Savings rates storm higher: Here’s where to get the best deals

Savings rates are now as high as 5.65 per cent. (Source: Getty/ME Bank) (Samantha Menzies)

High interest rates might be bad news for mortgage holders, but Aussies with savings in the bank are seeing their rates go through the roof. Here are the best bonus-rate accounts, where savers can get the most for their money.

The top rate for your savings – with instant, unlimited access – is now 5.65 per cent, up from 5.5 per cent, and that’s without an official rate increase. ME Bank is now the holder of the top bonus savings account, pushing previous frontrunner, ING, into second spot… with both MOVE Bank and Teachers Mutual Bank (and its associated institutions). All three institutions offer a 5.5 per cent savings rate.

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To determine which one is the best deal for you, here’s a rundown of the conditions and criteria you need to qualify.

The best bonus rate accounts

First, ME Bank’s blow-the-competition-out-of-the-water product is an account with a minimum deposit amount of $2,000 a month and while you can make withdrawals, your account balance must also grow.

Second is ING which has always required $1,000 deposited into a personal ING account. But then you must make at least five settled card purchases per month using the linked ING debit card, as well as grow your account balance at the end of every month in order to receive the bonus interest. But competitor products have conditions that are less complicated.

Teachers Mutual Bank, for example, only requires a minimum $1,000 deposited, but you cannot make any withdrawals. The balance also needs to stay positive at all times. Then there is the more lenient Great Southern Bank and its 5.35 per cent product, which requires a $500 deposit by electronic transfer into your Everyday Edge account, and five card transactions per month.

Here's a breakdown of the top savings accounts, including their rates and conditions.

Top bonus savings accounts

ADI	Product	Bonus Rate	Condition
ME	HomeME Savings Account	5.65%	Minimum $2,000 must be deposited into connected SpendME account and have a higher closing balance than the last month.
ING	Savings Maximiser	5.50%	For customers who have an Orange Everyday and in each month deposit at least $1,000 into a personal ING account, make at least 5 settled card purchases using the linked ING debit card and grow the account balance higher at the end of the month (excluding interest) than it was at the end of the previous month.
MOVE Bank	Growth Saver	5.50%	Minimum deposit of $200 and no withdrawals in the month
Teachers Mutual Bank/ Health Professionals Bank/ Hiver/ Firefighters Mutual Bank/ UniBank	Target Saver	5.50%	Deposit a minimum of $1,000 per calendar month, make no withdrawals, and keep a positive balance at all times
Great Southern Bank	Goal Saver	5.35%	Deposit $500 by electronic transfer (excluding telegraphic transfers) into your Everyday Edge Account and make 5 card transactions per month.
source: mozo.com.au as at 15 August 2023, leading ongoing bonus saving rates at $10,000 balance, excluding age restricted and notice saver accounts.

Top bonus savings including age-restricted accounts and notice savings

ADI	Product	Intro Rate	Condition
ME	HomeME Savings Account	5.65%	Minimum $2,000 must be deposited into a connected SpendME account and have a higher closing balance than the last month.
Bank of Queensland	Future Saver Account - 14 to 35 years	5.50%	Ongoing bonus rate applied if in the previous month $1,000 or more is credited to the linked Everyday Account and 5 eligible transactions are made by the linked account. Bonus interest criteria waived for account holders 14-17 years of age.
ING	Savings Maximiser	5.50%	For customers who have an Orange Everyday and in each month deposit at least $1,000 into a personal ING account, make at least 5 settled card purchases using the linked ING debit card and grow the account balance higher at the end of the month (excluding interest) than it was at the end of the previous month.
Move Bank	Growth Saver	5.50%	Minimum deposit of $200 and no withdrawals in the month
Teachers Mutual Bank/ Health Professionals Bank/ Hiver/ Firefighters Mutual Bank/ UniBank	Target Saver	5.50%	Deposit a minimum of $1,000 per calendar month, make no withdrawals, and keep a positive balance at all times
Great Southern Bank	Goal Saver	5.35%	Deposit $500 by electronic transfer (excluding telegraphic transfers) into your Everyday Edge Account and make 5 card transactions per month.
Virgin Money	Boost Saver with Go Account - Lock Saver Feature	5.35%	Bonus interest 5.35% is made up of the Base rate of 0.05%, Bonus rate of 5.00% and Notice Interest Rate of 0.30%. It only applies when you deposit $1,000 into your Go Account and make 5 debit card purchases, direct debit or BPAY payments in the previous month and enable the Lock Saver feature.
Source: mozo.com.au as at 15 August 2023, leading ongoing bonus saving rates at $10,000 balance, including age restricted and notice saver accounts.

The key to choosing the most lucrative bonus savings account is matching the requirements with your lifestyle. You want the one that best suits you so that you can meet the requirements - failure to do so means you won’t earn the bonus interest rate, which could be significant.

A higher base rate could pay

The base rate on a savings account is guaranteed, even at times when you may end up forfeiting the bonus rate. But those stingy base rates are how savers are being slugged because, should you miss a month, the provider keeps most of the potential interest.

At the miserly end of the spectrum is Virgin Money, with which you are guaranteed just 0.05 per cent. It also doesn’t appear in the top ‘general’ products table because it also has a ‘notice interest rate’ of 0.3 per cent as part of its highest-possible 5.35 per cent interest. This extra 0.3 per cent applies when you activate a “lock saver feature”.

Virgin Money’s website says: “If you need to access your money, you’ll just need to give us 32 days’ notice. The 32 days automatically starts once you make a withdrawal or transfer from your locked account, or when you select to unlock your savings account. This can be done at any time within the mobile app.”

The lock saver feature only restricts getting your money out, not putting more in.

The highest base or guaranteed interest still comes from online-savings trailblazer ING, at 0.55 per cent. Next highest is Great Southern Bank, with 0.5 per cent of its top-possible 5.35 per cent comprised of base interest.

And that brings me to my final notable mention: Bank of Queensland. Its Future Saver Account is available for customers from age 14 to 35. The base rate is, again, a competitive 0.5 per cent, but the 5 per cent bonus rate is paid for every account holder 14 to 17 years of age. In other words, there are no conditions for these savers to earn the maximum interest rate.

For others - up to age 35 - the bonus rate is paid if $1,000 or more is credited to the linked Everyday Account and five eligible transactions are made. The situation is not dissimilar to ING.

Nicole Pedersen-McKinnon is the author of How to Get Mortgage-Free Like Me, available at www.nicolessmartmoney.com. Follow Nicole on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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