Best High-Yield Savings Accounts Of August 2025

Rates for high-yield savings accounts are holding steady — around 4% APY currently. The best rates in this environment are just over 4%. This is good news for savers who want an accessible vehicle to grow their money with zero risk. The Fed is expected to cut rates in late 2025, which will affect the returns that banks can pass onto savers.

You can compare high-yield savings accounts by the interest rate they offer, their minimum balance or deposit requirements, their fees and the access they give you to your money.

By nature, when choosing which high-yield savings account to open, you’re likely looking for the highest APY offering. While this is an important aspect to consider, make sure you’re reading the fine print.

High returns banks advertise may require large minimum deposits to open an account or earn the attractive APY. Ensure any minimum is an amount you’re comfortable putting into a savings account. Sometimes, there are also caps that limit the dollar amount that can earn the high APY, thus limiting your interest-earning potential.

Yes, it’s worth putting money into a high-yield savings account. You’ll earn a higher return than you would with a traditional savings account for no additional effort on your part. If your money is going to sit in a savings account, it might as well work harder for you, earning you the most interest possible.

The biggest benefit of the best savings account rates is the ability to earn more interest than you would with a savings account that doesn’t have a top APY. The national average savings rate pales in comparison to some of the best high-yield savings account rates.

Using a hypothetical APY, $10,000 in a high-yield savings account earning 5% APY would earn you $500 in interest alone over the course of a year. For context, $10,000 in a savings account earning just the national average 0.45% APY, for example, would earn you only $45 in a year.

• ACH transfer: When you want to make small and frequent payments electronically (direct deposit, automated bill payments, etc.); typically always free but usually takes at least one business day to complete the transfer.
• Annual percentage yield (APY): The amount of interest an account earns in a year.
• ATM networks: ATMs can either be in-service or out-of-network, depending on which bank you have. When you make a transaction at an ATM that is outside your bank’s network, then a fee will most likely be applied by both the ATM operator and your bank.
• Mobile deposit: Instead of going to the bank to deposit a check, you can use your mobile banking app to scan a photo of the check and have the funds immediately deposited into your account. It can sometimes take a day or two for the funds to be accessible.
• Wire transfer: When you want to move funds from one bank account to another and have the money available for use on the same business day; banks usually charge a fee.

At CNBC Select, our mission is to provide our readers with high-quality service journalism and comprehensive consumer advice so they can make informed decisions with their money. Every high-yield savings account list is based on rigorous reporting by our team of expert writers and editors with extensive knowledge of savings and banking products. While CNBC Select earns a commission from affiliate partners on many offers and links, we create all our content without input from our commercial team or any outside third parties, and we pride ourselves on our journalistic standards and ethics. See our methodology for more information on how we choose the best high-yield savings accounts.

To determine which high-yield savings accounts offer the best return on your money, CNBC Select compared dozens of U.S. savings accounts offered by various financial institutions, including brick-and-mortar banks, online banks and large credit unions. Though most online banks don’t have physical branches, they often offer higher APYs, lower fees and overall better benefits than national brick-and-mortar banks.

We narrowed down our ranking by only considering those savings accounts that offer an above-average interest rate, no monthly maintenance fees and low (or no) minimum balance/deposit requirements.

While the accounts we chose in this article consistently rank as having some of the highest APY rates, we also compared each savings account on a range of features, including ease of use and account accessibility, as well as factors such as insurance policies and customer reviews when available. We also considered users’ deposit options and each account’s compound frequency. We took into account CNBC Select audience data when available, such as general demographics and engagement with our content and tools.

All accounts included on this list are FDIC- or NCUA-insured up to $250,000. Note that the rates and fee structures for high-yield savings accounts are not guaranteed forever; they are subject to change without notice and they often fluctuate per the Federal Reserve rate. Your earnings depend on any associated fees and the balance you have in your high-yield savings account. To open an account, most banks and institutions require a deposit of new money, meaning you can’t transfer the money you already had in an account at that bank.

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Information about the Synchrony Bank High Yield Savings Account has been collected independently by CNBC Select and has not been reviewed or provided by the bank prior to publication.

*New and existing Checking and Savings members who have not previously enrolled in Direct Deposit with SoFi are eligible to earn a cash bonus of either $50 (with at least $1,000 total Eligible Direct Deposits received during the Direct Deposit Bonus Period) OR $300 (with at least $5,000 total Eligible Direct Deposits received during the Direct Deposit Bonus Period). Cash bonus will be based on the total amount of Eligible Direct Deposit. If you have satisfied the Eligible Direct Deposit requirements but have not received a cash bonus in your Checking account, please contact us at 855-456-7634 with the details of your Eligible Direct Deposit. Direct Deposit Promotion begins on 12/7/2023 and will be available through 1/31/2026. Full terms at sofi.com/banking. SoFi Checking and Savings is offered through SoFi Bank, N.A., Member FDIC. SoFi members with Eligible Direct Deposit can earn 3.80% annual percentage yield (APY) on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances. There is no minimum Eligible Direct Deposit amount required to qualify for the 3.80% APY for savings (including Vaults). Members without Eligible Direct Deposit will earn 1.00% APY on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances. Interest rates are variable and subject to change at any time. These rates are current as of 1/24/25. There is no minimum balance requirement. Additional information can be found at http://www.sofi.com/legal/banking-rate-sheet.*SoFi members who enroll in SoFi Plus with Eligible Direct Deposit or by paying the SoFi Plus Subscription Fee every 30 days or SoFi members with $5,000 or more in Qualifying Deposits during the 30-Day Evaluation Period can earn 3.80% annual percentage yield (APY) on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances. There is no minimum Eligible Direct Deposit amount required to qualify for the stated interest rate. Members without either SoFi Plus or Qualifying Deposits, during the 30-Day Evaluation Period will earn 1.00% APY on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances. Interest rates are variable and subject to change at any time. These rates are current as of 1/24/25. There is no minimum balance requirement. If you have satisfied Eligible Direct Deposit requirements for our highest APY but do not see 3.80% APY on your APY Details page the day after your Eligible Direct Deposit. *We do not charge any account, service or maintenance fees for SoFi Checking and Savings. We do charge a transaction fee to process each outgoing wire transfer. SoFi does not charge a fee for incoming wire transfers, however the sending bank may charge a fee. Our fee policy is subject to change at any time. See the SoFi Checking & Savings Fee Sheet for details at sofi.com/legal/banking-fees/. *SoFi Bank is a member FDIC and does not provide more than $250,000 of FDIC insurance per depositor per legal category of account ownership, as described in the FDIC’s regulations. Any additional FDIC insurance is provided by the SoFi Insured Deposit Program. Deposits may be insured up to $3M through participation in the program. See full terms at SoFi.com/banking/fdic/sidpterms. See list of participating banks at SoFi.com/banking/fdic/participatingbanks. *Earn up to 4.50% Annual Percentage Yield (APY) on SoFi Savings with a 0.70% APY Boost (added to the 3.80% APY as of 8/5/25) for up to 6 months. Open a new SoFi Checking & Savings account and enroll in SoFi Plus by 9/3/25. Rates variable, subject to change. Terms apply at sofi.com/banking#2. SoFi Bank, N.A. Member FDIC.