Dive deeper: Best checking accounts
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Is Ally a Good Bank?
It’s a fully-fledged online bank with low-fee accounts and high APYs.
If you’re considering banking with Ally, keep in mind that it’s an online bank. While you won’t have branch access, Ally has some of the highest APYs out here, low-fee deposit accounts and tons of financing options.
Is Ally legitimate?
Yes, Ally is a legitimate bank. It is FDIC-insured and headquartered in Michigan. Ally was formerly General Motors Acceptance Corporation (GMAC) and rebranded as Ally Financial in 2009.
Like other traditional financial institutions, Ally’s deposit accounts are protected up to $250,000 per depositor. In the unlikely event of a bank failure, your funds in Ally deposit accounts are protected up to that amount.
Ally’s bank accounts
It’s fairly easy for us to say Ally is a good bank. We frequently feature Ally’s deposit accounts on our best lists, including our best savings accounts and best CD offerings.
Across Ally’s account and product offerings, most have no monthly fees and offer simple online applications, while customers frequently praise the bank for its high savings rates.
Ally offers one checking account and one savings account. In addition to those two standard accounts, Ally offers CDs, a money market account, investing services and various loan options. However, Ally doesn’t support cash deposits.
Checking
The Spending Account is Ally’s checking account. It has no monthly maintenance fees, overdraft fees or opening deposit requirements. Perks of the Spending Account include:
- Earn up to 0.25% APY on your balance
- Envelope budgeting with “buckets”
- Optional overdraft services Transfer Service and CoverDraft
- Free checks
- Free incoming wires
- Early direct deposit
- Large fee-free ATM network with Allpoint and ATM reimbursements
Savings
The Ally Savings account offers up to 3.6% APY. There are no monthly fees or balance requirements, and you’ll have access to the digital envelope budgeting tool called “buckets,” which allows you to sort your savings goals.
The account also comes with optional round-ups and Surprise Savings. The round-up feature automatically rounds up Spending Account debit card purchases to the nearest dollar and deposits the difference into your savings. The Surprise Savings feature analyzes your linked checking accounts for safe-to-save funds and automatically transfers them to your savings.
Ally’s CD offerings are also fantastic, with one of the best offerings being the 4% APY on a 6-month term. There are three CDs to choose from, each with various terms and no minimum opening deposits. Plus, its loyalty program offers rate increases when you renew CDs. Overall, the rates are very competitive, and there’s nothing negative to say about the banks’ CD offerings.
Other products and services
Aside from typical bank accounts, Ally also offers these products and services:
- Ally Money Market. Offers a very high 3.6% APY on all balances, a debit card and checkwriting privileges. The perks are nearly identical to the Ally Spending Account: no monthly maintenance fees, no overdraft fees, free checks, no fees for receiving wire transfers, no opening deposit requirement and unlimited ATM withdrawals.
- Credit cards. Earn unlimited cashback with the Ally Unlimited Cash Back card, and there’s also a card specifically for nurses and educators.
- Investing. Check out robo portfolios, investing advice, IRAs, stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), bonds, mutual funds and much more.
- Mortgages. Offers home loans, as well as various resources on managing a home loan, first-time home buyer assistance, mortgage assistance and jumbo home loans.
- Vehicle financing. Take out a car loan, refinance or look into Ally’s lease buyouts. Ally can also help you find a dealership and offers vehicle protection benefits.
Ally Bank in the news
In September 2024, it was reported that Ally had a security breach in April 2024, which potentially affected billions of customers and left them exposed to identity theft, as reported by Bloomberg.(1)
A complaint filed in September alleges that Ally failed to encrypt or redact customer personal information, and there is a proposed class action suit. It has also been reported that Ally has not sent any notifications to its current or former customers, at the time of writing.
The complaint accuses Ally of negligence and breach of implied contract, with the suit seeking monetary and injunctive relief and would require Ally to update its security practices.
Customer feedback and reviews
Ally Bank, listed as Ally Financial on review platforms, has mixed reviews. Ally holds an A rating with the Better Business Bureau (BBB), indicating that the bank consistently responds to customer complaints and hasn’t had recent issues with regulators. On the whole, Ally has significantly fewer complaints filed with the BBB compared to other banks, just under 550 in the last few years. Most online or large banks have thousands of BBB complaints, so Ally performs really well in that area.
Happy customers report having no issues with Ally, praising the friendly customer support, the high APYs on savings and the limited fees.
Redditors also express skepticism about how Ally can offer such high interest rates on savings accounts compared to other institutions, but other users explain how Ally can save money by not having physical branches. It’s common for online banks to offer significantly higher savings rates than traditional institutions due to the lack of maintenance costs.
Negative feedback on Trustpilot, the BBB and Reddit follow similar themes. A common complaint is that deposit times can be a bit slow, depending on how large the deposit is, but that’s pretty typical. Other negative reviews mention difficulties contacting a customer representative, frozen deposits, attempts at resolving fraudulent charges and wire transfers or deposits not going through. But overall, these complaints are typical for financial institutions.
Security measures
Ally Bank guarantees you will not be liable for unauthorized transactions, provided you report them to the bank. Also, Ally customers can download and install Webroot SecureAnywhere for free on up to three devices.
- Free anti-virus and anti-malware software
- 2-step authentication, such as a security question
- Transport Layer Security (TLS) Encryption
- Earn a Security Badge by testing your knowledge and learning to protect your information
- 24/7 customer support
Ally fees
Ally’s accounts don’t have monthly maintenance fees, but watch out for some of these miscellaneous fees.
| Fee type | Cost |
|---|---|
| Monthly service fees |
| Opening deposit requirements |
|
| Overdraft fees | $0 |
| Late fees | $40 late fee on Ally credit cards |
Compare with leading bank accounts
Go to site
on SoFi's secure site
- 0.50% APY on checking balance
- Up to 3.80% APY on savings
- $0 account or overdraft fees
- Get up to a $300 bonus with direct deposits of $5,000 or more
Go to site
on Step's secure site
- $0 monthly fee with $500 in monthly direct deposits
- Earn 4% on savings
- Get up to 8% cashback on purchases
- FDIC-insured up to $1 million
Go to site
on Grasshopper's secure site
- $0 monthly fees
- Up to 1.80% on checking balance
- Up to 3.55% APY on savings
- Unlimited 1% cashback rewards
Bottom line
All in all, we can safely say that Ally is a solid online bank that offers low-fee deposit accounts, high APYs on savings accounts and various lending services. But if it’s still not just right for you, see how Ally compares to other top banks.
Frequently asked questions
Does Ally work with Zelle?
Yes, Ally Bank works with Zelle. Learn more about Zelle here.
Can I apply for a personal loan for Ally?
No, Ally doesn’t offer personal loans anymore. Existing Ally Lending personal loans are now through Synchrony, which also offers high-yield savings and other banking services.
Does Ally accept cash deposits?
No, Ally Bank has no way to accept cash deposits. Ally doesn’t have physical branches, and at this time, it doesn’t support ATM cash deposits, either.
What bank is behind Ally?
Ally is an FDIC-insured bank on its own. Unlike many online banking options, Ally isn’t a fintech company and doesn’t need a bank partner behind it to provide banking services or FDIC insurance.
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