The Best High Yield Savings Accounts of Fall 2025

Summary

Frugal Friends Podcast

Episode: The Best High Yield Savings Accounts of Fall 2025
Hosts: Jen Smith & Jill Sirianni
Date: October 28, 2025

---

Episode Overview

In this episode, Jen and Jill break down the current landscape of high yield savings accounts for Fall 2025. Drawing from their hands-on experience, they go beyond APY rates to compare features, fees, and “hoops” (requirements) across banks and fintech platforms. The hosts also discuss the importance of regular account reviews, their own savings journeys, and highlight an emerging high yield checking option. Anchored in their usual friendly, practical style, Jen and Jill aim to equip listeners to make smarter decisions for their emergency and sinking funds—without unnecessary hassle or hidden gotchas.

---

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Why High Yield Savings Accounts (HYSAs) Matter

• Compound Interest Opportunity:
  Jen and Jill stress the powerful difference a high yield account can make.

  • Jill: “In two and a half years, I have earned approximately $6,000 just on interest.” (02:34)
  • Jen: “Controlling your spending is hard to do... you could be missing out on thousands of dollars in savings just by keeping your emergency fund in the wrong place.” (01:23)

• Traditional Options vs. HYSAs:

  • Older methods (standard savings, money markets, CDs, whole life insurance) typically pay far lower returns and add complexity.
  • HYSAs now offer similar or better returns than CDs, with almost no minimums or fees and much better liquidity.
  • Jen: “Nowadays high yield savings accounts offer as high or higher rates than any money market or cd... They’re just so much easier to access for emergencies.” (06:18-07:34)

How HYSAs Work & What to Watch For

• Where You Find HYSAs:
  Usually online-only banks, which pass on higher rates due to lower overhead. Funds are FDIC/NCUA insured.

• Difference from Checking Accounts:
  HYSAs typically limit withdrawals (max 6 per month), so not a substitute for day-to-day banking. New high-yield checking products are emerging—covered later in the episode.

• Review Regularly:
  Rates and offers shift constantly—quarterly reviews recommended.

  • Jen: “Even videos from three months ago are already outdated.” (10:03)

“Hoops” — The Pitfall of Chasing High Rates

• Many advertised top rates require a series of actions—direct deposit, transferring set sums, integrating checking accounts, etc.
• These requirements often make so-called “best” rates impractical.
• Jen: “My pet peeve with high-yield savings accounts... all the hoops you have to jump through to get to advertised rates!” (11:18)

---

Top HYSAs Reviewed for Fall 2025

1. SoFi (Disliked for Excessive Hoops)

• Advertised Rate: 4.5% (only for 6 mo. with direct deposit, checking enrollment, etc.)
• Ongoing Rate: Drops to 3.8% after promo period.
• Jen: “If you just want a place where you can set it and forget it, this is not the place.” (13:18)
• Best For: Account hoppers/churners. Not ideal for most.

2. CIT Bank (Hosts’ Favorite)

• Two options:
  • Platinum Savings: 3.85% APY, requires $5,000 in account for advertised rate, $100 minimum to open.
  • Savings Connect: 3.75% APY, $100 minimum to open, no minimum balance to get rate.
• No fees or hoops to qualify for rates; straightforward, reliable.
• Bonuses:
  • $225 bonus for Platinum (if depositing $25,000+; until at least Dec 8, 2025).
• Jill: “This is the specific account that I have, but the one that we typically recommend for our audience is CIT’s Savings Connect.” (17:24)
• Best For: Most people—great for both emergency and sinking funds.

3. Raisin.com (Aggregates Top HYSAs Across Many Banks)

• Platform, not a bank—lets you hold/manage deposits across 75+ banks/credit unions with one login.
• Rates: As of the episode, most offer 4.25% APY with no hoops; some slight promo rates for first 60 days.
• Bonuses: $75 for $10K+ deposits, $250 for $25K+, up to $1,000 for $100K+ (must maintain balance for ~6mo).
• Perks: Filter for credit unions, local impact, minority-led banks, etc.
• Jen (on Raisin): “I tested this...created an account with Raisin...if I were to choose another bank and hit save now, Raisin opens the account for me...” (24:58)
• Best For: Savers seeking flexibility to “rate hop” without repeated applications, or values-driven banking.

4. “Headline-Grabbing” 5% APY Accounts (Read the Fine Print!)

• VARO Bank:

  • 5% up to first $5,000; 2.5% on anything else.
  • Requires checking account, $1,000/mo direct deposit, and maintaining both accounts in good standing every month.
  • Jill: “Who is this best for? If you have a side hustle you can use...but making sure funds are over $5,000 every month.” (29:19)
  • Best For: Side hustlers or those willing to micromanage transfers.

• Adelphi Bank:

  • 5% for new members, up to $5,000.

  • No direct deposit requirement. 2.25% for $5-10K; 0.35% above $10K.

  • Minimum to open: $25; minimum $1,000 to qualify.

  • Jen: “Not good for an emergency fund, but great for a sinking fund.” (31:38)

  • Best For: Sinking funds, temporary savings.

  • Overall advice: These accounts can be part of a multi-bucket strategy but don’t offer 5% on large balances and can change terms abruptly.

---

High Yield Checking (New Market!)

Crew (trycrew.com)

• APY: 3.7% on checking balances (not just savings!)
• No minimums, no fees, fully FDIC insured.
• Supports features similar to budgeting apps (“buckets”), family accounts/teen cards, automated allowances.
• Jen: “It works just like a checking account...very compelling.” (36:10)
• Best For: Day-to-day spending, families seeking integrated finance tools, anyone who wants high interest on liquid cash.

---

Taxes & Practical Considerations

• Interest and bonus payments on HYSAs are taxable as normal income (not capital gains) and reported on 1099 forms.
  • Jill: “With both the bonuses and the interest...you will pay income tax on that.” (21:04)
• FDIC or NCUA insurance applies up to $250K per institution—spread funds over accounts/institutions as needed for coverage.
• Consider using multiple accounts for insurance coverage or money “buckets” (emergency vs. sinking funds).

---

Tips for Listeners

• Review your HYSA every quarter. Rates/policies change frequently.
• Don’t be dazzled by the highest advertised APYs—read the requirements before moving your money.
• Take note of bonuses—can be a worthwhile reason for switching.
• Be organized if you use multiple accounts: keep track of logins, set beneficiaries, and check for Zelle or other feature needs.

---

Engaging Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the importance of switching to HYSAs:
  “Don’t be me or start now because otherwise you’re gonna regret that you just didn’t start now...” —Jill (02:34)

• On “hoops”:
  “The bane of my existence is all the hoops you have to jump through to get to advertised rates on different high yield savings accounts. You’ll see something like 7%... it is insane the ways they’ll try to trap you.” —Jen (11:18)

• On Raisin:
  “If I were to choose another bank and hit save now, Raisin opens the account for me with my saved information and I can just move my money.” —Jen (25:43)

• On the value of checking bonuses:
  “It can be worth potentially every year switching out where you have your money.” —Jill (19:46)

• On the new high yield checking (Crew):
  “Blew my mind.” —Jill (34:19)

---

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [01:23] – Main theme: Why HYSAs, what listeners could be missing by ignoring them
• [02:27] – Hosts’ personal savings journeys and HYSA experiences
• [05:40] – Traditional options vs. HYSAs: overview and pitfalls
• [08:18] – Concrete comparison: How much more you can earn in HYSA
• [09:16] – Why HYSAs aren’t checking accounts, importance of withdrawal limits
• [10:51] – How the episode is structured: Three things to look for in every account reviewed
• [11:18] – The hidden “hoops" problem: SoFi and others exposed
• [16:52] – CIT Bank deep dive (Platinum vs Savings Connect)
• [21:04] – Taxes on HYSA interest/bonuses
• [22:54] – Raisin.com as a “meta-bank”/aggregator
• [28:58] – "Headline" 5% APY options: The fine print
• [33:10] – Importance of quarterly reviews / How to keep up
• [34:19] – Introduction to Crew high yield checking account
• [36:10] – Crew features (budgeting, family accounts, etc.)
• [42:26] – Bonus segment: How many HYSAs do the hosts have and why
• [44:31] – Practical tips: Using Zelle, minimizing complexity, setting beneficiaries

---

Listener Engagement & Call-to-Action

• Ask: Share which HYSA you use or if you found better rates.
• Invite: Suggest if this sort of episode should be a recurring feature.
• Reminder: Watch for bonuses and set beneficiaries on all accounts for safety.

---

Notable Listener Submission

• “Bill of the Week”:
  Listener Alison from Colorado describes negotiating her Internet bill down by $32/mo ($400/year):
  “I did it with screaming children underfoot...I locked it in for five years.” (38:01-39:09)

  Both hosts praise her calculation of time spent vs. annual savings, emphasizing the value of negotiation.

---

Tone & Takeaways

Lighthearted yet pragmatic, Jen & Jill cut through marketing hype to deliver actionable advice that respects their audience's time and intelligence. Their repeated, adamant stance: Don’t settle for tiny interest on your savings; with a little strategy—and minimal “hoops”—you can maximize passive returns and keep your money flexible, safe, and working for you.

---

Resource Links Mentioned:

• CIT Bank Platinum Savings & Savings Connect accounts
• Raisin.com aggregator
• Crew high yield checking
• Search for other high yield accounts and verify up-to-date rates quarterly.

---

Want More?
Let Jen & Jill know if you want regular HYSA round-ups or a deep dive into high yield checking next time!

Transcript

[Jill]

Why choose a Sleep Number Smart Bed.

[Jen]

Can I make my site softer?

[Jill]

Can I make my site firmer? Can we sleep cooler?

[Jen]

Sleep number does that cools up to.

[Jill]

Eight times faster and lets you choose your ideal comfort on either side your Sleep number setting. Enjoy personalized comfort for better sleep night after night.

[Jen]

And now max out your savings.

[Jill]

The more you buy, the more you.

[Jen]

Save on beds, bases and more.

[Jill]

Plus, get free home delivery on any smart bed with base limited time. Check it out at a Sleep Number store near you [e-mail] today. This message comes from Capital One.

[Jen]

With the SparkCash plus card from Capital One, you earn unlimited 2% cash back.

[Jill]

On every purchase and get big purchasing.

[Jen]

Power so your business can spend more and earn more. Steven Branton and Bruno, the business owners of Sandcloud, reinvested their 2% cash back to help build the company's retail presence. Capital One what's in your wallet? Find out [e-mail] SparkCash Termsupply the Best High Yield Savings Accounts of Fall 2025.

[Jill]

Welcome to the Frugal Friends podcast where.

[Jen]

You'Ll learn to save money, embrace simplicity.

[Jill]

And live a richer life. Here are your hosts, Jen and Jill.

[Jen]

Welcome Frugal Friends. I'm Jen. I'm Jill and you could be missing out in three thousands of dollars in savings just by keeping your emergency fund in the wrong place.

[Jill]

High Yield Savings accounts are one of our favorite things to talk about. They are always updating and changing though, so it's important for us to circle up, compare accounts, make sure you've got the one that is best for you.

[Jen]

And we've spent years testing high yield savings accounts, looking at all the hoops you have to jump through to get rates, finding the highest rates that are easiest to get. And we want to share the best ones with you right now. So buckle up. That's what we're talking about today.

[Jill]

So the best high Yield savings account for you really does depend on more than just apy. And so we want to talk through what some of the best accounts are in this particular season. Again, because things are always changing. Compare who they're ideally good for. So so let's get into kind of our experiences with high Yield Savings accounts.

[Jen]

How much have you earned in savings in like interest from your High Yield savings account?

[Jill]

This was a little bit of a bummer for me to look back and realize that I've only had my High Yield savings account for about two and a half years. I am bummed that before two and a half years ago I was not utilizing the High Yield Savings Account. And so don't be me or start now because otherwise you're gonna regret that you just didn't start now, but had it for two and a half years. And in that time, I have earned approximately $6,000 just on interest.

[Jen]

Yes.

[Jill]

Which is amazing.

[Jen]

Yeah. And this episode has inspired me to finally pull the trigger and get my emergency fund out out of a traditional brokerage and into a High Yield Savings Account. So I have finally done it. And I have done it on one of the accounts that I found on this list. And stick with us to the end because in our research we also found a really good High Yield Checking account that has a lot of really cool features that we think a lot of you guys listening will like. But yeah, so I will share my experience when we get to that one on the list. But first, what is a High Yield Savings Account? If you don't know if you clicked on this episode, you probably are familiar. But a High Yield Savings Account is just like your checking account or the savings account tied to your checking account. But they are typically at banks that do not have any physical locations. So that these banks are able to pass on a much higher interest payment to customers because they do not have the overhead. It doesn't mean that they're sketchy or scamming. Your funds are still FDIC insured if they're in the bank, or NCUA insured if it's at a credit union. But most of these are at banks because most credit unions have fiscal locations. So that is a High Yield Savings Account.

[Jill]

And if you're like, why am I not too familiar with this? How do people use to save money? What are my other options? Some of the older ways would have been just a traditional savings account, which is where my money was. And I thought, I am earning some interest on that. I just didn't compare what it was to what a High Yield Savings account could be. So it's very low interest. Like not even a 1%. It's like a 0.0.

[Jen]

Yeah.

[Jill]

Maybe mine was like 0.04 or something. I would get a few cents every month off of that money. So this is wildly different to be able to earn, you know, anywhere from like 3 to 4%, depending on. Depending. We'll talk about that. There's money markets as well. So this used to be the standard for where you would put your emergency fund. You would certainly get a higher rate, but you'd need a higher minimum balance. So usually around at least $5,000. That you are keeping in that account on a rotating basis to earn that.

[Jen]

Rate or to avoid fees CDs, some people would do these CD ladders. A CD is a certificate of deposit. And so you put money in. It doesn't have to be as much as a money market. Some of them, you know, are as low as $10 or $100. But you'd have to keep it in there for a certain amount of time to get the advertised interest rate. And if you withdrew it early, like for an emergency, then you would pay a penalty for that. And so people would do these CD ladders where they would get one year CDs, they'd put 1,000 in this one, 1,000 in the next one, and just like go. So every. They would have access to money at some point, but still it's at a particular point. And if you have an emergency, it may be that it's more than what you have in that current city. It's just very complex. It's too many hoops to jump through to access an emergency fund. And then some people would even use the cash value of their life insurance because a lot of life insurance salespeople will market permanent life insurance or whole life insurance as like a cash value emergency fund. But in reality they have high costs, complex rules, and again, not flexible for accessing during true emergencies. But nowadays high yield savings accounts offer as high or higher rates than any money market or cd. You can find very low minimum balances and virtually no monthly maintenance fees on any high yield savings account that I've ever seen. So there's just so many more advantages that make them the new standard for holding not just your emergency fund, but your sinking funds as well. And you can have as many emergency or as many high yield savings accounts as you want. And we would argue you should have multiple just because your money is FDIC insured up to $250,000. But that's per financial institution. So if you plan to get up there ever, you're going to have to have multiple savings accounts open to get that FDIC insurance because it only goes up to 250,000 at each financial institution.

[Jill]

Or you're just investing the money apart from that.

[Jen]

You know, to each their own. Yeah, we would hope, but I don't know.

[Jill]

So for example, let's say you did have about $10,000 that you were able to set aside. You know, that's your emergency fund. That's some sinking funds. Then if you were to have a 4 APY on that $10,000 in one year, a traditional bank is going to pay you about $1, one whole dollar on that $10,000 that you have.

[Jen]

Their APY is going to be 0.01.

[Jill]

Right? Whereas if you had a 4%, right, yeah, 0.01. But if you had a 4% with a high yield savings account, then that's $400 in one year just for keeping your money in that place still accessible to you, but earning that money. And that's the annual amount, but you get that money monthly. So that $400 would be paid out over the span of 12 months. So you can determine what you want to do with that excess month to month.

[Jen]

And then a question that we see a lot is can I use them as checking? Because they're so wonderful and typically a High Yield Savings account will have about a max of six, six withdrawals a month. So they are not great to use as checking. If you've got multiple bills coming out your credit card payment, all that, it's not great. But there are some High Yield Checking accounts coming out and we'll talk about one at the end of this video and maybe we'll find more. Let us know in the comments if you'd like us to find all the High Yield Checking accounts and do a video on those and subscribe to the channel in case we do that video.

[Jill]

So you can know when it's happening.

[Jen]

High Yield Savings accounts, they adjust at least quarterly. So this is truly a video that you should be seeking out every couple months. If it's been a while since you've gotten a High Yield Savings account and you want a new one or an additional one, then you're only going to be wanting to watch a video or listen to an episode that's been done in the last few months because these things are always changing. For researching this episode, we looked at videos from three months ago and those are already outdated. So this is a very timely and eventually this episode will become outdated. But we've actually found a High Yield Savings Account resource that is continually updating. So that's also something that we are going to talk about.

[Jill]

So first of all, we want to mention that not all accounts are created equal. So it is important to be doing this comparison. And for each bank that we talk about, we're going to share these three things. The interest rate as we currently have it right now in fall of 2025, hoops you have to jump through to get that APY rate and who the account is best for. So speaking of hoops, let's let me.

[Jen]

Just preface what Hoops are. I have talked about this my entire career in personal finance. My pet peeve with high yield savings accounts. And I do not hear other creators talking about this, but it is the bane of my existence is all the hoops you have to jump through to get to advertised rates on different high Yield savings accounts. So you'll see something like 7% offered, but you have to open their checking, you have to use it exclusively for your direct deposit and you have to keep money in there for a certain amount of time and then it drops down in a tiered progression or drops off after so many months like it is insane. The ways they'll try to get you to trap you with these high interest rates. And so a lot of our favorite ones that we're going to talk about, they do not have the highest rate. We'll talk about the 5% rates that you can get at the end. But they have all these hoops to jump through. And it's mainly because the bank offers an affiliate commission to the creator for promoting them. And we're not against it. We have affiliate relationships with some of the banks that we're going to be talking about. And no, hey, we would love you to use our links so that we can get paid for our work, but it won't be at the expense of recommending a subpar account to you. And so I'll start out with my least favorite one. And it's not my least favorite account, but it is the one I see most often and the most excessive hoops and I just like wouldn't recommend it. And that is sofi. So sofi is a great bank, great savings account, great interface. There's nothing wrong with SoFi, but the advertised rate that it has right now is four and a half. And in order to get that, you must enroll in checking, set up a direct deposit and then it's only four and a half for six months. Then it goes down to 3.8. So what you really should be looking at is 3.8. Unless you're going to be doing like high yield savings account churning where you're going to be moving your emergency fund every six months and then for you to eat. To each their own. But if you just want a place where you can set it and forget it, this is, this is not the place like so we're going to be saying also which know bank? Who's it best for? And I don't really believe this one. If you're looking at just the rate is best for anyone, there are better options out there, including even the 5% APY accounts that we will cover at the end. And especially if you are account hopping.

[Jill]

Especially because that rate will drop lower than what you can get at other.

[Jen]

Places at any time on any of these accounts. So not just our favorites. And our favorite did just have a rate drop because the federal funds rate dropped. These banks can drop at any time without notice. So having one that stands on business and gives you the rate that they advertise with as few hoops as possible, that's the bank I want to do business with.

[Jill]

Yeah, for sure. Every year during open enrollment, I'm reminded how confusing healthcare can be. Higher premiums, fine print and plans that never seem to fit. It feels like the system is built to keep us stuck.

[Jen]

It's wild how easy it is to overpay for coverage you barely use. That's why we love what crowd health is doing. It's not insurance. It's a community of people helping fund each other's medical bills directly. No middlemen, no networks, no hidden nonsense.

[Jill]

With crowd health, you pay under $100 a month and get access to bill negotiators, low cost prescriptions, lab testing tools and a list of vetted high quality doctors. And if something major happens, you pay the first $500. Then the crowd steps in to help cover the rest. It's healthcare sharing that finally makes sense.

[Jen]

This open enrollment Take your power back. Join Crowd Health to get started today for $99 for your first three months using code [e-mail] that's joincrowdhealth.com code frugal. Crowd health is not insurance. Opt out. Take your power back. This is how we win. Join CrowdHealth.com we recently identified fees as the enemy of frugality, which is one of the reasons we like chime. Traditional banks love to sneak in maintenance fees, overdraft fees and minimum balance requirements. But with chime, there are no monthly or maintenance fees ever.

[Jill]

And that alone feels like a win. Plus, having access to over 47,000 fee free ATMs nationwide means no hunting for a specific bank or worrying about getting charged just to access your own money.

[Jen]

I also love the real time transaction alerts. My younger self would have saved so much more if I'd had those little reminders keeping me aware of every purchase. It's such an easy way to stay on track.

[Jill]

Work on your financial goals through Chime today. Open an account in 2 [e-mail] frugal that's chime.com frugal Chime feels like progress.

[Jen]

Chime is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services and debit card provided by the Bancorp Bank NA or Stride Bank NA members, FDIC Spot Me eligibility requirements and overdraft limits apply. Timing depends on submission, payment file fees, app out of network ATMs, bank ranking and number of ATMs, according to US News and World Report, 2023 Chime checking account required.

[Jill]

So the next bank is CIT, and we love this one. Actually, we talk about this one all the time. This is the bank that I personally use. And so with their. They've got two different types of high yield savings accounts. They have their Platinum Savings and their Savings Connect.

[Jen]

And normally the one we recommend is the Savings Connect. But in this episode, we also wanted to talk about the Platinum Savings because it has some cool extra features, just a little higher barrier to entry.

[Jill]

So with the Platinum Savings account, that one does require $100 minimum to be putting into that account, but that'll be most of these. Yeah, there aren't any hoops or fees. And their current rate is 3.85%, which is pretty similar to what we're going to be talking about at some of these other accounts. So I think the hoop on this one, however, is that you do have to have $5,000 in that account in order to get that APY with it. So this is the specific account that I have, but the one that we typically recommend for our audience is CIT's other one, the Savings Connect account. Because their minimum amount that you need to have in the account is nothing.

[Jen]

Right? It's a hundred dollars minimum to open it. But you don't need to have a minimum daily balance to qualify for the apy. And that's what a lot of these are. They'll have a daily minimum that you need to have in to qualify. That's like a lot of the hoops. But so yeah, we love both of these accounts. Obviously, if you have more than $5,000, going with the platinum savings gets you 0.1% more. But you could also just open a Savings Connect and we'll have links to both of these, to all of these accounts in the description on YouTube. But you could open the Savings Connect and then once you get to 5,000, then go with Platinum Savings. And right now, if you're watching this, when this video comes out, then there is a bonus, a welcome bonus for new Platinum Savings members. So if you're depositing $25,000 or more, you can get a $225 bonus bonus. So that's if you're putting your whole emergency fund over into cit, then you will get a bonus. And that's going to go towards at least December 8th of 2025. So if you're listening to this or watching this before December 8th, you can get that bonus. But we also have another. There's bonuses all the time with all of these banks. So that's another reason why some people will chase High Yield Savings Accounts. It's not just for the apy, which.

[Jill]

I know it can be kind of annoying to be switching banks, but if there's a bonus like that or a higher apy, that can be worth it. And especially with something like this, it's not your checking account. So you don't have regular bills coming out of this account. So it shouldn't be as cumbersome as changing your checking account would be that it can be worth potentially every year switching out where you have your money.

[Jen]

Yeah, I mean, I would say you could be max like every quarter, just looking into it, seeing what's there. And then at least, like every year you could stand to probably get a new High Yield Savings Account or at least see what's out there. And if you don't care, it doesn't matter because your High Yield Savings Account is keeping up with inflation. That's another reason it makes it the standard for emergency funds because obviously your emergency fund is tied to your monthly expenses and you want three to six months of expenses while expenses increase every year. And so hopefully rates like 4% or more will add that money into your emergency fund so that you don't have to just don't take that money out and you'll be in a good place. You can just set it and forget it.

[Jill]

So it's important to keep in mind something that I was a little bit caught off guard by the first time that I had a High Yield Savings account is that with both the bonuses and the interest that you earn on it, you will pay income tax on that. So the bank will give you. Is it 1099 at the end of the year?

[Jen]

It's a no, it's something with numbers.

[Jill]

It's something, yeah. There's some sort of designation with it where they are saying how much you earned and you need to take that to your accountant or plug it into your tax software and pay on that. So just be aware of that. It's not a ton of money for most of us that we're earning year over year. But you do want to be prepared that you're Going to have to pay taxes on it.

[Jen]

Is it taxed as income or taxes capital gains because one's taxed at a lower rate. Jill's going to find that out right now. We're just in school to become certified financial planners. We're not there yet, so forgive us. Okay, so our favorite bank by far, cit. And we'll just get that out of the way right now there are two accounts. The Savings Connect and the Platinum are great for different reasons for different people. And when we say no fees on either account, we mean like no monthly maintenance fees. There are obviously, if you overdraft or do bad things, there are fees, but you get the rate advertised without any hoops. It is there as long as they have it. And there's no checking you need to hook up or direct deposit or yada yada. It's just simple and straightforward. So those links will be in the description.

[Jill]

Okay, circling back, here's the answer. It is taxed as normal income. So it depends on your tax bracket, the percentage rate that you're going to pay.

[Jen]

Thought, but I wasn't sure. So, yeah, small, but it will be. I mean, if you have $30,000 in your account at 4%, that's $1,200 in a year. So it's not a ton, but consider that. All right, and so our next High Yield Savings Account, it's not actually an account. And so we said already that this video will eventually become outdated. But what if there was a place on the Internet you could go and sign up for an account and have access to multiple High Yield Savings Accounts. So you can put your money in one, and then if you see one has a higher rate, you can just put it over there without applying for another account because you already have an account where you are. Well, that is what Raisin is. And so Raisin is not a bank, but it aggregates and works with about 75 banks and credit unions. Remember I said most High Yield Savings accounts are not at credit unions. This one finds all the ones that are pretty much. And so this is where I have. I tested this. Since Jill already had cit, I was like, okay, I'm going to test out Raisin to see what I can get. So I went and I made an account with Raisin. I hooked up my checking account and I made a deposit. And there is a deposit insurance so that the money that I move to Raisin, that Raisin moves to the bank that I chose, that is insured all the way there. So that is safe. And so if you go to frugalfriendspodcast.com raisin or click the link in the description. You will see that they have a list right on that homepage. I think you have to scroll down. But it is of all of these different banks and credit unions. It says the apy, it says what the actual product is. So a lot of them are high yield savings accounts, but some of them are money markets. But I'm looking on it right now and most of them are 4.25% and that's with no hoops to jump through. There is one that's 4.36, but you only get to keep that for 60 days and then the rate goes to 4.15 and you have to keep the money in there for I think it's typically 90 days at least. But that could be different per bank.

[Jill]

Did you find any referral bonuses for this one?

[Jen]

So this one, again, it's on those higher account transfers. So if you are depositing less than $10,000, you don't need a referral. It's just, just use it. Frugalfriendspodcast.com Raisin but if you're depositing between 10,000 and under 25,000, you can usually get a $75 bonus for that deposit. And if you're doing $25,000 or more, you can get a $250 bonus. You have to keep the money in for I think six months, 180 days, I believe. And then you will get that bonus. And then so we'll have, if you are going to put your full emergency fund over, you can check out the description of this YouTube video and you can get that referral bonus. But you can get bonuses of up to $1,000. If I think if you're depositing like $100,000. Yeah, but so it's just on the, the bonuses are just on those high transfers. Okay, so I did this. I chose, let's see which one I chose it is. I don't know where it says it's probably right up here. It's not on this list, probably because I'm logged in. So it's not up here anymore. But I chose a Bank at 4.25. That's. I choose one of these and you hit save now. And then I basically created an account with that bank, but I made it through Raisin. So if I were to later go in and choose one of these other banks and hit save now, Raisin opens the account for me with my saved information and I can just move my money over There, that's super intuitive. And take advantage of a higher apy.

[Jill]

Yeah, that's awesome.

[Jen]

Yeah.

[Jill]

All kind of one place. We love things simplified.

[Jen]

Yeah. And so it's, it's definitely something to check out. 4.25 is like nothing to sneeze at for high yield savings. It's, you know, it's not the 5% that we're getting into right now, but those got a lot of hoops and these don't. And so I feel safe keeping my money there. It's FDIC insured or NCUA insured. If you're at a credit union, they even have these little markers that you can so you can filter your financial institutions for not profit, community development focused, minority led, family owned support, small businesses, education does education, financing gives back, has a local focus. And so it will point out these banks kind of what their features are on that point. So if there is something that's important to you, you want to go with a credit union that's investing locally in the community, then you can filter for that and choose that way as well. And that is something that not a lot of websites offer as far as banking products. So I, I think that's great.

[Jill]

Yeah. So there are some high yield savings accounts that do offer 5% APY but I think it's important to read the fine print because there are hoops. So if you are kind of dazzled by the 5%, here's what to note about some of these bank.

[Jen]

There's two of them and definitely one is worth it and the other one's probably not.

[Jill]

Okay, so VARO is one offering again at this point in time in the fall 2025. 5%. But the hoops include that up to 5% APY is offered on your first $5,000 and 2.5% on everything else. You also have to open a Varo checking account and have $1,000 in direct deposit every month there while maintaining a positive balance in both accounts and continue to qualify for all of these things. So who is this best for? If you have a side hustle you can use this one. But making sure that all funds are over $5,000 every month.

[Jen]

Right. If you have a side hustle that makes $1,000 a month that you can set up direct deposit, then that's fine. But I would just keep anything over 5,000 getting deposited back to your regular high yield savings account or something. So it's a. The hoops are a little too hoopy for me. I think the next one is much better. Adelphi also Has a rate of 5% and it's just for new members. So if you're a current member there, it won't apply to you. And also it's only up to the first 5,000. So that's the limit on both of these. But it's earning 2.25% beyond that. But you don't have to have a direct deposit or anything to get that. So it's actually. And that's only 2.25 is only between the 5,000 to 10,000 range. Anything above that, then you're just making 0.35. So it is definitely not worth it to have any more than $5,000 in there. You do have to have a minimum of $1,000 in the account to, to qualify for interest. That's another one of those, like we were talking about before, you have to have a minimum daily balance to qualify for the advertised interest rate. So it's $1,000 on this one. And it says, and this is true for all of them, it says promo rate can end at the discretion of Adelphi at any time without prior notice. So but it seems like they've been using this one for a while because the promo code you need to use is new 2025 and that you just need to use that promo code in your account application. And it has to be deposited in the new member money market savings account. New funds, minimum to open is $25. I mean, they're hoops, but they're not that bad. Not good for an emergency fund, but great for a sinking fund. This would be great to, you know, if you wanted to put $4,500 in and just kind of see get that or put $5,000 in and, you know, just transfer out all the interest as you earn it.

[Jill]

But if you're not having multiple accounts, there are better ones than this. It is not ultimately 5% on all of it. Whereas with something like CIT, you are getting, or even the raisin option, where they're giving you all of these ideas of what every bank is offering. That's the rate on all of the money. So I think considering the math, considering how much you are putting in. But I think this really highlights to me how important it is to be checking regularly since all of these banks have that statement about this can change at any point without prior notice. And who knows what the current notices are going to look like, whether it's just an email to you or you would have to be logging in regularly to even know that the rate has dropped. So like Jen Said quarterly, looking at what is my rate now, is a better rate potentially offered elsewhere. So that kind of thing.

[Jen]

Yeah, they do typically send an email, but yeah, that is why it's so worth it to be checking regulars. So let me know in the comments if this is something, if this is a type of episode you want to see more regularly. Just so that we can keep abreast to the High Yield Savings account. So maybe you don't have to. You let us know. Or if you're like, actually this could have been an email and you let us know that too. But we want to finish off with a High Yield checking account and there are several coming to market. This is a new thing that people are introducing and they bank people banks are introducing and they started out smaller, you know, like, oh yeah, we got 0.5%. That's our high Yield checking. I'm like, girl, please. Or you know, 1% high yield checking. But we met some founders at the financial media conference that we went to a few weeks ago that are actually doing high Yield checking.

[Jill]

Blew my mind.

[Jen]

Yeah. And the rate is 3.7. Yeah. Which is fantastic for checking. And it's checking so that you can connect all your things to it, make as many withdrawals out of it as you need to. It works just like a checking account. And we have not personally used it, but we did want to tell you about it because it's something.

[Jill]

It's pretty new, you know, definitely newer.

[Jen]

Yeah.

[Jill]

But still, you know, banking with fdic. See insured banks. So trustworthy, but we just haven't tried it yet.

[Jen]

It's called Crew and it would [e-mail] or link in the description because there's actually another banking product also called crew.

[Jill]

Oh, interesting.

[Jen]

Yeah. So probably use the link in the description just in case. But. So this is another one with virtually no hoops, no minimum balance, no monthly fees. And it has some other, like, cool features beyond the check in.

[Jill]

Yeah, like an ability to bank with it. Almost use it like you might a budgeting app, like with the different buckets available to you to be able to identify. How much do I have left in this bucket or that bucket? You know, one of the things that we recommend when it comes to a checking account is that you're keeping your monthly expenses in a checking account on a revolving basis. So for many of us, that's. That's a few thousand dollars that we're spending monthly if our mortgage is coming out of the account, if all of our utilities and bills and grocery spending is coming eventually out of our checking account. That's a significant amount of money that we aren't able to make or earn interest off of. So to have that possibility is very exciting for me.

[Jen]

And if you're a parent, this also has a lot of the green light like features. You can open an account for your kid, they can have their own debit card. You can automate allowances if you're a cube user. Cube money. This has like those, they're called pockets instead of cubes, but it's very similar in that. So if you're missing those features since cube kind of shifted its model, then this also has that. So that's the reason a lot of people are using it. It's kind of combining several fintech offerings into one. And so the more they kept talking about it, I'm like, oh, that's very compelling. I kept using the word compelling a lot.

[Jill]

We both did, for sure.

[Jen]

Yeah. So.

[Jill]

So, yeah, let us know who you, you're using, who you have your high Yield savings account with, or if there's any on this list that are compelling to you that you want to be jumping in on, we'd love to hear it.

[Jen]

Yeah, let us know what rates you're getting. If you can beat anything on the list, and we'll talk about it in an upcoming episode and amend our recommendation.

[Jill]

Do you know what else is compelling every single week and has a consistent.

[Jen]

Consistent high rate of positive return?

[Jill]

The bill of the week. That's right. It's time for the best minute of your entire week.

[Jen]

Maybe a baby was born and his name is William.

[Jill]

Maybe you paid off your mortgage, maybe your car died and you're happy to.

[Jen]

Not have to pay that bill anymore. Duck bills, Buffalo Bills, Bill Clinton.

[Jill]

This is the bill of the week. Hi, frugal friends. This is Alison from Colorado. And my bill of the week, like many others, is my Internet bill. I got it lowered, I called, I negotiated, and was able to drop it from $117 a month to $85 a month. So that's a savings of $32 a month and just shy of $400 a year. Now, it didn't cost nothing to get this done. It cost me 40 minutes of my time and 40 minutes of my sanity because I did this with screaming children underfoot. I picked a bad time to do it, but I value my time between 50 and 75 dollars an hour. So with a 32 dollars a month savings, I'm going to make that money back pretty quickly. For the 40 minutes that it took me and not Only that. But I was able to lock in that lower rate for five years.

[Jen]

She just leaves with that. She just ends. She just mic drops with that.

[Jill]

I know, like it really felt like a boom.

[Jen]

And I loved it.

[Jill]

I did it with screaming children. I did it in 40 minutes. I did it as my time is high valued and I locked it in for five years.

[Jen]

That's it. Have a great week. This is Alison. You've done it. She did it. You did it. You went 100% on it. Cause that's exactly the math that we should be doing on. Is this worth my 40 minutes to take the time even with the kids screaming? And honestly, I think kids screaming in the background can be a powerful motivator for the person on the other end to, you know, to get you what you want and get you off the line. So I think that was a power of yours and I am 10 out of 10. No notes. No notes.

[Jill]

I love these negotiation bills. Well done. You did it. Didn't take you a lot of time. Saved a bunch of money. If you all listening, have a bill that you want to share. If it has to do with doing something amazing while children are screaming or just a mic drop moment having to do with locking in rates or your name is Bill, you know the drill. Frugalfriendspodcast.com Bill we can't wait for it.

[Jen]

Life insurance is one of those things you don't want to think about. But once I had people depending on me, it became non negotiable. I wanted to know that if something unexpected happened, my family wouldn't have to worry about covering bills or long term expenses.

[Jill]

Same. And honestly, getting life insurance felt intimidating at first. Until I found out about fabric by Gerber Life. Fabric by Gerber Life is term life insurance you can get done today. Made for busy parents like you all online on your schedule. Right from your couch, you could be covered in under 10 minutes. With no health exam required.

[Jen]

You can get up to a million dollars in coverage for less than a dollar a day. And since it's backed by Gerber Life, a company trusted by families for over 50 years, it gave me a lot of peace of mind.

[Jill]

Join the thousands of parents who trust fabric to help protect their family. Apply today in just [e-mail] frugal that's meatfabric.com frugal M E E T fabric.com frugal policies issued by Western Southern Life Assurance Company not available in certain states. Prices subject to underwriting and health questions.

[Jen]

I think we're in for a tough couple of years.

[Jill]

There's no sugarcoating it. I'm Phil Buchanan, the president of the center for Effective Philanthropy. My co host Grace Nicolette and I are excited to bring you a new season of Giving Done Right the show exploring what it takes to be an effective donor in this time of unprecedented challenge. This season we're excited to bring you conversations that will help you navigate the current difficult context for nonprofits and and donors alike. A new season begins on September 4th, so be sure to subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. And now it's time for the Lard Night Rope.

[Jen]

How many high yield savings accounts do you have and why?

[Jill]

I was shocked when you told me, who knows how long ago, maybe a year ago, that you kept your emergency fund in the stock market. That was wild to me.

[Jen]

And honestly, it hasn't served me better than if I had just kept it in a high yield savings account. I'll be honest, I did it so long ago, before I. I knew better, but it's when I thought I was better, if that makes sense. And now I've just, I've kept it in there because it's kind of at a steady rate, like going along with high yield savings accounts. And now I'm finally like, okay, this is it. I. I don't like it being in here, but also, I've just been too lazy to change it and I'm done.

[Jill]

Okay, so you've utilized this new savings account that we've talked about through Raisin.

[Jen]

Yes.

[Jill]

Do you have any more than that now?

[Jen]

I actually do. You full sent?

[Jill]

I went from zero to five.

[Jen]

No, I have always had a high yield savings account, Jill. Always.

[Jill]

And then what's in that?

[Jen]

That was my very first business account when I started Modern frugality. Yeah. I had my savings in an Ally High yield savings account, which is at 3.5, so it's why it's not on the list. But yeah, I've always had that.

[Jill]

Wow.

[Jen]

And I just haven't had my money in it. Wow. Since I closed down that you have.

[Jill]

It, but like, hardly anything's in it.

[Jen]

Right. I have like $100 in it.

[Jill]

And what are you gonna do? You gonna keep it?

[Jen]

Yeah, I keep it because it's nice if I have to ever have to do Zelle with someone. Ally does Zelle and my credit union doesn't. So I'll just put money over to Ally and Zelle it over.

[Jill]

Okay, perfect.

[Jen]

So it is practical in that. So that's another thing you have to like Think about, do you use Zelle a lot? Then find a bank that works with Zelle, you know.

[Jill]

Yeah, it does seem to be one of the safer ways of sending money, like better than a Venmo or PayPal. So for me, I just have one high yield savings account. I feel as though if I ever get to the point where, well, the reason to have multiple, in my opinion is if you are having more than the 250, 275 that is insured by the FDIC. But at that point you should be putting that into investment accounts. So yeah, for me I just have one.

[Jen]

And for me I would say you could have two if you had one for your emergency fund and one for your sinking funds. I think that's totally fine.

[Jill]

I just keep a spreadsheet.

[Jen]

Yeah. Or if you had, if you're chasing that, you know, 5% and you have three, go, great, let's see how many you have.

[Jill]

You could.

[Jen]

Let's see who has the most.

[Jill]

You don't have to make it so complicated. It can be simple. But if this is fun for you, if you want to gamify it, fine. Make sure you keep a track of all your login information.

[Jen]

And set your beneficiaries.

[Jill]

And set your beneficiaries. Yes.

[Jen]

So thank you for listening. Let us know in the comments if you liked this episode, if you want to see more or different, and let us know via a rating and review on Apple, Spotify or on Amazon. For our book Buy what yout Love Without Going Broke. If you have read that from your library or purchased it from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, bookshop.org, that one's our favorite and then leave a review on Amazon like ShopMom did says 5 stars Refreshing approach to Money Management Jen and Jill have a practical and refreshing approach to values based spending and money management. They offer an accessible, realistic way to make decisions. Each chapter is filled with practical information and ends with a lightning round reflection, question and action step. If you like their podcast Frugal Friends, you will love the book.

[Jill]

Ooh, that's such a good review.

[Jen]

Yes, yes.

[Jill]

I think the book is a really good reflection of us and if you've listened to us, you find our voices there, the way that we talk.

[Jen]

And if you're having trouble saving your full emergency fund in a high yield savings account, this book will help you save more. It's going to get you to that $25,000 so you can get those big bonuses. Baby, baby.

[Jill]

Thanks for listening. Thanks for subscribing. Thanks for commenting. Thanks for Being here. See you next time.

[Jen]

Watch this next video. Frugal Friends is produced by Eric Sirianni. Jill, you recently attended a bachelorette party. Is there anything that you can disclose from your events there?

[Jill]

Oh, so much happened. What do you want to know? I need something more specific.

[Jen]

Like you. Did you do anything like hiking or.

[Jill]

Yeah, this was so. I've never been on a bachelorette weekend. When I got married, that wasn't really a thing, or at least not within my friend circle. And then if it was a thing, I wouldn't have had the money to be a part of them. So this was really exciting for me and the bride. My good friend Sam really wanted to just have some time away with. With just a couple of us girls. It was just three of us who went total and we went to Yellowstone in the Grand Tetons and just hiked away. Enjoyed the hot tub at her Airbnb. Yeah, it was a pretty, like, unique, I think, type of bachelorette trip. Very much her. And I did get her a veil beforehand that said like bride to be on it. And she wore it everywhere, which was so fun. Hiking on the trails and all these people passing and be like, congratulations. It was fun to kind of keep track of what people were saying to her. There were a lot of congratulations. Certainly that was the overarching theme. But then there were a few who were like, don't do it. Don't marry him. Saying no. It's like, kind of funny. But I don't think she really enjoyed it.

[Jen]

I know. Yeah.

[Jill]

What does this mean?

[Jen]

Some people are sad.

[Jill]

One of the things that I did for her, because I'm the maid of honor, so, you know, I had some responsibility to make sure that it was a good time. And so I made like scavenger hunt type prompts for her every day. So we were there for three full days. And each day she had five prompts that she had to accomplish so they all would happen on the hike. So, for example, like, practice your first dance spin at a trailhead or ask a stranger for a piece of marital advice or do a bouquet toss with anything that you find in nature, that kind of thing. And there were two times that she had to ask stranger something. And both of those times were actually like, really sweet and meaningful. She was able to identify older married couples. So I believe the one was married for 30 years. I think another one had been married for like 38 years. And so the one question was, what was a piece of marital advice? And they said, laughter. Just make sure that you are laughing together and having fun. So that was sweet. And then the other one was what's your non negotiable in a relationship? And they, and both times both couples answered very quickly. They said lattes in the morning. But then they explained it a little bit more by saying that she has been, she's retired now, but she had been a nurse. And so early, early mornings she had to be up at like 4:30 or something. But her husband would get up with her, make the lattes. They'd have that together for like 15 minutes and just have that time in the morning and talk about their days and then she'd be off. But really what they were saying is this, this ritual that we both stick to on a regular basis. It's time to connect for the two of us in those early morning quiet hours. So yeah, that was fun. It was a cool time. Yeah, things like that happened.

[Jen]

I love that.

[Jill]

I know. It was fun.

[Jen]

There you go. Have your, have your lattes in the morning and laugh.

[Jill]

That's basically what we do too.

[Jen]

Not great with finances. That's okay. Experian is your big financial friend. Explore credit card offers, some labeled no Ding decline, which means if you're not approved, they won't hurt your credit scores. See experian.com for details. Applying for no Ding decline cards won't hurt your credit scores if you aren't initially approved. 2025 Experian.

[Jill]

Experian.