Personal Finance Banking Savings
Written by Laura Grace Tarpley, CEPF; reviewed by Evelyn He
Updated
- Overall Bank Rating
- Pros and Cons
- High-Yield Savings
- SmartyPig Account
- CDs
- Money Market Account
- About Sallie Mae
- How Sallie Mae Bank Compares
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Sallie Mae CD Specials - powered by Raisin
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Sallie Mae 14 Month CD
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Sallie Mae 10 Month CD
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Sallie Mae 14 Month No-Penalty CD
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
5.05%
Minimum Deposit
$1
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
5.00%
Minimum Deposit
$1
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
4.75%
Minimum Deposit
$1
On Raisin's website
On Raisin's website. FDIC Insured Account.
On Raisin's website
Compare Sallie Mae bank accounts
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Sallie Mae High-Yield Savings Account
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Sallie Mae SmartyPig Account
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Sallie Mae CD
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Sallie Mae Money Market Account
Editor's Rating
4.5/5
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
4.50%
Minimum Deposit
$0
Editor's Rating
4.25/5
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
4.25%
Minimum Deposit
$0 ($0.01 balance to earn interest)
Editor's Rating
3.75/5
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
4.00% to 5.10%
Minimum Deposit
$2,500
Editor's Rating
4.25/5
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
4.65%
Minimum Deposit
$0
On Sallie Mae's website
On Sallie Mae's website
Start saving
On Sallie Mae's website
Sallie Mae Bank: Overall Rating
| Feature | Insider rating (out of 5) |
| High-yield savings | 4.5 |
| SmartyPig | 4.25 |
| Money market account | 3.75 |
| CD | 4.25 |
| Trustworthiness | 5 |
| Total | 4.25 |
Sallie Mae Bank Pros and Cons
| Pros | Cons |
|
|
Sallie Mae High-Yield Savings Account Rates
Sallie Mae High-Yield Savings Account
On Sallie Mae's website
Insider’s Rating
4.5/5
Fees
no monthly service fee
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
4.50%
Minimum Opening Deposit
$0
Pros
- Pays high interest rate
- No minimum opening deposit
- No monthly service fees
Cons
- Some online banks pay slightly higher rates
Product Details
- Earn interest rate on entire balance
- Interest compounded daily, paid monthly
- Member FDIC
The Sallie Mae High-Yield Savings Account pays a competitive interest rate, with a $0 minimum opening deposit and no monthly service fee. It's a good option if you want an online high-yield savings account from a well-known company.
Sallie Mae SmartyPig Account Rates
Sallie Mae SmartyPig Account
On Sallie Mae's website
Insider’s Rating
4.25/5
Fees
no monthly service fee
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
4.25%
Minimum Opening Deposit
$0 ($0.01 balance to earn interest)
Pros
- High APY
- Save for separate goals
- No minimum opening deposit
- No monthly service fees
Cons
- No way to deposit cash
- Must transfer funds to external bank account to access money
Product Details
- Earn 4.25% APY on all account balances
- Interest compounded daily, paid monthly
- FDIC insured
The Sallie Mae SmartyPig Account pays a high interest rate — just not quite as high as the Sallie Mae High-Yield Savings Account. Still, it's a good choice if you want a savings account that helps you actively save. You can save for individual savings goals within the account, such as "Emergency Fund" or "Vacation," and set a deadline for each.
Although Sallie Mae doesn't have a checking account, you can set up automatic transfers from an external account to this one, so you'll stay on top of your savings goals.
Sallie Mae CD Rates
Sallie Mae CD
Start saving
On Sallie Mae's website
Insider’s Rating
3.75/5
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
4.00% to 5.10%
Minimum Opening Deposit
$2,500
Pros
- Competitive APY
- Low-to-standard early withdrawal penalties
Cons
- $2,500 minimum deposit
- No terms under 6 months or over 5 years
Insider’s Take
Sallie Mae CD rates are some of the highest out there, and they're great picks if you're comfortable with online banking. Sallie Mae also offers more CD terms than most banks, so you have plenty of options when opening a CD.
Sallie Mae CD review External link Arrow An arrow icon, indicating this redirects the user."
Product Details
- Terms ranging from 6 months to 5 years
- Early withdrawal penalties: Terms of 12 months or less are charged 90 days simple interest; terms of over 12 months are charged 180 days simple interest
- Interest compounded daily, paid monthly
You'll need at least $2,500 to open a CD with Sallie Mae. If you don't have that much money, you can find a bank that requires less.
Sallie Mae CD rates are very competitive, and on certain terms, it pays the best CD rates out there.
Sallie Mae Money Market Account Rates
Sallie Mae Money Market Account
Insider’s Rating
4.25/5
Fees
no monthly service fee
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
4.65%
Minimum Opening Deposit
$0
Pros
- Competitive APY
- No monthly service fees
- No opening deposit or minimum account balance
- Paper checks
Cons
- No debit or ATM card
- No way to deposit cash
Product Details
- Comes with paper checks, but no debit card
- Interest compounded daily, paid monthly
- FDIC insured
Sallie Mae pays a competitive rate on its money market account, and unlike most banks, there is a $0 minimum deposit.
The main draw of a money market account over a savings account is that the former makes it easier to access your savings. Sallie Mae does this by sending you paper checks, but it doesn't send you a debit or ATM card as some banks do.
About Sallie Mae Bank
Sallie Mae is an online bank that offers savings accounts, a money market account, and CDs. Sallie Mae doesn't have a checking account, which can make it difficult to access your savings quickly.
The Sallie Mae mobile app has received 4.5 out of 5 stars in the Apple store and 3.9 out of 5 stars in the Google Play store.
You can speak with a live customer service representative Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET. Sallie Mae doesn't offer customer support on weekends, and there's no live online chat feature.
Your deposits are FDIC insured for up to $250,000, or $500,000 for a joint account.
Is Sallie Mae trustworthy?
The Better Business Bureau gives Sallie Mae an A+ rating. A strong BBB score indicates a company responds effectively to customer complaints, is transparent about business practices, and is honest in advertising.
Sallie Mae doesn't have any recent public scandals, so you may decide you're comfortable keeping your money with this bank.
How Sallie Mae Bank Compares
Sallie Mae vs. Ally
If you're planning on opening a checking account in addition to a saving account, Ally will be your strongest option. Ally is the only one out of the two that offers a checking account.
The Ally Savings Account also has the benefits of both the Sallie Mae High-Yield Savings and SmartyPig accounts. It pays a little more than SmartyPig, but it also lets you save for individual goals through Savings Buckets.
If you want to open a CD, the better choice may come down to which term length you open.
Sallie Mae vs. Marcus
If you'd like to open a money market account, Sallie Mae will be your default choice because Marcus doesn't have one.
Marcus has lower minimum deposits for CDs than Sallie Mae, as well as more CD variety — you can open a Marcus No-Penalty CD or a Marcus 20-month Rate Bump CD, which gives you the option to increase your rate once during your term. Marcus CD rates are competitive overall.
Personal Finance Reviews Editor
Laura Grace Tarpley (she/her) is an expert in mortgage rates, refinance rates, lenders, bank accounts, and borrowing and savings tips for Personal Finance Insider. She worked on Business Insider's "The Road to Home" series, which won a Silver award from the National Associate of Real Estate Editors.She has written about personal finance for over seven years. Before joining the Business Insider team, she was a freelance finance writer for companies like SoFi and The Penny Hoarder, as well as an editor at FluentU.
Compliance and Operations Associate
Evelyn He is a Compliance and Operations Associate on the Personal Finance team to ensure content accuracy and editorial independence so readers get up-to-date and objective financial advice.The compliance team's mission is to provide readers with fact-checked and current stories so they can make informed financial decisions. The team also works to minimize risk for partners by ensuring language is clear, precise, and fully compliant with regulatory and partner marketing guidelines that align with the editorial team.
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Editorial Note: Any opinions, analyses, reviews, or recommendations expressed in this article are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any card issuer. Read our editorial standards.
Please note: While the offers mentioned above are accurate at the time of publication, they're subject to change at any time and may have changed, or may no longer be available.
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