Chime Alternatives

Chime offers a convenient and rewarding mobile app. But can you earn better rewards and get more account options with one of Chime's top competitors?

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Chime is a popular digital app that offers great technology and high APY. But Chime is not a bank, Chime is a financial technology company.

Check out how Chime alternatives like Axos Bank, Quontic Bank, and Ally Bank stack up in this review.

The Top 5 Alternatives to Chime

Chime provides a great alternative banking option, especially for people who can't open a traditional bank account due to a bad ChexSystems score.

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Chime is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services provided by, and debit card issued by, The Bancorp Bank or Stride Bank, N.A.; Members FDIC.

However, Chime is not without its limitations. Below, review the top Chime alternatives you should consider.

1. Axos Bank - Better Rewards

Unlike Chime, Axos is an actual FDIC-insured banking institution — not a fintech company that provides banking services through a third-party bank.

Whether Axos is right for you depends on what you're prioritizing in a bank. Overall, Axos offers more account options and better rewards than Chime, but their technology isn't as fast or user-friendly.

If you heavily rely on features like push notifications or transactions, Axos may not be the best alternative for you (but there's plenty more to choose from further down).

Chime also provides faster direct deposits than Axos (two days early versus same-day).

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Rewards Checking - Up to 1.25% APY

• Use Promo Code "MAY150" for a $150 bonus
• Up to 1.25% APY
• Zero monthly maintenance fees
• Zero overdraft or NSF fees
• Zero minimum monthly balance reqs
• Unlimited domestic ATM fee reimbursements
• Zero Minimum Balance Requirement
• Only $50 to open an account

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Essential Checking

• Unlimited domestic ATM reimbursements
• No monthly maintenance fees
• No annual fee
• No overdraft or non-sufficient funds fee

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CashBack Checking - Earn up to 1.00% Cash Back

• Earn up to 1.00% cash back on signature-based purchases
• Unlimited domestic ATM fee reimbursement
• No monthly maintenance fee
• $50 minimum balance required to open account

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First Checking - 0.10% APY

• Joint checking account for 13-17 year olds
• No fees
• Up to $12 domestic ATM fee reimbursements per month

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Golden Checking - 0.10% APY

• Interest-bearing checking account for age 55+
• No fees
• Free personal checks

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High Yield Savings - Up to 0.61% APY

• 0.61% APY on balance < $25,000
• 0.25% APY on balance $25K-$100K
• 0.15% APY on balance > $100K
• No monthly maintenance fees
• No minimum balance requirements
• $250 minimum opening deposit
• Free incoming wires
• Zero minimum balance requirement

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Chime vs. Axos takeaway: Axos may come up short in the technology factor, but this digital-only bank offers better rewards and more accounts to choose from than Chime

2. Quontic - Better Checking Options

Quontic is a community development bank that gives back by using deposits to help lower-income families secure mortgage financing.

This bank really shines in the checking account space. They offer three distinct and impressive account options: High-Interest Checking, Cash Rewards Checking, and the first-ever Bitcoin Rewards Checking.

However, like Axos, Quontic falls short due to slow and unimpressive technology. It also requires a $100 minimum deposit for each account, compared to $0 for Chime.

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High Interest Checking - Up to 1.01% APY

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• Earn up to 1.01% APY
• $100 minimum opening deposit
• APY is based on the account balance and making at least 10 qualifying debit card point-of-sale transactions of $10.00 or more per statement cycle.

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Bitcoin Rewards Checking

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• Get 1.5% Bitcoin on All Eligible Debit Card Purchases
• $500 minimum opening deposit

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Cash Rewards Checking

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• Get 1.5% Cash Back on All Eligible Debit Card Purchases
• $100 minimum opening deposit

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High Yield Savings - 1.01% APY

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• 1.01% APY
• $100 minimum opening deposit
• No monthly service fees

Chime vs Quontic takeaway: Quontic has a feel-good mission behind their banking, plus an impressive suite of checking accounts with modern features that Chime doesn't offer

3. Ally Bank - More Financial Services

Ally was originally the financial sector of General Motors, then called GMAC.

Now, Ally is a full-service online bank with competitive rates. While Ally offers a similar savings account APY as Chime, they also pay interest on checking accounts.

In addition, Ally provides paper checks, a feature Chime does not have. If you need to use a traditional paper check as a Chime account holder, your only option is to have a pre-printed check mailed to the recipient from Chime corporate HQ, which can be time-consuming.

In addition to spending and savings accounts, Ally offers IRA retirement accounts, money market accounts, certificates of deposit (CDs), and home, auto, and personal loans.

Chime vs. Ally takeaway: Ally provides far more traditional banking products than Chime, a good option for those who want a one-stop-shop bank

4. Varo - Better Rates for Smaller Balances

Varo is Chime's most similar alternative — in fact, the offerings from these two companies are virtually identical.

Like Chime, Varo only offers checking, savings, and credit-builder (called Varo Believe) accounts.

Varo customers can also receive their direct deposits two days early and have access to 55,000+ Allpoint ATMs with their Visa debit card, just like Chime.

Which option comes out on top is determined by how much money you have in your savings account. If you have over $5,000, then Chime offers a better interest rate (0.50% for Chime vs. 0.20% for Varo).

However, if you have between $0 and $4,999.99 in your savings account, Varo offers 3.00% APY.

Chime vs. Varo takeaway: Varo is as close as you can get to Chime without actually using Chime, and their rates are better than Chime's for balances under $5K

5. Capital One 360 - Better Accessibility

Capital One 360 offers competitive banking options, including checking and savings accounts, business and commercial bank accounts, and auto loans.

Chime has a higher savings APY than Capital One 360 Savings (slightly), but falls short of Capital One in several areas.

For starters, Capital One customers can deposit cash into their account with no fees and have access to "branch" locations using Capital One Cafes.

Capital One is also the only Chime alternative this writer has personal experience with that meets or exceeds Chime's technology — including app simplicity, user-friendliness, and security.

Chime vs. Capital One 360 takeaway: Capital One 360 offers the high APYs and less overhead that people love about modern banks plus the in-person support of traditional brick-and-mortar banks

Chime Pros and Cons

Not sure if you're ready to pass on Chime? Review these pros and cons for a quick recap on the best and worst points about this digital-only financial technology company.

Pros

• Automatically receive 0.50% APY on Savings
  
• Up to $200 SpotMe fee-free overdraft protection
  
• Improve your credit score risk-free with a Credit Builder account
  
• 60,000+ fee-free ATM locations
  
• Compatible with Google Pay and Apple Pay

Cons

• Mediocre APY compared to some alternatives
  
• No physical branch locations
  
• Poor customer service: the most-frequent complaint in negative Trustpilot reviews
  
• Pay Friends service only available if both parties have Chime accounts

How to Choose the Right Bank for You

With the number of new digital banks offering great rewards constantly expanding, it can be difficult to decide on what banking option is best suited for your needs. Here are some things to keep in mind when deciding on your next financial institution:

Low Fees
The average monthly fee at the top 10 largest banks in the U.S. is $9.60. That means the average person wastes over $115 per year on maintenance fees!

When deciding on a bank account, make sure you find one that does not charge monthly maintenance fees and does not require a minimum average balance.

All five alternatives listed above meet this criteria, but you can find even more great fee-free bank accounts.

High Interest or Rewards
Are you a spender or a saver?

Several companies listed above provide the option to decide between a high-interest checking account (for savers with high account balances) and cash-back rewards checking accounts (best for big spenders).

Always choose a bank that incentivizes you to use their services with cash rewards in the form of interest or cash back.

After all, banks make their money by lending out your deposits in the form of loans — using a system called fractional-reserve banking.

Big ATM Network
If you use cash, you don't want to have to pay a fee every time you use your debit card at the ATM.

Most banks allow you to view their ATM network using a map feature so you can make sure you have fee-free locations nearest you.

The Varo ATM locator tool is only available in the company's mobile app. However, it uses the same network as Chime.

Ability to Grow with You
One big drawback of Chime and Varo is the limited number of account options available.

If you have a checking and savings account, you've basically maxed out the usefulness of these companies.

Alternatives like Capital One, Axos, Ally, and Quontic offer account options like money market accounts, CDs, investment accounts, and loans that will be useful if you graduate past the point of living paycheck to paycheck and even have a full emergency fund.

If you reach that milestone (congratulations!), you don't want to have to switch banking institutions in order to open secondary savings accounts for specific goals like a home, car, or retirement.

The Bottom Line

While Chime offers a solid lineup of features, high APY compared to traditional banks, and easy-to-use technology, there are many alternatives to Chime that offer better rewards and more account options.

Always make sure to shop around to make the most out of your banking experience. Determine what your banking must-haves and nice-to-haves are to find the best bank for your needs.