Bank of America
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Overview
Bank of America is one of the oldest banks in the United States, having been in business for as many as 240 years. After a merger between NationsBank and BankAmerica, the resulting company was the first in the country to act as a bank from coast to coast. It has about 66 million customers in the nation and is certainly a very trustworthy option for consumers.
This Bank of America review will take you through all of the main account options, highlighting their pros and cons. By the end of his Bank of America online account review, you should have a good idea as to whether this bank is a good fit for you or not.
Bank of America Account Types
As one of the biggest banks in the United States, it will not surprise you to hear that there are plenty of different account options to consider at Bank of America. These cover the likes of savings, checking, and CD accounts. Here are the most popular options you will come across:
Advantage SafeBalance Checking Account
This is an account option that is mainly targeted towards students and will not allow you to write checks. The goal of this offering is to make sure that the customers are staying within their means. You will not have to deal with any overdraft charges and there is no $4.95 monthly fee if you are a student and younger than 24 years old.
The minimum opening deposit is just $25 and you will get charged $2.50 each time you use a non-Bank of America ATM. If you get a debit card, you will have each purchase rounded up to the next dollar, with the resulting funds going into a savings account.
| Account Type | Key Features |
| Advantage Safe Balance | Minimum opening deposit of $25 |
| No checks | |
| Monthly fee waived for students <24 years old |
Advantage Plus Checking Account
This is a pretty standard checking account. If you do not want to pay the monthly fee of $12, you will need to make a qualifying deposit of $250 every month or keep a daily balance of at least $1,500. The minimum opening deposit is only $100. Transactions through non-Bank of America ATMs will cost you $2.50. With debit card purchases, you will have them rounded up to the next dollar and added to a savings account.
| Account Type | Key Features |
| Advantage Plus | Debit card purchases rounded up to the nearest dollar |
| Minimum opening deposit of $100 | |
| No monthly fee if daily balance of $1,500 |
Advantage Relationship Checking Account
This is a checking account that allows you to earn some interest on the money you have in the account. There will also be no fees for other checking accounts or savings accounts that you have with Bank of America. No fees will either be levied for making purchases via check or for domestic wires. While there is a monthly account maintenance fee of $25, this can be waived if your account and other linked accounts have a total balance of at least $10,000.
The minimum deposit for this account is just $100 and the APY will start at 0.01% and can rise to 0.05% for platinum honors accounts. Be aware that ATM transactions at non-Bank of America machines will cost $2.50 each time. Transactions via debit card will be rounded up and get sent into a savings account.
| Account Type | Key Features |
| Advantage Relationship | Minimum opening balance of $100 |
| The monthly account fee can be waived you meet requirements | |
| APY from 0.01% to 0.05% |
Bank of America Advantage Savings
We came across just one option when developing our Bank of America savings account review. It offers a tiered system of interest rates that will improve as you hit certain thresholds. A $100 minimum deposit is necessary when starting off with your new account. If you keep a daily balance of at least $500, link this account with your checking account, or become a preferred rewards client, you can bypass the $8 monthly account fee.
After creating a new account, the fee is automatically waived for the initial six months. There is also a waiver for enrolled students who are younger than 24 years old. The APY starts at a standard rate of 0.01% APY and can rise to 0.05% if you have a platinum honors account.
| Account Type | Key Features |
| Advantage Savings | Minimum opening balance of $100 |
| The monthly account fee can be waived if meet requirements | |
| APY from 0.01% to 0.05% |
Certificate of Deposit
There are CDs offered by Bank of America across standard terms, with a $1,000 minimum deposit being necessary. You can get a standard CD for as little as one month and up to ten years. The APY will range between 0.03% and 0.05%. There are some promotional CDs that can have higher APYs but fewer options for term length.
All CDs renew automatically if not noted otherwise, with a seven-day grace period in place after their maturity to do what you want without any penalties. There is an early withdrawal penalty in place.
| Account Type | Key Features |
| Certificate of Deposit | Minimum opening balance of $1,000 |
| Time periods range from one month to 10 years | |
| APY from 0.03% to 0.05% |
Bank of America APY
The APY rates are going to be dependent on what specific Bank of America product you are looking at. Some offerings will be better than others, with promotional offerings coming around every so often with enhanced rates. Here is a look at the APY rates associated with the common Bank of America accounts.
| Account | 1 Year | 3 Years | 5 Years |
| Advantage Relationship Checking Account | 0.01%-0.05% | 0.01%-0.05% | 0.01%-0.05% |
| Bank of America Advantage Savings | 0.01%-0.05% | 0.01%-0.05% | 0.01%-0.05% |
| Certificate of Deposit | 0.03-0.05% | 0.03-0.05% | 0.03-0.05% |
What is a Bank of America account best for?
Bank of America accounts will be best suited to those people who are looking for quick and easy access to banking without necessarily being overly concerned with the APYs that they are getting on savings-related products. People who like to have the option of visiting a physical branch will lean towards the likes of Bank of America, as it has about 4,300 branches around the country.
The bank also has 17,000+ ATMs spread across the United States and offers some nice rewards and discounts. Most account types also have a low minimum required deposit, which means that there is a low barrier to entry. Finally, Bank of America is a trusted name that has a good track record of meeting the needs of its customers.
Overdraft Fees
While some Bank of America accounts do not charge overdraft fees, they are pretty commonplace. If you attempt to make a transaction when there are insufficient funds in your account, then you can go into an overdraft. For transactions worth over $1, you will get charged $35 each time. An individual can be charged up to four of these item fees in one day.
You can put in place overdraft protection whereby you have another checking account or savings account linked to the account in question, with funds getting transferred between them to cover the overdraft. There will be a $12 fee associated with doing so each time.
Opening an account at Bank of America
You can quickly and easily apply for a Bank of America account online. You will need to first decide which account type is the best fit for your situation. Once you have chosen an option, you need to fill out the requested personals information, verify this information, and then choose how you are going to add funds to this new account.
After Bank of America receives your application, you will get an email confirming the receipt. You will then get another email that will inform you of your approval for such an account and provide some guidelines for the next steps that need to be taken.
Pros and Cons
Bank of America is a household name in the country and is known for being a trustworthy institution. It also has a large network of physical branches around the United States, meaning that customers can conduct their business both online and in-person. This includes more than 4,300 branches, as well as 17,000+ Bank of America ATMs.
Another advantage of using Bank of America is the low minimum deposit requirements when you are opening a savings or checking account. Most of the time, you will only need to deposit at least $100 when starting off. Finally, there are often some useful promotions and discounts as part of the Bank of America Preferred Reward program.
In terms of the drawbacks of using Bank of America, there are currently no options for high-yield savings. There is also no reimbursement or waiving of non-Bank of America ATM fees, while the CD rates on offer are not competitive with the sector as a whole.
| Pros | Cons |
| Ample physical branches and ATMs | APY rates not very competitive |
| Low minimum deposit requirements | Only one type of savings account |
| Waivable monthly fees | An overdraft fee of $35 chargeable four times a day |
Comparison to similar bank accounts
| Bank of America | HSBC | TD Bank |
| Link to review: Link | Link to review: Link | Link to review: Link |
| APY: Up to 0.05% (BOA Advantage Savings) | APY: Up to 0.15% (HSBC Premier Savings) | APY: Up to 0.15% (TD Beyond Savings) |
| Minimum balance: $100 | Minimum balance: $1 | Minimum balance: $0 |
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Disclaimer
“Bank of America Private Bank is a division of Bank of America, N.A., Member FDIC and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Bank of America Corporation. Trust and fiduciary services are provided by Bank of America, N.A. and U.S. Trust Company of Delaware. Both are indirect subsidiaries of Bank of America Corporation.”