Bank5 Connect Review: Checking, Savings and CDs

Bank5 Connect offers competitive rates on savings, checking and CDs with low minimums.
Spencer Tierney
By Spencer Tierney 
Edited by Carolyn Kimball

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Bank5 Connect
  • Savings
  • Checking
  • Certificates of deposit
  • Customer experience
  • Overdraft fees

Overall institution rating

4.0

NerdWallet rating 
The bottom line:

Bank5 Connect, like other online banks, has accounts with no monthly fees and higher savings rates than many brick-and-mortar institutions. It has a simple mobile-friendly platform and free access to a huge ATM network. Bank5 Connect is not available to people who live in Massachusetts or Rhode Island. For those residents, the territory is covered by the bank’s brick-and-mortar parent company, BankFive.

Pros

  • No monthly fees.
  • ATM fee rebates.
  • Low minimum opening deposits.
  • Highly rated mobile apps.

Cons

  • No branch access.

Full review

Savings

Bank5 Connect High Interest Savings Account
Bank5 Connect High Interest Savings Account

Savings

Member FDIC

3.5

/5
 NerdWallet rating 
APY
1.50%
With $100 min. balance for APY

Bank5 Connect offers one savings account, High-Interest Savings, which, true to its name, has an attractive 1.50% APY. This rate far exceeds the national average of 0.47% APY.

The account has a $100 minimum balance to earn interest and no monthly fees with online statements.

Checking

Bank5 Connect High Interest Checking
Bank5 Connect High Interest Checking

Checking

Member FDIC

4.5

/5
 NerdWallet rating 
Monthly fee
$0
APY
2.70%
With $100 min. balance for APY

Bank5 Connect offers a quality checking account with a highly competitive annual percentage yield of 2.70%.

To earn the APY, you have to maintain a minimum $100 balance, but it’s a relatively small requirement compared to those of other banks. Just keep an eye out for Bank5’s daily usage limits for ATM withdrawals and debit card purchases, $500 and $1,000 respectively. Other banks have these, but Bank5 Connect’s are on the low side.

The bank gives access to about 6,600 free ATMs and up to $15 per month reimbursed for fees outside of Bank5 Connect's ATMs. The checking account has a low opening minimum deposit of $10 and no maintenance fees if you forgo paper statements (otherwise it's $1 monthly).

Certificates of deposit

Bank5 Connect High-Yield CD
Bank5 Connect High-Yield CD

CD

Member FDIC

2.0

/5
 NerdWallet rating 
1-year APY
4.25%
3-year APY
0.85%
Minimum deposit
$500

Bank5 Connect's regular certificates of deposit, Connect CDs, are available in terms of six, 12, 18, 21 and 36 months. Most banks offer longer terms, such as four and five years — and accordingly, higher maximum yields. A minimum $500 deposit is required to open a CD, compared to some banks' minimum of up to $10,000.

» COMPARE: Best CD rates

Bank5 Connect has another type of CD, Investment CDs, which allow additional deposits after opening. There's only one term available, 24 months, but it has an attractive yield of 3.30% APY.

Customer experience

4.5

NerdWallet rating 

Online chat support is available on weekdays. There is no 24/7 live customer support, but you can get a U.S.-based representative on the phone during Eastern time business hours, some weekday evening hours and on weekends.

With the bank’s high-rated mobile app, you can deposit checks, pay bills, transfer funds and find an ATM. Bank5's website is user-friendly; information about accounts, rates and fees is generally easy to find.

Overdraft fees

3.5

NerdWallet rating 

The bank’s $15 overdraft fee is notably lower than what many of the largest banks charge, around $35. The bank caps the number of possible overdraft fees in a single day at six, meaning that overdrawing multiple times in a day could cost you up to $90.

Bank5 also offers overdraft protection transfers from a linked account for free — many larger banks charge for this service.

How does Bank5 Connect compare?

NerdWallet rating 

4.5

/5
NerdWallet rating 

4.5

/5

APY 

4.60%

With $0 min. balance for APY

APY 

5.05%

With $5,000 min. balance for APY

Bonus 

$400

Up to $300 cash and $100 in rewards points. Terms apply.

Bonus 

N/A

Learn more

at SoFi Bank, N.A.

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at CIT Bank

Methodology

NerdWallet’s overall ratings for banks and credit unions are weighted averages of several categories: checking, savings, certificates of deposit or credit union share certificates, banking experience and overdraft fees. Factors we consider, depending on the category, include rates and fees, ATM and branch access, account features and limits, user-facing technology, customer service and innovation. The stars represent ratings from poor (one star) to excellent (five stars). Ratings are rounded to the nearest half-star.