SoFi’s Checking and Savings hybrid account is one of the best, but it’s not perfect. To earn the savings account’s highest 4.6% APY, you have to either set up direct deposit or deposit at least $5,000 per month. The debit card cash back is limited, it only has one credit card option with mediocre rewards, and it doesn’t have any banking options for kids or seniors. And as an online bank, SoFi just isn’t suited for frequent cash deposits or when you need in-person customer support.
Get a $50 referral bonus by inviting your friends to join Current. Once the person receives the invite link and makes qualifying deposits of at least $200 within 45 days of opening the account, you and the referred friend each earn $50
Current is a fintech company with banking services backed by Choice Financial Group and Cross River Bank. Like SoFi, Current offers an all-in-one bank account with no monthly fees, overdraft fees or opening deposit requirements. Current also has an envelope feature similar to SoFi's vault feature, with Current letting you split up your savings into 'pods'. You can create up to three savings pods and earn a 4% savings bonus on up to $2,000 in each pod if you set up qualifying direct deposits. However, its savings bonus has a balance limit, and its APY is lower than SoFi's. Current also stands out for its credit-building opportunities with its Current Build card with paycheck advances and no annual fees or interest charges. However, Current doesn't support joint accounts like SoFi does and doesn't offer personal, home or business financing.
Pros
No monthly fees
Savings pods with high rates
Cashback rewards
Credit building with Current Build card
Cons
Doesn't support joint accounts
$3 plus 3% international ATM withdrawals
No lending options
APY
4.00% on balances of $0.01 to $2,000 Up to 4.00% bonus. The disclosed rate is effective as of August 1, 2023. Must have $0.01 in Savings Pods to earn a Boost rate of either 0.25% or 4.00% annually on the portion of balances up to $2000 per Savings Pod, up to $6000 total. The remaining balance earns 0.00%. A qualifying direct deposit of $200 or more is required for 4.00%. No minimum balance required. For more information, please refer to Current Boost Terms and Conditions..
Intro or bonus offer
Get a $50 referral bonus by inviting your friends to join Current. Once the person receives the invite link and makes qualifying deposits of at least $200 within 45 days of opening the account, you and the referred friend each earn $50
Rewards
Earn up to 15x the points when you use your debit card at one of 14,000+ participating merchants
Varo and SoFi are both FDIC-insured online banks. Varo's digital checking account has no monthly or overdraft fees and other perks like Zelle payments, early direct deposit and cash advances. The crown jewel of Varo's digital checking account is the cashback rewards — up to 6% with select brands like Nike, Little Caesars, Macy's and more. SoFi also features cashback rewards, but you must activate the rewards in the app, and they can vary widely by location and merchant. With a Varo checking account, you can also get a savings account with a high 5% APY on balances up to $5,000 that requires direct deposit of at least $1,000 per month, so it's similar to SoFi's high APY requirements. Varo uses the Allpoint ATM network and accepts cash deposits at Green Dot locations just like SoFi. But Varo doesn't accept domestic or international wires or support joint accounts.
Pros
No monthly fees
Up to 6% cash back at select stores
Up to 5% APY on savings with requirements
Same ATM network as SoFi
Cons
Doesn't accept wire transfers
No joint accounts
Cash deposits at Green Dot locations for a fee
APY
5.00% on balances of $0 to $5,000 (with direct deposits of $1,000+) 3.00% on balances of $5,000+
Intro or bonus offer
Existing and new customers get a $25 referral bonus when signing up for a Varo Bank account. T&C apply.
Use promo code AXOS300 and apply by June 30th, 2024, to earn up to Up to $300 bonus, $50 each month you meet requirements: Make direct deposits of $5,000+ each month for the first 7 months and maintain an average balance of $7,000.
SoFi only has one hybrid checking and savings account. If you want variety, look to the online bank Axos. Like SoFi, Axos is an FDIC-insured online bank. It offers interest-bearing Rewards Checking, the teen account First Checking, the senior account Golden Checking, free Essential Checking and the lucrative Cashback Checking account. SoFi doesn't offer any senior or teen banking options, and while its checking earns 0.50% APY, Axos' Rewards checking account offers a much higher 3.3% APY on up to $50,000 with activity requirements. The Axos Cashback Checking features up to 1% in cashback rewards on up to $2,000 in purchases per month to stack up earnings effortlessly. Axos also offers ATM reimbursements on most of its accounts, charges no monthly fees or deposit requirements and has over 91,000 ATMs. But SoFi's savings APY is much higher than Axos' meager 0.61% APY on its High Yield Savings account.
Pros
Multiple checking and savings accounts
Larger ATM network than SoFi
Interest-bearing and cashback checking
Teen and senior banking
Cons
Activity requirements to earn some rewards
Low 0.61% APY on savings
APY
3.30% on balances of $0 to $50,000 after meeting rate requirements.
Intro or bonus offer
Use promo code AXOS300 and apply by June 30th, 2024, to earn up to Up to $300 bonus, $50 each month you meet requirements: Make direct deposits of $5,000+ each month for the first 7 months and maintain an average balance of $7,000.
One is a fintech with banking services. One has a free, all-in-one account like SoFi, but it offers a higher APY on its savings. One's savings feature a high 5% APY, which requires at least $500 in monthly direct deposits or an average balance of at least $5,000 — nearly identical to SoFi's requirements to earn its 4.60% APY. If you don't meet the requirements, your savings earns 1% APY. Also similar to SoFi, the One account has no monthly fees and offers overdraft protection services and cashback rewards. A standout feature is the ability to earn 3% cash back at Walmart up to $50 per year if you meet the same deposit or balance requirements for its APY. On the downside, it doesn't support joint accounts or offer 24/7 customer phone support like SoFi does.
Pros
All-in-one checking and savings
Higher APY than SoFi
No monthly or overdraft fees
Cash back and overdraft services
Cons
No joint accounts
Limited phone support
APY
5.00% on balances of $0 to $250,000 with $500+ direct deposit in previous month or $5,000+ daily balance. See details below 1.00% on balances of $250,000.01+
Rewards
Earn 3% cash back at Walmart, up to $50 annually, with eligible deposits
One is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services provided by Coastal Community Bank, Member FDIC. Debit card rewards: ● Earn 3% cash back at Walmart, up to $50 every year, with eligible deposits¹ ● Earn up to 5% cash back on select brands² Early Pay: Get paid up to 2 days early with direct deposit³ 5.00% APY on Savings with eligible deposits: 5.00% annual percentage yield (APY) applies to the total Savings balance of customers who either (i) received $500 or more of eligible direct deposits in the previous month or (ii) have a total daily account balance of $5,000 or more. Customers can also earn 5.00% APY on Pay Autosave balances without these deposit or balance requirements. In all instances 5.00% APY is limited to a total Savings balance of up to $250,000. All other Savings balances will earn 1.00% APY. APYs are as of 4/17/2024, but may change at any time before or after account opening. ATMs: Allpoint Network ATM transactions are fee-free for accounts with eligible direct deposits totaling at least $500 in the previous month. For all other ATM transactions the One ATM Fee will apply and third-party ATM fees may be incurred. Free Walmart Withdrawals: Use your One card at any Walmart Money Center, cashier, or Customer Service desk to deposit or make a cash withdrawal for free. ¹To receive 3% cash back, eligible customers (at the time their purchase settles) must (i) have received $500 or more of eligible direct deposits in the previous month, or (ii) have a total account balance of $5,000 or more. 3% cash back is limited to up to $50 per year and applies only to purchases made at U.S. Walmart locations and on Walmart.com. This promotion may not be combined with other One promotions that offer cash back on purchases at Walmart. Terms apply. ²Cash back can be earned through the Debit Rewards Program. Individual offer details can be found in the One app. Terms apply. ³Direct deposit may be available up to 2 days in advance, but depends on when your employer sends paycheck data.
Earn $400 when you open a new PNC Virtual Wallet with Performance Select and establish a direct deposit of at least $5,000+ to your Spend account in the first 60 days.
SoFi doesn't have any physical branches, and cash deposits will cost you $4.95 at Green Dot locations. If you're looking for in-person banking, PNC has over 2,700 branches in the US and 7,400 ATMs, and it also has an all-in-one checking and savings with its Virtual Wallet accounts, which is similar to SoFi's hybrid account. There are multiple Virtual Wallet variations, high APYs on its savings, various CD terms, a money market account, financing, business banking and more. The PNC High Yield Savings account also has a 4.65% APY, a slightly higher rate than SoFi, and no opening deposit or monthly fees. However, watch out for monthly service fees on checking, which you'll have to try to waive.
Pros
Over 2,700 branches
All-in-one Virtual Wallet accounts
Loans, CDs and MMAs
High 4.65% APY on savings
Cons
Checking monthly fees (waivable)
Smaller ATM network than SoFi
Virtual Wallet availability varies by state
Rates vary by location
APY
0.01%
Intro or bonus offer
Earn $400 when you open a new PNC Virtual Wallet with Performance Select and establish a direct deposit of at least $5,000+ to your Spend account in the first 60 days.
Fee
$25 per month
To waive the fee
You can waive the monthly service fee when you: Establish $5,000+ direct deposit to the Spend account OR, $5,000+ monthly balance in Spend + Reserve OR, $25,000 in all PNC consumer and/or investment accounts
Discover is a mostly online bank with only one branch location in Delaware. Its credit card options are hard to beat, offering secured and unsecured cards that often have no annual fee and generous cashback rewards. SoFi only has one credit card with cash back between 2% to 3%. Discover has cards for many walks of life, including student and travel cashback rewards cards. Its Discover It card line also features an unlimited cashback match for your first year. Alongside its card options, Discover also has an online savings account with 4.25% APY with no monthly fees, minimum balance or deposit requirements, and there's a free cashback checking account offering up to 1% cash back on up to $3,000 per month. Discover also has a few thousand more ATMs than SoFi, with a large 60,000 free ATM network. But unlike SoFi, Discover doesn't offer personal loans or budgeting features.
Pros
Multiple cashback credit cards
Free cashback checking
High 4.25% APY on savings
60,000+ ATM network
Cons
Lacks budgeting features you get with SoFi
No personal loans
APY
N/A
Rewards
Earn 1% cash back on up to $3,000 in debit card purchases each month. .
Ally and SoFi have a lot in common. Both are online banks with free checking and savings, have similar lending options, and use Allpoint's large network of 55,000 ATMs. But Ally has more budgeting features on its checking and fewer hoops to earn its best APYs. SoFi offers envelope budgeting features but only on its savings account. Ally's free checking and savings accounts have envelope budgeting features to sort savings goals and expenses. The Ally Spending Account earns 0.25% APY, and the Ally Savings Account earns 4.35% with no requirements. SoFi's checking has a higher 0.50% APY, but to earn its savings rate of 4.60% APY, you'll need to meet deposit requirements. Ally's accounts are also full of features like SoFi, including early direct deposit, savings round-ups, free checks and ATM reimbursements.
Pros
No monthly fees
Envelope budgeting on checking and savings
Large ATM network
Cons
Slightly lower APY than SoFi
Online only
APY
0.25% on balances of $15,000+ 0.10% on balances of to $15,000
SoFi doesn't offer any teen or kid bank account options. For families looking to boost their kids' financial literacy, Greenlight is a great option. It offers up to five kids' prepaid debit cards per plan, starting at $4.99 per month. Kids can earn allowances for completing chores, won't get charged overdraft fees, and there's an educational money game they can play. Parents get granular spending controls they can set up by category or store and can easily transfer money to their kids' account in real time. There are tools for spending, saving and earning, and you can earn up to 1% in saving rewards with the core plan and get cashback rewards. The downside is the unavoidable monthly fee, ranging from $4.99 to $14.98, and the higher-tier plans give you access to cashback rewards and safety perks. There's a free 30-day trial, but know Greenlight also doesn't accept deposits from PayPal, Apple Cash or Venmo.
Pros
Strong parental controls
Up to five cards per plan
Money games, chore tracker and allowances
Savings and cashback rewards
Cons
Unavoidable monthly fee
Deposit limits
APY
5.00% on balances of $0 to $5,000 5% savings bonus for Greenlight Infinity plan, 2% for Max plan, and 1% core plan on up to $5,000.
There aren’t many real downsides to SoFi. It’s considered one of the best online banking options out there. It has a large variety of account, lending and investing services, including its free hybrid checking and savings, personal loans and online investing platform called SoFi Invest. And while SoFi is an entirely online bank, it offers 24/7 customer support over the phone.
Its main downside is you must either set up direct deposit or deposit at least $5,000 per month to earn the high 4.6% APY on savings. If you don’t, your rate drops to a meager 1.2% APY. But compared to other high-yield bank accounts, these requirements aren’t dealbreakers. Also, its cashback rewards previously offered up to 15% at select merchants, but it now varies between 2% and 4%, and offers must be activated within the SoFi app.
Bethany Hickey is a personal finance writer at Finder, specializing in banking, lending, insurance, and crypto.
Bethany’s expertise in personal finance has garnered recognition from esteemed media outlets, such as Nasdaq, MSN, Yahoo Finance, GOBankingRates, SuperMoney, AOL and Newsweek. Her articles offer practical financial strategies to Americans, empowering them to make decisions that meet their financial goals. Her past work includes articles on generational spending and saving habits, lending, budgeting and managing debt.
Before joining Finder, she was a content manager where she wrote hundreds of articles and news pieces on auto financing and credit repair for CarsDirect, Auto Credit Express and The Car Connection, among others.
Bethany holds a BA in English from the University of Michigan-Flint, and was poetry editor for the university’s Qua Literary and Fine Arts Magazine.
SoFi and Capital One are both good picks for different reasons. SoFi is best for everyday banking, but Capital One has more account options and branches.
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