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- Saving for separate goals helps you track your progress and manage your money.
- You can save for different objectives with a high-yield savings account.
- Some of these accounts may also offer high interest rates and low minimum opening deposits.
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Saving for different expenses can make it easier to manage your money than keeping all your savings in the same place. There are several savings accounts that let you save for separate goals and name each of them, like "Emergency Savings" or "Car Fund."
CIT Bank Savings Connect Account
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
4.05%
on CIT Bank's site. Member FDIC.
CIT Bank Savings Connect Account
on CIT Bank's site. Member FDIC.
Details
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
4.05%
Pros & Cons
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Highlights
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Additional Reading
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Take a look at these savings accounts and consider which one is the best fit.
Bank accounts that make it easy to save for different goals
Ally High Yield Savings Account
4.75/5
A five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed star
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
3.40%
On Ally Bank's secure site. Ally Bank, Member FDIC.
Ally High Yield Savings Account
On Ally Bank's secure site. Ally Bank, Member FDIC.
Details
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
3.40%
Editor's Rating
4.75/5
A five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed star
Pros & Cons
Chevron iconIt indicates an expandable section or menu, or sometimes previous / next navigation options.
Highlights
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Additional Reading
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Betterment Cash Reserve Account
4.25/5
A five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed star
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
3.75%
Betterment Cash Reserve Account
Details
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
3.75%
Editor's Rating
4.25/5
A five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed star
Pros & Cons
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Highlights
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Additional Reading
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Capital One 360 Performance Savings
4.5/5
A five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed star
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
3.40% (as of 02/02/23)
On Capital One's site. Member FDIC.
Capital One 360 Performance Savings
On Capital One's site. Member FDIC.
Details
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
3.40% (as of 02/02/23)
Editor's Rating
4.5/5
A five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed star
Pros & Cons
Chevron iconIt indicates an expandable section or menu, or sometimes previous / next navigation options.
Highlights
Chevron iconIt indicates an expandable section or menu, or sometimes previous / next navigation options.
Additional Reading
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Navy Federal Credit Union Share Savings Account
4.25/5
A five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed star
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
0.25%
On Navy Federal Credit Union's website
Navy Federal Credit Union Share Savings Account
On Navy Federal Credit Union's website
Details
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
0.25%
Editor's Rating
4.25/5
A five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed star
Pros & Cons
Chevron iconIt indicates an expandable section or menu, or sometimes previous / next navigation options.
Highlights
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Additional Reading
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Note: This is the only account on our list that doesn't let you set up separate goals in one account. You'll have to create multiple savings accounts and name each one. But because Navy Federal doesn't charge monthly service fees, there isn't really a downside to doing it this way.
Sallie Mae SmartyPig Account
4.25/5
A five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed star
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
3.40%
Minimum Deposit Amount
$0 ($0.01 balance to earn interest)
Sallie Mae SmartyPig Account
Details
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
3.40%
Minimum Deposit Amount
$0 ($0.01 balance to earn interest)
Editor's Rating
4.25/5
A five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed star
Pros & Cons
Chevron iconIt indicates an expandable section or menu, or sometimes previous / next navigation options.
Highlights
Chevron iconIt indicates an expandable section or menu, or sometimes previous / next navigation options.
Additional Reading
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Wealthfront Cash Account
4.25/5
A five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed star
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
4.05%
Wealthfront Cash Account
Details
Annual Percentage Yield (APY)
4.05%
Editor's Rating
4.25/5
A five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed starA five pointed star
Pros & Cons
Chevron iconIt indicates an expandable section or menu, or sometimes previous / next navigation options.
Highlights
Chevron iconIt indicates an expandable section or menu, or sometimes previous / next navigation options.
Additional Reading
Chevron iconIt indicates an expandable section or menu, or sometimes previous / next navigation options.
How many savings accounts should I have?
There's no right or wrong answer. It depends on how many purchases you want to save for.
Here are some savings goals you could work toward with these accounts:
- Emergency fund
- Travel
- Down payment on a house
- Buying a car
- A semester's tuition
- Pet expenses
- Wedding
Note: Keep in mind, the Navy Federal Credit Union Share Savings Account is the only account on our list that actually requires you to create a separate account for each goal. The others let you name goals in one savings account.
What are some of the advantages of saving for separate goals?
So, why not just keep all your savings in one account and withdraw money when you need it? You can do this, but there are some perks to having separate pots for each savings goal:
- Easily track your progress. With one savings account, you may see that you have $15,000 in savings. But with separate goals, you can see that you have $10,000 in an emergency fund, $3,000 saved for a car, and $1,000 set aside for that big trip next month. If you need $5,000 to buy a car and $1,500 for the trip, you now have a better understanding of how much more you need to save.
- Save more. Once you have a better idea of how close you are to reaching each savings goal, you may feel motivated to save more so you can reach a certain dollar amount. Transfer some money from checking, or set recurring automatic transfers to go toward goals.
- Reduce temptation. Keeping all your savings in the same place makes it easy to misspend money. For example, maybe you were planning to use your savings both to buy a car and go on a big trip next month. You go on vacation, but when you return, you realize you don't have enough money left over to buy the car. Setting separate goals can help you remember not to touch the money you want to put toward the car.
All of these savings accounts are useful tools for saving for different goals. Take a look at their other features — interest rates, minimum opening deposits, options for depositing money — to decide which one is right for you.
Personal Finance Reviews Editor
Laura Grace Tarpley (she/her) is a personal finance reviews editor at Insider. She edits articles about mortgage rates, refinance rates, lenders, bank accounts, wealth building, and borrowing and savings tips for Personal Finance Insider. She was a writer and editor for Insider's "The Road to Home" series, which won a Silver award from the National Associate of Real Estate Editors. She is also a Certified Educator in Personal Finance (CEPF).
She has written about personal finance for over six years. Before joining the Insider team, she was a freelance finance writer for companies like SoFi and The Penny Hoarder, as well as an editor at FluentU. You can reach Laura Grace at
[email protected].
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