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- At a glance
- Overall
- Popular Direct bank products
- Bank experience
- Review Methodology
At a glance
3.8
Rating: 3.8 stars out of 5
Bankrate Score
CDs
Rating: 4 stars out of 5
Savings
Rating: 4.7 stars out of 5
About Bankrate Score
Overview
Popular Direct is best for anyone looking for an online savings account and CDs that pay top-notch yields.
Highlights
- High APY
- Top CD Rates
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Advertiser Disclosure
We are an independent, advertising-supported comparison service. Our goal is to help you make smarter financial decisions by providing you with interactive tools and financial calculators, publishing original and objective content, by enabling you to conduct research and compare information for free - so that you can make financial decisions with confidence.
Bankrate has partnerships with issuers including, but not limited to, American Express, Bank of America, Capital One, Chase, Citi and Discover.
How We Make Money
The offers that appear on this site are from companies that compensate us. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site, including, for example, the order in which they may appear within the listing categories. But this compensation does not influence the information we publish, or the reviews that you see on this site. We do not include the universe of companies or financial offers that may be available to you.
Member FDIC
Savings Account
3.30
%
APY
Rating: 4.9 stars out of 5
Bankrate Savings rating = 4.9/5
Bankrate scores are objectively determined by our editorial team. Our scoring formula weighs several factors consumers should consider when choosing financial products and services.
Bankrate Savings rating = 4.9/5
Bankrate scores are objectively determined by our editorial team. Our scoring formula weighs several factors consumers should consider when choosing financial products and services.
$0
Min. balance for APY
Capital One
Member FDIC
Savings Account Details
3.30
%
APY
$0
Min balance for APY
Offer rate as of1/29/2023
Interest rate3.30%
Minimum to avoid fees$0
Monthly fees$0
Check writingNo
Member FDIC
Savings Account
3.30
%
APY
Rating: 4.7 stars out of 5
Bankrate Savings rating = 4.7/5
Bankrate scores are objectively determined by our editorial team. Our scoring formula weighs several factors consumers should consider when choosing financial products and services.
Bankrate Savings rating = 4.7/5
Bankrate scores are objectively determined by our editorial team. Our scoring formula weighs several factors consumers should consider when choosing financial products and services.
$0
Min. balance for APY
Goldman Sachs Bank USA
Member FDIC
Savings Account Details
3.30
%
APY
$0
Min balance for APY
Offer rate as of1/29/2023
Interest rate3.30%
Minimum to avoid fees$0
Monthly fees$0
Check writingNo
Member FDIC
Savings Account
4.00
%
APY
Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5
Bankrate Savings rating = 4.5/5
Bankrate scores are objectively determined by our editorial team. Our scoring formula weighs several factors consumers should consider when choosing financial products and services.
Bankrate Savings rating = 4.5/5
Bankrate scores are objectively determined by our editorial team. Our scoring formula weighs several factors consumers should consider when choosing financial products and services.
$1
Min. balance for APY
PNC Bank
Member FDIC
Savings Account Details
4.00
%
APY
$1
Min balance for APY
Offer rate as of1/29/2023
Interest rate3.95%
Minimum to avoid fees$0
Monthly fees$0
Check writingNo
Overall
Popular Direct is an online bank that pays highly competitive rates on its CDs and savings account. It does impose relatively steep minimum deposit requirements, however, and its product offerings do not include a money market or checking account.
Pros
Popular Direct offers accounts with highly competitive rates.
Any fees that are charged are relatively easy to avoid.
Cons
Minimum deposit requirements are high.
The bank does not offer branches.
There is no ATM access; funds can only be accessed electronically.
The mobile app has limited capabilities and low customer ratings.
Checking and money market accounts are not offered.
Popular Direct bank products
4.7
Rating: 4.7 stars out of 5
Bankrate Score
Compare top savings rates
Popular Direct savings overview
Popular Direct’s savings account earns one of the highest annual percentage yields (APYs) available nationwide. The account requires a $5,000 minimum deposit, however, which is higher than what some other high-yield savings accounts require.
Popular Direct doesn’t include an ATM card with its savings account, so you’ll need to make an external transfer to access the funds. Additionally, you can add money to the account with your phone by using mobile check deposit.
Pros
Popular Direct offers a top-notch APY.
There is no monthly service fee.
Cons
Other banks with similar APYs require much lower minimum balances.
No ATM card is provided.
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Advertiser Disclosure
We are an independent, advertising-supported comparison service. Our goal is to help you make smarter financial decisions by providing you with interactive tools and financial calculators, publishing original and objective content, by enabling you to conduct research and compare information for free - so that you can make financial decisions with confidence.
Bankrate has partnerships with issuers including, but not limited to, American Express, Bank of America, Capital One, Chase, Citi and Discover.
How We Make Money
The offers that appear on this site are from companies that compensate us. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site, including, for example, the order in which they may appear within the listing categories. But this compensation does not influence the information we publish, or the reviews that you see on this site. We do not include the universe of companies or financial offers that may be available to you.
Member FDIC
Savings Account
3.30
%
APY
Rating: 4.9 stars out of 5
Bankrate Savings rating = 4.9/5
Bankrate scores are objectively determined by our editorial team. Our scoring formula weighs several factors consumers should consider when choosing financial products and services.
$0
Min balance for APY
Capital One
Member FDIC
Savings Account Details
3.30
%
APY
$0
Min balance for APY
Offer rate as of1/29/2023
Interest rate3.30%
Minimum to avoid fees$0
Monthly fees$0
Check writingNo
It only takes about 5 minutes to open a fee-free account.
4.0
Rating: 4 stars out of 5
Bankrate Score
Compare top CD rates
Popular Direct CD overview
Popular Direct offers CDs across various terms with highly competitive rates. The minimum deposit on Popular Direct's CDs is $10,000, however, which may be a struggle for the average saver.
Early withdrawal penalties vary depending on the length of the CD term. For example, for a 12-month CD, the penalty for an early exit is 270 days of simple interest. For a 5-year CD, the penalty is much steeper: 730 days of simple interest.
Pros
Variety of short-term and long-term CDs
All CDs pay competitive yields.
Cons
A high minimum deposit is required.
A harsh early withdrawal penalty applies for long-term CDs.
No bump-up or penalty-free CDs are available.
Compare Offer
Advertiser Disclosure
We are an independent, advertising-supported comparison service. Our goal is to help you make smarter financial decisions by providing you with interactive tools and financial calculators, publishing original and objective content, by enabling you to conduct research and compare information for free - so that you can make financial decisions with confidence.
Bankrate has partnerships with issuers including, but not limited to, American Express, Bank of America, Capital One, Chase, Citi and Discover.
How We Make Money
The offers that appear on this site are from companies that compensate us. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site, including, for example, the order in which they may appear within the listing categories. But this compensation does not influence the information we publish, or the reviews that you see on this site. We do not include the universe of companies or financial offers that may be available to you.
Member FDIC
CD
4.15
%
APY
Rating: 4.9 stars out of 5
Bankrate CD rating = 4.9/5
Bankrate scores are objectively determined by our editorial team. Our scoring formula weighs several factors consumers should consider when choosing financial products and services.
$0
Min. deposit
1yr
Term
Capital One
Member FDIC
CD Details
4.15
%
APY
$0
Min. deposit
1yr
Term
Offer rate as of1/29/2023
Minimum deposit$0
Get peace of mind with fixed rates and guaranteed returns
Bank experience
The Popular Direct savings account does not come with an ATM card, so customers who want to deposit or withdraw money will need to rely on methods like external transfers and mobile deposit capture.
Popular Direct’s mobile app allows for basic account management, including viewing your account balance, transferring money between internal accounts, and depositing funds remotely. Overall, the app receives less-than-favorable user ratings on Google Play and the App store.
Customers have additional capabilities when logged onto the bank’s website, such as setting up account alerts, accessing e-statements and transferring money between external accounts.
Customer service can be reached over the phone between 7:30 a.m. and midnight ET Monday through Friday, and between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. on weekends.
About Popular Direct
Popular Direct is an online bank that was launched in July 2016. It offers certificates of deposit (CDs) and a savings account that are opened through federally insured regional bank Popular Bank.
Popular Bank was formerly known as Banco Popular North America. Its parent company, Popular Inc., was founded in 1893. The financial institution serves customers in the United States, Puerto Rico, Latin America and the Caribbean.
Review methodology
With so many financial institutions to choose from, it can be hard to know who to trust. Bankrate’s ever-growing list of bank and credit union reviews is updated regularly. Our editorial team analyzes and reviews each institution across deposit products such as savings accounts, checking accounts, certificates of deposit (CDs) and money market accounts (MMAs). Banks are rated by important factors such as offered interest rates, fees, minimum balance requirements, access to funds and more.
We assign a score to each type of account and its features, weigh them carefully based on importance to account holders and determine an overall score. Read our full review methodology.
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