the money is deposited into your account, you can transfer it into different savings goal. The withdrawals can be set up to occur monthly or biweekly.

SmartyPig has only one account offered: a high yield savings account. They do not offer checking accounts, CDs, money market accounts, or business accounts. The interest rate on this savings account is considerably higher than other banks savings accounts.

The website says you can withdraw money anytime, but federal regulation only allows six withdrawals per billing cycle. This includes transfers between your SmartyPig primary account and your different savings goals. The transfer or withdrawal will not take place if you have made more than six in a billing cycle. If you repeatedly try to make more than six, your account will be closed. Once you reach your goal, you cannot withdraw part of your money back to your external funding source. You must withdraw it all, or transfer the money between other savings goals.

This account is not meant for high account balances. There is a maximum account balance of $250,000. If your account has $250,000, you will earn interest on the money in the account, but you cannot add to the account.

Each SmartyPig account is only allowed to have one external funding source set up for it. That means you can only have one bank account connected to each SmartyPig account. You can change your external funding source if you want, but never have more than one.

Read the full SmartyPig review.

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