Wells Fargo Platinum Savings Review: A Solid Choice for High-Balance Accounts

The Wells Fargo Platinum Savings might be right for: Customers who maintain relatively high savings balances, as it offers a higher-than-average yield more similar to an online bank, with the convenience of a branch-based national bank.

In this in-depth expert review, we'll take a look at the Wells Fargo Platinum Savings account, including all of the pros and cons, as well as how it stacks up to the competition.

The Wells Fargo Platinum Savings account is a solid branch-accessible savings account, especially ideal for those who maintain high balances. However, like most financial products, it isn't right for everyone. Here's a rundown of the details to help you decide if it's right for you.

If you've got a huge savings account balance, opening a Wells Fargo Platinum Savings account could be worth it -- you'll need $500,000 to earn the top rate. If you're like us regular people, however, you'll have to weigh the benefits of in-person banking access against the much higher APY you could find with an online bank.

We tried it: Our team's firsthand experience

Here at The Motley Fool Ascent, we pride ourselves as real users of most of the products across our site. One of our Personal Finance Writers, Ben Gran, uses the Wells Fargo Platinum Savings himself.

A $25 minimum deposit is needed to open the Wells Fargo Platinum Savings account. After this, account holders don't need to maintain a minimum to keep the savings account open, though maintaining a $3,500 daily balance will waive the $12 monthly service fee.

The Wells Fargo Platinum Savings account offers unlimited withdrawals or transfers in and out of the account. This sets it apart from many savings accounts, which limit the number of withdrawals and don't offer debit cards.

The Wells Fargo Mobile® app offers all the functions you would expect from a major bank. You can manage your accounts, transfer money through Zelle, deposit checks, and even chat with a virtual assistant.

Wells Fargo is one of the largest financial institutions in the United States, and has a massive branch and ATM network, as well as a top-notch mobile app. Plus, the Wells Fargo Platinum Savings account is generally more flexible than other savings accounts, especially for withdrawals.

So, the numerous ways you can put money into or take money out of the Wells Fargo Platinum Savings account are a major perk, especially when compared with online banking competitors.

Deposit options

As not only a branch-based bank, but as one of the largest financial institutions in the United States, deposit options are a strength of the Wells Fargo Platinum Savings account.

There are several ways to deposit money into the account:

• Cash deposits via branches
• Cash or checks in ATMs
• By mail
• Mobile check deposits
• Direct deposit
• Wire transfers
• Transfers from external or other Wells Fargo bank accounts

Withdrawal options

Just like with deposits, there are many different options when it comes to withdrawals. You can withdraw money in these forms:

• Cash in branches
• ATM withdrawals (unlimited)
• Check writing
• Bill pay
• Outgoing wire transfers
• Transfers to other Wells Fargo accounts
• Transfers to external linked accounts

Banks typically don't fare very well in online reviews, and Wells Fargo is no exception -- scoring just 1.3 out of 5 stars on Trustpilot and 1.0 out of 5 stars on BBB. The Wells Fargo Mobile® app, however, ranks higher with a rating of 4.9 in the App Store and 4.8 out of 5 stars on Google Play.

Competitive APY: The Wells Fargo Platinum Savings account pays APYs that are significantly higher than the national average for savings accounts, especially for those with higher balances. There's also a slightly higher APY for those who have a Prime Checking or Premier Checking account with Wells Fargo -- otherwise known as its Relationship Interest Rate.

Monthly fee can be waived: Since the Wells Fargo Platinum Savings account is designed for savers who keep high balances, it shouldn't be too much of a surprise that the $12 monthly service fee can be waived by maintaining a $3,500 minimum daily balance during each fee period.

Thousands of branches: Wells Fargo is one of the largest banks in the United States, and this can be a big perk, especially if you want the ability to easily deposit cash into your savings account or get in-person help when you need it. There are also more than 11,000 Wells Fargo ATMs in the U.S. that account holders can use.

Check writing: This is a rarity among savings accounts. The Wells Fargo Platinum Savings account allows you to write checks on the account.

Best APYs are for high-balance accounts: The Wells Fargo Platinum Savings account offers competitive APYs, but only for accounts with high balances. There are four tiers of APYs:

• $0 - $99,999.99
• $100,000 - $499,999.99
• $500,000 - $999,999.99
• $1 million or more

While the APYs will fluctuate over time, the key point is that the APY for the bottom tier is much lower than for the higher tiers. So even though we would call this a highly competitive savings account for people with $500,000 or more, especially considering the convenience of Wells Fargo's branch network, the lower tiers offer APYs well below what online competitors pay.

If your main priority is to maximize the yield from your savings, there are better options from high-yield savings accounts -- and without the interest rate tiers.

Monthly service fee: The Wells Fargo Platinum Savings account has a $12 monthly service fee, but it's pretty straightforward to avoid by keeping a minimum daily balance of $3,500 or higher in any given month. For people who don't regularly keep this much in savings, it's worth mentioning that the bank also offers its Wells Fargo Way2Save Savings account that only has a $5 monthly fee and several easy ways to get out of paying it.

Yes, Wells Fargo is an FDIC member. This guarantees depositors up to $250,000 in FDIC insurance per account type.

The Wells Fargo Platinum Savings account offers some of the best features of branch-based savings (and even checking) accounts, while also offering APYs that are significantly above average to high-balance customers. It could be an ideal fit for savers with relatively high balances who value the convenience of using a national bank, especially those who want the ability to access their money frequently.

Keep reading about Wells Fargo

• Wells Fargo Review
• Wells Fargo CD Rates
• Wells Fargo Way2Save Savings Review

Our savings account methodology

At The Motley Fool Ascent, we rate savings accounts on a five-star scale (1 = poor, 5 = best). We evaluate all savings accounts across four main criteria: annual percentage yield (APY), brand and reputation, fees and minimum requirements, and perks that really make a difference -- think ATM access, linked checking accounts, or even branch access.

Our scores are weighted as:

• APY: 50%
• Brand and reputation: 20%
• Fees and minimums: 15%
• Other perks: 15%

Learn more about how The Motley Fool Ascent rates bank accounts.