Best Online Banks
Full-service online-first banking, judged on checking and savings strength together.
By Alex Compton · Updated
A real online bank has to win on both sides: a checking account you can live out of and a savings rate that does not embarrass you. Branchless banks save on overhead and the good ones pass it back as zero fees, ATM rebates, and yield. These are the institutions strong enough to be your only bank.
#1 · Best overall
Ally Bank Spending Account
Under review
Under review
Under review
Current recommendation withheld pending official-source verification.
#2 · Best for yield
SoFi Checking and Savings
Under review
Under review
Under review
Current recommendation withheld pending official-source verification.
#3 · Best one-account setup
Fidelity Cash Management Account
Under review
Under review
Under review
Current recommendation withheld pending official-source verification.
#4 · Best for travelers
Charles Schwab Schwab Bank Investor Checking
0.45%
$0
None
Unlimited ATM fee rebates anywhere on earth plus zero foreign transaction fees on the debit card, a combination that saves frequent travelers hundreds a year. It pays 0.45% on checking and opens with a free linked Schwab brokerage for instant transfers to investments. Decades of track record, no fintech middleman.
#5 · Best online bank with a physical escape hatch
Capital One 360 Checking
0.10% on all balances
$0
None
All the online-bank virtues, zero fees, 70,000+ free ATMs, no overdraft fees, plus cafes and branches that take cash deposits, which no pure-online rival can say. The companion 360 Performance Savings pays 3.00%, the only big-branch-bank savings rate within sight of online leaders.
#6 · Best bundled rate
Axos Bank Axos ONE (successor to Rewards Checking)
Under review
Under review
Under review
Current recommendation withheld pending official-source verification.
#7 · Best credit union online bank
Alliant Credit Union High-Rate Checking
Under review
Under review
Under review
Current recommendation withheld pending official-source verification.
Bottom Line
Ally remains the safest answer to the question of one bank for everything. SoFi pays you more for the same decision if your paycheck comes with you, and Axos ONE pays the most of all if you can reliably clear its hurdles. Fidelity and Schwab are the power-user picks where checking is really a brokerage in disguise. Any of these makes a branch bank feel like a museum.
Updated 2026-06-11
Head-to-Head Comparisons
Torn between two picks? We break these matchups down dimension by dimension.
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