Wealthfront high-yield account review
- Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
-
4.25%
- Fee
- $0
- Minimum deposit to open
- $1
Our verdict
This cash account has sky-high rates, an optional debit card and no monthly fees.
Wealthfront Brokerage is a fintech and brokerage. Its Wealthfront Cash Account has a very high 4.25% APY, no monthly fees and only requires a $1 opening deposit. There are no requirements to earn that APY. You can also request a debit card to spend your funds, making it more similar to a money market account than a regular savings account. Another major perk is the extremely high FDIC insurance: up to $8 million. Wealthfront also uses the Allpoint ATM network with 19,000, but that’s only a fraction of the ATM network’s actual size of 55,000. While the high rate and few fees are great, Wealthfront doesn’t accept cash deposits or have physical branches.
Best for: High savings balances and if you want a no-fee, high-yield savings option.
Pros
-
High 4.25% APY with no requirements
-
No monthly fees
-
Optional debit card
-
High $8 million FDIC insurance
-
Unlimited withdrawals
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APY boost referral program
Cons
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$2.50 out-of-network ATM fee
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No physical branches
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No cash deposits
Who is the Wealthfront Cash Account best for?
If you want a high APY, no hassle and don’t mind online banking, the Wealthfront Cash Account is a great option. It’s also great for people with a savings balance of over $250,000, which is over the typical FDIC and NCUA coverage amount. Wealthfront offers up to $8 million in FDIC insurance thanks to its network of program banks.
If you want a full-service bank for things like personal loans, mortgages or multiple checking options, look elsewhere. The Wealthfront Cash Account is its only personal banking option, it doesn’t have physical branches and it can’t accept cash deposits.
What we like about the Wealthfront Cash Account
The Wealthfront Cash Account is sort of like a checking and savings account in one, but it’s a cash management account. Many cash management accounts come with a debit card, are designed for high balances, earn high APYs and are managed online.
To spend your funds and earn interest on your balance, you can request a Visa debit card issued by Green Dot. Or you can treat the account like a high-yield savings account and skip the debit card if you want to focus on building savings.
Low maintenance and high payout
We can’t help but love the lack of monthly fees, low opening deposit and the high APY — the Wealthfront Cash Account has all those perks and more.
The Wealthfront Cash Account has no monthly fees and requires only $1 to open. You earn the 4.25% APY on all balances, so there are no messy tiers or balance requirements to worry about. The rate is significantly higher than the national average of 0.43% for savings accounts, as reported by the FDIC.(1)
Same-day transfers and unlimited withdrawals
Transfers made before 9 p.m. on any day of the week typically clear that same day, often within a few hours. Wealthfront uses the Real-Time Payments (RTP) Network, which transfers quickly to other banks using the same network.
Also, Wealthfront’s account has unlimited withdrawals. Most traditional savings accounts only allow up to six withdrawals per month.
Earn a 3-month 0.50% APY boost for with the referral program
You and a friend can earn a 0.50% APY boost for three months with a successful referral. There’s no limit to the number of referrals you can make.
You’ll get the 0.50% APY boost the day after your referred friend completes their Cash Account application. Your friend gets their APY boost within 24 hours of funding their new account.
Investing options, too
Wealthfront is primarily known for its investing services. The Wealthfront investment account is entirely separate from the Cash Account. It’s a robo-advisor that creates a portfolio based on your responses to a financial questionnaire. You then approve or deny the portfolio, and Wealthfront invests your money for you. You can also choose from an individual investing account, joint investment account, IRAs or other investing account options.
It charges a 0.25% annual management fee, with $0 trading commissions and a $0 account transfer fee. If you want automated investing, Wealthfront offers an Automated Investing account that requires a $500 minimum deposit.
Where Wealthfront falls short
Wealthfront falls short where most other fintechs do: it doesn’t accept cash deposits and lacks physical branches. If you prefer in-person banking, the Wealthfront Cash Account may not suit your needs. But if you haven’t deposited physical cash or visited a branch in years, these downsides may not impact you at all.
Compare Wealthfront Cash Account to other savings accounts
Narrow down top accounts by fees, APYs and features. For a closer comparison, tick the Compare box on multiple options to see benefits side by side.
What is the Finder Score?
The Finder Score crunches over 250 savings accounts from hundreds of financial institutions. It takes into account the product's interest rate, fees, opening deposit and features - this gives you a simple score out of 10.
To provide a Score, Finder’s banking experts analyze hundreds of savings accounts against FDIC-reported national averages as a baseline. Accounts with rates well over the national average are scored the highest, while accounts with rates well below are scored low.
Customer experience
Overall, Wealthfront does alright in the realm of customer reviews and ratings — but truthfully, there aren’t a ton of ratings to really get a good look at the customer experience. It has an F rating with the Better Business Bureau (BBB), but it has received only 18 customer complaints in the last three years. It has a Trustpilot profile, but it’s not verified, and there are only 11 reviews to date.
Without physical branches to visit, resolving account issues can get tricky. Unhappy customers talk about poor customer service, difficulties contacting support and locked accounts. We’ve found these types of complaints are typical for online banks or fintechs, so that’s not surprising — still not great, but we’re not shocked.
On the other side of the fence, happy customers on Trustpilot praise the app’s ease of use, the 4.25% rate on the Cash Account and the hands-free robo-advisor. Other pleased customers say Wealthfront’s customer support reps were great and quickly helped them resolve minor issues.
Redditors are pretty satisfied with the Cash Account. Most remark that they just use the account like a savings account, thanks to its lack of monthly fees and high APY. Others also call out the optional debit card as a nice touch, as it gives them the option to spend their cash if needed. Wealthfront threads also frequently mention the referral bonus, with users sharing links with each other.
Frequently asked questions
Is a Wealthfront Cash Account safe?
Wealthfront itself is not a bank, but its Cash Accounts are covered by up to $8 million in FDIC deposit insurance through its bank partners.
Is there a penalty for withdrawing from a Wealthfront Cash Account?
No, Wealthfront doesn’t charge early withdrawal penalties or have any withdrawal limitations on its Cash Account. You can withdraw funds as often as you’d like. However, if you withdraw cash from a bank branch or out-of-network ATM, there is a $2.50 fee. Wealthfront offers access to over 19,000 Allpoint ATMs where you can withdraw cash with no fees.
Savings account ratings
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Your reviews
Bethany Finder
Editor, Banking
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