Third Federal VS Commerce Bank

Which bank is better for you?

  • Financial Rates: 5.0 Star Icon
  • Customer Service: 5.0 Star Icon
  • Website Experience: 5.0 Star Icon
  • Bank Fees: 4.0 Star Icon
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Pros:

  • Low opening required amounts
  • Variety of accounts offered
  • Online Savings Plus account
  • Competitive interest rates

Cons:

  • Tiered interest rates on accounts
  • CD early withdrawal penalty high
  • Checking account has monthly fees
  • Cannot open all accounts online
  • Financial Rates: 1.0 Star Icon
  • Customer Service: 5.0 Star Icon
  • Website Experience: 4.5 Star Icon
  • Bank Fees: 3.5 Star Icon
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Pros:

  • Rewards for saving in money market
  • Free ATM transactions and refunds
  • Good variety of accounts offered
  • mySpending card

Cons:

  • Only three withdrawals per month
  • Account interest rates are low
  • Monthly fees and other fees on accounts
  • Customer service not open 24/7
Third Federal Review

Third Federal accounts have low opening required amounts. The high yield checking account requires $10 to open. CDs only require $500 to open. Third Federal money market account requires a high amount. That account requires $5,000 to open.

Third Federal offers a variety of accounts. Those accounts include personal deposit and business accounts. Those accounts include checking, savings, and money market accounts. The CDs range in terms from 30-days to 10-years. Lending and credit cards are also offered through Third Federal.

The Third Federal Online Savings Plus account is an entirely online account. This account requires $5,000 to open and to earn interest. There are no monthly fees and no limit on monthly transactions.

Interest rates for Third Federal accounts are competitive. They are higher than other brick and mortar bank accounts. The interest rates are competitive with other online accounts.

Third Federal accounts have tiered interest rates. The money market and savings account require a balance of $100,000 to earn the best interest rates. The checking account requires a $25,000 balance to earn the best rate. Balances under these amounts earn interest, just not the most competitive rate.

Third Federal CDs have high penalties for withdrawing money before the maturity date. CDs from one to three years require six months’ worth of interest. CD terms over four years require 18 months’ worth of earned interest.

The Third Federal checking account has a monthly fee. The fee is $7 a month. Waive that fee by keeping an average daily balance of $1,500 in the account. That average balance can come from all Third Federal accounts or just your checking account.

Not all Third Federal account can be opened online. To open a money market or checking account must be in a branch location. You can open a savings account and CDs longer than 6-month terms online.

Read the full Third Federal review.

Commerce Bank Review

Get rewarded for saving money with Commerce Bank. When you open a myRewards money market account, you will earn a bonus at the end of each year. Commerce pays 0.05 percent of the average collected month-end balance after every 12 months. The maximum reward each year is $200.

Checking accounts offer free transactions at Commerce Bank ATMs. The CommerceRelationship checking account offers free transactions at ATMs across the nation. This account also offers up to $10 each month in ATM fee refunds. To have the fees refunded, the transactions must come from the CommerceRelationship account.

Commerce Bank offers a variety of accounts. These accounts include:

  • Five checking accounts
  • Student savings and checking account
  • myRewards savings account
  • myRewards money market account
  • Premier money market account
  • CDs terms from three-months to five-years
  • Personal loans, credit cards, and investment options
  • Business checking and savings accounts
  • Business loans, bonds, investments, and credit cards

Commerce offers a mySpending card, which is a reloadable Visa debit card. Load the amount you want onto the card. The card is accepted anywhere Visa is. There is not a monthly fee. It costs $5.95 to buy the card for the first time. You must load it with at least $20 the first time. There is a loading limit of $3,000 per week.

Savings accounts only allow for three withdrawals per billing cycle. Any more than three will cost you $2.00 per withdrawal. Federal regulations allow six withdrawals from a savings account per billing cycle.

The interest rates for Commerce Bank accounts are low. They are not competitive with other online-only banks. Their rates are typical of brick-and-mortar banks.

Accounts with Commerce Bank have a plethora of fees. They have monthly service charges ranging from $3-20, depending on the account. Some accounts have fees for paper statements, e-statements, and foreign ATM fees. The student checking account has a $2 fee for every check written and for each teller-assisted withdrawal. Know the fees and how to waive them before you open accounts.

Customer service is not open 24/7. Customer service hours are Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. These times are Central Time. There is a 24-hour account information line.

Read the full Commerce Bank review.

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American Express
Savings (Rate as of 11/21/2024)
APY 4.00%
Rate 3.92%
Min to Open $0
Min to Earn APY $0
Monthly Fee $0.00
Min to Avoid Fee $0
Checkbook No
Member FDIC
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EverBank
Savings (Rate as of 11/21/2024)
APY 4.75%
Rate 4.64%
Min to Open $0
Min to Earn APY $0
Monthly Fee $0.00
Min to Avoid Fee $0
Checkbook No
Member FDIC No monthly maintenance fee, $0 to open, easily grow your money
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