Chase savings accounts do earn interest, but the rate is low and changes frequently
Chase offers interest on most of its savings accounts, but the rate you earn depends on which account you open and when you open it. As of now, Chase's standard savings accounts pay rates well below what you can find at online banks or credit unions. The rate also shifts without notice—Chase can change it any time, and often does when the Federal Reserve moves its benchmark rate.
The amount you earn matters less than you might think if you keep a small balance. On $1,000, the difference between 0.01% and 0.45% is roughly $4 per year versus $4.50 per year. But if you're holding $50,000 or more, the gap becomes real money worth paying attention to.
Key Takeaways
- Chase savings accounts earn interest, but rates are typically lower than online banks or credit unions offer for the same type of account.
- The exact rate depends on the account type—Chase has several savings products, each with its own rate that changes independently.
- Chase can lower your rate without warning, and the rate you see advertised may not be the rate you receive if you already have an account.
- If you keep less than $10,000 in savings, the interest difference between Chase and competitors is usually under $10 per year.
- You can call Chase at 1-800-935-9935 or log into your account online to see your current rate, which may differ from the advertised rate.
The three main Chase savings products and their current rate structure
Chase offers Chase Savings (the basic account), Chase Premier Savings (requires a higher balance), and Chase find Savings (a fixed-rate product). Each one has a different interest rate, and none of them are the same across all customers or all branches.
Chase Savings is the most common. It typically pays between 0.01% and 0.05% annual percentage yield (APY), depending on your balance and when you opened the account. Customers who opened accounts years ago may still earn 0.01%, while new accounts might earn slightly more. Chase Premier Savings, which requires you to maintain a higher balance (usually $25,000 or more), pays a slightly higher rate—often in the 0.10% to 0.15% range, but again this varies.
Chase find Savings is a different animal: it's a certificate-like product where you lock in a fixed rate for a set term (usually 3, 6, or 12 months). These rates are higher than regular savings—sometimes 4% to 5% depending on the term—but your money is locked away and you pay a penalty if you withdraw early.
Why Chase rates are lower than other banks
Chase is a large national bank with thousands of branches and ATMs. That physical footprint costs money to maintain. Online banks like Ally, Marcus, and Discover have no branches, so they pass the savings to customers through higher interest rates. Credit unions often pay more too, because they're member-owned and don't need to generate profits for shareholders.
Chase also makes money from the deposits you hold—they lend that money out at higher rates to other customers. They don't need to offer high savings rates to attract deposits because people open Chase accounts for convenience (the branch near their office, the familiar name, the debit card) rather than for interest.
This doesn't mean Chase is a bad choice. If you use Chase for checking, keeping savings in the same bank simplifies transfers and bill pay. But if your main goal is to earn interest on money you're not spending, you'll earn more elsewhere.
How to find out what rate you're actually earning
The rate Chase advertises online is not necessarily the rate you earn. Chase uses tiered rates based on your balance, and sometimes based on when you opened the account. A customer with $500 in savings might earn 0.01%, while a customer with $50,000 earns 0.05%—both in the same account type.
The only way to know your actual rate is to check your account. Log into Chase.com, go to your savings account, and look for "Interest Rate" or "APY" in the account details. You can also call Chase at 1-800-935-9935 and ask a representative to tell you the current rate on your specific account. Write it down—Chase doesn't always make this straightforward to find.
Your rate can change at any time. Chase doesn't always notify you when it drops. Check your rate every few months, especially after the Federal Reserve announces a rate change. If your rate has fallen significantly and you have a large balance, it may be worth moving to a competitor.
What happens when the Federal Reserve changes rates
When the Federal Reserve raises or lowers its benchmark interest rate, banks don't automatically adjust savings rates in lockstep. Chase typically waits a few weeks or months, and when it does move, it often moves less than the Fed did. If the Fed cuts rates by 0.5%, Chase might cut savings rates by 0.25% or less.
The reverse is also true: when the Fed raises rates, Chase raises savings rates slowly and by smaller amounts than the Fed moved. This is why savings rates at Chase lag behind rates at online competitors—online banks move faster and move more aggressively to stay competitive.
Comparing Chase to realistic alternatives
| Account Type | Chase Rate (Typical) | Online Bank Rate (Typical) | Difference on $10,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic Savings | 0.01% to 0.05% | 4.00% to 4.50% | $400 to $450 per year |
| Premium Savings | 0.10% to 0.15% | 4.00% to 4.50% | $385 to $440 per year |
| Fixed-Term Product | 4.00% to 5.00% | 4.50% to 5.25% | $5 to $125 per year |
These numbers change constantly. The rates shown are typical as of early 2024, but by the time you read this, they may have shifted. The gap between Chase and online banks has narrowed and widened several times over the past few years depending on Fed policy.
If you have $10,000 or more in savings that you're not using for emergencies or near-term expenses, moving it to an online bank's savings account could earn you $400 to $450 more per year than Chase. That's real money. If you have $1,000, the difference is $40 to $45 per year—less compelling, but still worth considering if you're opening a new account anyway.
When it makes sense to keep savings at Chase anyway
Chase makes sense for savings if you use Chase for checking and you move money between accounts frequently. The same-bank transfers are when ready and free, and you can see all your money in one login. If you're building an emergency fund and you're likely to dip into it, that convenience has value.
Chase also makes sense if you have a very small balance—under $1,000—where the interest difference is negligible. And it makes sense if you're using Chase find Savings and locking in a 4% to 5% rate for a few months, because those rates are competitive with what online banks offer for the same term.
Chase does not make sense for savings if you have $10,000 or more that you won't touch for at least a year and you're purely chasing interest. In that case, an online bank or credit union will pay you significantly more.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Chase charge fees on savings accounts?
Chase does not charge a monthly maintenance fee on most savings accounts, but it does charge fees for certain actions: $3 for each withdrawal beyond six per month (a federal limit that was suspended but Chase still enforces it), and $25 for overdrafts. If you link your savings to checking and overdraft protection is on, an overdraft from savings counts as a withdrawal.
Can I move my money to an online bank without closing my Chase account?
Yes. You can open a savings account at an online bank and transfer money from Chase without closing anything. You can keep your Chase checking account and move only the savings portion. Most online banks can pull money directly from your Chase account if you give them your routing number and account number.
What if I need my money quickly—does Chase pay interest daily or monthly?
Chase compounds interest daily and deposits it monthly. This means you earn a tiny bit of interest on your interest each day, but you only see the total added to your account once a month. The difference between daily and monthly compounding is negligible at Chase's rates.
Will my rate go back up if the Federal Reserve raises rates again?
Probably, but not by as much as the Fed moves and not as quickly as online banks will move. Chase has raised rates in the past when the Fed raised rates, but it has always lagged behind competitors and moved by smaller amounts. If you're waiting for rates to improve, you'll likely earn more money by switching to an online bank now rather than waiting.
Is my money safe at Chase if I keep it in savings?
Yes. Chase is a member of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), which means deposits up to $250,000 per account type are insured by the federal government. Your savings account is a separate account type from your checking account, so you have $250,000 of coverage in each.