When you’re in the market for a new or additional checking or savings account, it can be lucrative to consider available bank bonuses. That’s because banks are so hungry for new customers that they aren’t just paying token gestures to win your business—many are offering hundreds of dollars to new customers. To help you earn as much as you can from a new account that meets your needs, we’ve rounded up our top picks for checking and savings account bonuses. We looked not only at bonus amounts, but how easy or difficult the requirements are to meet, how long you’ll have to wait for your bonus, what fees you might face, and all the other details you need to make a smart decision. Just be sure to read the bank’s fine print carefully. Scoring bank bonuses means following the rules, and you’ll want to make sure you follow everything to the letter because missing a requirement means missing your bonus. But don’t worry, our list of winners will arm you with the information you need, which can add a hundred or more free dollars to your bank balance. Best Bank Bonuses Best Bank Bonuses Bottom Line Compare Providers Pros and Cons Alternatives FAQs Methodology For those who can set up direct deposit for their paycheck, pension, or Social Security benefits, Associated Bank offers one of the largest bank bonuses around, as well as one of the easiest to earn, making it our overall winner. Pros Bonuses of $300, $400, or $600 all represent a substantial return on your money Very minimal direct deposit requirement Gives you 90 days to make your direct deposits Free checking option, plus two additional account choices Cons Direct deposit is required to earn the bonus. Paper checks don’t come with the free checking account. Very low interest rates on their other accounts (savings, money market, CDs) If you don’t live in the upper Midwest, you may not have heard of Associated Bank, but don’t let that stop you from taking a look at their generous bonus offers of $300, $400, and $600. All you have to do is receive at least $500 in direct deposits during the first 90 days your checking account is open, and maintain an average daily balance of at least $1,000 during the second and third months. These easy requirements and the substantial reward earn it top marks for overall best banking bonus. That minimal balance will earn you $300 cash back. But you can maximize your bonus by simply boosting your average daily balance to $5,000 during days 31-90, earning $400, or to $10,000 to reap the top bonus of $600. This is a great return on your money. If you score the $600 bonus on a $10,000 balance, you’ve earned a 6% return. And the return on investment for the smaller balances is even better: 8% on $5,000, or a whopping 30% on $1,000. To make the decision even more appealing, Associated offers three different checking account types, one of which is free, and the others with waivable monthly maintenance fees. The ability to conveniently send and receive money with Zelle is included, as is free access to more than 30,000 MoneyPass network ATMs across the country. Chase’s current checking account bonus is one of the easiest to earn. And because its requirement for holding funds in the account is minimal, we’ve chosen it as the best bank bonus for those with modest balances. Pros Only direct deposit is required; no minimum balance is needed to earn the bonus. The required direct deposit is only $500 in 90 days If you live in a state where Chase operates, in-branch banking is possible. The bonus will be paid within a short 15 days after meeting requirements. Cons The account charges a $12 fee, though it can be waived. Other bank bonuses are higher if you can meet the requirements. As the country’s largest bank, Chase hardly needs an introduction. It offers a full complement of virtually every type of bank account, loan, or credit card, and a well-honed website and mobile app for digital banking. It also operates over 4,800 branches across the country, more than any other bank. Add to that Chase’s minimal bonus requirements and we’ve got our winner for best bonus on smaller balances. Earning Chase’s $200 checking account bonus is very straightforward. Simply have a direct deposit or deposits totaling at least $500 hit your new account within 90 days of opening. This stands out from most direct deposit bonus offers, because $500 across 90 days is very easy for most people to reach, making Chase a good option for those receiving smaller payroll or benefits checks. It’s also well-suited to those who don’t want to keep a lot of money in the account, as there is no balance requirement to earn the bonus. That said, the account does charge a $12 monthly maintenance fee, and one of the ways to have it waived is to hold a $1,500 minimum daily balance in this account, or $5,000 across multiple Chase accounts. There are fees if you withdraw from a non-Chase ATM: $3 fee per withdrawal in the U.S., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, $5 fee per withdrawal at a non-Chase ATM outside of the U.S., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Surcharge Fees from the ATM owner/network still apply. Fortunately, you can also waive the fee with electronic deposits of any kind. If your direct deposits and any other ACH deposits to the account total at least $500, your monthly fee will be waived. Read our full Chase Bank review. With its bonus paid at the end of a year of regular savings deposits, Alliant Credit Union earns our top award for best bank bonus aimed at helping you build a savings habit. Pros Very low balance requirement, and no direct deposit needed The bonus amounts to more than an 8% return on your money The account earns a competitive interest rate No monthly maintenance fees on the account. Cons Smaller bonus than other offers Must become a member of the credit union (though it’s easy and free) Must wait a year to receive your bonus Suze Orman wants you to get in a habit of saving every month, and she’s put her name behind a special savings account at Alliant Credit Union that rewards you for doing just that. It’s called The Ultimate Opportunity Savings Account and it’s a great choice for those who simply want to slowly accumulate savings, all while being rewarded with a little something extra after achieving that goal for a year. This earns it our top honor for best bank bonus for those building a savings habit. The way it works is you make a deposit into the savings account of at least $100 every month for 12 months. You need to keep that amount in the account so that at the end of the year, you still have at least $1,200 on deposit. At that point, Alliant will add its $100 bonus to your account. This is a great return, though since it’s a small balance amount, the bonus is also small compared to other bank offers. But the account also pays a competitive high-yield savings rate on your balance and is completely fee-free, even providing free access to a network of 80,000 ATMs nationwide. Joining Alliant is easy, and free as well. If you don’t meet one of their standard eligibility requirements such as working at a participating company or living in the Chicago area, you can still join by agreeing to a membership in their affiliated nonprofit, Foster Care to Success, which serves thousands of foster teens across the U.S. Alliant will even pay the $5 membership fee on your behalf. This list of winning bank bonuses should set up almost anyone looking for an account that matches their banking needs while also providing a significant cash infusion in exchange for following some basic requirements. For those who can manage a direct deposit, Associated Bank’s three bonuses are top-paying options, offering a generous bonus for a minimal direct deposit threshold and a modest minimum balance. It also scores high marks for requiring the minimum balance for such a relatively short time (60 days). Direct deposit is not possible for everyone, however. And for some, it’s simply not an appealing option. Our list of best bonuses for no direct deposit, for high earners, and for those carrying a low balance should provide something for everyone. In the News: The Federal Reserve raised interest rates numerous times throughout 2022 and 2023 to cool high inflation. At the Fed's most recent meeting in March, the committee decided to hold rates steady—the fifth meeting in a row it has done so—but said again that it expects to cut rates later this year. The Fed's dot plot shows that Fed members believe there will be three rate cuts later this year. Interest rates closely follow the fed funds rate. Once it appears the Fed is ready to make a rate cut, interest rates are expected to fall. After looking for a good bank account bonus, check out the institution's high-yield savings accounts and CD rates. These are directly impacted by the Fed's rate hikes. Depositing money into multiple accounts at the bank may help you maximize the amount of money you can earn on the cash you keep there. Pros Can earn substantial sums Access to new bank benefits Requirements may be easy to meet Good way to “test-drive” a new bank Cons Can be a hassle to switch Some people are excluded May require a substantial deposit Bank account bonuses are taxable If you’re not switching banks entirely it’s a good idea to develop strategies to maintain multiple bank accounts at once, such as by using budgeting apps or adding a task on your to-do list to check all your accounts regularly. You can earn a lot of extra money relatively easily with bank account bonuses, but there are other ways to put your money to work for you as well. Here are a few choices: The 6 Best Online Banks for April 2024 Bank bonuses are essentially an incentive with strings. If you follow all the requirements carefully, the bank will pay you the advertised bonus. But miss on any one of the rules, and the bank is entitled to scrap your bonus. The onus is on you to make sure you check off all the required boxes. This doesn’t mean bonuses are hard to earn. They generally have two types of rules: a direct deposit requirement and a required minimum balance for a set time period. Occasionally a bonus will require both of these, but more often, it’s one or the other. If direct deposit is required, the offer will generally specify the minimum amount that needs to be deposited and within how many days of first opening your account. Balance requirements also specify a dollar amount—in this case, how much you have to keep on account—and a time duration. Most typically, they require the minimum balance to be held at the bank for 60 or 90 days. After you meet the requirements, you are entitled to your bonus. That doesn’t mean you’ll receive it instantly. Most bank bonus offers will indicate an outside date (e.g., within 30 days of meeting the bonus requirements) by which they will credit the bonus to your account. Scoring a bank bonus is like massively turbocharging the interest you can earn on your cash in the bank. The typical savings account pays less than 0.10% APY, and even the very best high-yield savings accounts in the country are paying far below 1%. In other words, it is really hard to earn much from your money right now. Earning a cash bonus can change that, by sending your annual percentage return into the mid to high single digits, or even double digits. Take a bonus offer of $300 on a $5,000 balance: that’s a 6% return earned in just a month. Or a $700 bonus earned on $50,000: that’s 1.8% over just two months, and is more than double what you can earn in the best savings account over a full year’s time. Also lucrative are the bonuses that don’t require a minimum balance, and instead focus solely on direct deposit. With no requirement for the cash that’s been deposited into the account to stay in that account, you can earn a bonus simply for the effort of changing your direct deposit instructions. The offers from Chase and HSBC are both good examples of earning free cash simply for setting up a new direct deposit routing. You might wonder why banks are willing to pay this much to attract your business. The answer is really two-fold. First, the competition is tight in consumer banking, and banks and credit unions are almost always hungry for new customers. That’s because having enough consumer deposits on hand enables the bank to make more loans, which is where it likely makes the lion’s share of its profits. Second, the banks know that, in the end, they won’t have to pay that bonus amount for every customer they acquire. While you may personally be careful enough to follow all the bonus requirements successfully, others will in some way miss the mark on their end of the deal and thus be denied the bonus. So while the bank may sign up thousands of customers with a bonus offer, it will ultimately only pay bonuses to some fraction of those customers. When banks pay you a bonus, they treat that payment just like any other interest payment on your account. And when the year ends and tax season rolls around, they will send you a 1099-INT form reporting the total amount of interest and bonus you received. To the IRS, there is no distinction between these two types of payments from the bank. On your tax return, all of that bank income will count as interest income, which is taxed at the same rate as all of your wages and other income. A bank account bonus is a reward that banks typically use to woo new customers into opening new checking and savings accounts, but banks offer bonuses for opening other deposit account types too. Bonuses have certain requirements and limitations which you’ll need to meet, such as depositing a certain amount of money for a pre-set period of time. Banks that are trying to grow in size frequently offer bonuses as a way to bring more customers through the door. It’s similar to how an employer might offer signing bonuses to attract quality new employees. See our list of banks above for the best new account bonuses. Yes, you can switch banks to get a promotional offer. Once you’ve earned the bonus, it’s yours to keep and you can close your account at any time after that if you wish. We searched the web for all the current bank bonus offers we could find, digging up almost 30. We then prioritized nationwide offers and those from banks serving a large number of states. From there, we compiled each offer’s bonus amount, direct deposit requirement, minimum balance and duration, and account fees, ultimately comparing the options to select our winners in each category. Article Sources Investopedia requires writers to use primary sources to support their work. These include white papers, government data, original reporting, and interviews with industry experts. We also reference original research from other reputable publishers where appropriate. You can learn more about the standards we follow in producing accurate, unbiased content in oureditorial policy. Associated Bank. "Great Checking Options and up to $600? You Got It." Associated Bank. "ATMs Where You Need Them." Federal Reserve. "Large Commercial Banks." Chase. "Enjoy $200." Alliant Credit Union. "The Ultimate Opportunity Savings Account." Federal Reserve System. "Open Market Operations.” Internal Revenue Service. “Instructions for Forms 1099-INT and 1099-OID.” Internal Revenue Service. "Topic No. 403, Interest Received."The Best Bank Bonuses for 2024
Best Overall : Associated Bank
Best for a Modest Balance : Chase
Best for Building a Savings Habit : Alliant Credit Union
Bottom Line
Compare Providers
Financial Institution Why We Picked It Key Benefit Associated Bank Best Overall High return for a modest direct deposit and balance Chase Best for a Modest Balance Very minimal direct deposit and balance requirements Alliant Credit Union Best for Building a Savings Habit Be generously rewarded for monthly savings deposits Pros and Cons of Bank Account Bonuses
Pros Explained
Cons Explained
Alternatives to Bank Account Bonuses
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do Bank Account Bonuses Work?
Are Bank Bonuses Worth It?
Why Do Banks Offer a Bonus for Opening an Account?
Are Bank Bonuses Taxed?
What Is a Bank Account Bonus?
What Banks Are Offering Bonuses for New Accounts?
Can You Switch Bank Accounts for a Promotion?
How We Chose the Best Bank Bonuses
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Wells Fargo Extends $300 Everyday Checking Bonus to June 25, 2024 Earn Up to $400 With One of These Five Citizens Bank Checking Accounts by April 11 Earn $300 With Wells Fargo’s Everyday Checking Bonus—Offer Expires April 1, 2024 Earn $325 for Depositing Just $500 at Fifth Third Bank by March 31, 2024 Best Savings Account Bonuses
FAQs
What bank gives the best bonus? ›
- Axos Rewards Checking: Up to $300 bonus offer.
- Bank of America Advantage Banking: $200 bonus offer.
- BMO checking: Up to $400 bonus offer.
- Chase Secure Banking℠: $100 bonus offer.
- Chase Total Checking®: $300 bonus offer.
- TD Bank checking: Up to $300 bonus offer.
- U.S. Bank Smartly® Checking: Up to $700 bonus offer.
Apr 1, 2024
The best bank switching offers (April 2024)
- Top Bank switch account offers.
- Other bank switch offers. 2.1 Danske Bank £200 switching offer. 2.2 Barclays Premier “£125” switching offer.
- Previous Bank switch account offers.
The 10 best checking account bonuses for April 2024: earn up to $700
| Bank & account | Bonus amount | Time frame for deposits |
|---|---|---|
| Chase: Chase Total Checking | $300 | 90 days |
| Citibank: All Citibank checking accounts | $300 | 90 days |
| Wells Fargo: Everyday Checking | $300 | 90 days |
| Key Bank: Key Smart Checking | $200 | 60 days |
Through May 31, 2024, Bank of America is offering a welcome bonus of $200 for opening a personal checking account.
What is the $3000 bonus at Chase bank? ›These are the bonus tiers: Earn $1,000 when you deposit $150,000 to $249,999.99. Earn $2,000 when you deposit $250,000 to $499,999.99. Earn $3,000 when you deposit at least $500,000.
Which bank is giving the highest? ›Best High-Yield Online Savings Accounts of April 2024
- BrioDirect High Yield Savings Account: 5.35% APY.
- Ivy Bank High-Yield Savings Account: 5.30% APY.
- TAB Bank High Yield Savings: 5.27% APY.
- UFB Secure Savings: Up to 5.25% APY.
- EverBank Performance℠ Savings: 5.15% APY.
- Bask Interest Savings Account: 5.10% APY.
As of April 2024, no banks are offering 7% interest rates on savings accounts. Two credit unions have high-interest checking accounts: Landmark Credit Union Premium Checking with 7.50% APY and OnPath Credit Union High Yield Checking with 7.00% APY.
How many bank accounts should I have? ›Money coach and certified financial planner Ohan Kayikchyan says it can make sense for a household to maintain four accounts: one checking account for monthly recurring bills and another for variable expenses, plus one savings account for emergency funds and a second for other savings goals.
What bank pays to switch? ›First Direct is now the only provider to offer a cash switching incentive. We also list some other options you could consider. Last November, nearly 163,000 people switched bank accounts through the Current Account Switch Service (Cass).
What branch has the highest signing bonus? ›Each branch creates its own bonus structure according to its needs. The Army, Navy and Air Force are offering enlistment bonuses of up to $50,000 for some fields, while the Marine Corps has bonuses that top out at around $8,000. The Coast Guard will pay up to $40,000 for some enlistees who opt for active-duty service.
How do I get $350 from Capital One checking? ›
What is the offer? Earn a $350 bonus after opening a new 360 Checking account and receive at least two qualifying direct deposits of $250 each within 75 days of opening your account. Your deposit must be “externally sourced funds,” meaning they come from a source not affiliated with Capital One.
What banks are paying $500 to open an account? ›What banks give $500 bonuses for checking accounts?
- Arizona Central Credit Union: Personal Checking Account - $500 Bonus.
- Clearview Federal Credit Union: Personal Checking and Savings Account - Up to $500 Bonus.
- Wintrust Bank: Personal Checking and Savings Account - $500 Bonus.
Huntington Bank Perks Checking - $400
Receive a qualifying direct deposit: Receive a qualifying direct deposit within 90 days of account opening. Qualifying deposits are regular, periodic payments, such as payroll, pension, or government payments.