Sallie Mae VS SmartyPig

Which bank is better for you?

  • Financial Rates: 4.0 Star Icon
  • Customer Service: 3.0 Star Icon
  • Website Experience: 5.0 Star Icon
  • Bank Fees: 5.0 Star Icon
4.65%APY
Savings/MMA
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Pros:

  • Cash rewards on savings accounts
  • No account fees or required amounts
  • Personal and student loans if you qualify
  • Five year CDs have amazing interest rates

Cons:

  • High opening amount for CDs
  • CDs require large sum to earn interest
  • No checking accounts offered
  • High-interest rates on personal loans
  • 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
Sallie Mae Review

To get the cash back rewards you have to meet requirements. You must link a UPromise Goal Saver Account with the UPromise Rewards Account. You must also either have $5,000 in the account or make ten deposits within the first 90 days. You earn 10% of the amount of money transferred from your Rewards account to your Goal Saver account. If you meet the requirements, you earn an annual bonus of $10 the first two years and a loyalty bonus of $100 the third year.

The high yield savings account and money market accounts do not have any monthly fees. There is no required amount to open these accounts. They offer competitive interest rates, and there is no required monthly balance.

Sallie Mae is a college funding bank. They offer student and personal loans. Some of the different loans include undergraduate loans, parent loans, MBA loans, dental or medical school loans, medical residency loans, bar study loans, or graduate student loans. Sallie Mae offers a personal loan to help consolidate your debt, pay for major expenses, or life events.

The interest rates on Sallie Mae CDs are exceedingly higher than other banks. CDs range in term from six months to five years. The five year CD offers the best interest rate, but the other terms are still better than other banks.

To open a CD with Sallie Mae bank, the required opening balance is $2,500. The interest rates on the CDs are much higher than other banks.

To earn interest on Sallie Mae CDs, you must keep at least $2,500 in the CDs at all time. If your account balance drops below that amount, you will not earn interest. Sallie Mae CDs offer interest rates that are considerably higher than other banks and even other online banks.

Sallie Mae does not offer a checking account. This is a college savings bank. They do offer different savings accounts to help you prepare for college. Sallie Mae also has different loans to help pay for college, but no checking accounts.

As with any loan, the interest rates are high. Know the different repayment plans, interest rates, and if there is a fee for paying your loan off early. High-interest rates mean you could end up paying almost $9,000 in interest on a $10,000 loan.

Read the full Sallie Mae 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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