-
Financial Rates:
3.0
-
Customer Service:
5.0
-
Website Experience:
5.0
-
Bank Fees:
5.0
Pros:
- Low opening required amounts
- No monthly fees or required balances
- Youth and college accounts available
- ATM reimbursement for USAA accounts
Cons:
- Low-interest rates
- Business accounts are not offered
- Not a wide variety of accounts
- Must be a member to open accounts
-
Financial Rates:
4.0
-
Customer Service:
3.0
-
Website Experience:
5.0
-
Bank Fees:
5.0
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
Most USAA accounts only require $25 to open the accounts. To earn interest on the Classic checking account, you must have $1,000 in the account.
There are no monthly fees for any USAA accounts. They do not have a set amount required to keep in any of their accounts. Some accounts only earn interest if the balance is a set amount. However, you will not be charged a fee for not having a certain amount in the account.
Youth and college accounts offered through USAA do not have a monthly fee. There is not a required balance to keep in the account. The youth savings account earns interest. The youth checking account offers parental controls. Parents can set debit or ATM limits and receive text alerts. The college account only requires $50 to open. Friends and family can contribute to these accounts.
There are over 60,000 free USAA ATMs. The first ten withdrawals from a USAA owned ATM are free. USAA refunds up to $15 in ATM fees charged from using other banks ATMs. The ATM reimbursement does not apply to the USAA Cashback Rewards checking account.
USAA accounts do not offer competitive interest rates. The rates are slightly higher than those of your typical brick and mortar banks. Some CDs receive more competitive interest rates. All other accounts are much lower than other online-only accounts.
USAA does not offer business accounts. The only accounts offered are personal checking and savings accounts and CDs. Insurance, investments, and retirement options are available. Loans, credit cards, and real estate options are offered.
USAA only offers two different checking accounts and two savings accounts. The basic savings account only requires $25 to open the account. The other savings account requires $10,000 to open. Only one checking account earns interest. The other checking account earns cashback rewards. They do not both have the same benefits.
To open an account with USAA, you must become a member. Those eligible to become a member are active and former military and their families. Cadets and midshipmen at academies are eligible to become a member. Once accepted, USAA will help you find the right accounts for your needs.
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.
Sponsored Offers
| Savings (Rate as of 4/26/2024) | |
| APY | 4.25% |
|---|---|
| Rate | 4.16% |
| For APY | $1 |
| Monthly Fee | $0.00 |
| Checkbook | No |
| Member FDIC | |
| Savings (Rate as of 4/26/2024) | |
| APY | 5.25% |
|---|---|
| Rate | 5.25% |
| For APY | $0 |
| Monthly Fee | $0.00 |
| Checkbook | No |
| Member FDIC. No fees. Easy deposits and quick withdrawals. | |
| Savings (Rate as of 4/26/2024) | |
| APY | 4.25% |
|---|---|
| Rate | 4.25% |
| For APY | $0 |
| Monthly Fee | $0.00 |
| Checkbook | No |
| Member FDIC It only takes about 5 minutes to open a fee-free account. | |
| Savings (Rate as of 4/26/2024) | |
| APY | 5.10% |
|---|---|
| Rate | 4.96% |
| For APY | $0 |
| Monthly Fee | $0.00 |
| Checkbook | No |
| Member FDIC | |
| Savings (Rate as of 4/26/2024) | |
| APY | 5.15% |
|---|---|
| Rate | 5.02% |
| For APY | $0 |
| Monthly Fee | $0.00 |
| Checkbook | No |
| Member FDIC | |
| Savings (Rate as of 4/26/2024) | |
| APY | 5.00% |
|---|---|
| Rate | 5.00% |
| For APY | $100 |
| Monthly Fee | $0.00 |
| Checkbook | No |
| Member FDIC Plus, no monthly fees and unlimited free external transfers | |
| Savings (Rate as of 4/26/2024) | |
| APY | 5.05% |
|---|---|
| Rate | 4.93% |
| For APY | $5,000 |
| Monthly Fee | $0.00 |
| Checkbook | No |
| Member FDIC CIT Bank, a division of First Citizens, 125+ years of experience. | |
| Savings (Rate as of 4/26/2024) | |
| APY | 4.35% |
|---|---|
| Rate | 4.35% |
| For APY | $0 |
| Monthly Fee | $0.00 |
| Checkbook | No |
| Member FDIC | |
| MMA (Rate as of 4/26/2024) | |
| APY | 4.65% |
|---|---|
| Rate | 4.54% |
| For APY | $0 |
| Monthly Fee | $0.00 |
| Checkbook | Yes |
| Member FDIC | |
| Savings (Rate as of 4/26/2024) | |
| APY | 5.36% |
|---|---|
| Rate | 5.23% |
| For APY | $500 |
| Monthly Fee | $0.00 |
| Checkbook | No |
| Member FDIC | |
The rate information is obtained by Bankrate from the listed institutions. Bankrate cannot guarantee the accuracy or availability of any rates shown. Institutions may have different rates on their own websites than those posted on Bankrate.com. The listings that appear on this page are from companies from which this website receives compensation, which may impact how, where, and in what order products appear. This table does not include all companies or all available products.
All rates are subject to change without notice and may vary depending on location. These quotes are from banks, thrifts, and credit unions, some of whom have paid for a link to their own website where you can find additional information. Those with a paid link are our Advertisers. Those without a paid link are listings we obtain to improve the consumer shopping experience and are not Advertisers. To receive the Bankrate.com rate from an Advertiser, please identify yourself as a Bankrate customer. Bank and thrift deposits are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Credit union deposits are insured by the National Credit Union Administration.
Consumer Satisfaction: Bankrate attempts to verify the accuracy and availability of its Advertisers' terms through its quality assurance process and requires Advertisers to agree to our Terms and Conditions and to adhere to our Quality Control Program. If you believe that you have received an inaccurate quote or are otherwise not satisfied with the services provided to you by the institution you choose, please click here.
For details on our best products and how we chose them click here.
Rates proudly provided by 
For Bankrate's privacy policy, click here.
1 APY stands for Annual Percent Yield. It's different from Rate because it takes into account compounding interest for the year.
2 MMA stands for Money Market Account. It's a savings and checking hybrid, allowing you to earn interest and use checks 6 times a month.