Best savings account for £20,000

Earn up to 6.15% with easy access, 5.17% tax-free or 4.8% in a fixed-rate bond.

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Chris Lilly

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The best savings account for £20,000 is likely to be the one that pays you the most interest while giving you the level of access that you need. You can usually get a better rate if you're willing to give a certain amount of notice before making withdrawals or to commit to not making withdrawals at all for an agreed period. Plus, since you can invest £20,000 each year into an ISA, your savings can earn you tax-free interest. We scour savings rates daily to help you find a good home for your hard-earned £20,000.

We scan the savings market daily and automatically update the best offers highlighted throughout this guide.

What is the best interest rate for £20,000 savings?

In terms of tax-free savings, Moneybox is currently offering 5.17% on an easy access ISA. If you're happy to give 30 days notice before making any withdrawals, then GB Bank is currently offering 4.75%. If you're happy to consider a fixed-rate ISA (where you won't be able to access your savings during the fixed term), you could earn 4.5% over 12 months with Hampshire Trust Bank or 4.52% over 13 months with Virgin Money.

Outside of ISAs, you could earn 6.15% with easy access at Leeds Building Society, 5.2% on Plum's 95-day notice account or 4.8% on Habib Bank Zurich plc's 12-month fixed-rate bond (note that you typically can't access your money at all with a fixed-rate bond).

Summary of best rates on £20,000

Best easy access Leeds Building Society – Shared Ownership Saver (Issue 2) (6.15%)
Best cash ISA Moneybox – Moneybox Cash ISA (5.17%)
Best fixed-rate bond Habib Bank Zurich plc – HBZ Fixed Rate eDeposit Account (4.8%)
Best notice account Plum – 95-day Notice Pocket - Premium (5.2%)
Best current account Brown Shipley (4.07%)

Even greater returns may be possible with investment products such as a stocks and shares ISA, if you're willing to risk getting back less than you originally invested. Only consider stocks if you won't need to spend the money for several years (5 years is a widely-used rule of thumb).

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How much interest will I earn on £20,000?

With £20,000 in Moneybox's easy access cash ISA paying 5.17% you'd earn £1,034.00 over a year, or £86.17 per month. Vanquis Bank's 4.5% 30-day notice account would pay £900.00 over a year (£75.00 monthly), while Hampshire Trust Bank's 4.5% 1-year fixed-rate ISA would pay £900.00 over a year (£75.00 monthly).

For those who have already used their 2024/2025 ISA allowance, or who are willing to consider forfeiting access to their savings altogether for the duration of a fixed-rate bond, Plum's 5.2% 95-day notice account would pay £1,040.00 over a year (£86.67 monthly) on £20,000, while Habib Bank Zurich plc's 12-month fixed rate bond would pay £960.00 over a year (£80.00 monthly).

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Will my £20,000 be safe in a savings account?

£20,000 is well below the £85,000 limit that the FSCS (Financial Services Compensation Scheme) pledges to compensate in the event that a UK bank or building society (authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority, which you can check on the Financial Services Register) goes bust.

This limit is per person, per bank (or building society). So bear in mind that if you already have £75,000 invested with say, Virgin Money, and then you open a new Virgin Money savings account with a further £20,000, then £10,000 of your overall holdings with Virgin Money would not be covered in the event that the bank collapsed.

What about a current account?

Traditionally, current accounts haven't paid great interest, and many people prefer to hold their savings in a completely separate account. However, some current accounts are now offering interest rates capable of rivalling savings products. Bear in mind that if you've used your personal savings allowance for the 2024/2025 tax year (£1,000 of interest for basic rate taxpayers, £500 for higher rate and £0 for additional rate), then the interest you earn in a current account will be taxable.

Brown Shipley is currently paying 4.07% on balances in its current account.

You can also check out today's bank switching offers, which pay out a one-off sum. You won't even need to transfer your £20,000 for this, but other "strings", like minimum monthly contributions, do usually apply.

Frequently asked questions

We show offers we can track - that's not every product on the market...yet. Unless we've said otherwise, products are in no particular order. The terms "best", "top", "cheap" (and variations of these) aren't ratings, though we always explain what's great about a product when we highlight it. This is subject to our terms of use. When you make major financial decisions, consider getting independent financial advice. Always consider your own circumstances when you compare products so you get what's right for you. Most of the data in Finder's comparison tables has the source: Moneyfacts Group PLC. In other cases, Finder has sourced data directly from providers.
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Chris Lilly is Head of publishing at finder.com. He's a specialist in personal finance, from day-to-day banking to investing to borrowing, and is passionate about helping UK consumers make informed decisions about their money. In his spare time Chris likes forcing his kids to exercise more. See full bio

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Chris has written 602 Finder guides across topics including:
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