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The United Services Automobile Association (USAA) presents itself as an alternative to big banks by catering exclusively to its members. USAA members must be active military, veterans or their family members.
As a USAA military member, you have access to various banking services and other financial products, such as personal loans, insurance and members-only mortgage rates.
In this guide, we’ll take a serious look at USAA savings account interest rates and your options for accounts. See if it matters how much your minimum balance is and find out how USAA’s current APY stacks up against other financial institutions.
To help you optimize your savings, we’ll dig into topics like:
As of April 2024, the main USAA savings account interest rate is 0.01%, regardless of your total balance. You can see an overview of the USAA savings accounts in the table below.
USAA Savings Account Interest Rates, Minimum Deposit Requirements & Fees
| Account name | APY | Minimum Deposit | Monthly Service Fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| USAA Savings | 0.01% | $25 | $0 |
| USAA Performance First | 0.05%–1.60% | $10,000 | $0 |
| USAA Youth Savings | 0.01% | $25 | $0 |
Keep in mind that all savings accounts with USAA have a monthly withdrawal limit. Make more than six withdrawal transactions from a single savings account in one month, and you may rack up excess withdrawal fees.
The USAA Savings account comes with the added perks of no monthly fees, and you only need a $25 minimum deposit to start saving. This is far less than the national average savings account interest rate of 0.47% but on par with the rates offered by many other brick-and-mortar banks.
USAA Performance First accounts can be an attractive option if you’re looking to maximize savings through a traditional account and have a decently sized nest egg waiting to be tucked away. But before you sign on the dotted line, let’s look at some of the details.
Unlike the other USAA savings accounts, which both assign a standard 0.01% APY to every account regardless of what your balance is, USAA Performance First has tiered rates. The larger your minimum balance, the greater your earning potential.
This chart illustrates how the APY rises alongside larger deposits.
| APY | Minimum daily deposit to earn APY |
|---|---|
| 0.05% | Under $10,000 |
| 0.10% | $10,000 – $24,999 |
| 0.10% | $25,000 – $49,999 |
| 1.00% | $50,000 – $99,999 |
| 1.10% | $100,000 – $249,999 |
| 1.20% | $250,000 – $499,999 |
| 1.60% | $500,000 – $999,999 |
| 1.60% | $1,000,000 or more |
USAA also offers a Youth Savings account intended for minors under 18 years of age. This option puts parents in control and gives kids the opportunity to learn about saving money without significant risk and without any fees to eat away at the principal. These accounts transition into a regular USAA savings account once the child comes of age.
The amount of interest you can earn with your USAA Savings account depends on the type of account you decide to open and how long you leave your money in the account.
Your minimum daily deposit is also a factor if you open a Performance First account instead of a regular Savings or Youth Savings account. The higher APY associated with the Performance First account means you could rack up considerably more interest over the years, but you’ll need enough capital to find the minimum balance of $10,000 at the outset.
Before we get to the math, let’s look at how the bank calculates interest. USAA compounds interest on a monthly basis. That means once per month, the USAA calculates and awards you interest based on the total amount of money in your account — that’s principle plus interest already accrued. This is much better than simple interest, which only generates earnings based on your principal.
Say your great-grandma Betty left you $20,000 in her will. You know you want to save that money to open a business after you’re finished with grad school, which will be about five years from now. Chances are you won’t have a lot of extra money to add to your account between now and that five-year mark, but you’re hoping the APY on your account will be enough to make you smile once it’s time to make a withdrawal.
Here’s how your savings might grow with the USAA Savings account.
| Account Type | Initial Deposit | APY | Total Interest Earned | Total Balance After 5 Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| USAA Savings | $20,000 | 0.01% | $10.00 | $20,010 |
Remember, these calculations assume you never make another deposit after you initially fund the account. If you keep adding to your rainy day fund, perhaps $100 per month, both your final balance and your total interest earned will be much higher.
With those parameters and a basic USAA Savings account, your final tally would grow from $20,010 to $26,011.48.
To get a better idea of how much you could earn, try using our savings calculator.
USAA interest rates of 0.01% sit below the national average savings account APY of 0.47%, but the bank is competitive with other large financial institutions.
Both Bank of America and Chase have savings account interest rates that start at 0.01%. Citibank’s is higher, with their basic savings account package offering 0.05% APY.
The biggest reason USAA stands out isn’t its interest rate, but its connection to the armed forces. The low minimum deposit is also a notch in the plus column, as is the lack of monthly fees. Easy access via an included ATM card and more than 100,000 in-network ATMs is also impressive.
To nab a savings account that offers high interest beyond the basic rates above, you’ll likely have to join an online-only bank. Institutions like Capital One and Ally don’t have the overhead associated with multiple brick-and-mortar locations, and their business model is more agile. The result is sky-high rates, though there may also be some restrictions (monthly maintenance fees and higher minimum deposits, for example).
| Savings account | APY | Minimum deposit | Monthly fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Synchrony savings account | 4.75% | $0 | $0 |
| Discover savings account | 4.30% | $0 | $0 |
| American Express savings account | 4.30% | $0 | $0 |
| Capital One savings account | 4.25% | $0 | $0 |
| Bank of America savings account | 0.01% - 0.04% | $100 | $8 (waivable) |
| Marcus savings account | 4.50% | $0 | $0 |
Lower-than-average interest rates might make you question if a USAA Savings account is the best savings account for you. But banking with USAA has other benefits beyond interest-earning potential.
Here are some pros and cons of banking at USAA.
To open a savings account with USAA, you first need to be a member of this military-focused financial institution. If you’re not already a member, you’ll need to join and be approved before you can continue with opening an account.
Members can open a savings account online by filling out an application, including personal information such as your legal name, date of birth, address and other key identifiers.
You’ll then need to fund the account through one of the following ways:
Because Performance First accounts require an opening deposit of at least $10,000, you must fund this account using your existing USAA checking or savings account. If this option doesn’t work for you, then you’ll need to discuss alternatives with USAA customer service.
Aside from the USAA savings account options mentioned above, you can avail yourself of other types of saving options, including a certificate of deposit (CD).
Standard CD terms at USAA run from 30 days to seven years. The APYs associated with USAA CDs typically exceed the interest rates you’d get with a savings account. Depending on the term, you could be eligible for between 0.05% and 5.25% APY.
But those higher interest rates come with a caveat. You’ll need at least $1,000 to open a standard CD with USAA Bank, which is considerably more than the $25 required to open a savings account.
As of April 2024, the current USAA savings rate for a standard Savings account is 0.01% APY. That’s considerably lower than the national average interest rate of 0.46% reported by the FDIC. You can always visit the FDIC’s national rates and rate caps page for up-to-date information on rates for CDs and other interest-bearing accounts held by institutions in the United States.
You can open a savings account with USAA for as little as $25. That’s the minimum account balance required by both a standard Savings account and the bank’s Youth Savings account. The higher-tier Performance First option requires a minimum deposit of $10,000.
USAA does not currently offer a high-yield savings account. The bank’s Performance First account has the highest APY available through the institution, but those rates of 0.05% to 1.60% APY, depending on your minimum daily balance, are still far below high-yield savings account rates offered by online banks. Those rates often exceed 4.5% APY.
A certificate of deposit (CD) isn’t better or worse than a savings account; it’s just different.
Standard savings accounts are intended to be used for periodic transactions. You may occasionally deposit or withdraw money even after you fund the account, and most banks are fine with that as long as you don’t exceed your transaction limit (otherwise, fees may apply).
Once you fund a CD, you’re not supposed to touch the money until the end of the agreed-upon limit. Having that money “locked down” could be great if you’re otherwise tempted to spend it, but if you think you might need access to your funds, a savings account might be a better route.
If you’d like to open a savings account at USAA for someone under the age of 18, you can help them open a USAA Youth Savings account. These accounts cater to young customers still learning about their financial options. As the parent or guardian, you have ultimate control over the account until your child turns 18. Then the Youth Savings account automatically becomes a standard USAA Savings account.
Alana Luna (Musselman) is a versatile storyteller with over a decade of writing experience. She is passionate about helping people build their business through unique and engaging content. Some examples of her current freelance projects include building content strategies for small businesses, completing industry research to build case studies, crafting buyer guides and more.
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