TIAA Bank Review: Is It Good?
If you have a large opening deposit, TIAA Bank provides a variety of options at high rates. But there are downsides. Read on to see if it's right for you.
Overall Score | 4.2 | ||
Savings | 4.0 | ||
CD | 4.5 | ||
Checking | 4.0 | ||
Money Market | 4.0 | ||
Customer Service | 5.0 | ||
Mobile App | 3.5 | ||
Pros and Cons
- High APY
- No monthly service fees
- Refund ATM fees
- Large minimum deposit
Bottom Line
Online bank offering high rates if you have a large deposit
Services Offered
- Yield Pledge Accounts. TIAA Bank's most popular products are its Yield Pledge Checking and Yield Pledge Money Market Account. Both accrue interest at a competitive rate. Your interest rate will depend on your balance tier.
- Basic Accounts. TIAA Bank also offers basic checking, savings, and CDs with lower minimum opening deposit requirements. The checking account doesn't accrue interest. The savings account and CDs do, but at a lower rate than what you'd receive on a high-yield account.
- Specialty CDs. It also has a variety of unique CD options, including the Bump Rate CD, which offers the option to "bump up" your interest rate one time during the term, if rates allow.
Most of the banking done with TIAA is online. All accounts can be opened online, but you can also call a customer service representative and apply over the phone if you are more comfortable with that.
Keep reading to learn if TIAA Bank may be right for you.
Since TIAA Bank transactions take place mostly online, it helps to know how you can access your funds.
The easiest way is via ATM. If you have a TIAA checking account, you'll receive a TIAA ATM card, which you can use at any TIAA, Allpoint, and MoneyPass ATM for no fee.
If you don't have a checking account, you can electronically transfer your funds to an external bank account that does give you ATM access.
TIAA Bank also offers the option to pay your bills online directly from your TIAA bank account and send money to friends and family via electronic transfer, PayPal, or a mailed check.
You can apply for a purchase mortgage, refinance, or home equity loan from TIAA Bank. They offer a wide range of loan products, including low down payment loans and jumbo loans. TIAA Bank is a nationwide lender, which opens up the possibility for borrowers throughout the US to compare TIAA's offerings when shopping for a mortgage loan.
Reasons We Like TIAA Bank
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- TIAA's basic checking and/or savings accounts have no monthly fee. It only requires a low $25 minimum deposit to open.
- You can get your ATM fees reimbursed. If you use an ATM that isn't a TIAA, Allpoint, or MoneyPass ATM, the bank providing the funds may charge you a fee. TIAA Bank will reimburse those fees up to $15 per month if you have an average daily balance of less than $5,000 in your account. If you have an average daily balance of more than $5,000, TIAA Bank doesn't limit the number of reimbursed ATM fees.
- TIAA Bank offers 10 different CD lengths. TIAA Bank has 10 different CDs available with differing maturity dates. While you need $5,000 to open a High Yield CD, you have several options. You can make the CD a part of your IRA. You can also choose to automatically roll the CD over upon maturity.
- You can use mobile deposit to deposit your checks. Since TIAA Bank is mostly online, it's helpful to know that you can deposit your checks just by taking a picture of your check via the TIAA mobile app.
- The High Yield Checking, Money Market, and CDs don't charge a monthly fee. TIAA Bank is very transparent with their fees. The High Yield accounts that offer the most competitive APYs don't charge a monthly fee. Keep in mind, though, you may pay for ATM transactions if you don't keep a minimum $5,000 balance in your High Yield accounts.
- The TIAA mobile app makes it easy to transfer funds, pay bills, and check balances on while on the go. You can transfer funds to internal accounts, pay your monthly bills, or reconcile your accounts on your mobile phone, which gives you 24/7 access to your TIAA bank accounts.
- TIAA Bank promises a high level of security while banking online or on the app. They use two-factor authentication for log-ins; have free malware protection; and provide alerts via email or text based on the thresholds you set in your accounts.
- You can name beneficiaries for your savings accounts. This can help prevent your funds from being tied up in probate. Naming beneficiaries directly on the account allows those funds to go to a specific person or persons, avoiding probate.
- You can set up direct deposit to make depositing your funds easier. If your employer offers direct deposit, you can have some or all of your check deposited directly in your TIAA Bank account. This can save you the few steps that mobile deposit takes. It also helps to make your funds available as soon as your employer pays them.
- You can set up contactless payments, such as Apple Pay or Google Pay. TIAA Bank helps you turn your mobile phone into a credit card by setting up this option in your TIAA Bank app.
As of June 4, 2018, EverBank became TIAA Bank. This change allowed EverBank to offer its clients even more robust account options and digital banking options. The rates and accounts with EverBank remained the same; just the name changed. TIAA Bank is slowly transforming checks, debit cards, and credit cards with their name. In the meantime, the only difference for EverBank customers is where they go to bank online.
Reasons You May Want to Look Elsewhere
- There is no high-yield savings account option. It only offers checking and money market for its Yield Pledge accounts that offer competitive interest rates. The basic savings account's APY is a little lower than rates offered by other online banks, though yields are still competitive.
- Unless you live in Florida, you must conduct your banking online. If you are looking for a bank you can visit in person and conduct business, you have to live in Florida, near one of TIAA's four branches to do so.
How It Compares
Capital One 360: If you have less than $500 to open an account with, Capital One 360 may be a better option as they don't have any account minimums. Like TIAA Bank, they also don't charge any monthly fees. Capital One 360 offers checking and savings accounts as well as CDs.
TIAA Bank | Capital One | |
---|---|---|
360 Performance Savings - 4.30% APY - | ||
Benefits and Features | ||
Savings | ||
CD | Basic CD: 3.95% - 5.25% APY. Terms of 3 months to 5 years. Minimum deposit of $1,000. No monthly service fee. | 4.30% to 5.25% APY. Terms of 6 months to 5 years. 12-month CD APY of 5.00% |
Checking | Yield Pledge Checking: Up to 0.25% APY. Minimum deposit of $100. No monthly service fee. | |
Money Market | Up to 4.75% APY. No monthly service fee. Minimum deposit of $500. | |
Blank fields may indicate the information is not available, not applicable, or not known to CreditDonkey. Please visit the product website for details. TIAA Bank: Pricing information from published website as of 09/02/2023. Capital One: Pricing information from published website as of 09/21/2023. |
Synchrony: If you are in the market for a high-yield savings account, Synchrony may be a decent competitor for your business. Synchrony doesn't offer a high-yield checking account though. Their main focus is on savings and CDs.
TIAA Bank | Synchrony Bank | |
---|---|---|
High Yield Savings - 4.75% APY - | ||
Benefits and Features | ||
Savings | 4.75% APY. No monthly service fee and no minimum deposit. An ATM card is provided for easy withdrawal. Synchrony will refund ATM fees for other banks up to $5 per statement cycle | |
CD | Basic CD: 3.95% - 5.25% APY. Terms of 3 months to 5 years. Minimum deposit of $1,000. No monthly service fee. | 2.25% to 5.40% APY. Terms of 3 months to 5 years. No minimum deposit to open. |
Checking | Yield Pledge Checking: Up to 0.25% APY. Minimum deposit of $100. No monthly service fee. | |
Money Market | Up to 4.75% APY. No monthly service fee. Minimum deposit of $500. | 2.25% APY. No monthly service fee and no minimum deposit. |
Blank fields may indicate the information is not available, not applicable, or not known to CreditDonkey. Please visit the product website for details. TIAA Bank: Pricing information from published website as of 09/02/2023. Synchrony Bank: Pricing information from published website as of 09/22/2023. |
Ally: Ally also offers a full gamut of high-yield accounts, including checking, savings, and CDs. They don't require a minimum opening deposit and their interest rates are often competitive with TIAA Bank's rates.
TIAA Bank | Ally Bank | |
---|---|---|
Online Savings Account - 4.25% APY - | ||
Benefits and Features | ||
Savings | ||
CD | Basic CD: 3.95% - 5.25% APY. Terms of 3 months to 5 years. Minimum deposit of $1,000. No monthly service fee. | 3.00% to 5.15% APY. Terms of 3 months to 5 years. 12-month CD APY of 4.85% |
Checking | Yield Pledge Checking: Up to 0.25% APY. Minimum deposit of $100. No monthly service fee. | 0.10% APY for daily balances less than $15,000. 0.25% APY for daily balances over $15,000 |
Money Market | Up to 4.75% APY. No monthly service fee. Minimum deposit of $500. | |
Mobile App | ||
Blank fields may indicate the information is not available, not applicable, or not known to CreditDonkey. Please visit the product website for details. TIAA Bank: Pricing information from published website as of 09/02/2023. Ally Bank: Pricing information from published website as of 09/22/2023. |
Bottom Line
If you're looking for a place to park more than $500 that isn't affected by the market, TIAA Bank offers a variety of options at competitive rates. It guarantees that the yield on your Yield Pledge Checking or Money Market Account account will stay in the top 5% of competitive accounts offered in the U.S. banking market.
Chase Total Checking® - $200 Bonus
- New Chase checking customers enjoy a $200 bonus when you open a Chase Total Checking® account and set up direct deposit
- Access to more than 15,000 Chase ATMs and more than 4,700 branches
- Chase Mobile® app - Manage your accounts, deposit checks, transfer money and more -- all from your device.
- JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Member FDIC
- Open your account online now
- Available online nationwide except in Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto Rico. For branch locations, visit locator.chase.com.
- Chase Overdraft Assist℠ - no overdraft fees if you're overdrawn by $50 or less at the end of the business day or if you're overdrawn by more than $50 and bring your account balance to overdrawn by $50 or less at the end of the next business day*
Bank of America Business Advantage Checking Account - $200 Bonus Offer
- Open a new eligible business checking account by December 31, 2023
- Make Qualifying Deposits* of $5,000 or more in new money within 30 days of opening the new eligible business checking account
- Maintain an average balance of $5,000 for the next 60 days (day 31-90) during the maintenance period**
**The maintenance period begins thirty-one (31) days after account opening and ends ninety (90) calendar days after account opening.
Member FDIC
Citi Priority - Earn up to $2,000 Cash Bonus
- Earn up to $2,000 when you open a new eligible Citi checking account and enroll in the offer the same day
- New to Relationship customers can choose their Relationship Tier.
- Within 20 days of opening, deposit the minimum amount of new-to-Citibank funds.
- Maintain a minimum balance for 60 consecutive calendar days from the 21st day.
- If your balance falls to a lower Balance Level at any point during the maintenance period, the bonus changes.
- Bonus will be paid within 30 days after you successfully complete all required activities.
- Restrictions apply.
Discover Online Savings - $200 Cash Bonus
To get your $150 or $200 Bonus: What to do: Apply for your first Discover Online Savings Account, online, in the Discover App or by phone. Enter Offer Code CY923 when applying. Deposit into your account a total of at least $15,000 to earn a $150 Bonus or deposit a total of at least $25,000 to earn a $200 Bonus. Deposit must be posted to account within 30 days of account open date. Maximum bonus eligibility is $200.
What to know: Offer not valid for existing or prior Discover savings customers or existing or prior customers with savings accounts that are co-branded, or affinity accounts provided by Discover. Eligibility is based on primary account owner. Account must be open when bonus is credited. Bonus will be credited to the account within 60 days of the account qualifying for the bonus. Bonus is interest and subject to reporting on Form 1099-INT. Offer ends 12/14/2023, 11:59 PM ET. Offer may be modified or withdrawn without notice. See advertiser website for full details.
CIT Bank Platinum Savings - 5.05% APY
- 5.05% APY with a balance of $5,000 or more
- 0.25% APY with a balance of less than $5,000
- $100 minimum opening deposit
- No monthly maintenance fee
- Member FDIC
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