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E*TRADE Premium Savings Review: High APY and No Fees With Double FDIC Coverage

Review Updated
Steven Porrello
Author: Steven Porrello
Steven Porrello
Steven Porrello
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Steven is a personal finance writer covering topics from mortgages to credit cards to market news. He has written for The Motley Fool Canada, Ramsey Solutions, Nerdwallet, Clever Real Estate, and other major outlets. Steven launched his writing career at the age of four with his first book, "Revenge of the Bad Guys." He currently lives in Portland, Oregon.

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Robin Hartill, CFP
Reviewer: Robin Hartill, CFP
Robin Hartill, CFP
Robin Hartill, CFP
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Robin Hartill, CFP®, is Motley Fool Money’s Head of Product Ratings and has worked for The Motley Fool since 2020. Her work has appeared in various national publications, including NerdWallet and CNET Money. She previously wrote The Penny Hoarder’s syndicated “Dear Penny” personal finance advice column. She is based in St. Petersburg, Florida.

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Eric McWhinnie
Fact Checked: Eric McWhinnie
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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: E*TRADE is best known as an online brokerage, but it also offers a no-fee, high-yield savings account through its partnership with Morgan Stanley Private Bank. The E*TRADE Premium Savings account has no minimum requirements, a decent APY, and can insure up to $500,000 in deposits -- double the usual amount offered by banks.

  • 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
E*TRADE Premium Savings
Open Account for E*TRADE Premium Savings

On E*TRADE's Secure Website.

Member FDIC.

Ratings Methodology
Rates as of Dec 20, 2024

E*TRADE Premium Savings

Open Account for E*TRADE Premium Savings

On E*TRADE's Secure Website.

Member FDIC.
Rating image, 4.50 out of 5 stars.
4.50/5 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, 4.50 out of 5 stars.
4.50/5 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
Open Account for E*TRADE Premium Savings

On E*TRADE's Secure Website.

APY
4.00%
Min. To Earn APY
$0.01
  • Conveniently transfers money to brokerage account
  • Decent APY
  • No monthly maintenance fees
  • High deposit insurance
  • Better APYs at other banks
  • No ATM access
  • No branch access
  • Withdrawal limitations

With no fees and no account minimums, E*TRADE Premium Savings can be a great add-on to your E*TRADE brokerage account. Its APY is decent, but you can find better interest rates at other banks.

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

Full E*TRADE Premium Savings review

Whether you have an E*TRADE investment account already, or you're just looking to earn the most interest on your savings, find out what the E*TRADE Premium Savings has to offer in this review.

E*TRADE Premium Savings interest rate

Account APY Minimum Deposit
E*TRADE Premium Savings 4.00% $0
Data source: E*TRADE.

The E*TRADE Premium Savings account has a 4.00% APY. That's nearly 10 times the national average of 0.42% for savings accounts, according to FDIC data. Though a few top high-yield savings accounts offer APYs of 4.00% or higher, the E*TRADE Premium Savings account certainly offers a competitive rate.

Fees

The E*TRADE Premium Savings account doesn't have a monthly service fee, but there are a few other possible charges you should know about.

Monthly service fee N/A
Outgoing wire transfer fee $25
Insufficient funds fee $25 per item
Paper statement copy fee $5
Data source: E*TRADE

Minimum balance

Like many of the best free savings accounts, the E*TRADE Premium Savings account doesn't have a minimum opening deposit or an ongoing balance requirement. Many banks require a starting deposit of $25 to $100 to open a savings account. Monthly fees are also common if you don't maintain a daily balance of at least several hundred dollars, particularly at traditional banks.

Withdrawal limits

You're limited to six withdrawals or outgoing transfers per month from the E*TRADE Premium Savings account. In the past, the Federal Reserve's Regulation D required banks to limit savings withdrawals to six per month, but the Fed lifted this rule in 2020. Banks and credit unions are still allowed to keep these limits in place, but some institutions have eliminated them.

Mobile app

The E*TRADE App is designed more for investing and stock trading;, however, you can also use the app to manage your E*TRADE bank accounts. The app receives an average rating of 4.6 stars in both the Google Play store and the Apple App Store.

How to access your money

Although E*TRADE Premium Savings doesn't have brick-and-mortar branches, it gives you a few ways to access your funds.

Deposit options

E*TRADE doesn't let you deposit cash directly into your account (you can, however, mail checks). If you need to move money into your E*TRADE savings account, you can do so in the following ways:

  • Electronic transfer from external bank account
  • Wire transfer
  • Check deposit or by mail
  • Mobile check deposit

Funds deposited by wire transfer are available on the same day, so long as the wire was received before 6 p.m. EST. If you transfer money from an external bank account, your money will be available on the third business day after the day the request was entered, as long as the deposit is received before 4 p.m. EST.

So, if you start a transfer on Friday at noon, your money will be available by the following Wednesday. Finally, mobile checks can take up to five business days before they're available for your use.

Withdrawal options

E*TRADE only gives you a few ways to withdraw funds from your savings account:

  • External transfer to an external bank account
  • Internal transfer to another E*TRADE account
  • Wire transfer ($25 per transfer)

Online user reviews

Overall, online reviewers seem pleased with the E*TRADE Premium Savings account. They're satisfied with the interest rate the account earns, though a few Reddit users say they've gotten better rates elsewhere.

Users report that if they need to access money from their savings account, they can do so through an external transfer to another bank account, which takes a few days.

Top perks

Immediate transfers to E*TRADE accounts: You get instant transfers from your E*TRADE Premium Savings to all other E*TRADE accounts, including checking and brokerage. This makes the savings account a convenient place to store uninvested cash, savings, and emergency funds.

Decent APY: Currently, the E*TRADE Premium Savings pays out at a 4.00% APY -- nearly 10 times higher than the national average. That's a good rate for a savings account, though, as we'll discuss below, it's not the highest APY we've seen.

No fees: This is a free savings account with no balance minimums or direct deposit requirements. Although the account doesn't require a minimum opening deposit, you'll need to add some money within the first 30 days for it to remain open.

Get double the FDIC insurance: Most savings accounts will insure your deposits up to $250,000. But the E*TRADE high-yield savings covers up to $500,000 in FDIC insurance, or $1 million for joint accounts.

What could be improved

Not the highest APY: E*TRADE's savings account has a competitive APY. But if you're looking to earn the most interest on your savings, there are better options.

Limited access to money: As an online bank, E*TRADE doesn't have physical branches, nor does it give you a deposit card to withdraw money from ATMs. That said, if you pair this with an E*TRADE checking account, you'll get unlimited ATM refunds, which would essentially allow you to withdraw cash without paying a fee.

Monthly cap on your withdrawals and transfers: The E*TRADE Premium Savings allows up to six withdrawals or transfers from your account in a calendar month. While this isn't rare for a savings account -- it seems from previous federal regulation -- it's something to consider if you plan to move money frequently between accounts.

Is the E*TRADE Premium Savings account FDIC insured?

Yes, the E*TRADE Premium Savings account is covered by FDIC insurance. Most savings accounts will insure your deposits up to $250,000 per depositor, per institution, and per ownership category. But the E*TRADE high-yield savings covers up to $500,000 in FDIC insurance, or $1 million for joint accounts.

E*TRADE Premium Savings is right for you if:

The account could be a good fit if you want a high-yield online savings account and don't need in-person support, especially if you already have an E*TRADE brokerage account.

Keep reading about E*TRADE:

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

  • No, you can open an E*TRADE savings account on its own.

  • If you make more than six withdrawals or transfers from your savings account, E*TRADE could choose to close it, convert it into a checking account, or remove your transfer privileges.

  • The E*TRADE Premium Savings account is worth considering if you want a high-yield savings account with no monthly fees and you don't care about in-person banking. The account could be especially convenient if you already have an E*TRADE brokerage account or IRA.