Your Savings Might Be Underpaying You, The Best High Interest Savings Accounts Right Now.
Your savings account is supposed to reward you for being responsible and saving but a lot of accounts are still paying rates that barely keep up with inflation. No seriously, it is kinda ridiculous that two people can save the same amount of money each month and end the year hundreds of dollars apart. That my friend is the power of interest from a high interest savings account, so if you have a better interest rate you will earn more money. A high interest savings account is one of the easiest financial upgrades you can make, yet they are so annoying to keep up with as the rates change SO often. Don’t worry though we have done the heavy lifting and rounded up the ones we think are worth you having a look at.
We try to look for accounts that don’t require you to do alot of “work” like giving naming rights to your first born child to earn that bonus interest.
The accounts on our watch list:
ING Savings Maximiser + Everyday orange
Total Interest: 5.00%
The Base interest: 0.01%
The Bonus Interest: 4.99%
Bonus up to: $100,000
Start Date: 10 Feb
If you are looking for the account that will earn you the most this one is by far the highest rate. However, it does require you to have five card transactions a month and to grow your savings amount, which is a little bit annoying. But if you were to have a balance of $100,000, it would leave you $400 better off a year than some of the other accounts on this list. So if you're willing to use their card five times per month, this might be a good option. But if that just seems like a little bit too much of a hassle, there are definitely other ones that might suit you better.
RaboBank Premium Saver
Total Interest: 4.65%
The Base interest: 0.60%
The Bonus Interest: 4.05%
Bonus up to: $250,000
Start Date: aAvailable right now
If you are saving at least $200 a month, this bank account might be for you, because that is the only requirement to earn your bonus interest. And it's valid for balances up to $250,000. Which is pretty good if you have a hefty house deposit and if that's you, good on ya.
UBank Save Account
Total Interest: 4.60%
The Base interest: 0.00%
The Bonus Interest: 4.60%
Bonus up to: $1 Million
Start Date: 10 Feb
Now, if you have yourself the biggest house deposit known to man, this account is probably very exciting for you because the bonus interest rate applies on balances up to a million dollars.
So if you had $700,000 sitting in your bank account at 4.6%, you would earn about $32,200 in interest over a year. That is roughly $2,600 a month or around $88 a day, just from letting it sit there.
And the wild part, you earn interest on all of it, not just a capped portion. The only requirement is that you grow your balance by at least a dollar each month. AMAZING.
Up Grow & Flow Saver
Total Interest: 4.60%
The Base interest: 1.25%
The Bonus Interest: 3.35%
Bonus up to: $250,000
Start Date: available right now
Now, this account looks good at first glance, but lately there are a few more conditions attached, which makes it harder to call it a favourite. We still wanted to mention it though, because a lot of you already use it and might not realise why it does not always make the top list.
To earn the bonus rate you need to make five eligible card purchases each month, which is fairly manageable. The bigger catch is how withdrawals affect your interest. If you take money out of any of your savings accounts during the month, that specific account will not earn the bonus interest for that period and instead drops to around 1.25%.
So if you have separate buckets for things like car costs, holidays or bills and you need to dip into one of them, that account misses out on the higher interest that month. It can be pretty frustrating, especially if you are using your savings exactly how you planned.
MOVE Growth Saver
Total Interest: 4.75%
The Base interest: 0.10%
The Bonus Interest: 4.65%
Bonus up to: $25,000
Start Date: available right now
This account currently has the second highest interest rate we are seeing at 4.75%, which is solid. The catch is that the bonus rate only applies to balances up to $25,000, so anything above that earns a lower rate.
Where it can work well is if you like separating your savings. For example, keeping an emergency fund or holiday money here while your larger goals like a house deposit sit somewhere else.
To unlock the bonus interest you need to deposit at least $200 each month and avoid making any withdrawals during that calendar month. That makes it a bit restrictive, so it will not suit everyone, but if you can meet the conditions it can be a nice little boost.
Why the 5.4% honeymoon rate might not be worth it
There are definitely other bank accounts advertising really high rates right now, like 5.4% or 5.35%, but many of those are something called honeymoon rates. Which is basically a short 3 or 4 month period where a bank offers you extra interest to encourage you to switch over. It looks amazing compared to the standard rate, but it is only temporary,
For example, a bank might offer 5.4% if you are brand new, which is great at the start, but that rate usually only lasts three to four months before dropping back down, and if you remember to switch to a different account you could earn some extra cash but if you don’t know remember it might be not worth it!
Because of that, it is not always ideal to rely on honeymoon offers alone. If you would rather set and forget, choosing an account with a strong ongoing rate means you are not constantly thinking about switching banks once the promo ends, and that can often work out better for you in the long run.
***Please remember our blogs aren’t intended as financial advice - they’re intended only as a starting point to give you a little extra info! For more in-depth advice catered to your personal financial position, please see a certified financial advisor.
