Which Banks Offer Round-Up Savings Programs?

Round-up savings programs offer an accessible way for individuals to build savings without significant changes to their spending habits. This method leverages everyday transactions to accumulate small amounts, automatically transferred into a designated savings account. These programs aim to foster consistent saving discipline, allowing funds to grow incrementally.

What is Round-Up Savings

Round-up savings is a financial feature where debit card purchases are rounded up to the nearest whole dollar. The difference is automatically transferred from a checking account to a linked savings account. For instance, a $4.30 purchase is rounded to $5.00, and $0.70 is moved to savings. This mechanism ensures even minimal amounts are consistently set aside.

These small, frequent transfers accumulate over time, often unnoticed by the account holder. The process typically occurs daily, with accumulated round-up amounts transferred in a single sum at the end of the business day. This automated approach transforms spare change into substantial savings, leveraging daily spending frequency.

Banks and Platforms Offering Round-Up Savings

Many financial institutions and technology platforms offer round-up savings features. Bank of America’s “Keep the Change®” program rounds up debit card purchases to the nearest dollar, transferring the difference daily from checking to an enrolled savings account. Enrollment in online or mobile banking is required. Flagstar Bank’s “Round Up with Flagstar®” similarly rounds up debit card purchases, transferring the difference to a linked savings account daily, provided sufficient funds are available.

Ally Bank includes a “Round Ups” feature where it tracks spending accounts for round-up eligible transactions, transferring the accumulated difference to savings once it reaches a $5 threshold. Current, a financial technology company, provides a round-up feature that allows users to round up debit card purchases to the nearest dollar and deposit the change into a chosen “Savings Pod.” Current also offers a potential 4.00% annual bonus on Savings Pods with qualifying direct deposits.

Several other institutions provide variations of this feature:
Central Bank and Commerce Bank offer flexible round-up options, allowing customers to choose to round up to the nearest dollar or add an extra $1 to $5 to each transaction.
Ideal Credit Union’s “Ideal RoundUp Savings” account allows rounding up to the nearest dollar or adding an extra $1 or $2, and can offer a 5.00% annual percentage yield (APY) with at least 20 monthly debit card transactions.
Fintech apps like Acorns and Qapital integrate round-up functionalities, often linking savings to investment portfolios or specific goals.
Chime, partnering with FDIC-insured institutions, provides a round-up option that deposits spare change into a savings account.
SoFi also offers a similar round-up feature for its debit card users, depositing extra money into a linked savings account.

Setting Up Your Round-Up Savings Feature

Activating a round-up savings feature typically involves a straightforward process through your bank’s or platform’s digital channels. First, ensure you have both an eligible checking account and a savings account linked within the same institution. Many programs require a debit card associated with the checking account for round-up transactions. If you do not have both accounts, you may need to open them.

Access your online banking portal or mobile application. Locate the “round-up” or “spare change” feature option within the savings tools or account preferences. You will then need to toggle the feature on or select the specific checking and savings accounts to link. Once confirmed, the feature becomes active.

Common Aspects of Round-Up Programs

Round-up programs share several common characteristics, though specific implementations can vary. The frequency of transfers is a notable aspect; many programs aggregate round-ups throughout the day for a single end-of-day transfer, while some might transfer funds weekly or only once a certain accumulated threshold is met, such as Ally Bank’s $5 minimum.

Some programs may offer bonus incentives, such as a small match on accumulated round-ups for a limited period or a higher interest rate on the savings account if specific conditions are met. Eligibility for transactions is generally limited to debit card purchases, though some advanced platforms might include other electronic payments. These programs typically require specific checking and savings account types to be linked, and account holders can usually pause or disable the round-up feature at any time through their online banking or mobile app.