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Green Dot Launches 3% Cash Back and Savings Account
Chanelle Bessette is a personal finance writer at NerdWallet covering banking. She previously worked at Fortune, Forbes and the Reno Gazette-Journal. She is also a spokesperson for the banking team, and her expertise has appeared in The New York Times, Vox and Apartment Therapy.
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If you want to earn a high rate of interest and cash back on your spending — and are also OK with waiting up to a year to access it — Green Dot has a new product that may pique your interest.
Green Dot’s new offering, the Unlimited Cash Back Bank Account, gives customers a 3% savings rate on a high-yield savings account, plus a high return on their spending: Unlimited Cash Back debit card holders get an unlimited 3% cash-back bonus on all online and in-app purchases. The bonus is then sent to a separate bonus account, where it remains inaccessible until the account anniversary, when the cardholder can finally access it.
The cash-back bonus account is “like a forced savings account that uses the bank’s money to build up a potentially sizable balance,” the company said in a news release.
4.60%SoFi members with Direct Deposit or $5,000 or more in Qualifying Deposits during the 30-Day Evaluation Period can earn 4.60% annual percentage yield (APY) on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances. There is no minimum Direct Deposit amount required to qualify for the stated interest rate. Members without either Direct Deposit or Qualifying Deposits, during the 30-Day Evaluation Period will earn 1.20% APY on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances. Interest rates are variable and subject to change at any time. These rates are current as of 10/24/2023. There is no minimum balance requirement. Additional information can be found at http://www.sofi.com/legal/banking-rate-sheet.
These cash accounts combine services and features similar to checking, savings and/or investment accounts in one product. Cash management accounts are typically offered by non-bank financial institutions.
These cash accounts combine services and features similar to checking, savings and/or investment accounts in one product. Cash management accounts are typically offered by non-bank financial institutions.
5.50%*Base annual percentage yield (variable) is 4.75% as of 7/31/23. 5.50% APY reflects a .75% boost available as a special offer with qualifying deposit. Terms apply. Cash Reserve is only available to clients of Betterment LLC, which is not a bank, and cash transfers to program banks are conducted through clients’ brokerage accounts at Betterment Securities.
Min. balance for APY
$0
CDs (certificates of deposit) are a type of savings account with a fixed rate and term, and usually have higher interest rates than regular savings accounts.
CDs (certificates of deposit) are a type of savings account with a fixed rate and term, and usually have higher interest rates than regular savings accounts.
5.50%All Bread Savings APYs are accurate as of 12/7/2023. APYs are subject to change at any time without notice. Offers apply to personal accounts only. Fees may reduce earnings. To open a CD, a minimum of $1,500 is required and must be deposited in a single transaction. A penalty will be imposed for early withdrawals on CDs. At maturity, your CD will automatically renew and earn the base interest rate in effect at that time.
0.50%SoFi members with Direct Deposit or $5,000 or more in Qualifying Deposits during the 30-Day Evaluation Period can earn 4.60% annual percentage yield (APY) on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances. There is no minimum Direct Deposit amount required to qualify for the stated interest rate. Members without either Direct Deposit or Qualifying Deposits, during the 30-Day Evaluation Period will earn 1.20% APY on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances. Interest rates are variable and subject to change at any time. These rates are current as of 10/24/2023. There is no minimum balance requirement. Additional information can be found at http://www.sofi.com/legal/banking-rate-sheet.
A couple of caveats to note: You’ll have to pay a $7.95 monthly fee for the Unlimited Cash Back card unless you've made $1,000 in purchases the previous month, excluding mobile bill payments, ATM withdrawals, ACH transactions and other charges. The high-yield savings account’s funds are accessible at any time, though the interest earned may be accessed only on the account anniversary. And the 3% savings account APY applies only up to a balance of $10,000.
Green Dot, one of the country's most widely distributed banking franchises, is the subject of at least 1,580 complaints filed with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, according to a 2018 NerdWallet analysis. Out of the roughly 5,000 businesses that appear on the agency's public portal, this would place it among the top 2% of companies consumers have complained about the most.
That being said, Green Dot’s accounts are FDIC-insured, and customers have access to a free ATM network and are able to make free cash deposits at national Green Dot retailers, like Walmart. The account has no minimum deposit requirement, and no overdraft or penalty fees.
A previous version of this article used imprecise language in describing the findings of a NerdWallet investigation of complaints to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. This article has been corrected.
NerdWallet's ratings are determined by our editorial team. The scoring formulas take into account multiple data points for each financial product and service.
