Best Internet Banks 2024
Internet banks forgo branches in favor of operating fully online. They tend to offer higher yields and lower fees than brick-and-mortar banks, thanks to lower overhead costs.
Best Internet Banks
These banks provide services online. The best internet banks don’t contend with the costs that come with operating branches, so their accounts generally have lower fees and higher yields than those from brick-and-mortar banks.
This is part of Kiplinger Personal Finance Magazine's 2024 best bank for you rankings. See lower down on this page for more categories.
Ally Bank
Why it won: Accounts from Ally Bank have solid yields and no monthly maintenance or overdraft fees.
Standout accounts: Ally’s money market and savings accounts offer a competitive 4.2% yield.
Sign up for Kiplinger’s Free E-Newsletters
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more - straight to your e-mail.
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice - straight to your e-mail.
Overview:
Ally Bank’s checking account, which it calls the Spending Account, lets customers earn interest on their cash while avoiding many fees commonly associated with checking accounts, including monthly maintenance fees and overdraft fees. How much interest your account earns depends on your balance. Balances of less than $15,000 yield 0.1%, while balances of $15,000 or more yield 0.25%. Plus, standard checks and incoming wire transfers are fee-free.
Both the Money Market Account (which comes with a debit card and checks) and Savings Account offer a competitive 4.2% yield on all balances. They have no monthly maintenance fees or minimum balance requirements, and they don’t charge fees for overdrafts or incoming wire transfers. An extra benefit that comes with the savings account is the savings buckets tool, which lets account holders organize their savings goals into customizable categories (say, one bucket for a rainy-day fund and another for a vacation). With a separate feature, you can have Ally monitor your checking account for transactions to round up to the nearest dollar; when you accrue at least $5 in round-ups, Ally transfers the money to your savings account.
Ally’s High Yield CDs have no minimum deposit requirement, and rates include 4.5% for a one-year CD, 4% for a three-year CD and 3.9% for a five-year CD.
Axos Bank
Why it won: Axos offers a wide range of specialized checking accounts with great benefits and no monthly fees, including accounts for teenagers and seniors, a cash-back account, and a high-yield option.
Standout accounts: Earn up to 1% back on debit card purchases with CashBack Checking. With Rewards Checking, account holders who meet certain criteria can earn up to 3.3% interest.
Overview:
Axos offers several checking accounts that charge no monthly fee, including the basic Essential Checking, which is completely fee-free. CashBack Checking provides 1% back (earnings are capped at $2,000 per month) on debit card purchases that you verify with your signature rather than entering your PIN, as long as you maintain a $1,500 minimum average daily balance. If your balance is less than $1,500, you earn just 0.5%.
With Rewards Checking, account holders can earn up to 3.3% on deposits, depending on which of five requirements they meet: Receiving monthly direct deposits of at least $1,500 (0.4%); using your Axos debit card 10 times per month or activating Axos’s online Personal Finance Manager tool (0.3%); maintaining an average daily balance of $2,500 per month in an Axos Invest Managed Portfolios Account (0.99%) as well as an Axos Invest Self Directed Trading Account (0.99%); and using your account to make your monthly Axos Bank consumer loan payment (0.6%).
All three of the above-mentioned accounts provide unlimited reimbursement of out-of-network ATM fees.
Golden Checking — available to adults 55 and older — has no fees, provides free personal checks and offers a 0.1% yield on all balances. The free First Checking and First Savings accounts are designed to introduce teenagers to personal finance, allowing parents to manage their teen’s account from their phone.
Earn up to 0.61% with a High Yield Savings account and up to 0.25% with a High Yield Money Market account from Axos. Both accounts have no minimum balance requirements or monthly fees.
EverBank
Why it won: EverBank received high scores for its checking, money market and savings accounts, all of which offer decent yields.
Standout accounts: EverBank Performance℠ Savings offers a competitive yield of 5.05%, with no minimum balance required. The EverBank Performance℠ Money Market account yields 4.05%.
Overview:
In 2023, TIAA Bank transitioned to new ownership and rebranded as EverBank, the name the bank used before TIAA’s acquisition in 2017. EverBank Performance℠ Checking recently had a 0.40% yield, and it has no monthly fee or minimum balance requirement (but the opening deposit must be at least $100). The free EverBank Performance℠ Money Market account offers a 4.05% rate. Both accounts reimburse up to $15 in out-of-network ATM fees each month — or, with a balance of at least $5,000, you get unlimited ATM fee rebates.
Other accounts include EverBank Checking, which has a low minimum opening requirement of just $25, plus zero monthly account fees. EverBank Performance℠ Savings offers a competitive, 5.05% yield on all balances, and it charges no monthly service fees. You can open an EverBank Performance℠ CD with a minimum deposit of $1,000.
Kiplinger's Best Banks
- Best National Banks
- Best Credit Unions
- Best Banks for High-Net-Worth Clients
- Best Banks for Retirees
- Best Banks for Travelers
Note: This item first appeared in Kiplinger Personal Finance Magazine, a monthly, trustworthy source of advice and guidance. Subscribe to help you make more money and keep more of the money you make here.
Get Kiplinger Today newsletter — free
Profit and prosper with the best of Kiplinger's advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and much more. Delivered daily. Enter your email in the box and click Sign Me Up.
Lisa has been the editor of Kiplinger Personal Finance since June 2023. Previously, she spent more than a decade reporting and writing for the magazine on a variety of topics, including credit, banking and retirement. She has shared her expertise as a guest on the Today Show, CNN, Fox, NPR, Cheddar and many other media outlets around the nation. Lisa graduated from Ball State University and received the school’s “Graduate of the Last Decade” award in 2014. A military spouse, she has moved around the U.S. and currently lives in the Philadelphia area with her husband and two sons.
-
AI Wants You to Overspend on Gifts This Season: What to Do About It
I urge you to doubt AI advice just as much as you doubt flesh-and-blood advice.
By Howard Dvorkin Published
-
Investing for Charitable Giving: Discipline Reaps Rewards
Consider doing nothing when markets get volatile, rather than shifting your charitable investing strategy in the moment.
By Mark Froehlich, CPA, MBA Published
-
Investing for Charitable Giving: Discipline Reaps Rewards
Consider doing nothing when markets get volatile, rather than shifting your charitable investing strategy in the moment.
By Mark Froehlich, CPA, MBA Published
-
Feel Free to Disagree, But Here's How to Bridge Differences
Rather than remaining at odds with those who disagree with you or simply shutting them down, here's how to lower the temperature.
By H. Dennis Beaver, Esq. Published
-
Starbucks Union Plans Strike Through Christmas Eve: What It Means for You
Starbucks Workers United organized a nationwide strike through Christmas Eve, impacting locations in nine states and growing until Starbucks meets demands.
By Sean Jackson Published
-
Stores Open on Christmas Eve and Day: Walmart, Publix, Target and More
Which major stores, including Walmart, Publix, Target and more, will be open or closed on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
By Alexandra Svokos Last updated
-
Have This Conversation to Save Your Family's Money This Holiday Season
While your family is together, talk about the risks of sophisticated financial scams.
By Alexandra Svokos Published
-
10 Unbeatable Destinations For A 2025 Shoulder Season Vacation
Lighter crowds, lower prices and mild weather are attractive reasons to travel off-peak.
By Emma Patch Published
-
Peacock Cracks Down On Password Sharing: What To Know
Peacock is the latest streaming service to crack down on password sharing. Here's a look at which services are cracking down and how to save on streaming.
By Sean Jackson Published
-
Five Year-End Strategies You Can't Afford to Miss
Instead of making New Year's resolutions, consider making some money moves that could help save you big bucks on your taxes.
By Sevasti Balafas, CFA, CPWA® Published