Australia's highest-interest savings account could earn you $1,700

Lianne said switching her savings account has allowed her to save more money for her holiday. (Source: 9News/Getty)

Aussies are being urged to find the best savings account interest rate because it could be earning you hundreds of dollars a year. While some people will stay with the same bank for years or even decades, it pays to shop around.

Australian Unity's Freedom Saver has one of the highest base interest rates for a savings account in the country at 5.20 per cent. For comparison, Westpac offers one of the lowest base interest rates at just 1.1 per cent.

If you have $40,000 in your account, you would earn $2,310 in a year in interest if you had an account with Australian Unity, compared to just $442 at Westpac, which is a difference of nearly $1,700.

RELATED

• One simple change could save Aussies $1261 a year

• Home loan ‘opportunity’ gives instant interest rate cut and $3,299 savings

• My 5-step home loan refinance guide that saves $618 per month

Lianne Jensen made the switch to a bank offering a higher interest rate and said the earnings have allowed her to get closer to a much-needed break.

"We all need a holiday ... just to get away and enjoy nature," she told 9News.

Rate City's Sally Tindall urged Aussies not to be complacent when it comes to their savings as a simple switch to another bank can mean hundreds of dollars.

Do you have a story? Email stew.perrie@yahooinc.com

Highest base savings account rates

These are the accounts where you can earn the highest amount of savings with no strings attached:

• Australian Unity's Freedom Saver: 5.20 per cent

• ANZ's Save Account: 4.90 per cent

• Bank of Queensland Simple Saver: 4.85 per cent

• Macquarie Bank Savings Account: 4.75 per cent

• Unity Bank's MoneyMAX Account: 4.75 per cent

Highest savings account rates... with strings attached

You can squeeze a few more dollars out of the bank if you play by their rules:

• ME's HomeME Savings Account: 5.55 per cent on balances up to $100,000 and you have to deposit at least $2,000 into a linked SpendME account every month.

• Bank of Queensland's Future Saver Account: 5.50 per cent on balances up to $50,000 but you can't be older than 35, you have to deposit at least $1,000 a month (cash and cheques not included), and make five settled, eligible transactions from a linked Everyday Account each month.

• MOVE Bank's Growth Saver: 5.50 per cent on balances up to $25,000 and you have to deposit at least $200 and make no withdrawals in a month.

• Ubank's Save Account: 5.50 per cent on balances up to $100,000 and deposit at least $500 into any Ubank account every month.

• ING's Savings Maximiser: 5.50 per cent on balances up to $100,000. You can only apply to one account, deposit at least $1,000 into any personal ING account in your name, make at least five settled purchases with an ING debit or credit card in a month, and the savings account must also have a higher closing balance than the previous month (excluding interest).

Consumer group CHOICE said Aussies need to read the fine print and make sure the account is right for them.

"When choosing which high-interest option to go for, don't fall for teasers or options with deposit or transaction conditions that you might find hard to meet," it wrote.

Get the latest Yahoo Finance news - follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram.