How Does Apple Card Savings Compare to the Best Savings Account Rates?

Apple (AAPL) launched its own savings account product back in April, offering Apple Card holders the chance to easily sock away cash savings and earn a respectable interest rate. Apple Card Savings charges no monthly fees and has no minimum required balance, and it pays an interest rate of 4.15% APY.

But this is just one of numerous options you have for putting your savings to work. In fact, we track the best high-yield savings accounts every business day, and our daily ranking currently includes more than a dozen options that pay 5.15% APY or more. That’s at least one percentage point higher than Apple’s rate. And you can outperform Apple Card Savings even more by choosing the highest nationwide rate of 5.40% APY.

Money market accounts also offer excellent rates for money you can stash away. Though not currently paying quite as much as the best high-yield savings account, the leader at the top of our best money market account rankings is paying 5.25%.

Today’s high rates are thanks to the Federal Reserve and its aggressive campaign since March 2022 to combat decades-high inflation. The Fed has raised the federal funds rate 11 times for a cumulative increase of 5.25%, taking the benchmark rate to its highest level since 2001. Since the fed funds rate directly influences what banks are willing to pay customers on their deposits, this surge from the Fed has also caused savings account, money market account, and certificate of deposit rates to skyrocket as well.

So what’s smarter for your money, an Apple Card Savings account or one of the top-paying high-yield savings account? There’s no doubt you can earn more interest with a savings account paying 5.15% or even 5.40%, rather than Apple’s 4.15% APY. So mathematically speaking, you’d be well served to move at least some of your cash into a savings account paying one of the nation’s top rates.

But of course math is only one consideration. Since our lives are busy, convenience is also valuable. If you already hold an Apple credit card and find Apple Card Savings to be immensely easy and seamless, then perhaps it’s worth the loss of a percentage point or more in interest every month. It also depends on how much you hold in savings. Someone with just a $1,000 balance may only be missing out on $10 a year in lost interest by sticking with Apple. But if you have $25,000 in savings, the amount you’re leaving on the table is $250 or more.

One thing that’s disappointing for Apple savers is that Apple has not raised its rate in six months, while the top rate for high-yield savings accounts has continued to climb during that time. It’s unknown if the Federal Reserve will be raising rates again, but it’s possible. And if they do, the best high-yield savings account rate will continue to climb higher.

Though we reached out to Apple for comment on their plans for potential rate increases in the future, they did not respond.

Rate Collection Methodology Disclosure

Every business day, Investopedia tracks the rate data of more than 200 banks and credit unions that offer CDs and savings accounts to customers nationwide and determines daily rankings of the top-paying accounts. To qualify for our lists, the institution must be federally insured (FDIC for banks, NCUA for credit unions), and the account’s minimum initial deposit must not exceed $25,000.

Banks must be available in at least 40 states. And while some credit unions require you to donate to a specific charity or association to become a member if you don’t meet other eligibility criteria (e.g., you don’t live in a certain area or work in a certain kind of job), we exclude credit unions whose donation requirement is $40 or more. For more about how we choose the best rates, read our full methodology.