Aspiration review

How much does Aspiration cost?

Aspiration has two Spend and Save plan options:

What’s Plant Your Change and how does it work?

Plant Your Change is an opt-in feature that rounds your Aspiration debit card purchases to the nearest dollar. For every dollar you round up, Aspiration will plant a tree.

How do I open a Aspiration Spend & Save Account?

You can apply for the Aspiration Spend & Save Account online within minutes:

1. Go to the provider’s site and follow the steps to apply.
2. From Aspiration’s website, enter your email address and click Get Started.
3. Create your password, read and agree to the terms and conditions and click Next.
4. Enter your full name and date of birth and click Next.
5. Enter your Social Security number and click Next.
6. Enter your address and phone number and click Next.
7. Choose whether or not you want to round up your purchases, then click Continue.
8. Connect to your existing bank account through Plaid, by finding your bank and signing in.
9. Follow the prompts to complete your application, fund your account with an opening deposit. Then review your deposit and submit your application.

Compare Aspiration Spend & Save Account to similar accounts

We gathered a quick comparison of similar accounts to help you decide if Aspiration Spend & Save Account is right for you. For more options, select “Compare accounts” to compare even more accounts for your banking needs.

CIT Bank Savings Builder High Yield Savings Account	Western Alliance Bank High Yield Savings Account through SaveBetter	Cloud Bank 24/7
★★★★★ Finder rating 4.3 / 5	★★★★★ Finder rating 4.9 / 5	★★★★★ Finder rating 4.3 / 5
Go to site on CIT Bank's secure site	Go to site on Western Alliance Bank's secure site	Go to site on SaveBetter's secure site
Fee $0	Fee $0	Fee $0
APY 1.00% 0.40%	APY 4.75%	APY 4.48%
Minimum deposit to open $100	Minimum deposit to open $1	Minimum deposit to open $1
Minimum balance to earn interest $0	Minimum balance to earn interest $0	Minimum balance to earn interest $0

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What are the benefits of the Aspiration Spend & Save Account?

The Aspiration Spend and Save account lets you support charities that change the world and has FDIC-insured deposits up to $2 million, as well as these benefits:

• Aspiration Impact Measurement. Check the impact of your spending with its two ratings: a People Score and a Planet Score. The higher your score, the more confidence you have knowing your money is going toward improving the world.
• Minimal fees. Unless you opt for the Plus account, there’s no mandatory monthly fee. You also won’t pay anything for overdrafts and service charges are lower than its competitors. For example, wire transfers only cost you what Aspiration pays: $4.50.
• High APYs. Earn up to 3.00% APY on your Save balance as long as you’re a Plus member and meet these requirements. But even if you don’t upgrade to Aspiration Plus, you can still earn 3% APY on balances up to $10,000 if you meet the monthly $1,000 spending requirement.
• Free ATM usage. Use any Allpoint ATM in the US for free. Aspiration doesn’t charge fees for using ATMs outside of this network, but you’re still subject to operator fees. And if you’re a Plus member, you’re entitled to one ATM reimbursement a month.
• Cashback rewards. Earn cash back whenever you use your Aspiration debit card at stores under the Conscience Coalition.

Daily spending and transfer limits

There is a $1,000 daily limit for cash withdrawals from an ATM and a $4,000 daily limit for PIN purchases or any charges requiring your signature.

You’ll also be limited to a $5,000 daily outgoing transfer limit and a $1,000 daily incoming transfer limit. These limits only apply to transfers made on the Aspiration’s online platform.

For the first 30 days after you open your account, you’ll have lower limits on ATM withdrawals, debit card purchases and transfers. Once you’ve been with Aspiration for more than 90 days, your incoming transfer limit may change depending on your account type.

What to watch out for

Here are a few things to watch out for when opening an account with Aspiration:

• Requirements to earn max APY. To earn Aspiration’s best interest rate, you must be an Aspiration Plus member and pay $7.99 per month ($5.99 per month if you pay annually). You’ll also need to spend at least $1,000 with your Aspiration debit card each month.
• No physical branches. Aspiration operates entirely online, meaning you’ll need to call or go online to contact customer service, and check deposits can only be made through your mobile app.
• Limited product selection. As an investment firm, Aspiration doesn’t offer savings accounts, money market accounts, CDs and other common accounts, so you might want to keep looking if you want all your accounts at one institution. This also means you can’t link your account for overdraft protection.
• Required bank account. To complete your application, you’ll need to link to your existing bank account. You don’t have the option of skipping this application step and connecting your account at a later time.

If you’re looking for an account with more branch locations, you’ll want to keep looking. As always compare your options when choosing a checking account.

Is Aspiration Spend & Save Account legit?

Yes. Aspiration accounts are insured by the FDIC for up to $2 million dollars. This level of insurance is significantly higher than most other cash management accounts because Aspiration has relationships with 10 partner banks, each of which can help insure your deposits. These banks include Coastal Community Bank, ProgressBank, EagleBank, Amalgamated Bank, C3Bank, NA Manufacturers Bank, Bridgewater Bank, and The Freedom Bank of Virginia.

Aspiration is also regulated by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), which protects investors by evaluating and regulating products from broker-dealers.

Aspiration Spend & Save Account reviews and complaints

Aspiration is not accredited by the Better Business Bureau (BBB), which gives it a D+ rating based on more than 160 complaints in the past three years. And based on nearly 30 customer reviews on the BBB’s website, Aspiration has an average rating of 1.63 out of 5 stars.

On Trustpilot, Aspiration earns an average of 3.2 out of 5 stars based on 138 reviews. Many of the reviews and complaints on both sites relate to issues accessing accounts and withdrawing deposited funds. Several also mention negative experiences with customer support specialists.

How do I make deposits or withdrawals?

Despite being online-only, it’s easy to access money in the Aspiration Spend & Save Account:

How do I contact customer service?

To get in touch with Aspiration customer service you can:

• Call: 800-683-8529
• Tweet: @Aspiration
• Email: Fill out the form on the Aspiration contact page

What other products does Aspiration offer?

Aspiration Financial is an investment broker-dealer and can help you grow your investments or save for retirement, all while donating to charity.

Investing

With a $10 minimum deposit, you can get started with Aspiration’s managed funds:

• Redwood Fund. Invest in companies that support sustainable environmental policies.
• Flagship Fund. Invest in multiple mutual funds at once to spread your risk.

Retirement

Open an IRA with a $10 minimum deposit. Choose between the Redwood IRA and Flagship IRA.

Frequently asked questions

How does Aspiration practice social good?

Aspiration commits to donating 10% of its earnings to charity. It maintains multiple funds to disperse its contributions, including the Poverty Fund, Water Fund, Education Fund and Environment Fund.

When you refer a friend, Aspiration donates $25 to the charity of your choice and another $25 to one of your friend’s.

How does Aspiration determine my personal sustainability score?

Aspiration looks at where you’re spending your money. Your score is determined by the stores you’re shopping at and whether those businesses are socially or environmentally impacting the world in a positive way.

Does Aspiration offer student account options?

No. It doesn’t have any accounts that are specifically designed for students, but that doesn’t prevent students from opening an account if they are 18.

Which merchants are part of the Conscience Coalition?

You can earn cash back on your purchases through these merchants:

Aspiration is not currently available on Finder

Have you considered US Bank Smartly Checking?

Take control of your spending with integrated tools such as automated budgeting, upcoming due date alerts, low balance alerts and more, available in the US Bank Smartly Checking mobile app. Easily send and receive funds via Zelle. Waive overdraft fees by depositing money before the forgiveness deadline. Member FDIC.

• Send and receive money with Zelle
• Automated budgeting tools
• Overdraft protection options
• FDIC insured

Learn more on US Bank's secure site

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