Did you know that American Express does more than just issue credit cards?
Since 1989, American Express (Amex) has offered the option of a high-yield personal savings account to consumers that were wanting to grow their savings separate from their traditional banking methods.
As of June 2022, the current annual percentage yield (APY) for the American Express Personal Savings Account is 0.65%, which is about 20 times the national average! In addition to the highly competitive APY, there’s also no minimum opening deposit and no associated maintenance fees.
What is an American Express Personal Savings Account?
The American Express Personal Savings Account is a FDIC-insured high-yield online savings account which offers a variable interest rate, with a maximum of 6 withdrawals per month. Furthermore, there are no monthly fees and no minimum balance required to sign up. Minimum account balance after sign up to keep your account active is just $1. Depositing funds is easy – you can link up to 3 external accounts to effortlessly transfer money. Accounts are available 24/7 online through the American Express Account Portal. Interest in these accounts compound daily at a variable 0.65% APY, and any interest earned is credited to your account on a monthly basis.
What Are The American Express Savings Account Fees?
There are no monthly or annual maintenance fees associated with the American Express Personal Savings Account.
Are American Express Credit Cards and American Express Personal Savings the same thing?
No. American Express Credit Cards and Personal Savings Accounts are two separate entities offered by American Express. Furthermore, your login credentials of Amex card and personal savings websites will be different and they do not share any personal information, balance or transaction data with one another.
What Are The Benefits Of An American Express Savings Account?
- FDIC-Insured
- Higher than average APY
- No minimum deposit
- No minimum balance to sign up
- Ability to link up to 3 accounts
- Ability to set up account alerts to easily track your savings and activity
- as well as 24/7 customer support
What Are The Disadvantages Of An American Express Savings Account?
- Accounts are accessible via web browser only. There is no mobile app nor any brick-and-mortar locations
- Limit of 6 withdrawals per month
- Variable interest rate
- No ATM card or checks, which can make accessing your money difficult
- Funds from deposits not available for withdrawal for 5 business days
- Checks that need to be deposited to the account must be sent via mail to American Express
While American Express Personal Savings does have a competitive APY – you can still find higher.
As of November 2022, here are some rates from competitors that you may want to check out:
- Aspiration Bank – 3.00% APY
- TAB Bank – 3.00% APY
- Citi Accelerate – 3.10% APY
- First Foundation Bank Online Savings – 3.60% APY
- Barclays Bank – 3.00% APY
- CIBC Bank – 3.27% APY
- Goldman Sachs – Marcus Account – 3.00% APY
- Synchrony Bank – 3.00% APY
- TIAA Bank – 0.80% APY
- Ally Bank – 0.75% APY
- Citizens Access – 0.75% APY
- Capital One 360 Performance Savings – 0.70% APY
- Discover – 0.70% APY
- American Express Personal Savings – 0.65% APY
- CIT Bank Savings Builder – 3.25% APY
- MySavingsDirect – 0.50% APY
- Vio Bank – 0.50% APY
- HSBC Direct – 0.05% APY
Is an American Express Savings Account FDIC-insured?
Yes. American Express National Bank is a FDIC member, which means that funds deposited in an American Express Personal Savings Account are insured up to the maximum allowed by law.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) is a United States government corporation providing deposit insurance to depositors in U.S. commercial banks and savings institutions. The FDIC insures deposits according to ownership category (such as individual, joint or accounts with beneficiaries). The current maximum amount is $250,000 per depositor, per insured bank, for each account ownership category.
How Do you Open An American Express Savings Account?
All you’ll need is internet access and a few personal details – and you’ll be signed up in no time. In other words, it’s fairly easy!
- Go to the homepage and click “Apply for a Savings Account”
- Secondly, follow the prompts and enter your personal information:
- Full Legal Name
- Social Security Number
- Email Address
- Home Address
- Phone Number
- Date of Birth
- Account and Routing Numbers (primary applicant only)
- Then, receive an email confirmation that your account has been set up. *You’ll also receive a welcome kit in the mail soon after sign up.
- Lastly, Fund your account
How To Access Your American Express Personal Savings Account
Online: You can access your online savings account at https://personalsavings.americanexpress.com. Log in with your user ID and password.
Phone: American Express National Bank has 24 /7 help via phone at 1-800-446-6307
Fax: American Express National Bank accepts correspondence via fax at: 1-800-542-0779
Mailing Address: You can send checks or correspondence to:
American Express National Bank
P.O. Box 30384
Salt Lake City, Utah 84130
How Do You Take Money Out Of Your American Express Personal Savings Account?
- Transfer money from your savings account to your other linked bank account.
- To have a check sent to you, call American Express at 1-800-446-6307 to make the request.
How Do I Find My Account And Routing Numbers?
You can see your full account number by logging into your Personal Savings account and selecting Show Account Numbers button on the account summary of all your accounts. Or, you can click on the “Show” button displayed next to the last 4 digits of your account on the individual account detail pages.
The American Express National Bank routing number for American Express Personal Savings Accounts is 124085066.
Bottom Line
In conclusion, American Express’ Personal Savings Account has one of the best APYs in the market right now with a persuasive interest rate. However, you won’t be able to use an ATM or checks which could be a deal-breaker – but it is a savings account after all – and American Express is a reliable household name that’s been around long enough to provide a dependable banking experience for consumers.
Banking Health Score
There are many banks and financial institutions to choose from and it is important to be able to distinguish the good from the bad. Our team reviews each bank on a monthly basis to ensure that the information we share is as up to date as possible. Not only is the financial strength of a company important, but also how well their customer service is rated by actual customers like you.
We also believe that in order to determine how well a bank is functioning, that several sources should be utilized to compare one bank to another.
That said, here is a list of scores from trusted sources that you should consider before making your banking decisions.
American Express – Bank Health Scores
Bank Professor’s Bank Score = ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4 stars out of 5 stars
Additional Scores
- Bankrate’s Safe and Sound Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
- BauerFinancial Star Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
- BankTracker Troubled Asset Ratio: 5.17
- FDIC: Actively insured
More about the rating system:
- BankProfessor rates banks monthly on a one-to-five scale based on revenue, net income, total assets, total equity, capital ratio, customer reviews, rating agency scores, profitability, and troubled asset ratio.
- Bankrate.com ranks banks and credit unions quarterly on a one- to five-star system, with one being the lowest rating and five the highest. The rating is given based on regulatory filings about the financial institution’s capital adequacy, asset quality, profitability and level of cash available. It compares those levels with peer and industry norms.
- BauerFinancial offers a similar star rating system as Bankrate (a one- to five-star system, with one being the lowest rating and five the highest).
- BankTracker is a collaborative effort of the Investigative Reporting Workshop of American University and MSNBC.com. They determine a bank’s troubled asset ratio. According to the site, the ratio is “a strong indicator of severe stress inside a bank because it shows the bank’s ability to withstand loan losses”. In other words, the higher the ratio, the more “trouble” they are in.
How To Close An American Express Personal Savings Account
If you wish to close your American Express Personal Savings Account, you can either call American Express at 1-800-446-6307, or you can close the account via online banking – Here’s how to do that:
- Select the “transfers” tab and transfer all of your remaining funds out of your account.
- Once you have a $0 balance, you’ll be given the option on the next screen to close your account.
- Select the red “close account” button.
- Once the account is closed, you will receive a confirmation email.
History
American Express (also known as Amex) specializes in worldwide financial services, most notably credit cards and traveler’s checks. The company logo is a gladiator and its headquarters is located in New York City, New York.
In 1850, Amex began as an express mail business in Buffalo, NY. It was a joint merger of the infamous trio also behind Wells Fargo – Henry Wells, William Fargo and John Warren Butterfield. In 1957, the company began offering it’s first-ever charge cards, which was a new innovative way for consumers to pay for merchandise. Credit cards and traveler’s checks are now their main offerings, which helps to make them today’s largest payment network in the entire world. In 2017, Forbes names AmEx as the 23rd “most valuable brand” in the world as the company’s worth tops $24.5 billion dollars.