DBS Multiplier vs OCBC 360 account

When looking for high-yield accounts in Singapore, you’d most likely have come across the popular DBS Multiplier and OCBC 360 accounts. These two accounts promises high potential interest rates but unlocking them requires some work.

In this review, we’ll compare their features, fees and requirement so you can decide which one is more suitable for you.

Breakdown of DBS Multiplier vs OCBC 360 account in Singapore

	OCBC 360 account	DBS Multiplier Account
	Read review	Read review
OVERVIEW
Description	Earn competitive bonus interest on the first $75,000 of your balance when you credit your salary, save, insure or invest with this account	Multiply your savings with bonus interest rates when you credit your income and meet all the account's criteria.
Maximum Potential Interest (EIR):	2.68% p.a.	3.8% p.a.
Minimum Interest Rate	0.05% p.a.	0.05% p.a.
Fall Below Fees	S$2	S$5
Minimum Initial Deposit	S$1,000	S$0
REQUIREMENTS
Minimum Balance	S$3,000	S$3,000
Minimum Age Eligibility	18 years old	18 years old
Learn more	Read review	Read review

*We selected products from each provider that were the most comparable. You can find all available products on our review pages as well as the provider’s website.

What are high-yield savings accounts?

High-yield savings accounts are deposit accounts that typically promise better returns than traditional savings or chequing accounts through tiered interest rates. However, the main caveat with such accounts is that you’ll typically be required to fulfill specific conditions, such as crediting your salary, spending on your credit card or commit to financial products offered by the bank.

High interest savings accounts

How much bonus interest can you earn from the DBS Multiplier and OCBC 360 accounts?

To give you a better idea of how much bonus interest you can get with both accounts, we’ll look at 3 examples below. For our examples, we’ll assume that you fulfill all the criteria for both accounts.

• Example 1 - $100,000 account balance, $5,000 monthly salary and $3,000 monthly expenditure

  If you have an account balance of $100,000 and make $8,000 worth of eligible transactions per month, this is what you can expect from both accounts:

  	DBS Multiplier Account	OCBC 360 Account
  Balance cap for bonus interest	$100,000	$75,000
  Criteria fulfilled per month	Income credit Credit card spend Insurance premiums Investments Home loan	Salary Save Insure Invest
  Monthly eligible transactions	$8,000 (e.g. $5,000 income + $3,000 across the other categories)	N/A
  Bonus interest	2% on the first $50,000 3% on next $50,000	2.33% on $75,000 0.05% base interest on entire balance
  Effective interest rate	2.5% p.a	2.38% p.a
  Monthly interest	$208.33	$149.79

  *The interest illustrated is an estimate based on the assumption that the balance remains the same throughout the year.
  In this example, you’ll accrue more total interest with the DBS Multiplier account due to the higher balance cap for bonus interest compared to the OCBC 360 account. With the OCBC 360 account, the remaining $25,000 balance after the $75,000 cap will only earn the base interest rate of 0.05%, whereas this amount would have earned bonus interest with the DBS Multiplier account.

• Example 2 - $50,000 account balance, $5,000 monthly salary and $3,000 monthly expenditure

  Next, we’ll take a look at how much interest you can get with a smaller account balance of $50,000, and makes $8,000 worth of eligible transactions per month. Here’s what you can expect from both accounts:

  	DBS Multiplier Account	OCBC 360 Account
  Balance cap for bonus interest	$100,000	$75,000
  Criteria fulfilled per month	Income credit Credit card spend Insurance premiums Investments	Salary Save Insure Invest
  Total monthly eligible transactions	$8,000 (e.g. $5,000 income + $3,000 across the other categories)	N/A
  Bonus interest	0.8% on first $50,000	1.5% on $50,000 0.05% base interest on entire balance
  Effective interest rate	0.8% p.a	1.55% p.a
  Monthly interest	$33.33	$64.58

  *The interest illustrated is an estimate based on the assumption that the balance remains the same throughout the year.

  In this case, the OCBC 360 account will flair better than the DBS Multiplier account

• Example 3 - $200,000 account balance and maxed out every criteria

  Assuming that you’re able to meet all the criteria for maximum potential interest rate, this is how much interest you’d earn with a $200,000 account balance:

  	DBS Multiplier Account	OCBC 360 Account
  Balance cap for bonus interest	$100,000	$75,000
  Criteria fulfilled per month	Income credit Credit card spend Insurance premiums Investments	Salary Save Insure Invest Grow
  Total monthly eligible transactions	$30,000 (e.g. $10,000 income + $20,000 across the other categories)	N/A
  Bonus interest	2% on the first $50,000 3% on next $50,000 0.05% base interest on remaining balance	2.73% on $75,000 0.05% base interest on entire balance
  Effective interest rate	2.5% p.a	2.78% p.a
  Monthly interest	$212.50	$178.95

  *The interest illustrated is an estimate based on the assumption that the balance remains the same throughout the year.

  With a larger account balance of $200,000, you’ll be able to unlock another 0.4% bonus interest through the ‘Grow’ category with OCBC 360 account. However, since the bonus interest is capped at the first $75,000 of your account balance, the monthly interest from the OCBC 360 stills pales in comparison to the DBS Multiplier.

How to decide between the DBS Multiplier and OCBC 360 accounts

Since both the DBS Multiplier and OCBC 360 accounts have their fair share of pros and cons, the account you should go for would bog down to your lifestyle and and financial capabilities.

Pros and cons

Both the DBS Multiplier and OCBC 360 accounts are high-yield savings accounts, but they’re structured differently and catered to account holders with varying financial habits. While both of these accounts come with a host of benefits, they’re not without their downsides.

DBS Multiplier Account

The DBS Multiplier is great if you’re a high-income DBS loyalist with sizable monthly expenses spread across various categories, such as credit card spend, home loan payments, insurance and investments. Take a look at some of the pros and cons of the DBS Multiplier account:

Advantages

• No qualifying amount for Income category. The only criteria for the Income category is that your salary must be credited through GIRO.
• Dividends qualify under Income category. Dividends from Central Depository (CDP), DBS Vickers Securities, DBS Online Equity Trading (OET), DBS Unit Trusts, DBS Online Funds Investing, DBS Invest-Saver are qualified for the Income category.
• No initial deposit required. While most high yield accounts require a minimum opening deposit, this one doesn’t.
• Higher balance cap for bonus interest. The DBS Multiplier account offers bonus interest for up to $100,000 of your account balance.
• More category options. Home loan payments and credit card spend count towards your total monthly eligible transactions.
• Alternative tracks for bonus interest. There are two other options to earn bonus interest even if you’re unable to meet the required categories.

Disadvantages

• No step-up bonus. There is no incentive for month-to-month balance increment.
• Mandatory salary/dividend credit. To be eligible for bonus interest, salary credit is compulsory for all account holders above 29 years old.
• Financial products must be purchased via DBS. Three of the qualifying categories (home loan, insurance and investment) require you to commit to products from DBS.
• 12-month limit for insurance and investment. The financial product(s) will only be counted as a multiplier action for 12 months. After that, you’ll need to commit to a new insurance scheme or investment product to fulfil these two categories for another 12 months.
• Extra categories required for bonus interest on a higher balance. To earn bonus interest on account balance over $25,000, you’ll need to transact in 2 or 3 additional categories.
• Balance eligible for bonus interest will not earn base interest. Account balance eligible for bonus interest will not earn any base interest on top of it.

OCBC 360 Account

The OCBC 360 Account is a good choice for young working adults and frugal savers looking to make their money work hard for them through bonus interest for consistent increase in month-to-month balance, investments, insurance and maintaining a high account balance. Here are the pros and cons for the OCBC 360 Account:

Advantages

• No minimum monthly spend. Other than the insurance and investment categories, you’re not required to meet any qualifying monthly spend to earn bonus interest.
• Step-up bonus. OCBC 360 account offers bonus interest for consistent monthly savings, incentivising you to build your account balance.
• Bonus for high account balance. If you’re able to maintain at least $200,000 in your account every month, you’d be able to unlock an extra 0.4% p.a. interest on your first $75,000 balance.
• Fall-below fee waiver. You’ll not incur a fall-below fee if your daily average balance is less than $3,000 for the first year.
• Base interest applied to the entire balance. Your full account balance is eligible to accrue the base interest rate. This means that the first $75,000 can earn both base and bonus interest.

Disadvantages

• Minimum requirement for salary credit. Your monthly income needs to be at least $1,800 and credited via GIRO to qualify for the Salary category.
• Initial deposit. You’re required to deposit at least $1,000 when you open an OCBC 360 account.
• Lower balance cap for bonus interest. You can only accrue bonus interest on the first $75,000 of your account balance.
• Fewer category options. No spend bonus or mortgage categories for those looking for other ways to meet bonus interest criteria.
• No alternative tracks for bonus earn. There’s only one option to earn bonus interest with this account, which is to fulfill as many of the five available categories as possible.
• 12-month limit for insurance and investment. The financial product(s) will qualify for 12 months of bonus interest. After this period, you’ll need to commit to a new insurance scheme or an investment product from OCBC to fulfil these two categories for the next 12 months.

How to apply

Take a look at the eligibility, required documents and step-by-step application process for both the DBS Multiplier and OCBC 360 accounts in detail here:

• DBS Multiplier Account

  To begin your application for the DBS Multiplier Account, simply head to DBS’ website and click ‘apply now’. Before applying, you should make sure that you meet the eligibility criteria and have the required documents on hand.

  Eligibility

  To apply for a DBS Multiplier Account, you must be:

  • A Singaporean, Singapore PR or foreigner with a valid visa.
  • At least 18 years old.

  Required information

  If you’re a new DBS customer, you should have the following documents on hand to speed up your application:

  • Singaporeans and permanent residents:
    • Front and back photocopy of your NRIC/passport
    • Proof of residential address (if it’s different from the one in your NRIC)
  • Foreigners:
    • Valid passport
    • Proof of employment/study or visit pass
    • Proof of residential address: e.g. utility bills, telco bills, bank statements or letters from government bodies dated within the last 3 months.

  Online application process

  1. Click on the ‘Apply now’ button on the DBS Multiplier Account page.
  2. Select your preferred mode of application.
  3. For existing DBS customers: choose between iBanking or debit/ATM card.
  4. For new customers: click on ‘none of the above’.
  5. Select ‘Use MyInfo’ if you have a SingPass account to prefill your application.
  6. If you have none of the above, click ‘Continue without MyInfo’ to proceed.
  7. Fill in the required fields and upload any necessary documents.
  8. Submit your application.
  9. Allow time for DBS to get in touch with further instructions.

• OCBC 360 Account

  To begin your application for the OCBC 360 Account, simply head to OCBC’s website and click on the ‘apply now’ button. Before applying, you should make sure that you meet the eligibility criteria and have the required documents on hand. This account also requires an initial deposit of $1,000.

  Eligibility

  To apply for an OCBC 360 Account, you must be:

  • A Singaporean, Singapore PR or foreigner with a valid visa.
  • At least 18 years old.

  Required information

  If you’re a new OCBC customer, you should have the following documents on hand to speed up your application:

  • Singaporeans and permanent residents:
    • Front and back photocopy of your NRIC/passport
    • Proof of residential address (if it’s different from the one in your NRIC)
  • Foreigners:
    • Valid passport
    • Proof of employment/study or visit pass
    • Proof of residential address: e.g. utility bills, telco bills, bank statements or letters from government bodies dated within the last 3 months.

  Online application process

  1. Click on the ‘Apply now’ button on the OCBC 360 account page.
  2. Select your preferred mode of application.
  3. For existing OCBC customers: click on ‘Log in to Internet banking’.
  4. For new customers with SingPass: click on ‘Apply with MyInfo’. This will allow you to prefill the application by retrieving personal data from MyInfo.
  5. If you don’t none of the above, click on ‘Fill in application form’ to proceed.
  6. Fill in the required fields and upload any necessary documents.
  7. Submit your application.
  8. Allow time for OCBC to get in touch with further instructions.

The verdict

Both the DBS Multiplier and OCBC 360 accounts are great options, but do know that they don’t offer the same set of perks.

In terms of accessibility, it is easier for account holders to unlock the bonus interest rates offered by OCBC 360 account. In addition, it doesn’t require account holders to meet a sizable monthly spending to gain bonus interest. Those who build up their account balance will also be rewarded with extra interest rewards. Unfortunately, the main caveat of the OCBC 360 account is that the bonus interest rates are only limited to S$75,000 of your account balance.

As for the DBS Multiplier account, it’ll be more suitable for frequent spenders and those with a larger account balance. But it’s also considerably harder to qualify for its rewards and perks.

Before deciding which of these two accounts is better for you, make sure to compare other savings accounts available in the market.

Compare a range of savings accounts in Singapore

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