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The Easy Way To Grow Your Money by 3% While Doing (Almost) Nothing

December 30, 2019

5 min Read

Written by Cynthia Measom

Edited by Zoey Quach

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When you have extra money that’s not earmarked for spending, it makes sense to deposit it in an interest-bearing account and let it grow. Once you deposit it, all you have to do is maintain the balance and wait for the interest to come rolling in. But to make it worth your while, you’ll want to choose an account that pays one of the highest annual percentage yields available.

Although the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. lists the national savings rate at 0.09% APY and the national interest checking rate at 0.05% APY, it’s not difficult to find higher rates between 1% and 2% APY. But when you start trying to find even higher rates, offers are much more scarce. To help, GOBankingRates has gathered a handful of savings and checking offers that pay at least 3% APY.

If you’re wondering how much you could earn, here’s a look at that. Earning 3% APY on a balance of $5,000 will net you $152.57 on top of your original balance in one year. In five years, with a 3% APY, you could earn $809.13 on a balance of $5,000. If you’re interested in making that kind of money doing nothing, here are four high-yield checking and savings offers to consider.

HMBradley Savings Account

APY: Up to 3%

As of now, there is a customer sign-up waitlist in effect for this account from the digital banking platform HMBradley. If you sign up on the waitlist, the bank will pay a 3% APY bonus on direct deposits made into a new account within the first 30 days from the first direct deposit. You’ll also earn a bonus on the amount you commit to saving via direct deposit during the period between signing up on the waitlist and when accounts are made available. Note there is a $500 cap on the bonus.

If you don’t want to sign up in advance, you can wait until the accounts become available on the HMBradley website. Then, you’ll need to open an account online and set up one direct deposit — no minimum required — within the first 60 days. Those accounts are available to receive up to a $500 bonus.

No minimum deposit is required, but to earn the 3% APY bonus, you must receive at least one direct deposit per month and commit to saving at least 20% of the total deposit amount. If you commit to saving less than 20%, the bonus will be proportionately less. Here’s a look at the balance tiers that apply, plus the APY each tier qualifies for:

Tier 1: Save at least 20% of direct deposits, earn 3% APY
Tier 2: Save from 15% to 20% of direct deposits, earn 2.25% APY
Tier 3: Save from 10% to 15% of direct deposits, earn 1.50% APY
Tier 4: Save from 5% to 10% of direct deposits, earn 1.00% APY

Other Options: Best Savings Accounts

Green Dot Unlimited Cash Back Bank Account

APY: 3% for attached high-yield savings account

When you open a Green Dot Unlimited Cash Back Bank Account, you’ll also gain access to the bank’s high-yield savings account that pays 3% APY on a maximum balance of $10,000. Interest is paid each year on the account’s opening anniversary as long as the account is open with a positive balance. The account is fee-free and you can access it by using the Green Dot app or logging into your account online at GreenDot.com. To access and spend the money in the savings account, you’ll need to transfer it to your Green Dot Unlimited Cash Back Account.

T-Mobile MONEY Checking Account

APY: 4%

If you’re a T-Mobile customer with qualifying service, you can earn 4% APY on up to $3,000 and 1% APY after that with the T-Mobile MONEY checking account.All you have to do is register for perks and deposit at least $200 each month. If you maintain an average daily balance of $3,000, you’ll earn about $120 per year.

No fees apply to this online account, and you can access your money via the network of 55,000 fee-free Allpoint ATMs. The account also features mobile check deposit, transfers to and from external banking accounts and a debit card with an EMV chip.

Other Ways To Grow Your Money: Best CD Rates and Accounts

TAB Bank Kasasa Cash Checking Account

APY: 4%

With the Kasasa Cash Checking account from TAB Bank, an online-only bank, you can earn up to 4% APY on balances of up to $50,000. To be eligible for the special APY, you must open an account and have at least one direct deposit, bill-pay transaction or ACH transaction and at least 15 debit card purchases of $5 or more each monthly qualification cycle. No minimum deposit is required. The account also pays up to $15 per month in ATM withdrawal fee refunds and includes a mobile check deposit and the ability to transfer funds.

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Last updated: Dec. 16, 2019

Rates and fees are subject to change. This content is not provided by HM Bradley, Green Dot, T-Mobile or TAB Bank. Any opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the author’s alone and have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by HM Bradley, Green Dot, T-Mobile or TAB Bank.