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UFB Best Savings Account: A no-frills account with a very high APY

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Editor’s Note: APYs listed in this article are up-to-date as of the time of publication. They may fluctuate (up or down) as the Fed rate changes. CNBC Select will update as changes are made public.

High-yield savings accounts are essential savings vehicles ideal for an emergency fund or a large upcoming purchase. That’s because, true to their name, they typically offer higher interest rates than a traditional savings account would and offer greater liquidity than CDs.

The UFB Best Savings Account provides a simple, no-frills solution to savers who just want their money to grow quickly and safely — plus it currently offers one of the highest interest rates available for a savings account. Below, CNBC Select takes a closer look at the UFB Best Savings Account by breaking down its annual percentage yield (APY), access to your cash, features and fees so you can decide if this savings account is right for you.

UFB Best Savings

UFB Best Savings is a Member FDIC.

  • Annual Percentage Yield (APY)

  • Minimum balance

  • Monthly fee

  • Maximum transactions

    No max number of transactions; Max transfer amounts may apply

  • Excessive transactions fee

  • Overdraft fees

    Overdraft fees may be charged, according to the terms, but a specific amount is not specified; overdraft protection service available

  • Offer checking account?

  • Offer ATM card?

Pros

  • Strong APY
  • No minimum balance
  • No monthly fees
  • Free ATM card
  • Free transfers between direct deposit accounts
  • Online and SMS banking available
  • Mobile check deposits

Cons

  • No option to add a checking account
  • No physical branch locations
  • Potential overdraft fee, though, overdraft protection is offered

UFB Best Savings Account review

UFB Best Savings Account APY

At the time of this writing, the UFB Best Savings Account offers an APY of up to 4.21%. This is one of the highest interest rates currently available on the market. If you want to grow your money with no-risk and still have quick access to it, this is one of the best accounts to do so.

A disclaimer at the bottom of UFB’s website states that this APY is a tiered offering. However, every deposit tier currently listed on the website earns the maximum APY of 4.21%. Whether this will remain true in the future is unknown, but for now all deposits — regardless of the amount — will earn 4.21% interest.

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For existing UFB account holders

UFB sometimes changes the name of its savings accounts when it raises the APY, and the bank does not automatically enroll existing customers into the new account. Anytime UFB increases the APY on an account, customers should get in touch with the bank to make sure they’re enrolled in the account offering the best APY.

Access to your cash

Unlike many savings accounts, the UFB Best Savings Account comes with a complimentary ATM card that lets you easily withdraw funds from 91,000 ATMs across the country without paying any fees.

According to UFB’s website, there are some daily limits on ATM withdrawals:

  • For cash withdrawals from ATMs using their ATM card, customers can withdraw up to $510.
  • You can use your ATM card to spend a daily max of $500 for a point-of-sale transaction (in other words, simply using your ATM card to make a purchase online or offline.)
  • For cash withdrawals from an ATM using a Visa® Debit card, customers can withdraw up to $1,010 per day from their UFB Best Savings Account.
  • You can use a Visa® Debit card to spend a daily max of $2,500 for point-of-sale transactions.

If you’d prefer another way to access your funds, UFB also allows you to make transfers between external direct deposit accounts (i.e. checking or savings accounts) at no charge. There’s no limit on the number of fund transfers you can make, but UFB does restrict how much money you can transfer in and out of the account:

  • You can transfer a max of $250,000 into your UFB Best Savings Account.
  • You can transfer up to $30,000 per day into or out of your UFB Account once your account is funded.
  • You can transfer a max of $60,000 per month into or out of your UFB Account once your account is funded.

Features

The UFB Best Savings Account gives you access to a few digital tools that can come in handy for efficiently managing your money, such as online banking access. UFB also offers what they call SMS banking — you can access account features via text messaging for when you don’t have Wi-Fi.

And aside from transferring funds into the account through direct deposit, customers can also deposit checks using their phones.

Fees

There are no monthly maintenance fees, but UFB may charge an overdraft fee for overdrawn accounts (though, the exact amount is not specified). However, the bank offers an overdraft protection service for linked accounts. With this service, you authorize UFB to make an automatic transfer from your linked account to cover the amount of the payments or transactions that would have caused the overdraft.

Just keep in mind that there may be an associated cost with the overdraft protection service, though specific charges are not outlined on the UFB website.

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For savings account options that don’t charge any overdraft fees, you might consider the Marcus by Goldman Sachs High Yield Online Savings or the LendingClub High-Yield Savings account.

Marcus by Goldman Sachs High Yield Online Savings

Goldman Sachs Bank USA is a Member FDIC.

  • Annual Percentage Yield (APY)

  • Minimum balance

    None to open; $1 to earn interest

  • Monthly fee

  • Maximum transactions

    Up to 6 free withdrawals or transfers per statement cycle *The 6/statement cycle withdrawal limit is waived during the coronavirus outbreak under Regulation D

  • Excessive transactions fee

  • Overdraft fees

  • Offer checking account?

  • Offer ATM card?

LendingClub High-Yield Savings

LendingClub Bank, N.A., Member FDIC

  • Annual Percentage Yield (APY)

  • Minimum balance

    No minimum balance requirement after $100.00 to open the account

  • Monthly fee

  • Maximum transactions

  • Excessive transactions fee

  • Overdraft fees

  • Offer checking account?

  • Offer ATM card?

Bottom line

The UFB Best Savings Account is a straightforward account that gives you a very high APY compared to the offerings of some other savings accounts.

This account also offers some appealing capabilities, like SMS banking. And while there are no maintenance fees for this account, there may potentially be an overdraft fee if you don’t enroll in the bank’s overdraft protection service (again, though, the website doesn’t specify a specific fee amount).

Catch up on Select’s in-depth coverage of personal financetech and toolswellness and more, and follow us on FacebookInstagram and Twitter to stay up to date.

Editorial Note: Opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the Select editorial staff’s alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any third party.



Source: CNBC

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