Best Online Banks

Following are the top 10 best online banks in the United States based on APY for online savings accounts. Annual Percentage yields are current as of May 10, 2018.

1. CIT Bank is an online-only bank established in 2000. It operates as subsidiary of CIT Group Inc., a financial holding company with leading positions in middle market lending, factoring, retail, and equipment finance. The company offers high yield savings accounts, Traditional and Roth IRAs, Certificates of Deposit (RampUp CDs, Jumbo CDs, and Term CDs), custodial accounts (UTMA) and more. With over 3,500 employees, CIT Bank has more than $30 billion in deposits, $27.5 billion in loans and $41 billion in assets.

Premier High Yield Savings account
Annual Percentage Yield (APY): 1.55%
Minimum Opening Deposit: $100
No maintenance fees
Free online banking
FDIC insured (FDIC insurance standard amount is $250,000 per depositor)

2. Synchrony Bank is one of the most prominent online banks in the market. It operates as a subsidiary of Synchrony Financial, one of the premier consumer financial services companies and the largest provider of private label credit cards in the United States. It offers certificate of deposits, money market accounts, savings accounts, IRA CDs and IRA money market accounts. The Bank's Optimizer+plus savings CDs have been named the "Best CD" by Money Magazine (Best Banks in America list). With over 10,000 employees, it has approximately $63 billion in loans, $58 billion in deposits and $79 billion in assets (3/2018). The company is based in Draper, Utah.

High Yield Savings Account
Annual Percentage Yield (APY): 1.65%
No minimum balance or monthly service fee
Easy withdrawals online, over the phone or with an ATM card
Deposit accounts are fully FDIC insured
24/7 automated telephone service

3. SFGI Direct is an online division of Summit Community Bank, a community bank located in Moorefield, West Virginia with additional offices in Charleston, Rainelle, Rupert, Petersburg, Franklin, Mathias, and Martinsburg (West Virginia) and Winchester, Harrisonburg, Warrenton, and Leesburg (Virginia). As of December 2017, it had loans of $1.59 billion, deposits of $1.6 billion and employed more than 300 people.

SFGI Direct Savings Account
Annual Percentage Yield (APY): 1.61%
Monthly Service Charge: $0
Minimum Balance to earn interest: $1
Minimum balance to open account: $500
Deposits are FDIC insured
Fund account with a transfer from another bank
Manage your account anytime online 24/7

4. American Express Bank, FSB is an Internet bank and has no physical branches. It operates as a subsidiary of the American Express Company. The Bank has over $38 billion in deposits and $32 billion in loans. It was established in 2000 and employs over 290 people.

High Yield Savings Account
Annual Percentage Yield (APY): 1.55%
No monthly maintenance fees
No minimum balances to open
(You only need $1 to open an account)
Deposits are FDIC insured
24/7 Account Access by phone or web
* High Yield Savings Account is fully protected by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).
American Express High Yield Savings Accounts are limited to a maximum of 6 online and telephone withdrawals or debits per monthly statement cycle.

5. Ally Bank operates as an online bank and has no branches. It serves about 790,000 customers and offers savings and money market accounts, checking accounts, certificates of deposit (CDs), IRA CDs and IRA online savings accounts. The company has been named "Best Online Bank" by MONEY Magazine four years in a row. Ally’s customer satisfaction score has consistently remained over 90%.

Online Savings Account
Annual Percentage Yield (APY): 1.50% (On all balance tiers)
No minimum deposit to open
No monthly maintenance fees
24/7 customer service by phone or IM
The most common services and transactions are free
ACH transfers to your non-Ally Bank account: $0
Incoming wires (domestic & international): $0
Official / cashier's checks: $0
No hidden fees

6. Barclays Bank Delaware is an internet bank. The online banking business is located in Wilmington, Delaware. In Q4 2017, it reported total assets of $34 billion, total deposits of $25 billion and loans of $27 billion.

Online Savings Account
Annual Percentage Yield (APY): 1.50%
No monthly maintenance fees
No minimum balances to open
FDIC insured
Secure, 24/7 online access to your account
Online transfers to and from other banks
An award-winning account with rates 23x the national average.
You may make up to 6 withdrawals from your online savings account per statement cycle.

7. Discover is an online bank with a wide range of direct banking products. It offers credit cards, checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, money market accounts, private student loans, personal loans and home loans.

Online Savings Account
Annual Percentage Yield (APY): 1.50%
No minimum balance
No monthly maintenance fees
Minimum opening deposit is $0
Deposits are FDIC insured
Fast and free online money transfers
24/7 customer service

8. iGObanking.com is an online banking division of Flushing Bank, a New York State-chartered commercial bank with branches in Queens, Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Nassau County. It offers competitive deposit products to consumers nationwide. As of March 2018, it had $5.2 billion in loans, $4.4 billion in deposits and employed about 460 people.

iGOsavings Account
Annual Percentage Yield (APY): 1.00%
No fees and no minimums to maintain
Deposits are FDIC insured
No monthly maintenance charges
Online transfers to and from other banks

9. MySavingsDirect is an online division of Emigrant Bank, the oldest savings bank in New York founded by Irish immigrants in 1850. As of December 2017, MySavingsDirect had over $4.5 billion in deposits.

High Interest Savings Account
Annual Percentage Yield (APY): 1.00%
No minimum balance, No hidden costs
No Fees, No penalties, and No service charges
Secure, 24/7 online access to your funds
All deposits are insured by FDIC

10. Bank5 Connect is an online-only bank offering checking and savings accounts, CDs, online bill pay, eStatements, free mobile banking and over services. It operates as a division of BankFive, a leader among banks in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

Connect Savings
Annual Percentage Yield (APY): 0.90%
The minimum balance to open is $10
The minimum balance to earn interest is $100
Deposits are insured by the FDIC
No ATM fees
Free online banking/eStatements
Free mobile banking
Savings can be used to cover overdrafts of checking account