Best Online Savings Accounts
December 26, 2008
The best online savings accounts offer high interest rates, no fees, a low minimum balance, easy online transfers, simple ways to deposit and withdraw your money, and of course – good customer service.
Online savings accounts from banks like ING Direct, FNBO Direct, HSBC Advance, WT Direct, Emigrant Direct, and E*Trade Bank have become very popular due to the high yield interest rates they can pay, usually an APY that even the best banks offline can’t match. As online banking has become widespread, more and more financial companies have begun offering online bank accounts, giving you many different options.
As you review these online savings accounts you’ll find that many of them have pretty similar features but there is usually one or two differences which can help you choose the best savings accounts for your money.
Here is a look at some of the best online savings accounts:
FNBO Direct
FNBO Direct has been known for high interest rates and good customer service. With no minimum balance, an option for online bill pay, and an ATM card to access your cash this high yield savings account is one of the best. I use FNBO Direct and would recommend it. – FNBO Direct
ING Direct
ING Direct has been around for a while and is probably the most well known online savings account. ING is famous for offering a new customer bonus for opening an account.
They also introduced the ING Electric Orange Checking account which typically offers a competitive interest rate for a checking account. Before FNBO Direct came along we used to keep all of our emergency fund in this online bank account . – ING Direct
HSBC Advance
HSBC Advance also offers decent interest rates on the money you deposit into their online savings account.
Like FNBO Direct, HSBC has no fees and no minimums on their accounts. One benefit of HSBC Advance is they allow you to link your account to multiple other banks to ease money transfers. Earlier this year, Forbes ranked HSBC highly in their annual global ranking. – HSBC Advance
WT Direct
WT Direct is the online bank of Wilmington Trust. With similar features to the other online savings accounts, WT Direct often runs new customer promotions to help set itself apart.
The latest promotion allows you to earn up to $250 in bonuses depending on your balance in your online savings account over time. – WT Direct
E*Trade Bank
E*Trade is best known for it’s online brokerage account offerings but they needed a way for customers to earn interest on the money they had sitting around, waiting to make a trade.
The online savings account from E*Trade has historically offered a competitive interest rate and you can link your bank account with your brokerage account – E*Trade Bank
FDIC Insured
One common question I get asked is whether online savings accounts are FDIC insured. People that use them for large amounts of cash obviously want to know if that money is protected by the FDIC. Of course you’ll have to check when applying but as of the writing of this post, all the online savings accounts above are FDIC insured.
All posts by Ben Edwards
All that to say that fast money isnt automatically bad but you should think twice before you jump in head first imagining that life is going to be all roses and marshmallows. Either you have to be lucky or better at something than everybody else in the world and able to keep it from being imitated. Otherwise fast money is money that is fleeting and regreattable.
I, would like to open and account for my fiance, at the current moment he is in the, UK, doing a job… i want to open it under my name, can you please guide me and help me, how to do online banking… never done it before, what do i need to do,
thank you, Libia Schulein
Your article was featured in the 52 Week Experiment’s Weekend Edition: http://www.the52weekexperiment.com/2009/01/weekend-edition.html
I really had not given much thought to online savings accounts. Being fairly young, I guess most of my money goes straight into the stock market. Obviously, I’ll need to eventually change that and I appreciate your review as a starting point for my research.
Again, thank you for the submission.