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Axos Bank Reviews: Top Choice for Online Banking with Ease

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Axos Bank Reviews: Axos Bank is a full-service online bank that offers very competitive banking options, including checking, high-yield savings, and money market accounts.

Axos Bank Reviews: Top Choice for Online Banking with Ease

Axos Bank Reviews: Top Choice for Online Banking with Ease

Here’s a detailed look at Axos Bank reviews and how it compares to other online banking institutions.

Axos Bank Review

Axos Bank is a full-service online bank offering one of the best high-yield savings accounts available. The popular online bank was founded in 2000 under the name “Bank of Internet USA”.

In 2018, it changed to its current name. Along with banking products, its services include various lending options, investment portfolios, and business and commercial banking solutions.

How Does Axos Bank Work?

Axos Bank features three different areas of money management including banking, which includes checking and savings accounts, high-yield savings accounts, plus certificates of deposit.

The second area is focused on borrowing money. Axos offers loans of all shapes and sizes, including new mortgages and refinancing, auto loan refinancing, and personal loans.

You can also choose from investment accounts, which feature self-directed accounts where you can purchase stocks, and ETFs, and participate in margin trading.

Axos Bank Checking Account Reviews

This review focuses on Axos Bank’s personal banking products and services.

1. Account Basics

2. Checking

Checking accounts abound with Axos Bank. There are currently five checking account options:

Essential Checking

Rewards Checking

Cashback Checking

Golden Checking

First Checking

Here’s a quick overview of each account.

1. Essential Checking

This is a no-frills, non-interest-bearing checking account with no monthly fees. Accounts come with unlimited domestic ATM reimbursements. Essential Checking has no minimum deposit requirements.

Features of the Axos Essential Checking Account

Unlimited domestic ATM fee reimbursements

No monthly minimum balance requirement

No overdraft or non-sufficient funds fees

FeesBest For
No overdraft fees No non-sufficient fund fees No monthly maintenance fees Domestic ATM fee reimbursementsThe Axos Essential Checking account is best for its lack of fees and early access to direct deposit payments.

2. Rewards Checking

Rewards Checking offers five tiers of interest, earning up to 1.25% APY total. Balances above $50,000 do not earn interest.

The checking account only requires a $50 initial deposit and charges no monthly maintenance fees. Customers also receive unlimited domestic ATM reimbursements.

Criteria for a Higher APY You’ll Have to Satisfy

Monthly direct deposits of $1,000 or more

10 direct debit card transactions of $3 or more a month

5 or more debit card uses

Each criterion met will afford you an APY of 0.4166%, and if you can meet all three, you can expect to receive 1.25%.²

FeesBest For
$50 minimum deposit No monthly feesAPY-maximizing and getting the most from your money.

3. Cashback Checking

It’s rare to find a checking account that earns cash back, but that’s what you’ll find at Axos Bank reviews.

Customers earn up to 1% cashback on all signature-based purchases.

Cashback Checking accounts also feature no monthly fees, unlimited domestic ATM reimbursements, and unlimited check-writing privileges.

What to Expect From the Cash Back Checking Account:

Unlimited domestic ATM fee reimbursements

No monthly fees

Access to mobile banking

As many checks as you want to write

FeesBest For
No monthly feesEarning cashback on your signature-based purchases.

4. Golden Checking

Designed for individuals 55 years and older, Golden Checking is an interest-bearing account that earns 0.10% APY on all balances.

It comes with free checks and only requires a $50 initial deposit to open an account. Customers also get up to $8 in domestic ATM reimbursements each month.

The account requires a $50 deposit to establish and offers up great interest rates and other perks, such as the following:

Earn as much as 0.20% APY

Personal checks free of charge

No monthly fees

Domestic ATM fee reimbursements of $8 per month

FeesBest For
No monthly fees Initial $50 depositThose 55 and overlooking solid interest rates.

5. First Checking

As the name suggests, this checking account is designed for kids ages 13-17 years old to serve as an introduction to banking.

This checking account earns 0.25% APY on all balances and features up to $12 in domestic ATM reimbursements each month.

First Checking doesn’t have any monthly fees, but it does have daily transaction limits of $100 cash and $500 debit.

Here are some of the features:

$0.25 APY

$12 domestic monthly ATM fee reimbursement

No fees

FeesBest For
No monthly fees No overdraft fees No non-sufficient fund feesSetting up the first account for children aged 13-17

Axos Bank High Yield Savings Review

Axos Bank’s High Yield Savings account offers higher rates than you find at many brick-and-mortar banks.

1. Savings

This savings account currently earns 0.61% APY for balances under $25,000. Balances between $25,000 and $100,000 earn 0.25% APY. Balances of more than $100,000 earn 0.15% APY.

Opening an account requires a $250 deposit, but there are no balance requirements beyond that initial amount.

There are no monthly maintenance fees either. Customers can even request a free ATM card, a rarity among savings accounts.

2. Money Market

Axos Bank’s High-Yield Money Market account requires an initial deposit of $1,000. The account offers 0.25% APY on all balances.

It offers check-writing privileges and a free ATM card. Plus, it doesn’t charge monthly maintenance fees.

3. CDs

While Axos Bank offers CDs, its rates don’t match up well against other top online banks. CD terms range from three months to five years, paying a rate of 0.20% APY.

You’ll need $1,000 to open a CD account with Axos Bank. As with most CDs, there are no monthly fees.

Customers who pull their funds out of a CD before maturity could see early withdrawal penalties of up to 24 months’ worth of interest, depending on the CD term.

4. UFB Direct Bank Accounts

It’s worth noting that there are two more bank accounts to consider, although they don’t technically fall under the Axos Bank name.

UFB Direct is a division of Axos Bank and offers a high-yield savings account and a high-yield money market account.

Unfortunately, both accounts have lower rates than most online banks and high balance requirements to earn at the highest interest tier of 0.20% APY.

Other Accounts and Services

Axos Bank offers a host of other services outside of its personal bank account offerings:

New mortgages

Mortgage refinancing

Home equity loans

Home equity lines of credit (HELOCs)

FHA loans

VA loans

Auto loans

Personal loans

Managed investment portfolios

Business and commercial banking and lending solutions

Axos Online Banking Reviews

Axos Bank works like most other financial institutions requiring an application process to open up an account. You can apply online or contact the 24/7 customer service to help you complete the application.

The application process will be based on the product you’re applying for, such as checking, savings, mortgages, or an investment account.

As an online bank, customers of Axos mainly access their accounts online or through its mobile app. The mobile app, available on both iOS and Android, offers features like:

Mobile check deposits

Mobile bill pay

Funds transfers

Account balances

Transaction history

Mobile App

The mobile app has a rating of 4.7 stars out of 5 in the App Store and 4.7 stars out of 5 on Google Play.

Most accounts also come with ATM cards. Customers have access to over 90,000 fee-free ATMs across the U.S.  Many Axos Bank deposit accounts feature some form of ATM fee reimbursements for out-of-network ATM use.

Customers also have access to Evo, Axos Bank’s virtual financial assistant, through the mobile app or online account. Evo provides answers to common banking questions and can help you quickly manage your accounts.

Pros

1. Competitive rates on savings and money market accounts

2. No monthly fees on deposit accounts

3. Multiple checking account options

4. Highly rated mobile app

5. Unlimited ATM fee reimbursements on many accounts

Cons

1. Below average CD rates for an online bank

2. No physical branches

Axos Bank High Yield Savings

The High Yield Savings account charges no monthly fees and doesn’t have a minimum balance requirement, though you’ll need a $250 deposit to open the account.

It also has a healthy interest rate of 0.61% annual percentage yield for balances under $25,000. Balances between $25,000 and $99,999.99 earn 0.25% APY, and balances over $100,000 earn 0.15% APY.

Axos Bank Rewards Checking

As with the bank’s other checking accounts, there are no monthly fees, and all fees charged by domestic ATM operators are reimbursed. Axos doesn’t charge any ATM fees itself.

Rewards Checking earns an annual percentage yield of up to 1.25% on balances up to $50,000, if certain requirements are met.

When you receive $1,500 or more in monthly direct deposits, you earn 0.40% APY. If you complete that requirement, you can earn additional interest in the following ways, for a total of 1.25% APY:

1. Make 10 qualifying debit card purchases per month or sign up for the online Account Aggregation/Personal Finance Manager tool: 0.30% APY.

2. Maintain an average daily balance of $2,500 per month in an Axos Managed Portfolios investing account: 0.20% APY.

3. Maintain an average daily balance of $2,500 per month in an Axos self-directed trading investment account: 0.20% APY. “Axos Bank reviews”

4. Make a monthly Axos consumer loan payment using Rewards Checking: 0.15% APY.

5. Another option, the bank’s CashBack Checking, gives you up to 1% cashback (depending on your balance) on debit card transactions that require a signature.

Axos Bank CD

You can open Axos CDs with terms from three months to five years. And while some of its APYs exceed the national averages, you can find better CD yields at other online banks.

Axos CDs also have a $1,000 minimum opening deposit. Although this amount is in line with national banks, many online banks have lower minimums.

Synchrony, for example, doesn’t require a minimum balance to open a CD.

Banking Experience

Axos Bank’s call center provides around-the-clock phone support.

Because Axos doesn’t have any branches, you’ll have to handle your banking online, over the phone, or via chat.

Axos uses a third-party service, Green Dot, to let customers add cash to their accounts or reload debit cards at retailers such as 7-Eleven and CVS Pharmacy.

It costs up to $4.95 per deposit. You can also make deposits at some of Axos Bank’s 91,000 in-network ATMs.

Overdraft Fees

The Essential and Rewards checking accounts don’t charge overdraft or nonsufficient funds fees. Transactions are simply declined unless you enroll in one of the bank’s overdraft programs.

These include the option to set up free automatic transfers from a savings account to your checking, which would occur only if your balance goes negative. There’s also an overdraft line of credit.

However, the CashBack account charges a $25 nonsufficient funds fee, with a limit of three charges per day.

Axos Savings Products

Non-retirement savings products come in three flavors. See how they compare to the top savings accounts here.

High-Yield Savings

Offers a solid 0.61% APY, no monthly fee, a free ATM card, and no minimum balance required. The minimum deposit is $250. “Axos Bank reviews”

High-Yield Money Market

Offers a strong 0.25% APY, limited check writing, no monthly fee, and no minimum balance. “Axos bank reviews”.

Certificates of Deposit

These require a $1,000 deposit, you can earn up to a high APY, and there are 3- to 60-month terms.

You can also open or transfer an existing IRA into an Axos Bank IRA Savings or IRA CD. Both account types currently pay 0.20% APY.

An IRA Savings requires a minimum deposit of $250 while an IRA CD requires a deposit of $1,000.

Read Also:

Axos Business Products

Axos also has great business checking and savings products as well. They are one of the few online banks that offer solid business products.

They offer the following business checking accounts:

1. Basic Business Checking

A basic business checking account with no monthly maintenance fees, and no minimum to open. “Axos bank reviews”

2. Business Interest Checking

An interest-bearing checking account that requires a $5,000 daily average balance to avoid maintenance fees and earn interest.

They also offer business savings accounts (which is very rare). They offer:

1. Business Savings

A basic business savings account that pays a lower interest, but only requires an average daily balance of $2,500.

2. Business Premium Savings

A higher interest business savings account, but requires $25,000. “Axos Bank reviews”

3. Business Money Market

A business money market with check writing privileges, decent interest, and requires a $5,000 average daily balance.

Monthly Maintenance Fees

Axos Bank doesn’t charge monthly fees on any of its checking or saving products. It also provides unlimited domestic ATM reimbursements.

However, you still may encounter transaction fees depending on the situation. Some of the more common fees include:

Debit or ATM card replacement: $5.00

Bank verification letter: $35.00

Account paper statement: $5.00

Domestic outgoing wire: $35.00

International outgoing wire: $45.00

Item returned unpaid, per item: $10.00

Excess transaction or withdrawal fee: $10.00

Stop-payment request that is completed online: $10.00

Stop-payment request that is completed with assistance: $35.00

All checking accounts (except for Essential Checking) do include overdraft protection and there is no annual fee for using overdraft protection.

However, you’ll be charged an 18.00% APR from the date the overdraft transaction occurs. There is also a $25.00 late fee if the overdraft is paid 10 days after the due date.

Axos Bank Comparison

With this table, you can compare these online-only banks with Axos at a glance. The comparison shows what rates and fees the savings account offers from each bank.

BankFees and minimum opening depositAPY
Axos BankNo monthly fees $250 minimum balance to open an account Some ATM fees 0.61%
Varo BankNo monthly fees No minimum deposit No fee for ATM withdrawal at Allpoint ATMs ($2.50 for non-Allpoint ATMs)0.20% Up to 3.00% if you do not exceed a daily savings balance of $5,000 per month, make at least five qualifyings. Varo Bank Visa Debit Card purchases and receive direct deposits of $1,000 or more.
Ally BankNo monthly fee No minimum deposit No ATM fees0.50%

How Much Does Using Axos Bank Cost?

The cost of using Axos Bank depends on the type of account you’re using, but Axos does offer many fee-free options worth mentioning.

The Essential Checking account is not only maintenance-fee free, it has zero non-sufficient fund fees and no overdraft fees.

Plus you receive reimbursement for unlimited ATM usage, all without a minimum account balance required. Other accounts also have attractive fee structures, including mortgages which offer a $0 lender fee.

How Axos Bank Stacks Up

Axos Bank lives up to its reputation as one of the top online banks. With a multitude of account options, there’s something for almost every customer’s needs.

It doesn’t have any local branches for in-person services, but that’s becoming less of a necessity today. Customers can perform most banking transactions online or by mobile phone.

Rates on its high-yield savings and money market accounts earn Axos a spot on Forbes Advisor’s Best Online Savings Accounts and Best Money Market Accounts.

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