Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

This device is too small

If you're on a Galaxy Fold, consider unfolding your phone or viewing it in full screen to best optimize your experience.

Skip to main content
Advertiser Disclosure Many of the offers that appear on this site are from companies from which The Motley Fool receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear) and may influence which products we write about, but our product ratings are not influenced by compensation. We do not include all companies or offers available in the marketplace.
    |    Accessibility Options

I Use Ally Savings: Review From a Real User

Review Updated
Ashley Maready
Author: Ashley Maready
Ashley Maready
Ashley Maready
Writer and Editor

Ashley Maready is a former history museum professional who made the leap to digital content writing and editing in 2021. She has a BA in History and Philosophy from Hood College and an MA in Applied History from Shippensburg University. Ashley loves creating content for the public and learning new things so she can teach others, whether it's information about salt mining, canal mules, or personal finance.

See Full Bio

| 2 others [ + ]
Matt Frankel, CFP®
Reviewer: Matt Frankel, CFP®
Matt Frankel, CFP®
Matt Frankel, CFP®
Writer, Analyst

Matt is a Certified Financial Planner™ and investment advisor based in Columbia, South Carolina. He writes personal finance and investment advice for Motley Fool Money and its parent company The Motley Fool, with more than 4,500 published articles and a 2017 SABEW Best in Business award. Matt writes a weekly investment column for the Motley Fool ("Ask a Fool") that is syndicated in USA Today, and his work with Motley Fool Money has also been syndicated to MSN and Yahoo! Finance. He has been regularly featured on Fox Business and many other major outlets. He’s a graduate of the University of South Carolina and Nova Southeastern University, and holds a graduate certificate in financial planning from Florida State University.

See Full Bio

Nathan Alderman
Fact Checked: Nathan Alderman
Nathan Alderman
Nathan Alderman
Fact checker

Nathan Alderman has been a full-time Motley Fool employee since 2005, making errors his arch-enemies in a variety of roles including a six-year stint as the dedicated fact-checker for The Motley Fool's premium newsletter services. As Motley Fool Money's Compliance Lead, he makes sure that all the site's information is accurate and up to date, which ensures we always steer readers right and keeps various financial partners happy. A graduate of Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism, Nathan spends his spare time volunteering for civic causes, writing and podcasting for fun, adoring his wife, and wrangling his two very large young children.

See Full Bio

Many or all of the products here are from our partners that compensate us. It’s how we make money. But our editorial integrity ensures that our product ratings are not influenced by compensation. Terms may apply to offers listed on this page. APY = Annual Percentage Yield. APYs are subject to change at any time without notice.

Our quick take: The Ally Savings account comes with a stellar mobile app and it can help you grow your savings with both buckets and boosters. It could be a great fit for anyone looking to start saving today, even with $0 -- it also has no minimum deposit requirement.

  • Our team of experts assessed 100+ banking institutions
  • We evaluate all banking institutions across the same 4 key criteria: annual percentage yield (APY), brand reputation, fees and minimum requirements, and additional perks
  • Our bank ratings are never influenced by our advertising partners
  • We strictly feature products that offer federal insurance and high customer satisfaction, keeping our recommendations unbiased
Ratings Methodology
Rates as of Dec 20, 2024

Ally Savings

Member FDIC.
Rating image, 4.75 out of 5 stars.
4.75/5 Circle with letter I in it. Our ratings are based on a 5 star scale. 5 stars equals Best. 4 stars equals Excellent. 3 stars equals Good. 2 stars equals Fair. 1 star equals Poor. We want your money to work harder for you. Which is why our ratings are biased toward offers that deliver versatility while cutting out-of-pocket costs.
 = Best
= Excellent
= Good
= Fair
= Poor
Rating image, 4.75 out of 5 stars.
4.75/5 Circle with letter I in it. Our ratings are based on a 5 star scale. 5 stars equals Best. 4 stars equals Excellent. 3 stars equals Good. 2 stars equals Fair. 1 star equals Poor. We want your money to work harder for you. Which is why our ratings are biased toward offers that deliver versatility while cutting out-of-pocket costs.
 = Best
= Excellent
= Good
= Fair
= Poor
APY
3.80%
Min. To Earn APY
$0
  • Competitive APYs
  • No monthly maintenance fees
  • Saving buckets to separate savings by goals
  • No minimum balance requirements
  • No local branches
  • No cash deposits

The Ally Savings account features a competitive APY on all balances, with no fees or minimums. Customers also have access to several tools like savings buckets, recurring transfers, and roundups to maximize savings opportunities.

Compare savings rates

Make sure you're getting the best account for you by comparing savings rates and promotions. Here are some of our favorite high-yield savings accounts to consider.

Account APY Promotion Next Steps
3.80%
Rate info Circle with letter I in it. 3.80% annual percentage yield as of December 28, 2024. Terms apply.
Min. to earn: $0
N/A
Open Account for American Express® High Yield Savings

On American Express's Secure Website.

up to 4.00%²
Rate info Circle with letter I in it. You can earn the maximum APY by having Direct Deposit (no minimum amount required) or by making $5,000 or more in Qualifying Deposits every 30 days. See SoFi Checking and Savings rate sheet at: https://www.sofi.com/legal/banking-rate-sheet.
Min. to earn: $0
New customers can earn up to a $300 bonus with qualifying direct deposits!¹
3.80%
Rate info Circle with letter I in it. See Capital One website for most up-to-date rates. Advertised Annual Percentage Yield (APY) is variable and accurate as of Dec. 6, 2024. Rates are subject to change at any time before or after account opening.
Min. to earn: $0
N/A

We tried it: Our team's firsthand experience

Here at Motley Fool Money, we pride ourselves as real users of most of the products across our site. One of our Personal Finance Writers, Ashley Maready, uses the Ally Savings account herself.

Here's Ashley's review:
Image of reviewer

The Ally Savings account is excellent. It's easy to manage via both Ally's website and mobile app, and I love using savings buckets to save for multiple goals in the same account. The APY isn't the highest out there, but it's still competitive enough that I look forward to getting my interest payment every month.

Full Ally Savings review

This high-yield savings account has some definite perks, but there are also a couple of drawbacks. Here's what you need to know about the Ally Savings account.

Ally Savings interest rate

Account APY Minimum Deposit
Ally Savings 3.80% $0
Data source: Ally.

Want a high APY no matter what your balance is? Ally Savings' APY matches that of some of our favorite savings accounts, and you can start with $0 and build your savings over time. Receiving your interest once a month from Ally will help.

Fees

Ally Savings comes with very few fees. You won't pay a monthly maintenance fee, overdraft fee, ACH transfer fee, or a fee for cashier's checks. You will pay fees for the following:

Fee Amount
Expedited delivery $15
Outgoing domestic wires $20
Data source: Ally Bank.

Minimum balance

Some high-yield savings accounts require an opening deposit, which can be a bummer if you're just getting started with savings. Not so with this Ally account. If you're hoping to build a solid emergency fund and starting from scratch, this account's monthly interest payments will help you on your way, even starting with $0.

Withdrawal limit

There are no money withdrawal limits on your Ally Savings account. Note that you won't be able to visit a bank branch, as Ally doesn't have them -- but you can transfer unlimited money to another account.

Mobile app

The Ally app is one of the bank's standout features. It lets you manage all your Ally accounts in one place, and you can move money around between those accounts and send it elsewhere using bank transfers and Zelle. You can also pay bills and deposit checks.

What I like

Ally Savings APY: The Ally Savings account's APY is among the higher flat APYs we've seen for the top online savings accounts.

No monthly maintenance fee: We don't think you should have to pay a fee to maintain an online savings account for routine needs. And Ally seems to agree as it does not charge one.

Savings buckets: The Ally Savings account lets you divide your money into up to 30 different savings buckets, each one nicknamed for the goal you're saving toward.

24/7 customer service: Ally offers customer service by phone 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and often with little or no wait times. The website tells you the expected wait time if you call.

What could be improved

ATM access: It would be even more convenient to withdraw money from your savings account if Ally provided a free ATM card. This isn't a very common feature among online savings accounts, but some competitors offer ATM access.

Transaction limit: You can only make 10 limited withdrawals and transfers from this account per statement period. There is no penalty for going over, but Ally says it will close your account if it happens frequently.

It's important to point out that limiting withdrawals to a certain number (often six or fewer) is an industry standard for savings accounts (it is based on a federal law).

Online user reviews

Ally Bank doesn't have great average ratings on Trustpilot or the Better Business Bureau website -- just 1.2 stars and 1.13 stars, respectively. But Ally is a big financial institution, and many of the customer reviews complain about loans and other financial products. Reviews that are specific to Ally's bank accounts, including its savings account, are more positive -- reviewers call out the high APY and customer service specifically.

And the Ally app has an average rating of 4.7 stars for iOS and 2.3 stars for Android. This suggests that the app is better designed for Apple devices -- not an uncommon occurrence among financial apps.

How to access your money

Ally is an online-only bank, but that doesn't mean it's hard to access your cash. Here's how you can add and remove money from your Ally Savings account.

Deposit options

Here are your choices for depositing money into your Ally Savings account:

  • Electronic transfers from external accounts or from another Ally Bank account
  • Mobile check deposit
  • Wire transfer
  • Mailed check

Ally even offers free postage-paid deposit envelopes to help further reduce costs. But one thing it doesn't offer is the ability to make cash deposits. Most online savings accounts don't, but it's still worth noting, especially if you want that convenience. To get cash into your Ally account, you'd need to deposit it into another account and transfer it over.

Withdrawal options

When you need to withdraw money from your Ally Savings account, these are your options:

  • Free electronic transfer
  • Outgoing wire transfer
  • Telephone transfer
  • Physical check

Ally customers can contact the bank's customer service to request a physical check.

Is Ally Savings FDIC insured?

Yes, Ally Bank is under the purview of the FDIC. This means account holders are subject to coverage limits of $250,000 per depositor, per FDIC-insured bank, per ownership category.

Ally Savings is right for you if:

Ally Savings has user-friendly features and minimal fees. It's online-only, so it's a great option for anyone comfortable with online banking and mobile tech. And if you're new to building savings and interested in diversifying those savings using savings buckets, it could be downright perfect for your needs.

Keep reading about Ally Bank:

Our savings account methodology

At Motley Fool Money, we rate savings accounts on a five-star scale (1 = poor, 5 = best). We evaluate all savings accounts across four main criteria: annual percentage yield (APY), brand and reputation, fees and minimum requirements, and perks that really make a difference -- think ATM access, linked checking accounts, or even branch access.

Our scores are weighted as:

  • APY: 50%
  • Brand and reputation: 20%
  • Fees and minimums: 15%
  • Other perks: 15%

Learn more about how Motley Fool Money rates bank accounts.

FAQs

  • Ally is a fully online bank, which means it doesn't have overhead costs to maintain a branch network. So it can pass those savings along to customers in the form of higher rates on bank accounts.

  • Not being able to directly deposit cash or get in-person help if you need it can be reasons not to open an online savings account like Ally Savings. But the benefits (including the higher APY) will likely make up for this for many people.

  • Ally is an FDIC member, meaning your money is protected in case of bank failure for up to $250,000 per depositor and ownership category.