Live Oak Bank Review: Savings and CDs

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Written by Chanelle Bessette
Lead Writer
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Edited by Carolyn Kimball
Assigning Editor - Banking
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Live Oak Bank
  • Savings
  • Certificates of deposit
  • Customer experience

Overall institution rating

4.0

NerdWallet rating 
The bottom line:

Live Oak Bank has primarily online services and offers an above-average savings interest rate, along with personal CDs, a business savings account and business CDs. The bank doesn’t charge monthly maintenance fees.

Pros

  • No monthly fees.
  • Competitive rates on savings account and some CDs.
  • No minimum opening deposit on savings account.

Cons

  • Low rates on some CDs.
  • High minimum opening deposit for CDs.
  • No cash deposit.
  • Limited branch access.

Full review

Live Oak Bank

Savings

Live Oak Bank High-Yield Online Savings
Live Oak Bank High-Yield Online Savings

Savings

Member FDIC

4.5

/5
 NerdWallet rating 
APY
4.30%
With $0 min. balance for APY
Bonus
$200
Requirements to qualify

Live Oak Bank’s savings account has a 4.30% interest rate that is higher than at most traditional brick-and-mortar banks; the national average is just 0.46%. This account also has no monthly fee or minimum opening deposit, and customers can use mobile check deposit or link external bank accounts to fund their account.

Live Oak Bank also has a business savings account that pays interest.

Certificates of deposit

Live Oak Bank CD
Live Oak Bank CD

CD

Member FDIC

3.0

/5
 NerdWallet rating 
1-year APY
4.60%
3-year APY
2.00%
5-year APY
2.00%
Minimum deposit
$2,500

The one-year, three-year and five-year CDs at Live Oak Bank have decent rates. However, there’s a fairly large minimum opening deposit of $2,500.

Live Oak Bank offers CDs for businesses as well.

Customer experience

3.5

NerdWallet rating 

Live Oak Bank has an easy-to-navigate website with helpful lists of FAQs throughout. If you need more specialized help, you’ll have to call the bank’s customer service reps during weekdays from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern Time. Many financial institutions offer phone support on weekends. Live Oak Bank’s Twitter page shares many resources with customers, but it’s not a main source of customer support. The bank’s iPhone app has decent star ratings, but Android ratings are lower and include complaints of app instability.

Live Oak Bank has one physical location only, in North Carolina, so nonlocal customers will have to be comfortable with using online services.

How does Live Oak Bank compare?

NerdWallet rating 

4.5

/5
NerdWallet rating 

4.5

/5

APY 

4.30%

With $0 min. balance for APY

APY 

4.70%

With $5,000 min. balance for APY

Bonus 

$300

Earn up to $300 with direct deposit. Terms apply.

Bonus 

N/A

Learn more

at SoFi Bank, N.A.

Learn more

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.