John Egan is a veteran personal finance writer whose work has been published by outlets such as Bankrate, Experian, Newsweek Vault and Investopedia.
John Egan Personal Finance ExpertJohn Egan is a veteran personal finance writer whose work has been published by outlets such as Bankrate, Experian, Newsweek Vault and Investopedia.
Written By John Egan Personal Finance ExpertJohn Egan is a veteran personal finance writer whose work has been published by outlets such as Bankrate, Experian, Newsweek Vault and Investopedia.
John Egan Personal Finance ExpertJohn Egan is a veteran personal finance writer whose work has been published by outlets such as Bankrate, Experian, Newsweek Vault and Investopedia.
Personal Finance Expert Elizabeth Aldrich Banking WriterWith eight years of experience as a financial journalist and editor and a degree in economics, Elizabeth Aldrich has worked on thousands of articles within the realm of banking, economics, credit cards, investing, loans, personal finance and travel.
Elizabeth Aldrich Banking WriterWith eight years of experience as a financial journalist and editor and a degree in economics, Elizabeth Aldrich has worked on thousands of articles within the realm of banking, economics, credit cards, investing, loans, personal finance and travel.
Elizabeth Aldrich Banking WriterWith eight years of experience as a financial journalist and editor and a degree in economics, Elizabeth Aldrich has worked on thousands of articles within the realm of banking, economics, credit cards, investing, loans, personal finance and travel.
Elizabeth Aldrich Banking WriterWith eight years of experience as a financial journalist and editor and a degree in economics, Elizabeth Aldrich has worked on thousands of articles within the realm of banking, economics, credit cards, investing, loans, personal finance and travel.
Updated: Jun 7, 2024, 4:40am
Editorial Note: We earn a commission from partner links on Forbes Advisor. Commissions do not affect our editors' opinions or evaluations.
Getty
When you open an account at a bank or credit union, you may come across minimum requirements. Some banks and credit unions require you to deposit a minimum amount of money to open a checking, savings, CD or money market account. These financial institutions also may require you to meet certain minimum balance requirements to qualify for an APY or avoid a fee.
Here’s what you need to know about bank account minimum deposit and minimum balance requirements.
Generally, a minimum deposit is a set amount of money that a bank or credit union requires you to come up with to open an account or obtain certain benefits.
Below are two common minimum deposit types you may see.
A minimum opening deposit is a certain amount of money—usually $25 to $100—that a bank or credit union requires you to deposit to open a checking or savings account. Some financial institutions do not require a minimum opening deposit. For certificates of deposits (CDs), minimum opening deposits could be considerably higher.
To make a minimum opening deposit, you can typically transfer money from another financial institution or from another account at the same financial institution. You may also be able to make an opening deposit with a debit card, check or money order. Typically, you can initially deposit more money than is required.
In some cases, a bank or credit union might require you to make a minimum monthly deposit to qualify for certain account benefits. For instance, a minimum monthly deposit may be required to earn a higher APY on a savings account, or a minimum monthly deposit may be required to avoid a monthly fee for a savings account.
Minimum deposit amounts vary among banks and credit unions. Here are some examples of minimum opening deposit requirements across four different banking products:
Checking Accounts
Axos Bank Rewards Checking Bank of America Bank of America Advantage Plus Banking Capital One Capital One 360 Checking Varo Bank Account Wells Fargo Wells Fargo Everyday Checking See More See LessSavings Accounts
U.S. Bank Standard Savings Account Ally Bank Savings Account American Express National Bank American Express High-Yield Savings Account Marcus by Goldman Sachs Marcus by Goldman Sachs High-Yield Online Savings Account Quontic Bank Quontic Bank High Yield Savings See More See LessCDs
Ally Bank Certificates of Deposit Bank of America Bank of America Fixed Term Certificates of Deposit Bread Savings Bread Savings Certificate of Deposit Connexus Credit Union Connexus Credit Union Share Certificate First National Bank of America First National Bank of America Certificates of Deposit See More See LessMoney Market Accounts
Axos Bank High Yield Money Market CIT Bank Money Market Account First Internet Bank First Internet Bank Money Market Savings Sallie Mae Bank Sallie Mae Bank Money Market Account Synchrony Bank Synchrony Bank Money Market Account See More See LessMany banks and credit unions require that you keep a minimum amount of money in a checking or savings account. This is generally known as a minimum balance requirement. In some cases, maintaining a minimum balance may let you reduce or eliminate fees or earn a higher APY.
The amount required for a minimum balance may differ from that required for a minimum deposit.
Minimum balance requirements come in different forms, and your financial institution may require any one of these three:
The minimum balance on a bank statement can be calculated in various ways. Some banks use a straightforward minimum balance calculation method, where anytime your balance dips below that threshold, you’re automatically charged a fee for the month.
Other institutions use a “daily minimum balance” calculation that tracks your balance at the end or beginning of each business day and uses that amount to determine whether you’ve dipped below the limit. If a bank includes the word “average” in its requirements, it probably adds all your daily minimum balances for the month and divides that by the number of days in the month.
Sometimes, you can face consequences for failing to maintain a minimum balance. For instance, you may be hit with a monthly maintenance fee if your balance falls below the minimum. Or, you may need to keep a minimum balance to earn a certain amount of interest.
You can take a number of steps to avoid minimum balance requirements. Here are six of them:
Banks impose several different types of minimum balance requirements. If you don’t meet them, you may get charged a fee, lose any interest you were set to earn that month or forgo other perks. The best way to avoid minimum balance requirements is by opening one of the best fee-free bank accounts.
No, not all accounts at financial institutions have a minimum deposit requirement. However, for those that do, you may not be able to open an account if you can’t come up with the minimum deposit.
Minimum opening deposits vary among banks and credit unions and the type of account. If a minimum opening deposit is required for a checking account, for example, it’s often $25 to $100.
Some financial institutions require minimum deposits and balances to make money to cover overhead costs and lend money. A bank or credit union may consider an account with no money in it more hassle than it’s worth.
While some traditional savings accounts have no minimum balance requirements, most of them do. Major national banks typically require a minimum balance of around $300 to $500 or more to avoid monthly service fees ranging from $5 to $12 or more.
Was this article helpful? Share your feedback Send feedback to the editorial team Thank You for your feedback! Something went wrong. Please try again later.
By Taylor Tepper
By Rebecca Lake
By Kevin Payne
By Amanda Claypool
Information provided on Forbes Advisor is for educational purposes only. Your financial situation is unique and the products and services we review may not be right for your circumstances. We do not offer financial advice, advisory or brokerage services, nor do we recommend or advise individuals or to buy or sell particular stocks or securities. Performance information may have changed since the time of publication. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
Forbes Advisor adheres to strict editorial integrity standards. To the best of our knowledge, all content is accurate as of the date posted, though offers contained herein may no longer be available. The opinions expressed are the author’s alone and have not been provided, approved, or otherwise endorsed by our partners.
Personal Finance ExpertJohn Egan is a veteran personal finance writer whose work has been published by outlets such as Bankrate, Experian, Newsweek Vault and Investopedia.
© 2024 Forbes Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Are you sure you want to rest your choices?The Forbes Advisor editorial team is independent and objective. To help support our reporting work, and to continue our ability to provide this content for free to our readers, we receive compensation from the companies that advertise on the Forbes Advisor site. This compensation comes from two main sources. First, we provide paid placements to advertisers to present their offers. The compensation we receive for those placements affects how and where advertisers’ offers appear on the site. This site does not include all companies or products available within the market. Second, we also include links to advertisers’ offers in some of our articles; these “affiliate links” may generate income for our site when you click on them. The compensation we receive from advertisers does not influence the recommendations or advice our editorial team provides in our articles or otherwise impact any of the editorial content on Forbes Advisor. While we work hard to provide accurate and up to date information that we think you will find relevant, Forbes Advisor does not and cannot guarantee that any information provided is complete and makes no representations or warranties in connection thereto, nor to the accuracy or applicability thereof. Here is a list of our partners who offer products that we have affiliate links for.
