4 Best Cash Management Accounts of 2023
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The best cash management accounts pay interest and typically come with low or no fees. They're usually offered by brokerage firms and combine services and features similar to those of checking, savings and/or investment accounts, all in one product.
Why trust NerdWallet: Our writers and editors follow strict editorial guidelines to ensure fairness and accuracy in our coverage to help you choose the financial accounts that work best for you. See our criteria for evaluating banks and credit unions.
Interest rates for the best cash management accounts are much higher than the national average savings account APY, currently just 0.40%.
Cash management accounts are cash accounts offered by nonbank financial service providers, such as brokerages. These hybrid accounts combine services and features similar to those of checking, savings and/or investment accounts, all in one product. To provide federal insurance, cash management account providers typically work with partner banks. CMA providers sweep customer deposits into partner bank accounts, where the funds benefit from the bank’s Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. insurance.
These brokerage savings accounts can offer an alternative to traditional savings accounts. They can be a good option for people seeking high interest rates and some robust features. Here’s our look at the top cash management accounts.
» Want to learn more about the basics of cash management accounts? Check out NerdWallet’s guide to this banking product.
The best cash management accounts pay interest and typically come with low or no fees. They're usually offered by brokerage firms and combine services and features similar to those of checking, savings and/or investment accounts, all in one product.
Why trust NerdWallet: Our writers and editors follow strict editorial guidelines to ensure fairness and accuracy in our coverage to help you choose the financial accounts that work best for you. See our criteria for evaluating banks and credit unions.
Interest rates for the best cash management accounts are much higher than the national average savings account APY, currently just 0.40%.
Cash management accounts are cash accounts offered by nonbank financial service providers, such as brokerages. These hybrid accounts combine services and features similar to those of checking, savings and/or investment accounts, all in one product. To provide federal insurance, cash management account providers typically work with partner banks. CMA providers sweep customer deposits into partner bank accounts, where the funds benefit from the bank’s Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. insurance.
These brokerage savings accounts can offer an alternative to traditional savings accounts. They can be a good option for people seeking high interest rates and some robust features. Here’s our look at the top cash management accounts.
» Want to learn more about the basics of cash management accounts? Check out NerdWallet’s guide to this banking product.
Best Cash Management Accounts
| Bank/institution | NerdWallet rating | Monthly fee | APY | Bonus | Learn more |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Betterment Cash Reserve – Paid non-client promotion Learn more at Betterment | Best for Cash Management Account | $0 | 4.50% With $0 min. balance for APY | $90 Requirements to qualify | Learn more at Betterment |
 Empower Personal Cash | Best for Cash Management Account | $0 | 4.45% With $0 min. balance for APY | N/A | Read review |
 Fidelity Cash Management Account | Best for Cash Management Account | $0 | 2.60% With $0 min. balance for APY | N/A | Read review |
 Wealthfront Cash Account | Best for Cash Management Account | $0 | 4.55% With $1 min. balance for APY | $30 Requirements to qualify | Read review |
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Our pick for
Cash Management Account
$0
4.50%
With $0 min. balance for APY
$90
Requirements to qualify
Why We Like It
The Betterment Cash Reserve cash management account has an annual percentage yield of 4.50%. The Cash Reserve account and the companion Betterment Checking account have no fees and no minimum balance requirement except for the $10 it takes to open the account. Betterment Checking offers a debit card, mobile check deposit and reimbursement of ATM fees worldwide.
To learn more, read NerdWallet’s full review of Betterment Checking and Betterment Cash Reserve.
Betterment says: "For Cash Reserve, Betterment LLC and Betterment Securities do not charge fees on your CR balance."
Betterment says: "Annual percentage yield (variable) is as of 5/8/23. 5.00% APY with a $75K deposit or 4.75% APY with a $25K deposit. New customers only with qualifying deposit. Terms apply."
Betterment says: "Cash Reserve is only available to clients of Betterment LLC, which is not a bank, and cash transfers to program banks are conducted through the clients' brokerage accounts at Betterment Securities. Learn more: https://www.betterment.com/cash-reserve."
Betterment says: "Checking accounts and the Betterment Visa Debit Card provided and issued by nbkc bank, Member FDIC. Checking made available through Betterment Financial LLC. Neither Betterment Financial LLC, nor any of their affiliates, is a bank. Betterment Financial LLC reimburses ATM fees and the Visa® 1% foreign transaction fee worldwide, everywhere Visa is accepted."
Paid non-client promotion: NerdWallet doesn’t invest its money with this provider, but they are our referral partner – so we get paid only if you click through and take a qualifying action (such as open an account with or provide your contact information to the provider). Most importantly, our reviews and ratings are objective and are never impacted by our partnerships. Our opinions are our own. Here is a list of our partners and here’s how we make money.
$0
4.45%
With $0 min. balance for APY
N/A
Why We Like It
Empower Personal Cash (formerly Personal Capital Cash) offers a 4.45% APY as well as robust budgeting features through its highly rated app. It also has no fees or minimum balance. Keep in mind, however, that Empower Personal Cash currently doesn’t support cash deposits, cash withdrawals or check writing. Electronic transfers, wire transfers and direct deposits, however, are currently supported.
Read NerdWallet’s full review of Empower Personal Cash (formerly Personal Capital Cash) to learn more.
$0
2.60%
With $0 min. balance for APY
N/A
Why We Like It
Fidelity Cash Management Account has no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements, and it offers unlimited ATM fee reimbursement and free check writing. The account carries FDIC insurance of $5 million through Fidelity’s partner banks, and customers are able to invest in certificates of deposit from the account.
For more information, read our full review of Fidelity Cash Management.
$0
4.55%
With $1 min. balance for APY
$30
Requirements to qualify
Why We Like It
Wealthfront Cash Account offers a 4.55% APY, with no fees. Customers can add a debit card to their Cash Account, which allows them to withdraw cash from more than 19,000 fee-free ATMs as well as make purchases. They can also use their account to pay bills and link to apps such as Venmo and Cash App to send money to friends and family. Direct deposit with payments up to two days early is also available.
To learn more, read NerdWallet’s full review of the Wealthfront Cash Account.
Last updated on May 19, 2023
To recap our selections...
NerdWallet's Best Cash Management Accounts of 2023
- Betterment Cash Reserve – Paid non-client promotion: Best for Cash Management Account
- Empower Personal Cash: Best for Cash Management Account
- Fidelity Cash Management Account: Best for Cash Management Account
- Wealthfront Cash Account: Best for Cash Management Account
Frequently asked questions
A cash management account is a hybrid account that offers similar services and features as checking and savings accounts. They aren’t provided by banks; instead, they’re provided by nonbank financial service providers like brokerage and investment firms.
Cash management accounts—offered by nonbank financial service providers like brokerage and investment firms—bring checking, savings and/or investment products all under one roof. They typically pay interest and offer tech-savvy features.
Since CMA providers aren’t banks, they can’t directly offer FDIC insurance to customers’ funds. Instead, providers partner with banks behind the scenes and sweep customers’ cash into bank accounts, thereby allowing banks to extend FDIC coverage to that money.
Since they usually work with multiple partner banks, CMAs tend to offer much higher FDIC insurance limits, even as high as $5 million for individual accounts.
A brokerage account is an investment account where customers can put away their long-term savings to earn interest. A cash management account is for short- to medium-term savings and regular spending and is meant to be used frequently.
Since most CMAs are offered by brokerage and investment firms, customers can often connect their brokerage account to a CMA and transfer money back and forth under the umbrella of the same provider
Some of the best alternatives to cash management accounts include: certificates of deposit (CDs), peer-to-peer lending, high-yield money market accounts (MMAs) and high-yield online savings accounts.
To learn more about the similarities and differences of these products, check out this guide from NerdWallet.
Cash management refers to the way consumers process and determine the usage of their money.
When it comes to cash management accounts, customers can manage the flow of their cash through spending, saving and—usually—investing it all under the same roof.
