Apple Card's Savings Account Feature Nears Launch

[KaliYoni]

I'd say it has to be at least 4.5% when other banks are offering that yield and Treasuries between 1 month to 3 years are even higher.

Don't forget the differences in liquidity between savings accounts, CDs, and bonds are important for both what yield is offered and for portfolio planning.

I just tried it with American Express and it's lower. Why is that?

THe APY is the effective interest rate after a year's worth of compounding at the actual interest rate.

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General tip: when shopping for places to park cash, be sure to take the FDIC limits per account holder and per account into consideration. It's not a good idea to have cash intended to have guaranteed availability not covered by FDIC insurance.

 

[dlewis23]

Thanks! Never heard of the Baskbank. Wonder if this is a small bank.

I never heard of them either till I started looking a couple months ago for something with a better savings rate. They have been around since 2020 and are a part of Texas Capital Bank which has been around for a while. It's FDIC insured so thats mostly what matters. I don't know of anyone offering a higher savings rate right now over them.

 

[izzle22]

I just tried it with American Express and it's lower. Why is that?

View attachment 2167719

APR is still 3.50%. The interest rate is 3.44030%. It is usually the case where the APR and the actual interest rate differ with the APR being higher. Someone with banking knowledge may be able to explain.


Ally is the same way:

 

[DaPizzaMan]

What banks pay above 4%?

Robinhood Gold does, and soon Goldman Sachs will.

 

[TheYayAreaLiving 🎗️]

I never heard of them either till I started looking a couple months ago for something with a better savings rate. They have been around since 2020 and are a part of Texas Capital Bank which has been around for a while. It's FDIC insured so thats mostly what matters. I don't know of anyone offering a higher savings rate right now over them.

2020- Makes sense. Fairly new bank. The new banks scare me. Because they are not widely known in the industry. I always feel like the risk of things getting messed up is always higher... poor customer service, not customer-centric, not good offers or benefits and so on.

 

[captainslim]

Can you still use the apple cash card or some form of card to spend whatever money is in this account?

It doesn’t make sense ever to spend what’s in your Apple Cash account using the Apple Cash card. You’re better off transferring the money to your bank (or leaving it in your Apple savings account, when that comes) and using your Apple Card to make the purchase. If you use the Apple Cash card to spend the money, you lose the 2-3% you would have made using your Apple Card instead.

 

[sw1tcher]

Thank you for this. I love my Discover Card. Might open up a savings account with them. Is this the highest APR rate being offered if so they are topping Amex and Ally.

Not the highest rate. There are others with higher rates, but I'd rather not play the rate chasing game by opening and closing accounts. It's much easier to just buy t-bill ladders with even higher rates and let them roll.

Bonus: you don't pay state and local taxes on the t-bill interest like you do on interest from savings and CDs, just federal taxes

 

[sw1tcher]

Don't forget the differences in liquidity between savings accounts, CDs, and bonds are important for both what yield is offered and for portfolio planning.

I can easily sell t-bills before expiration on secondary market if I need the cash or better yet set up treasury ladders.

 

[compwiz1202]

APR is still 3.50%. The interest rate is 3.44030%. It is usually the case where the APR and the actual interest rate differ with the APR being higher. Someone with banking knowledge may be able to explain.


Ally is the same way:

View attachment 2167729

I don't know about getting interest but I know the Y can be more on loans with initiation fees.

 

[KaliYoni]

I can easily sell t-bills on secondary market if I need the cash or better yet set up treasury ladders.

Yes, both are part of the benefits of Treasuries under normal market conditions. But somebody who is parking cash for emergencies should take the price fluctuations of bonds not held to maturity and the time and market access required to trade bonds into account.

 

[relatica]

The withdrawal limit has not been enforced since Covid started I believe.

Actually this is wrong. This can be enforced if the bank chooses to and Bank of America does enforce a transfer limit

 

[unobtainium]

Has to be above 4.2 to be worth it

A lot better than my Chase account with a whopping 0%.

 

[jhwalker]

Anything is better than Chase Savings at 0.01% interest.

Very similar at Bank of America. AND they make it difficult / costly to transfer to other banks :/

Only advantage is overdraft protection, but I use that so seldom ...

Yep, I need to find a better place to park savings :/

 

[unobtainium]

Very similar at Bank of America. AND they make it difficult / costly to transfer to other banks :/

Only advantage is overdraft protection, but I use that so seldom ...

Yep, I need to find a better place to park savings :/

Worst part is that with inflation we are actually losing money in our savings accounts every day. We’re paying the big banks to hold our money.

 

[JoeShades]

Best High Yield Savings Accounts - up to 5.00% APY - Doctor Of Credit

List of the best high interest yield accounts, we list ALL high interest accounts - get up to 5% APY with a rewards account or 2.35% on a basic account.

www.doctorofcredit.com

I currently use CFG bank 4.55%

 

[CK2007]

What banks pay above 4%?

Wealthfront and betterment. Both have above 4%

 

[deebinem]

Wealthfront and betterment. Both have above 4%

Yup, kept getting a bunch of emails in December that Wealthfront was going to be 3.80% but soon moved up to 4.05% for their Cash Account (I'm guessing that's their checking?).

I started using One about 2 years ago and was so excited to hit 3% but lament at trying to chase an extra point and move everything.

 

[MrMojo1]

Idk 4.2 would be more close to a CD (on todays market rate). There are some savings account with an interest rate close to 4%, do you know anyone bank paying above 4% for deposits less than 5k?

Have a relatively local bank that's paying 4.1%, up from 3.5%, max account limit is $1 million.
Not worth investing in CDs that lock you in when you have more liquid cash available with a regular relatively higher interest bearing savings account.
Also know of a local CU that wants members to start a small rainy day fund so has a 6.1% savings account with a max limit of $1,000, which is a nice incentive for people to start putting some money away even if it's a small amount.

 

[MrMojo1]

Thank you for this. I love my Discover Card. Might open up a savings account with them. Is this the highest APR rate being offered if so they are topping Amex and Ally.

Update: They are giving $150 - $200 bonus offer. Not bad!!!

Always read the fine print.. within 30 days of the accounting opening...
$150 bonus if you deposit $15K min.
$200 bonus if you deposit $25K min.

Who has that much money to deposit? Some but not everyone.

 

[ZipZap]

This is awesome! So with the Apple Card and Savings Account, that should be all I need. Apple Card for expenditures and the Savings Account for paying the card!

I wonder if I can do direct deposits into the Savings Account

only if it supports check writing

 

[TonyC28]

Very similar at Bank of America. AND they make it difficult / costly to transfer to other banks :/

Only advantage is overdraft protection, but I use that so seldom ...

Yep, I need to find a better place to park savings :/

I opened a Discover online savings account today. That interest rate at Chase drives me nuts. I don't keep a lot of money in regular savings anyway, but that 1 cent in interest for a month does nothing but make me mad.

 

[enc0re]

If I were in charge of Apple marketing, I would gate the best interest rate behind having an Apple One subscription. Really snap shut those jaws of lock in.

 

[samlikesmac]

Actually this is wrong. This can be enforced if the bank chooses to and Bank of America does enforce a transfer limit

That’s interesting considering the limit was removed in regulation D in 2020 partially due to COVID. Like you said, banks can still choose to limit it if they want to. Discover bank explicitly state that they are not enforcing the transaction limit anymore. I’d suggest going to a bank that does not enforce this limit if it’s an issue for you. I learned something new though.

 

[mlabonte21]

Citizens Access just upgraded my account from 3.75% to 4.0%.

Hope the new Apple account matches that— I may just move.

 

[TechGuy327]

What banks pay above 4%?

Redneck Bank money market account. The checking account pays more but there are hoops to jump through. A brokerage account at Fidelity is paying 4.20% and all you have to do is move money into the account's settlement fund SPAXX which happens by default. The 17-Week T-Bill just hit over 5% and if you live in a state with an income tax the interest is state tax free so you're earning even more.

Ally is paying 3.40% and Marcus is paying 3.75%