Citi Accelerate High-Yield Savings Account Review

Citi now offers high-yield savings with one of the best interest rate. But it's only available in select markets. Read this review to see if it's good for you.

Citi® Accelerate High-Yield Savings from Citi, a CreditDonkey partner, offers high interest with lower fees.

Can it stack up to the competitive rates offered by smaller (mostly online) banks?

Below, review the features, fees, and eligibility requirements.

Who Is Eligible for a Citi Accelerate Savings Account?

Citi® Accelerate High-Yield Savings account is currently available in 42 U.S. states:

• Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, select markets in Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, select markets in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming

Citi Accelerate is NOT available to:

• California
  
• Connecticut
  
• Illinois
  
• Maryland
  
• Nevada
  
• New Jersey
  
• New York
  
• Virginia

Current Citi High-Yield Savings APY

The current rate for the Citi® Accelerate High-Yield Savings is 4.35% APY. This is a competitive interest rate for today's low-yield environment.

In comparison, the national average rate for savings is 0.45% APY.

Here's a calculator that can help you see how much more interest you can earn with a high-yield savings account:

Keep in mind, interest rates can change quickly. When the Federal Reserve lowers interest rates, banks make less profit from loans. As a result, they offer customers lower interest rates in return for their deposits.

Compare Savings Account Promotion

Member FDIC

Discover Online Savings - $200 Cash Bonus

To get your $150 or $200 Bonus: What to do: Apply for your first Discover Online Savings Account, online, in the Discover App or by phone. Enter Offer Code CY923 when applying. Deposit into your account a total of at least $15,000 to earn a $150 Bonus or deposit a total of at least $25,000 to earn a $200 Bonus. Deposit must be posted to account within 30 days of account open date. Maximum bonus eligibility is $200.

What to know: Offer not valid for existing or prior Discover savings customers or existing or prior customers with savings accounts that are co-branded, or affinity accounts provided by Discover. Eligibility is based on primary account owner. Account must be open when bonus is credited. Bonus will be credited to the account within 60 days of the account qualifying for the bonus. Bonus is interest and subject to reporting on Form 1099-INT. Offer ends 12/14/2023, 11:59 PM ET. Offer may be modified or withdrawn without notice. See advertiser website for full details.

Get Deal

Expires 12/14/2023

Member FDIC

UFB High Yield Savings - Earn up to 5.25% APY

Learn More

• Earn up to 5.25% APY*
• No monthly maintenance fees
• No minimum deposit required to open an account
• Access your funds 24/7 with easy-to-use digital banking tools

Member FDIC

CIT Bank Platinum Savings - 5.05% APY

Learn More

• 5.05% APY with a balance of $5,000 or more
• 0.25% APY with a balance of less than $5,000
• $100 minimum opening deposit
• No monthly maintenance fee
• Member FDIC

Citi Accelerate Savings Relationship Tiers

You can apply to open a Citi® Accelerate Savings account regardless of your Relationship Tier status.

You won't have to bundle the savings account with their checking account if you don't want to. The tiers enables you to access more benefits and services.

Relationship Tiers range from bare-bones to several that are suitable for the ultra-rich (like their Citigold Private Client account).

Citibank Accelerate Pros and Cons

Pros:

• High APY — especially for a big national bank
  
• No minimum opening deposit
  
• Many account options
  
• Relationship Tiers can offer a lot of perks, especially if you have multiple accounts with Citi

Cons:

• Not available to all states
  
• Relationship Tiers can be confusing
  
• Fairly high minimum balance requirement to waive the fee

FAQ

Is Citibank a good high-yield savings account?
With a high 4.35% APY, the Citi Accelerate High Yield Savings is a good account. It has one of the best rates in the nation, especially for a large bank. It's also easy to waive the monthly fee with just $500 minimum balance. However, it's not available in all states.

Is Citi high-yield savings account FDIC insured?
Yes, Citi checking and savings accounts are FDIC insured up to the federal limit of $250,000 (learn more). This includes the combined deposits in your Citi checking and savings accounts.

How it Compares

Citibank isn't the only kid on the block when it comes to high-yield savings accounts. Let's review how Citi compares to some other rivals.

Bottom Line: Is Citibank Good for Savings?

Citibank offers a surprisingly competitive high-yield account for a big bank.

In fact, high net worth individuals will likely gravitate toward Citi in favor of the competitors listed above due to the additional benefits that extend far beyond basic banking.

While Citi does have minimum balance criteria to waive monthly fees, the amounts are low enough that anyone who would benefit from a high-yield account should be able to easily surpass them.

The main drawback is the complex Relationship Tiers / benefits structure. While Citi may offer a little something for everyone, it can be difficult to decide what you want with all the different options.

Note: This content is not provided by Citi. Any opinions expressed are those of the author's alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by Citi.