The Ally Spending Account (formerly Ally Interest Checking Account) is a great online checking account that doesn't charge any service fees. It now offers early direct deposit, so you can receive your paycheck up to two days early. The bank also reimburses you for ATM fees charged by out-of-network providers. Overall, Ally is one of the best online banks out there.
no monthly service fee
0.10% to 0.25%
$0
N/A
- Spending buckets to manage expenses
- Competitive APY
- No initial deposit
- No minimum account balance
- No monthly service charge
- Connect your account with Zelle
- Easy-to-use mobile app
- Early direct deposit
- Reimburses up to $10/month in out-of-network ATM fees
- Online bill pay
- 24/7 customer service
- No overdraft fees
- Overdraft protection
- No physical branch locations
- No way to deposit cash
- You can deposit checks right from your smartphone
- Manage expenses by creating spending buckets
- Ally reimburse's up to $10 per statement cycle for fees charged at other ATMs nationwide
- Transfer money with your voice through Ally Skill™ for Amazon Alexa
- Interest compounded daily, paid monthly
- FDIC insured
What is Ally Spending?
The Ally Spending Account is Ally Bank's only checking account option. It's an online-only bank account, meaning you can only manage it through online and mobile banking. Ally doesn't have physical branches, and you can't make cash deposits.
Ally Spending Account Features
Minimal Bank Fees
The Ally Spending Account does not have many common bank fees. It has no monthly service fee, no overdraft fees, and no incoming wire transfers. You may also receive up to $10 in out-of-network ATM reimbursements per month.
High-Yield Interest Rate
You'll receive a 0.10% APY if your balance is under $15,000, and 0.25% if your balance is $15,000 or more. This interest is compounded daily and paid monthly.
In comparison, the average interest-earning checking account pays 0.07% APY, according to the FDIC. To see which banks currently pay the highest rates, see Business Insider's picks for the best high-yield checking accounts.
Digital Banking Features
With Ally, you can set up online bill pay directly from your Ally account, and you can link the account to Zelle to transfer money directly between your checking account and others' bank accounts. You can deposit checks digitally, but you can't deposit cash, though.
Federal Insurance
The Ally Spending Account is federally insured by the FDIC. You can keep up to $250,000 per depositor per account category in the account, and it will be protected in the event of a bank failure. The FDIC will protect consumer bank accounts and ensure you have access to your insured deposits after the bank collapse. Either your money will be moved to an FDIC-insured bank that acquires the failed bank's assets, or a check will be sent to your home.
Benefits of Ally Spending
Ally Spending Buckets
Ally has spending buckets to help manage your spending for different categories, like groceries or rent. You can make up to 30 spending buckets at once. You'll still earn interest on buckets (the exact rate will depend on your checking balance). You can also set up automatic distribution to move money across your buckets after a certain date, like right after you get your paycheck.
Ally's spending buckets are a unique feature that aren't found in most checking accounts. If you are looking for tools to help you budget, then the Ally Spending Account may be worth exploring.
Minimal ATM Fees
You have access to over 75,000 Allpoint® and MoneyPass ATMs throughout the United States. If you use an out-of-network ATM provider charges you a fee, Ally will reimburse you up to $10 per month.
Usually, brick-and-mortar banks offer ATM reimbursements to customers with a certain checking account or who maintain a specific balance. Online banks, like Ally, are more likely to offer monthly reimbursements for ATM fees without having to meet certain requirements.
Early Direct Deposits
Ally has early direct deposit, so you may receive your paycheck up to two days early. You can set up to eight early direct deposits per statement cycle, as long as the paycheck amount is a maximum of $10,000.
Ally Spending Account Pros and Cons
Pros
- Earn 0.10% APY for daily account balances under $15,000, and 0.25% APY for balances of $15,000 or more
- $0 minimum opening deposit and no monthly service fee
- Large ATM network and up to $10 in ATM reimbursements each month
- 24/7 banking customer support
- No overdraft fees and free overdraft protection
- Spending bucket to manage expenses
Cons
- No physical locations
- Can't deposit cash
Opening an Ally Spending Account
Setting up an Ally Spending Account online is relatively quick. On the online application, you'll enter general information about yourself, like your full name, occupation, contact information, and address. You must be at least 18 years old and use a Social Security number to open Ally bank accounts.
Ally doesn't require an opening deposit or a minimum account balance. However, once you make a deposit, it will take a few business days for any money you transfer from an external bank account to appear in your Ally account.
Ally User Experience and Accessibility
Ally Bank is a banking institution known for operating entirely online and providing loans and deposit accounts.
Live customer service is available 24/7, both by phone and online chat.
The Ally mobile app has received 4.7 out of 5 stars in the Apple store based on 72,900 ratings and 2.7 out of 5 stars in the Google Play store based on 27,100 reviews.
Is Ally Trustworthy?
We use ratings from the Better Business Bureau so you can see how a bank deals with customer issues.
Ally received an A rating from the BBB because it has several unresolved complaints on the BBB website.
A good BBB rating isn't necessarily the be-all and end-all. Talk to current customers or read online customer reviews to see if a financial institution might be a good fit.
Ally doesn't have any recent public controversies.
Is the Ally Spending Account Right for You?
You may like the Ally Spending Account (formerly Ally Interest Checking Account) if you prefer to do all your banking with one institution. You can also open a high-yield savings account, money market account, and CD with Ally.
Ally is also one of the best banks for avoiding overdraft fees. In 2021, the bank eliminated overdraft fees on all accounts.
If you set up a savings or money market account with Ally, you can request free overdraft protection. When you overdraw your checking account while enrolled in this service, the money is automatically transferred from your savings or money market account. This way, you won't risk your transaction being denied.
This account is good for people who don't have a problem banking digitally. There are no physical branch locations, so if you're happy doing everything online, through an app, or over the phone, you may find Ally is right for you.
Ally Spending Account Alternatives
Ally Spending Account vs. Capital One 360 Checking
Neither Ally nor Capital One 360 Checking charges users monthly fees to maintain a checking account. Both companies allow you to connect with Zelle, and both make it easy to deposit checks digitally.
Capital One does have physical branch locations (although they are limited). If there's a branch near you, you may prefer Capital One if you like in-person banking.
If you have more than $15,000, you may prefer to go with Ally, which pays 0.25% APY.
Capital One offers several options for overdraft protection. You may choose to transfer money from your savings or money market account (like you would with Ally), settle for having your purchase denied, or no-fee overdrafts. No-fee overdraft is a service where Capital One approves check payments, bill payments, or recurring debit payments even if it would create a negative balance for your account. To qualify, you'll need to receive at least $250 in direct deposits during two of the three previous months.
At Ally, you can link your checking account to another account or sign up for CoverDraft. CoverDraft will allow you to overdraw up to $100 ($250 if you have direct deposit set up), and you'll have 14 days to restore your account balance without paying any overdraft fees.
Capital One does provide access to ATMs, but unlike Ally, the bank doesn't reimburse out-of-network ATM fees. Capital One also isn't known for having customer service as strong as Ally's.
Ally Spending Account vs. Chime Checking
Both Chime® and Ally are online-only banking institutions. Both offer conveniences like mobile check deposit and early direct deposit.
However, Ally has an interest-earning checking account, while Chime Checking Account doesn't pay interest on its checking account.
You also might prefer Ally if you'd like to open a money market account or CDs. Chime doesn't offer these types of accounts.
Why You Should Trust Us: How We Reviewed the Ally Spending Account
For our Ally Spending Account review, we used our checking account methodology. At Business Insider, we rate products on a scale from one to five stars. We also compare and contrast the features and fine print of various products to help determine if the account may be right for you. Our checking methodology, specifically, takes into account the minimum opening deposit, monthly service fees, overdraft protection options, ATM network/fees, customer support availability, mobile app ratings, miscellaneous features, and security and ethics of a company.
We use a weighted average to get our star rating, which means we weigh certain features, like interest rates and fees, at a higher weight percentage than others. We understand that these areas can more heavily impact a person's overall banking experience.
Ally Spending Account FAQs
The Ally Spending Account pays 0.10% APY on daily balances under $15,000 and 0.25% APY on daily balances of $15,000 or more.
The Ally Spending Account has a $20 outgoing domestic wire transfer fee, a $15 stop payment fee, and an international transaction fee of up to 1% of the transaction amount.
You cannot deposit cash directly into the Ally Spending Account. If you need to deposit cash into your account, you'll have to deposit money into an external bank account that accepts cash deposits and make a transfer to your Ally Spending Account. That may take a few business days to process.
The Ally mobile app allow you to monitor your bank account balance, make mobile check deposits, and create spending buckets to help manage your expenses.
Ally has an excellent online checking account with minimal bank fees. Ally stands out as one of the best banks for avoiding overdrafts because it has several free overdraft protection plans.
If you have already set up direct deposit and received at least two qualifying direct deposits, you'll automatically qualify for early direct deposit. If you don't have direct deposit yet, you'll need to talk to your employer about setting up direct deposit. Once you've received two qualifying direct deposits, you may qualify for early direct deposit.
Yes, the Ally Spending Account has spending buckets. Spending buckets allow you to set aside money for specific expenses. You can create up to 30 buckets.
