Compare Charles Schwab Products: Savings and Checking

Our verdict

Charles Schwab was founded as a brokerage firm in 1963 and extended into banking in 2003. Beyond its brokerage services, Charles Schwab also offers savings and checking accounts, CDs and other bank products. Schwab’s checking account is especially popular for its unlimited ATM fee rebates worldwide, and there are no monthly maintenance fees on most accounts. Overall, Charles Schwab is a solid choice if you want a smooth connection between your banking and investing and are able to manage everything in one place.

Best for: Those looking to keep cash close to their portfolios.

Is Charles Schwab right for you?

Charles Schwab can be worth checking out if you manage your money online, travel often or want to avoid ATM fees. That said, you must have a Charles Schwab brokerage account to apply for a checking or savings account.

How Charles Schwab stacks up

Charles Schwab may not offer the highest APYs on the market, but its low fees and unlimited ATM refunds make it worth considering. Before opening an account at Charles Schwab, weigh these pros and cons to see if it’s a potential fit.

Where it shines

Charles Schwab has a lot going for it, and it’s a trusted institution.

• Unlimited global ATM fee refunds. Charles Schwab reimburses you for all ATM fees incurred, regardless of what country you’re in. There are also no foreign transaction fees.
• No monthly fees or account minimums. You won’t have to worry about minimum balances or monthly maintenance fees on its deposit accounts.
• No excessive transaction fees. Unlike other banks, Charles Schwab’s savings account won’t charge you a fee if you make more than six outgoing transactions a month.
• FDIC insurance. Schwab deposit accounts are FDIC-insured up to $250,000, so your money is protected.

Where it falls short

Schwab has perks, but it’s probably not the right pick if you want a full-service bank.

• Low savings APY. Even though Schwab offers interest on its deposit accounts, the rates aren’t all that competitive compared to some of the top savings accounts in the market.
• No cash deposit options at branches. There’s no easy way to deposit physical cash into your Charles Schwab accounts. You must make deposits by transferring funds from another bank, requesting a wire transfer, mailing a check or moving funds from your brokerage account.
• No high-yield checking or rewards. You’ll earn a small amount of interest on your checking account, but there aren’t any reward features or tiered interest perks.
• Limited savings and checking options. Schwab only offers one checking and one savings account, so look elsewhere if you want more variety.

Charles Schwab’s checking account

Charles Schwab Bank offers a single checking option: the Schwab Bank Investor Checking Account. It’s a brokerage-linked account, which features no monthly fees or required minimum balances.

There are also no minimum balance requirements, and you get unlimited ATM fee rebates worldwide. Unlike many other checking accounts that offer zero interest, the Schwab Investor Checking account lets you earn a 0.05% APY on your balance. It isn’t a lot, but it’s still better than nothing at all.

You’ll also get a Schwab debit card with no foreign transaction fees. However, the account must be linked to a Schwab brokerage account even if you don’t plan to invest.

Charles Schwab’s savings account

Schwab only has one savings option: the Schwab Bank Investor Savings Account. It’s pretty functional but doesn’t offer competitive rates compared to some of the best savings accounts we’ve seen.

Schwab Bank Investor Savings Account earns up to 0.15% APY and has no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements. Like the checking account, it’s linked to your Schwab brokerage, which may not appeal to everyone. And considering that the average savings account interest rate is currently 0.40% APY, the 0.15% APY this account offers isn’t competitive at all.

Charles Schwab’s CDs

Schwab offers CDs through its CD OneSource, and so they’re offered by other FDIC-insured banks. There’s a solid range of CD terms available through its brokerage platform, often with top-tier rates and a reasonable deposit requirement that matches competitors.

Other Charles Schwab products

Charles Schwab is primarily a brokerage, so you’ll find a wide selection of investment and banking products:

• Credit cards. Schwab partners with American Express to offer travel and cashback credit cards for customers.
• Investment accounts. You can also find a variety of investment accounts, including taxable and tax-advantaged options, with Schwab, including IRAs, Roth IRAs and robo-advisor portfolios.
• Home loans. Schwab offers mortgage products in partnership with Rocket Mortgage.
• Pledged asset line. A pledged asset line is a line of credit that lets you borrow against the non-retirement assets in your portfolio without having to liquidate your investments.

Compare Charles Schwab with leading bank accounts

• Checking
• Savings
• CDs

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5 of 17 results

Finder Score	Fee	Minimum deposit to open	Annual Percentage Yield (APY)	Rebate
Promoted Finder score 9 Excellent SoFi Checking and Savings	Finder score 9 Excellent	$0 per month	$0	Up to 3.60%	Earn up to 4.30% APY on savings and $50 or $300 with direct deposit. Open a new SoFi Checking and Savings account by 31 January 2026, set up eligible direct deposit within 60 days, and maintain direct deposit for six months. T&Cs apply.		Go to site More info Compare product selection Compare	loading
Promoted Finder score 9.6 Excellent OnePay Cash	Finder score 9.6 Excellent	$0 per month	$0	3.35% on balances of $5,000 to $250,000 1.00% on balances of $0 to $4,999 1.00% on balances of $250,001+	For a limited time, earn 10% cash back at Walmart on your first purchase made within your first month, on up to $200 spent. T&Cs apply.		Go to site More info Compare product selection Compare	loading
Promoted Finder score 9.2 Excellent NBKC Everything Account	Finder score 9.2 Excellent	$0 per month	$0	1.75% on balances of $0.01+		Go to site More info Compare product selection Compare	loading
Finder score 7 Great HSBC Premier Checking	Finder score 7 Great	$50 per month (can be waived)	$0	0.01% on balances of $5+	Earn up to $3,500 by opening the HSBC Premier account with three different bonus offers after completing qualifying activities by December 31, 2025, and maintain the New Deposits through March 31, 2026. T&Cs apply.		Go to site More info Compare product selection Compare	loading
Finder score 8.6 Great Step Black Card	Finder score 8.6 Great	From $0 per month	$0	4.00% on balances of $0 to $1,000,000		Go to site More info Compare product selection Compare	loading

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What is the Finder Score?

The Finder Score crunches over 300 checking accounts from hundreds of financial institutions. It takes into account the product's monthly fees, overdraft fees, opening deposit, customer support options, ATM network and features — this gives you a simple score out of 10.

To provide a Score, Finder’s banking experts analyze hundreds of checking accounts against what we consider is the best option: no monthly fees, no overdraft fees, a large ATM network of 50,000 or more, additional features outside of typical banking services, and the optional perk of earning interest. Accounts that are nearly free to maintain and use are scored the highest, while accounts with costly fees and few features are scored the lowest.

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6 of 21 results

Finder Score	Account type	Annual Percentage Yield (APY)	FDIC or NCUA insured amount	Minimum balance to earn APY	Minimum deposit to open	Rebate
Promoted Finder score 8.6 Great Synchrony High Yield Savings	Finder score 8.6 Great	Traditional savings,Custodial account	3.65%	Up to $250,000	$0	$0		Go to site More info Compare product selection Compare	loading
Promoted Finder score 9.2 Excellent Public High-Yield Cash Account	Finder score 9.2 Excellent	Cash management account	3.60%	Up to $250,000	$0	$0		Go to site More info Compare product selection Compare	loading
Promoted Finder score 9.4 Excellent Wealthfront Cash Account	Finder score 9.4 Excellent	Cash management account	3.50%	Up to $8M FDIC insurance	$1	$1	New clients earn 4.15% APY. Boost your APY from 3.50% to 4.15% APY for 3 months when you open and fund a Cash Account. T&Cs apply.		Go to site More info Compare product selection Compare	loading
Finder score 9.2 Excellent SoFi Checking and Savings	Finder score 9.2 Excellent	Traditional savings,Checking	Up to 3.60%	Up to $250,000	$0	$0	Earn up to 4.30% APY on savings and $50 or $300 with direct deposit. Open a new SoFi Checking and Savings account by 31 January 2026, set up eligible direct deposit within 60 days, and maintain direct deposit for six months. T&Cs apply.		Go to site More info Compare product selection Compare	loading
Finder score 8.6 Great Alliant High-Rate Savings	Finder score 8.6 Great	Savings app	3.10%	Up to $250,000 by the NCUA	$100	$5	$5 opening deposit is paid for you. T&Cs apply.		Go to site More info Compare product selection Compare	loading
Finder score 9.6 Excellent Discover® Online Savings Account	Finder score 9.6 Excellent	Traditional savings,Custodial account	3.40%	Up to $250,000	$0	$0		Continue More info Compare product selection Compare	loading

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How we picked these

What is the Finder Score?

The Finder Score crunches over 250 savings accounts from hundreds of financial institutions. It takes into account the product's interest rate, fees, opening deposit and features - this gives you a simple score out of 10.

To provide a Score, Finder’s banking experts analyze hundreds of savings accounts against FDIC-reported national averages as a baseline. Accounts with rates well over the national average are scored the highest, while accounts with rates well below are scored low.

Read the full breakdown

6 of 8 results

Finder Score	6-month APY	1-year APY	5-year APY	Minimum deposit to open
Finder score 9.4 Excellent Patriot Bank 3M CD	Finder score 9.4 Excellent	N/A	N/A	N/A	$1	Up to $1,000 bonus for new customers with qualifying deposits using promo code EASY. T&Cs apply.	Go to site More info Compare product selection Compare	loading
Finder score 9.6 Excellent Alliant Credit Union Certificates	Finder score 9.6 Excellent	4.10%	4.00%	3.65%	$1,000	Go to site More info Compare product selection Compare	loading
Finder score 10 Excellent Quontic Bank CDs	Finder score 10 Excellent	3.75%	3.00%	3.00%	$500	Go to site More info Compare product selection Compare	loading
Finder score 10 Excellent Valley Direct Online CD	Finder score 10 Excellent	N/A	4.00%	N/A	$500	Go to site More info Compare product selection Compare	loading
Finder score 9.6 Excellent Bask Bank CDs	Finder score 9.6 Excellent	3.95%	3.85%	N/A	$1,000	Go to site More info Compare product selection Compare	loading
Finder score 7.6 Great Discover® CDs	Finder score 7.6 Great	3.50%	4.05%	3.50%	$0	Continue More info Compare product selection Compare	loading

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How we picked these

What is the Finder Score?

The Finder Score analyzes hundreds of CDs from more than 100 institutions. It takes into account the product's interest rate for available terms and opening deposit requirements - this gives you a simple score out of 10.

Different banks and credit unions offer CDs for various lengths of time, ranging from as short as seven days to as long as 20 years. For our ratings, we consider the term lengths that the FDIC uses in its monthly updates on national rates.

If a bank or credit union doesn’t offer a CD for a specific term used by the FDIC, we don’t penalize it: Instead, we simply don’t rate it. Each of the standard term lengths has its own APY rating based on the FDIC’s average rates.

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Customer reviews

Charles Schwab has an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau (BBB) but does poorly when it comes to submitted reviews. It doesn’t do well on Trustpilot either, and many past and current customers on these sites complain about account holds, delayed transfers, poor security and frustrating experiences with customer support.

To make sure you get accurate and helpful information, this guide has been edited by Bethany Hickey as part of our fact-checking process.

Written by

Jamela Adam

Contributor

Jamela Adam is a personal finance writer with over three years of experience. Her work has been published in major publications, including Yahoo Finance, Forbes Advisor, U.S. News, Business Insider, GOBankingRates, CNN Underscored, and Chime. Jamela previously worked as a content marketing specialist and helped devise content strategies for major brands in the financial services space. She is also a Certified Financial Education Instructor (CFEI). See full bio