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Many of us grew up making the journey to a brick-and-mortar bank to hand a paper check to a teller. But now, with online banking, you can bank without leaving your home. Many online banks even offer perks that in-person banks don't, like high savings interest rates and no monthly fees.
Best Online Banks
Compare the Best Online Banks
Best Online Banks FAQs
What is an online bank?
Many brick-and-mortar banks allow you to bank online — but with online banking, you bank primarily or exclusively online. Some online banks do have a couple physical locations, but they still operate digitally for the most part.
Why choose an online bank over a brick-and-mortar bank?
Because online banks don't have to pay for physical branch locations, they typically pay higher rates and charge fewer fees. This means you can earn more and spend less with your bank.
Is Ally the best online bank?
Ally is definitely one of the best online banks, but "best" depends on exactly what you're looking for. If you want a wide range of bank account options, high savings rates, savings tools, and 24/7 customer support, Ally is a great online bank for you.
Best Online Bank Reviews
Below, you'll find our best online banking picks right now. We know "best" means something different for everyone, so we've listed each bank's strengths, as well as its limitations. These online banks have stayed as our top picks for the last few months because they continue to stand out for minimal fees, variety of bank account options, and unique features. You can also refer to our best banks guide if you'd like to learn about brick-and-mortar options as well.
Ally Bank
Ally doesn't have minimum opening deposits for any of its accounts, so you can start online banking with any amount.
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You can contact Ally customer support 24/7, either over the phone or via live online chat.
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Capital One 360
Capital One ranks as No. 1 on the J.D. Power US National Banking Satisfaction Survey. This study evaluates customers' experiences with banks and measures factors such as trust, handling problems and complaints, and saving time and money.
Capital One doesn't require any minimum opening deposits. It also has branches and Capital One cafes sprinkled around the US, so it's a good option if you like online banking but want the option to speak with a banker face-to-face.
You can use your debit card at over 70,000 ATMs nationwide for free, but unlike many online banks, Capital One doesn't reimburse any fees charged by out-of-network ATM providers.
Discover Bank
Discover is a good option for people who want to do all their banking, investing, and borrowing with one institution. Discover has a strong cash back checking account that lets you earn 1% back on up to $3,000 of purchases each month, as well as Discover credit cards.
While you don't need to place an initial deposit for a checking or savings account, you'll need at least $2,500 to open a money market account or CD. Some of our other options do not require a minimum opening deposit.
Axos Bank
Axos Bank has savings, checking, CD, and money market accounts, so it's a great option if you want to open all of your accounts with one bank. It's one of the best banks for avoiding overdraft fees. Its high-yield checking account doesn't charge overdraft or non-sufficient funds fees, and it offers free overdraft protection that links your checking account to a savings account. You also may be eligible for a bank account cash bonus. Earn
Axos pays higher rates on its accounts than most brick-and-mortar banks, especially on its high-yield checking account. However, you can still earn higher rates at other online banks.
SoFi
SoFi has a great online banking option if you'd like to manage your money in one account. It's a hybrid bank account that combines checking and savings features.
You can earn a competitive interest rate that's higher than what many traditional and high-yield savings accounts pay if you set up direct deposits. It also offers up to
SoFi Checking and Savings is also a strong online banking choice if you don't want to deal with monthly service fees, overdraft fees, or out-of-network ATM fees. It also comes with a debit card.
The account is a hybrid savings/checking account, so you'll need to keep that in mind to get the most out of the account. If you deposit cash, you also might need to pay a fee.
Online Banks That Didn't Make the Cut and Why
- Chime: Chime has good free checking and savings accounts, but other online banks offer higher interest rates on savings accounts right now. Chime also doesn't let you open a joint bank account or a savings account by itself.
- LendingClub: This could be a good online banking fit if you can keep $2,500 in your checking account, because then you'll qualify for 1% cash back on an unlimited number of purchases.
- American Express: American Express pays a competitive APY on savings account balances. Its checking account is currently only available to Consumer Card Members who have had a card account for at least three months.
- Barclays: Barclays offers solid interest rates on savings accounts but doesn't provide a checking account.
- Bank5 Connect: Bank5 Connect has decent checking and savings account. But it doesn't have a money market account, and you can find higher interest rates at other online banks.
- CIBC Bank USA: This online bank offers a variety of checking and savings accounts, but most require a minimum opening deposit or charge a fee if your balance falls below a certain amount. The checking account is also only available to residents in Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, or Washington.
- Salem Five Direct: Salem Five Direct pays a competitive interest rate on a savings account, but its CDs have high minimum opening deposits.
- HSBC Bank: HSBC might be appealing if you qualify for a premier bank account. You might like HSBC if you can keep $75,000 in bank/investment accounts, receive $5,000 in direct deposits each month, or take out a mortgage of at least $500,000.
- Marcus by Goldman Sachs: Even though Marcus by Goldman Sachs is a good online banking option overall, it doesn't offer a checking account.
- Quontic Bank: You have plenty of bank account options to choose from with Quontic Bank — but you need to make 15 debit card transactions per month to earn the competitive APY on its high-yield checking account.
- EverBank: EverBank offers respectable rates, but our top picks have more impressive features such as higher interest rates or robust savings tools.
- Vio Bank: This online bank pays one of the highest savings rates in the industry (which is always subject to change), but it doesn't offer a checking account.
- CIT Bank: This is a solid online bank, but you'll need between $100 and $1,000 to open bank accounts, and it doesn't have an ATM network.
- Synchrony Bank: This online bank pays a competitive rate with no minimum balance on savings accounts, but you can't open a checking account.
- NBKC Bank: NBKC is a good bank overall, but you can find higher interest rates at other banks.
- FNBO Direct: This is a respectable online bank, but its overdraft fees are pretty steep.
- BrioDirect: Although BrioDirect doesn't have some of the advanced features of our top picks, it is a strong online bank overall. It refunds up to $20 per month in out-of-network ATM fees.
- USAA Bank: This could be a good online bank for military members and families, and new recruits can get paid a day early; however, USAA's rates are low.
- Charles Schwab: Charles Schwab provides unlimited out-of-network ATM fee reimbursements and doesn't charge foreign transaction fees, but its rates are low.
Online Banking Trustworthiness and BBB Ratings
None of our top picks have any recent public scandals.
Here are the Better Business Bureau scores for all the banks on our list:
| Institution | BBB grade |
| Ally | A |
| Capital One 360 | A+ |
| Discover | A+ |
| Axos | A+ |
| SoFi | A+ |
The Better Business Bureau measures businesses by examining responses to customer complaints, honesty in advertising, and transparency about business practices.
Ally received an A rating from the BBB rather than an A+ because it has a few unresolved complaints.
Something to keep in mind is that a good BBB rating won't guarantee that your interactions with the bank will be great. Consider speaking to current customers or reading online customer reviews to see if one of these banks may be suitable for you.
Capital One has been involved in a recent public controversies.
In 2020, The Office of the Comptroller of Currency required Capital One to pay $80 million in a settlement that said the bank had inefficient security practices, which comprised personal information of bank credit cardholders.
Why You Should Trust Us: Our Expert Panel for the Best Online Banks
To learn more about what makes a good online banking experience and how to choose the best fit, four experts weighed in:
Insider
We're focusing on what will make an online bank most useful, including customer service, fees, rates, and more. Here's what they had to say about banking online. (Some text may be lightly edited for clarity.)
How can someone determine whether a bank is the right fit for them?
Tania Brown, certified financial planner at SaverLife:
"Obviously, you want to make sure it's FDIC insured. Also, your banking experience — do you like walking into a bank? Well, then you need someone local. Do you just not care if you ever see your bank? Then you're okay online. Do you write checks? Do you not write checks? So it's thinking through how your experience with it is going to be before you make that decision."
Sophia Acevedo, certified educator in personal finance, banking reporter, Personal Finance Insider:
"I would create a list of what I prioritize most in a bank account. For example, some banks have accounts that charge monthly service fees. I would look to see what the requirements are for waiving the monthly service fee and whether I think I could feasibly meet those requirements each month. If I'm searching for an interest-earning bank account I'll pay attention to interest rates. I would make sure the account pays a higher interest rate than the average bank account."
What should someone look for in an online bank?
Tania Brown, CFP:
"With an online bank, absolutely online customer service, because you do not have the advantage of walking inside and talking to a human being. How often are you able to get them? What are their hours?"
Roger Ma, certified financial planner with lifelaidout® and author of "Work Your Money, Not Your Life":
"How onerous the transfer process is, transferring money in and transferring money out. Is it same day, next day? Is it pretty easy to sync a brick-and-mortar checking account to this particular high-yield savings account?"
Mykail James, MBA, certified financial education instructor, BoujieBudgets.com:
"When it comes to online banks, you want to be a little bit more strict about what type of interest rates they're providing. That's the biggest thing, because online banks are supposed to have the higher interest rate because they don't have the overhead of the brick-and-mortar. You want to make sure that it's well above the national average. What type of securities do they provide? Do they have two-factor identification? If it's an online bank, they should definitely have — at the bare minimum — two-factor authentication in how easy it is to change your passwords and things like that, because you want to be a little more hypersensitive about the cyber security for a strictly online bank."
Our Methodology: How We Chose the Best Online Banks
Personal Finance Insider's mission is to help smart people make the best decisions with their money. We understand that "best" is often subjective, so in addition to highlighting the clear benefits of a financial product or account — a high APY, for example — we outline the limitations, too. We spent hours comparing and contrasting the features and fine print of various products so you don't have to.
While interest rates are an important aspect of any online banking account, several offer the same annual percentage yields (APYs). To differentiate between them, we considered how much you'll need to open an account, balance requirements, fees, ATM access, mobile apps, and other standout features.
We also took customer service into account, because with an online bank, you don't have the option of walking into a branch to speak with a representative.
We reviewed over two dozen institutions to identify the strongest options. To learn more about how we rate and review products, visit our editorial standards page.