A checking account helps you manage day-to-day transactions, such as paying bills and transferring money between accounts. But some accounts go even further by allowing you to earn cash back rewards on your spending.
Our team has reviewed the top earning accounts offered by federally insured financial institutions. We analyzed key metrics, including fees, minimum deposit opening requirements, interest rates, reward structures, and more, to identify the five best paying checking accounts available today. (See our full approach here.)
Account details:
TAB Spend is a premium checking account that offers 2.75% APY on deposits and 1% cash back on all purchases. There is no minimum required to open a deposit and there is no monthly fee associated with this account, although you will need to maintain a balance of $0.01 to earn interest.
Salary details
Every purchase made with your TAB Spend Mastercard is eligible for 1% cash back. Money transfers, peer-to-peer payments, and other non-purchases are not eligible for cashback. Cashback rewards are paid into your TAB Spend account every month.
Read our full TAB Bank review
Account details:
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Minimum opening deposit: None
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APY: 1% on balances of $2,500 or more
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Cashback rate: 1%-2%
LendingClub’s LevelUp Checking account earns an unlimited 1% cash back on qualifying purchases and a 2% cash back on Lending Club personal loan payments (as long as they are paid by the due date).
There are no monthly maintenance or overdraft fees, and no minimum balance or transaction requirements. Account balances of $2,500 or more earn 1% APY. Other benefits include early direct deposit, a free credit check with DebtIQ™, and unlimited ATM fee discounts on fees charged by other banks.
Salary details
To start earning cash back rewards, account holders must set up direct deposit and receive at least one direct deposit into their LevelUp Checking account each month. Eligible purchases include purchases at eligible gas stations, grocery stores and pharmacies.
Read our full LendingClub review
Account details:
GreenFi (formerly Aspiration) is a financial technology company focused on climate. It offers a combined online checking account and high-yield savings account that earns 3% unlimited cash when you buy 150+ climate-friendly products on its Green Marketplace.
Additionally, you can choose to add your GreenFi credit card to the “Plant Your Change Service,” which rounds up transactions to the next dollar amount and transfers the difference to the GreenFi Plant Your Change Service Account.
Account holders can also earn 1% APY on savings balances up to $25,000. To qualify for interest, you must have a qualifying direct deposit or debit card balance of $500 or more each month.
Other benefits include unlimited cash withdrawals at more than 55,000 Allpoint® ATMs and direct deposit two days before your regular payday. Banking services are provided by Coastal Community Bank (member FDIC).
Customers who sign up for GreenFi Plus (for a monthly fee) can enjoy all the benefits of GreenFi Check and Save, plus up to 3.25% APY on savings and 6% cash back on all Green Market purchases.
Salary details
Every time you use your GreenFi credit card at the Green Marketplace, you’ll earn an unlimited 3% cash back on your purchases (or 6% cash back with GreenFi Plus). The market includes a variety of rigorously tested, climate-friendly products that aim to combat climate change. Cashback is credited to your account every month.
Account details:
Axos Bank’s CashBack Checking account rewards customers with 1% of their purchases. There are no monthly maintenance fees associated with this account, and it comes with unlimited domestic ATM payments and no ATM fees.
Salary details
Account holders can earn up to 1% on sign-up purchases, up to $2,000 per month. In order to qualify for the 1% cashback rate, you must maintain an average daily deposit of $1,500. If your average daily deposit falls below $1,500, you will earn 0.5% in cashback that month.
Purchases made at department stores, department stores, grocery stores, department stores, discount stores, USPS, and money transfer or money order centers are not eligible. Additionally, purchases made through virtual wallets, money transfer services, or other similar technologies are not eligible.
Read our full review of Axos Bank
Account details:
Bank5 Connect’s High-Interest Checking Account, which requires a minimum opening deposit of $10, offers 1% cash back when you shop at participating merchants.
The account also earns 2% APY on deposits of $100 or more, with no monthly maintenance fees. In addition, Bank5 Connect does not charge ATM fees, and refunds up to $15 per statement cycle if other banks charge you for using their ATM.
Salary details
Get 1% cashback when you shop with a Bank5 Connect debit card at participating stores. Simply log into your account using the Bank5 Connect mobile app or online banking platform and activate the offers that interest you. The refund is deposited directly into your Bank5 Connect Checking account.
Read our full Bank5 Connect review
Find the right account for you:
Our ranking system, collected and carefully reviewed by our financial experts, contains a wealth of information on today’s top accounts to develop our list of the best cash back accounts.
We’ve reviewed these accounts based on a number of key factors, including minimum opening deposits, monthly fees, interest rates, cashback options, top cashback rewards, direct deposit requirements and welcome bonuses.
Reviewing accounts on our list can score up to 32 on all metrics. Here’s a closer look at the groups we reviewed:
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Minimum opening deposit: Most checking accounts require a small deposit to open an account. Accounts with no minimum or minimum deposit requirements were selected in our case.
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Monthly payments: Most checking accounts come with monthly service fees that can eat into your account balance. We rewarded accounts that had no monthly maintenance fees with the highest number of points for that group.
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API: We reward profitable checking accounts with more points.
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Refund rate: Cashback fees vary by checking account. We’ve given extra points to accounts with higher cashback rates.
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Cashback on all purchases or categories: Some checking accounts offer cash back on all your purchases, while others only offer cash back on purchases within certain categories. We’ve given the most points to the accounts that offer the lowest total cost.
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Cash-back cap: More points were given to checking accounts that have the potential to earn unlimited cash back rewards, as opposed to accounts that cover a certain amount of money that you would receive over a period of time.
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Direct deposit requirement: Many checking accounts have additional earning requirements, such as a minimum number of direct deposits per month or statement period. We have provided additional information to accounts that did not have this requirement.
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Welcome bonus: Reviewing accounts on our list are given additional points for promotional bonuses for new accounts. Promotional bonuses are subject to change, but we have provided information for the bonuses in effect at the time of publication.
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