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So, you’re looking for a new bank account.
You’ve got several factors to consider — ATM access, interest rates, monthly account fees, minimum balances, online bill payments and more.
Another factor: sign-up promotions and bonuses. Banks and credit unions frequently run promotions to entice prospective customers to open a new account — and they often come with cash. You have to meet specific criteria, such as making a minimum opening deposit, and generally the account must remain open for a certain amount of time — at least long enough to earn the cash bonus.
Many banks offer such sign-up bonuses, but often, they aren’t advertised. We did some digging to find the best bank promotions currently on offer.
Best Checking and Savings Account Offers of April 2022
Keep an eye on what each promotion requires, as well as any limitations. Recurring direct deposits and maintaining a minimum balance are common requirements in securing bank bonuses. Also pay attention to any monthly fees the account might carry; over time, these could weigh out the actual cash bonus.
19 Bank Promotions That Give you Cash
Bank
Top Feature
Promotion
Aspiration Account
No fees
$150
Aspiration Plus
Cash back on purchases
$200
Chase Total Checking Account
Fees may be waived
$225
SoFi Checking and Savings
Easy-to-earn bonus
$120
Chime Referral Bonus
No monthly fees
$100
Bank of America Advantage Banking
Fees can be waived
$100
Alliant Credit Union Ultimate Opportunity Savings
High yields
$100
Huntington Asterisk-Free Checking
Quick cash bonus payout
$150
Huntington 5 Checking Account
Interest on checking
$200
M&T Bank EZChoice Checking Account
No monthly fees
$150
M&T Bank MyChoice Plus Checking Account
Discounted loan rates
$250
M&T Bank MyChoice Premium Checking Accoun
Premium CD rates
$250
KeyBank Smart Checking
No monthly fees
$200
KeyBank Advantage Checking
Interest on checking
$200
KeyBank Privilege Checking
Interest on checking
$200
KeyBank Privilege Select Checking
Interest on checking
$200
BMO Harris Smart Advantage Account
No fee for paperless
$200
BMO Harris Smart Money Account
Unlimited ATM use
$350
BMO Harris Premier Account
Fees may be waived
$225
Aspiration Account
No monthly service fee
Save and Spend Account
3%-5% cash back on socially conscious
The Aspiration Account boasts unlimited fee-free ATM withdrawals at all in-network (Allpoint) ATMs, plus up to 5% cash back on Conscience Coalition debit card purchases. You can even opt to plant a tree with every purchase roundup. You can access your paycheck up to two days early and earn up to 1.00% APY on your savings.
Aspiration Plus Account
$7.99 monthly, $71.88 if paid annually
Save and Spend Account
10% back/socially conscious purchases
The Aspiration Plus Account boasts unlimited fee-free ATM withdrawals at all in-network (Allpoint) ATMs, plus up to 10% cash back on Conscience Coalition debit card purchases. You can even opt to plant a tree with every purchase roundup and get carbon offsets for your gas purchases with Planet Protection. You can access your paycheck up to two days early and earn up to 5.00% APY on your savings.
Chase Total Checking
$12 monthly fee
Fee waived by meeting conditions
Basic checking
The Chase Total Checking account gets you access to more than 4,700 branches nationwide, plus 16,000 ATMs. The easy-to-use mobile app is highly rated. While Chase does charge a $12 monthly service fee, you can waive it by earning $500+ in monthly direct deposits, maintaining a daily balance of $1,500+ or having $5,000 across all your Chase accounts at the start of each day.
SoFi Checking and Savings Account
1.0% APY
Fast bonus payout
No account fees
This new combo account from SoFi, which replaces SoFi Money, allows you to easily organize and automate your savings, get up to 15% cash back when shopping local with your debit card and access your paycheck two days early. There are 55,000 in-network ATMs and no account fees—but take the “no-fee overdraft coverage” claim with a grain of salt. You’re only covered up to $50 before fees kick in.
Chime Referral Bonus
Must be current Chime account holder
No minimum daily balance
Good for first-time banking clients
Though not technically a bank*, Chime is becoming increasingly popular as an online financial institution for banking customers of all ages. Top features include early access to direct deposit, fee-free overdraft, 60,000+ ATMs, a 0.50% APY for the high-yield savings and plenty of features to automatically grow your savings.
Alliant Ultimate Opportunity Savings
$0 monthly fees with eStatements
High-yield savings account
Easy-to-track bonus criteria
The Ultimate Opportunity Savings Account from Alliant Credit Union has a lot to like: 80,000+ fee-free ATMs, no monthly fees if you opt in to online statements, a leading mobile app, and a strong APY at 0.55%.
Bank of America Advantage
Monthly maintenance fees
Standard checking plans
Fees can be waived
Bank of America’s Advantage account is broken into three tiers: SafeBalance Banking, Plus Banking, and Relationship Banking. SafeBalance boasts no overdraft fees or non-sufficient funds fees; Plus offers multiple ways to waive the monthly service fee; and Relationship earns interest (though the percentage is quite low).
BMO Smart Advantage
No monthly fee if you go paperless
Standard checking
Fee-free transactions at 40,000+ ATMs
Smart Advantage is BMO Harris’ most popular checking account. It requires no minimum balance, charges no monthly fees when you opt for paperless statements and gets you fee-free access to 40,000+ ATMs nationwide with the Allpoint network.
BMO Harris Smart Money
No monthly maintenance fees if under 25
Standard checking
No overdraft or NSF fees
Like Smart Advantage, BMO Harris’ Smart Money has no minimum balance required. It’s also noteworthy for having no overdraft or NSF fees. With this account, you will get unlimited fee-free transactions at in-network ATMs (40,000+ nationwide). However, you’ll pay a monthly fee if you’re 25 or older.
BMO Harris Premier
Interest tied to balance
High-yield checking
Unlimited ATM transactions
The highest bonus at BMO Harris comes from the Premier Account with Relationship Packages that reward you with more perks for banking more with BMO. The account earns interest, and the amount you earn increases with the amount of funds in the account. You also get unlimited access to any ATMs, in-network or not.
Huntington Asterisk-Free Checking
No monthly fees
Only available in certain states
Quick cash bonus payout
Huntington’s Asterisk-Free Checking Account doesn’t pay out any interest, but the lack of a monthly maintenance fee does make it appealing for an easy checking account. Key features include mobile banking, the No Overdraft Fee $50 Safety Zone and the 24-Hour Grace Overdraft and Return Fee Relief.
“New account” is defined as money not currently in another Huntington account; money transferred from one account to another does not qualify. The bonus offer cannot be combined with any other checking offer.
Huntington 5 Checking
$5 monthly fee (can be waived)
Interest-earning checking
Quick cash bonus payout
While the Huntington 5 account does have a monthly $5 fee, you can waive it by having $5,000 across accounts with Huntington. By upgrading to this account, you’ll get a higher bonus and earn 0.02% interest on your balance. Plus, you get five free ATM withdrawals.
“New account” is defined as money not currently in another Huntington account; money transferred from one account to another does not qualify. The bonus offer cannot be combined with any other checking offer.
Key Bank Smart Checking Account
No monthly maintenance fees
No minimum balance requirement
Access to 40,000 ATMs nationwide
The Key Smart Checking account is a great account because of its lack of fees. While the account does not earn interest, most interest-bearing checking accounts hold a negligible APY anyway. KeyBank’s partnership with Allpoint gets you access to more than 40,000 ATMs nationwide.
Key Bank Advantage Checking Account
ATM fee rebates
Variable APY
Access to 40,000 ATMs nationwide
The Key Advantage Checking account is an ideal option for the APY, but if a small interest rate on your checking account is not crucial to you and you can’t maintain $10,000 across Key accounts, stick with the Smart Checking account. KeyBank’s partnership with Allpoint gets you access to more than 40,000 ATMs nationwide.
Key Bank Privilege Checking Account
ATM fee rebates
Variable APY
Access to 40,000 ATMs nationwide
The Key Privilege Checking account is ideal for ATM users. Not only do you get access to 40,000 in-network ATMs, but you can also get $6 in out-of-network ATM fee rebates each month. The interest rate is variable and usually low, and the monthly maintenance fee is steep ($25) and can be challenging for many to waive. But hey, at least the checks are free from this account. For those who invest through Key, this account does automatic daily sweeps and preferred pricing.
Key Bank Privilege Select Checking
Unlimited ATM fee rebates
Variable APY
Access to 40,000 ATMs nationwide
The Key Privilege Select Checking account is ideal for ATM users with unlimited ATM fee reimbursements for out-of-network usage. The interest rate is variable and usually low, and the monthly maintenance fee is steep ($50) and can be challenging for many to waive. But hey, at least the checks are free from this account. For those who invest through Key, this account does automatic daily sweeps and preferred pricing.
M&T Bank EZChoice Checking
No monthly maintenance fees
Unlimited check writing
Physical branches
M&T Bank has 700 branches and 1,800 ATMs with operations in New York, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Connecticut, Virgina, West Virginia, Vermont, Massachusetts and Washington, DC, but you can also do your banking entirely online.
M&T Bank MyChoice Plus Checking
Discounted loan rates
ATM fee reimbursement
Interest-bearing options
M&T Bank has 700 branches and 1,800 ATMs with operations in New York, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Connecticut, Virgina, West Virginia, Vermont, Massachusetts and Washington, DC, but you can also do your banking entirely online.
How to Search for a Checking Account Bonus on Your Own
Instead of listing approximately 193 bank promotions, we kept this list short and sweet — only highlighting the best bank promotions for checking and savings accounts.
But maybe you’re interested in banking with your local credit union, opening a small business checking account or exploring what investment accounts are available. There are often cash bonuses attached to these accounts too.
Banks don’t always make finding these promotions easy, so here are a few tips to help you get your hands on that cash bonus.
Check the bank website first. Sometimes it’ll advertise its offers with a blaring promo code. This is rare, but it’s worth a quick check — it could save you a ton of time.
Reach out to customer service. Let them know you’re shopping for a new account, and you’d like to know if the bank is running any promotions. More often than not, the nice representative will send you a special link.
Google the best bank account bonuses. You’ll likely dig up some offers from third-party sites, so make sure the offer:
Hasn’t expired.
Is legitimate. Make sure the bank is FDIC-insured and has a positive Better Business Bureau rating. Read some online reviews.
Doesn’t require outrageous qualifying activities. For example, it might not be realistic for you to maintain an average daily balance of $50,000.
Reach out to your own network to crowdsource bank recommendations. Sometimes banks have impressive referral programs, so both you and your friend could benefit from you signing up.
Overall, be smart. Don’t let the promise of a cash bonus blind you. Read the fine print so you don’t get stuck paying high monthly fees, interest rates or closing penalties. With the proper due diligence, you can earn a checking account bonus — or any other bank promotion — while also choosing the best bank for you.
Will Opening a Bank Account Hurt Your Credit Score?
If you’re worried that opening a new bank account or closing an old one will hurt your credit score, don’t be. Your bank accounts are not included in your credit report and therefore have no effect on your credit score, unless you have an outstanding negative balance that the bank turns over to a collection agency.
Sometimes when you go to open a new account, banks will do a soft credit check. However, that won’t affect your credit score.
Timothy Moore covers bank accounts for The Penny Hoarder from his home base in Cincinnati. He has worked in editing and graphic design for a marketing agency, a global research firm and a major print publication. He covers a variety of other topics, including insurance, taxes, retirement and budgeting and has worked in the field since 2012.
Editorial Disclosure: This content is not provided by the bank advertiser. Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of the bank advertiser. This site may be compensated through the bank advertiser Affiliate Program.
*Chime is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services provided by, and debit card issued by, The Bancorp Bank or Stride Bank, N.A.; Members FDIC.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, which helps millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. The Inc. 5000 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the fastest-growing private media company in the U.S. in 2017.