Ally Spending Account Review: No Maintenance Fees Champ

The Ally Spending Account strives to put money in your pocket by eliminating pesky fees and offering a competitive APY on your savings. Those with $15,000 or more will get the most out of this account, but even those with less will find a lot to love here. Read our full Ally Spending Account review below to decide if it's right for you.

Competitive APY: The Ally Spending Account offers a competitive APY, especially for customers who have a minimum daily balance of $15,000 or more. However, those with less can still earn an above-average rate. While some other interest-bearing checking accounts offer higher APYs, Ally's rates are still well above average, even besting those of many traditional savings accounts.

Monthly ATM fee reimbursements: Ally partners with Allpoint® to give its Ally Spending Account customers free access to 43,000 ATMs nationwide, but if you can't find one near you, that's OK. Ally will also reimburse you up to $10 per month for fees you incur at out-of-network ATMs.

No minimum balance required: Ally doesn't require a minimum opening deposit to get an Ally Spending Account, nor does it have ongoing minimum balance requirements to avoid fees or earn interest. This makes it a solid option for those who want to earn interest on their checking account funds but don't have a large enough balance to open an interest-bearing checking account or qualify for high APYs with other banks.

Many ways to manage your money: Ally has online banking features and a user-friendly mobile app for Android and Apple devices, so you can quickly view your transaction history, transfer funds, pay bills, and remotely deposit checks from anywhere. You can also use your Ally Spending Account with third-party payment services to send money directly to others. Those with an Amazon Alexa device in their homes can enable the Ally Skill and manage their funds without lifting a finger. Few other banks offer this many options for managing your money, so move Ally up on your list if easy access is a priority for you.

FDIC insured: Finally, Ally Spending Accounts are covered by the same FDIC insurance as traditional bank accounts. This covers you for $250,000 per depositor, per institution, in the event of a bank failure.

What could be improved

Qualification requirements for the high APY: The Ally Spending Account's high APY is available only to those with a minimum daily balance of $15,000 or more. Most people probably aren't going to keep that much money in their checking accounts, and those who do would probably be better off stashing that money in a high-yield savings account.

Here are your options for depositing money into and withdrawing money from your Ally Spending Account.

Deposit options

You can add money to your Ally Spending Account in any of the following ways:

• ACH transfer
• Wire transfer
• Mailed check
• Mobile-deposited checks

Ally doesn't have a minimum opening deposit, so you don't have to fund your account right away if you're not ready to. You can set up direct deposit with your employer and wait for your next paycheck to fund the account.

Funds transferred electronically are usually available on the same or the next business day. However, transfers from another bank to your Ally Spending Account could take up to three business days if you initiate the transfer through Ally.

Withdrawal options

These are your choices for withdrawing money from your Ally Spending Account:

• ACH transfer
• Wire transfer
• Check withdrawal
• ATM withdrawal
• Point-of-sale withdrawal

You can use the ATM locator tool on Ally's website or in its mobile app to find a surcharge-free ATM near you. If there isn't one around, just use any ATM nearby; Ally will reimburse you up to $10 in ATM fees per month.

The Ally Spending Account is a good fit for those who want to earn interest on their checking account funds but don't have a lot of money to put in their account. It doesn't have a minimum opening deposit or a minimum balance requirement to earn interest. It also offers monthly ATM fee reimbursements, plus a nationwide ATM network, so it's a great choice for those who don't want to pay to access their cash when they need it.

Those with minimum daily balances of $15,000 or more will get the most benefit from the Ally Spending Account, including its highest APY. But even if you qualify for the lower APY tier, you can feel confident you're earning a rate well above the national average for checking accounts.