Ally Bank review

The online savings account has a monthly fee of $0, so there is no standing charge for holding it open. The minimum deposit is $0, which also means there is no floor to clear before you can save. Interest accrues at a variable rate instead of coming with a charge.

The headline rate is 3.1% and it is variable, so the figure can move with the wider market rather than being locked in. The account is an easy access account, which is the trade off for having the money available. Rates on the site sit well below the highest offers among savings accounts.

Ally Bank is a US bank and its licence is FDIC cert 57803 with the FDIC as regulator. Deposits are covered at FDIC up to USD 250,000. That is a deposit guarantee, so a failure of the bank does not mean a loss of savings up to that limit.

The savings account allows 10 limited withdrawals and transfers per statement cycle. That is a real cap if you treat the account as a main current balance rather than a place to park money. If you need day to day spending, the interest checking account in the same family is the one built for it.

Help runs through phone, chat and email, which covers phone, chat and email as well as an online help centre. Nothing in the offer depends on visiting a counter, since the service is free atm and digital only. Local payments and transfers are handled over us ach.

The interest checking account comes with $10 and is listed with a free atm and digital only offering. The savings account itself is an easy access account, so cash machine use belongs to the checking side of the family. Overdraft costs on the checking account are listed as a $0 overdraft fee.

The setup fits savers in the US who hold their balance in dollars and want deposit protection without a monthly charge. It suits people building a cash buffer rather than chasing a top rate, since the headline rate of 3.1% is modest next to the highest offers in the ranking. It also suits anyone who wants both an online savings account and a checking account in the same place.

The legal entity is Ally Bank and it is based in the US, regulated by the FDIC under FDIC cert 57803. The business was founded in 2009. Being a bank rather than an e money or payment institution is the reason deposits take FDIC up to USD 250,000.