So far, 2023 has been pretty hard on our bank accounts. Between inflation and an impending recession, it looks like our wallets are taking quite a hit this year, even with the government payouts to aid us.
It’s times like these when saving your money is more important than ever. One easy way to do this is through a savings account. When you open a savings account with a bank, you deposit money into it and let that money earn interest. You’ll enjoy higher interest rates on a savings account than you would on your normal account (called a checking account).
However, not all savings accounts are made equal. Different banks offer different interest rates and different minimum sums. So to help you out, we’ve compiled the best savings accounts in Singapore with the highest interest rates in 2023 for different personal and financial needs.
Note: We update this article on a monthly basis with the latest rates; the rates below are as of Nov 14, 2023.
1. At a glance: Best savings accounts in Singapore with highest interest rates (Sep 2023)
Savings account
Interest rates
Best for
Standard Chartered Bonus Saver
Up to 7.88per cent (on first $100,000)
High spenders
UOB One
Up to 7.80per cent (on next $25,000 after depositing $75,000)
Freelancers & self-employed
OCBC 360
EIR of up to 7.65per cent (on first $100,000)
Growing your savings
Citi Wealth First Account
Up to 7.51per cent (on first $50,000-$150,000)
Those with other Citibank products
Bank of China Smart Saver
Up to 6.70per cent (on first $100,000)
High earners & spenders
Maybank Save Up
Up to 4.30per cent (on first S$50,000)
Home, education, car loan users
DBS Multiplier
Up to 4.10per cent (on first $50,000 – $100,000)
Salaried workers
CIMB FastSaver
Up to 3.50per cent (no cap!)
Young adults starting their careers
HSBC Everyday Global Account
1per cent interest + 1per cent cashback (capped at $300/month)
Those with other HSBC products
Note: The maximum interest rates given above are for regular banking customers. Many banks offer higher rates for their priority banking customers and private clients. The maximum interest rates above only apply to a certain sum, such as the first $50,000.
1. Citi Wealth First Account
Citibanking, Citi Priority
Citigold
Citigold Private Client
Deposit amount
First $50,000
First $100,000
First $150,000
Base interest rate
0.01per cent p.a.
Spend (min. $250/month on Citibank Debit Mastercard)
1.5per cent p.a.
Invest (min. $50,000/month)
1.5per cent p.a.
Insure (min. $50,000/month)
1.5per cent p.a.
Borrow (min. $500,000 home loan)
1.5per cent p.a.
Save (min. $3,000/month)
1.5per cent p.a.
TOTAL
7.51per cent p.a.
The Citi Wealth First Account has a simple mechanic for calculating its total interest rate: base interest + bonus interest.
Its base interest starts at 0.01 per cent for everyone, whether you’re a Citibanking, Citi Priority, Citigold, or Citigold Private Client customer. That’s the lowest base interest rate out of all the savings accounts on this list.
Next, beef up that measly 0.01 per cent up with bonus interest rates. You get different bonus rates depending on which of the following categories you fulfil:
Spend (+1.5 per cent): Spend at least $250/month on your Citibank Debit Mastercard.
Invest (+1.5 per cent): Purchase one or more new single lump sum investments totalling at least $50,000/month. Investments can include Unit Trust, Structured Notes and Bonds.
Insure (+1.5 per cent): Purchase one or more new single premium policies totalling at least $50,000/month.
Borrow (+1.5 per cent): Take up a new home loan of at least $500,000.
Save (+1.5 per cent): Deposit more money into your account, increasing your account’s average daily balance by at least $3,000 from the previous month’s.
If you fulfil all of the transaction categories above, the maximum interest rate you can get with the Citi Wealth First Account is a generous 7.51 per cent. That’s one of the highest rates among the savings accounts this month. Plus, it applies to the first $50,000 to $150,000 in your account, and not just the first $25,000 after the $100,000 mark or something like that.
The only advantage to starting a Citigold or Citigold Private Client banking relationship is that the bonus interest rates can apply to a larger sum of money. For Citibanking or Citi Priority customers, bonus interest rates are applied to only the first $50,000, according to the Citi Wealth First T&Cs. This increases to $100,000 for Citigold and $150,000 for Citigold Private Client.
However, you’ll need to maintain $250,000 in your account for Citigold, and $1,500,000 for Citigold Private Client. If you fall below these thresholds, the bonus 7.51 per cent will only apply to the first $50,000 just like for everyone else.
Citi Wealth First Account
Minimum balance: $15,000
Fall below fee: $15
Bonus interest cap: $50,000-$150,000
2. Standard Chartered Bonus Saver account interest rates
Transactions
Interest rate
None (base interest)
0.05per cent
Salary credit (min. $3,000)
+ 2.50per cent
Credit card spending (min. $500 or $2,000)
+ 1.30per cent (min. $500) OR 2.05per cent (min. $2,000)
3x GIRO bill payments (min. $50)
+ 0.33per cent
Invest in eligible unit trust (min. $30,000)
+ 1.50per cent for 12 months
Buy eligible insurance (min. $12,000)
+ 1.50per cent for 12 months
The Standard Chartered Bonus Saver savings account currently offers the highest maximum interest rate on a savings account: 7.88 per cent p.a.. It isn’t easy to get there — you’d need to fulfil these five requirements: credit your salary, spend on your credit card, pay three bills, invest, and buy insurance.
However, the Standard Chartered Bonus Saver savings account does occupy a niche: It gives you pretty high bonus interest just for spending tons of money.
Pay three bills online or via GIRO and you’ll get an additional 0.33 per cent interest. Spend at least $2,000 on your SCB Bonus$aver credit or debit card and you’ll already get 2.05 per cent p.a. bonus interest on your savings. Not bad if your card’s main function is to pay for your kid’s tuition fees, dental checkups, condo MCST fees and what-not.
On top of that, crediting your salary will get you an additional 2.50 per cent interest. However, you have to be earning at least $3,000 per month to qualify for the bonus interest.
Standard Chartered Bonus Saver
Minimum balance: $3,000
Fall below fee: $5
Bonus interest cap: $100,000
3. UOB One savings account interest rates
Account balance
S$500 spend per month on eligible UOB Card
S$500 spend per month on eligible UOB Card + 3 GIRO/PayNow debit transactions
S$500 spend per month on eligible UOB Card + credit salary via GIRO/PayNow
First $30,000
0.65per cent
2.50per cent
3.85per cent
Next $30,000
0.65per cent
3.00per cent
3.90per cent
Next $15,000
0.65per cent
4.00per cent
4.85per cent
Next $25,000
0.05per cent
7.80per cent
Above $100,000
0.05per cent
The easy-to-use UOB One account currently offers one of the highest maximum interest rates out there, at 7.8 per cent p.a.. You’ll get to enjoy this rate on your next $25,000 after depositing $75,000 once you fulfil these requirements:
Credit your salary to the UOB One account via GIRO/PayNow
Spend at least S$500 spend per month on an eligible UOB Card
The eligible cards are:
UOB One Card
UOB Lady’s Card
UOB EVOL Card
UOB One Debit Visa Card
UOB One Debit Mastercard
UOB Lady’s Debit Card
UOB Mighty FX Debit Card
Don’t have a fixed monthly salary? You can still get up to four per cent p.a. with the UOB one account if you pay three bills by GIRO.
This is great for those without a regular paycheck such as freelancers, retirees or homemakers. If you go for this option, the interest rate rises with every additional $30,000 or $15,000 in your UOB One account, up to $75,000.
UOB One savings account
Minimum balance: $1,000
Fall below fee: $5 (Waived for first six months for accounts opened online)
Bonus interest cap: $100,000
4. OCBC 360 savings account interest rates
Transactions
Interest rate (first $75,000)
Interest rate (next $25,000)
None (base interest)
0.05per cent
0.05per cent
Salary credit (min. $1,800)
+ 2.00per cent
+ 4.00per cent
Increase avg. monthly balance (min. $500)
+ 1.20per cent
+ 2.40per cent
Spend (min. $500 on OCBC 365 card)
+ 0.60per cent
Insure in selected products (min $2,000)
+1.20per cent
+ 2.40per cent
Invest in selected products (min. $20,000)
+ 1.20 per cent
+ 2.40per cent
Maintain average daily balance of min. $200,000
2.40per cent
The OCBC 360 savings account starts at a base interest of 0.05 per cent p.a., and gives you varying bonus rates for crediting your salary, spending, growing your balance, insuring and investing.
If you fulfil several of these requirements, this is what your maximum Effective Interest Rate (EIR) will be on your first $100,000:
Salary + Save: 4.05 per cent p.a.
Salary + Save + Spend: 4.65 per cent p.a.
Salary + Save + Spend + Insure / Invest: 6.15 per cent p.a.
Salary + Save + Spend + Insure + Invest: 7.65 per cent p.a.
The OCBC 360 is more complicated than the UOB One, but also more flexible in that there is no one mandatory requirement. This account makes sense if you’re earning just enough to meet the $1,800 minimum, and don’t want to jump through any further hoops. You’ll earn a bonus two per cent for not doing much else than crediting your salary to the OCBC 360 account.
You get a bonus 1.2 per cent every month that your account balance increases by $500 or more, so that might encourage you to save more.
OCBC 360
Minimum balance: $1,000
Fall below fee: $2. Waived for first year
Bonus interest cap: $100,000
5. Bank of China Smart Saver account interest rates
Transactions
Interest rate
None (base interest)
0.1per cent
Insurance plan spending
+2.40per cent p.a. for 12 consecutive months
Salary credit
+ 1.90per cent (min. $2,000) OR 2.50per cent (min. $6,000)
Credit card spending
+ 0.50per cent (min. $500) OR 0.80per cent (min. $1,500)
3x bill payments of at least S$30 each (GIRO or internet/mobile banking)
+0.9per cent p.a.
The Bank of China SmartSaver account is a decently good choice for high earners. They offer probably the highest interest rates in Singapore for those who take home a monthly salary of at least $6,000. You get a cool 2.6 per cent p.a. just for opening the account and crediting your salary to it. If raking up a credit card bill of at least $1,500 is no problem for you, you’ll get an additional 0.8per cent bonus interest.
The Bank of China SmartSaver account also awards a wealth bonus of 2.4 per cent per annum for 12 consecutive months. However, to qualify, you’ll have to put down a pretty hefty sum on their insurance products. We’re talking a minimum of $12,000 in annual premiums with a 10-year premium term.
If you max out the bonus interest in all categories, you can enjoy a rate of up to 6.7 per cent p.a. with the Bank of China.
Bank of China Smart Saver
Minimum balance: $200 (Maintain at least $1,500 to enjoy bonus interests)
Fall below fee: $3
Bonus interest cap: $100,000
6. Maybank Save Up Programme interest rates
Interest rates (applicable from June 1, 2023)
Transactions
First S$50,000
Next S$25,000
Maximum Effective Interest Rate
None (base interest)
Up to 0.25per cent p.a.
Up to 0.25per cent p.a.
1 x transaction
+ 0.30per cent p.a.
+ 1.00per cent p.a.
0.53per cent p.a.
2 x transactions
+ 1.00per cent p.a.
+ 1.50per cent p.a.
1.17per cent p.a.
3 x transactions
+ 2.75per cent p.a.
+ 3.75per cent p.a.
3.08per cent p.a.
The Maybank Save Up Programme lets you choose from nine different Maybank products/services to get bonus interest:
GIRO payment (min. $300) OR salary credit (min. $2,000)
Credit card spending (min. $500) on Maybank Platinum Visa Card and/or Horizon Visa Signature Card
Invest in structured deposit (min. $30,000)
Invest in unit trust (min. $25,000)
Buy insurance (min. $5,000 annually)
Home loan (min. $200,000)
Renovation loan (min. $10,000)
Car loan (min. $35,000)
Education loan (min. $10,000)
The Maybank Save Up Programme starts with a higher base interest rate than most other savings accounts. However, the bonus interest rates aren’t competitive unless you fulfil three transactions.
Assuming you hit three transactions and start with a bonus interest rate of 0.25 per cent, you’ll get 4.3 per cent on your first $50,000 and 5.5 per cent p.a. on the next $25,000.
For comparison, the OCBC 360 account will give you 4.65 per cent p.a. for hitting the three categories of crediting your salary, saving, and spending on your credit card.
Maybank Save Up Programme
Minimum balance: $1,000
Fall below fee: $2. Waived for individuals below age 25.
Bonus interest cap: $50,000
7. DBS Multiplier savings account interest rates
Total monthly transactions
Income + 1 category
Income + 2 categories
Income + 3 categories
First $50,000
First $100,000
First $100,000
$500 to $14,999
1.80per cent
2.10per cent
2.40per cent
$15,000 to $29,999
1.90per cent
2.20per cent
2.50per cent
$30,000 and up
2.20per cent
3.00per cent
4.10per cent
The rates in the table above apply to you if you credit your salary/dividends/SGFinDex to any DBS or POSB account (yes, it doesn’t need to be your DBS Multiplier account!).
You need to have $2,000 worth of transactions moving in and out of your DBS Multiplier account from your salary credit and one or more of the following categories:
Credit card spending (no minimum)
Home loan (cash + CPF components counted)
Selected insurance policies (life insurance, critical illness, endowment plans and selected single premium policies)
Selected investments (regular savings plan, unit trust, online equities trade, digiPortfolio or bonds, and structured products)
The more categories you hit, the higher bonus interest rates you get.
What if you don’t have any DBS credit card, insurance, or investments? Unfortunately, the bonus interest rates aren’t as high, at 1.5 per cent p.a. for the first $50,000.
And while you have the option to not credit your salary to a DBS/POSB account, DBS will still require you to at least use PayLah!. The good news is that there isn’t a minimum amount for PayLah! spend. Just use it to pay for anything, even if it’s a $1+ cup of kopi at your local coffeeshop. Easy!
The DBS Multiplier account makes it easy to earn bonus interest with its zero minimum spend transaction categories and the flexibility to credit your salary into any DBS account, not necessarily the DBS Multiplier.
However, DBS Multiplier account interest rates start pretty low. If you don’t credit your salary to a DBS/POSB account, your interest rates max out at 0.40 per cent p.a..
In fact, DBS Multiplier interest rates are nowhere near even the one per cent p.a. mark unless Option 1 applies to you, i.e. you have other DBS/POSB transactions. Comparatively, CIMB FastSaver’s interest rates start at 1.50 per cent p.a. for just opening the account and depositing a minimum of $1,000.
DBS Multiplier
Minimum balance: $3,000
Fall below fee: $5. Waived for first-time customers & those up to age 29.
Bonus interest cap: $100,000
8. CIMB FastSaver savings account interest rates
The CIMB FastSaver account is the easiest savings account to earn money with this month. They’re running a promotion that lets new-to-bank customers earn 3.50 per cent p.a. from the first dollar, with a minimum deposit of S$1,000. Simply maintain or increase your month-end balance, and start accruing interest!
Those with an existing CIMB FastSaver account enjoy the same rate on incremental funds after they top up their account. Again, there are no requirements to hit a certain credit card spend or buy insurance to enjoy this rate.
Admittedly, 3.50 per cent p.a. interest is not a lot. But we have to give the CIMB FastSaver account credit where it’s due — it’s the least headache-inducing of all the savings accounts to have.
Their mechanic is as simple as it gets: deposit money, earn interest. The only requirement is to maintain at least $1,000 in your account for you to earn the advertised interest rates. You can do the least with CIMB FastSaver’s account and still reap the benefits of its rather generous interest rates.
This account is also perfect for most young adults starting out their career, because of the very low “minimum” balance of $1,000 and no fall below fee.
CIMB FastSaver
Minimum balance: $1,000
Fall below fee: None!
Bonus interest cap: $75,000
9. POSB SAYE savings account interest rates
What if you want to open a savings account, but don’t want to do anything but credit money into it? The best zero-effort contender is the POSB SAYE (Save As You Earn) account.
You need to set up a standing order to credit a fixed amount every month (anything from $50 to $3,000) into your SAYE account, then resist the urge to touch it for two years. As a reward for your restraint, you earn 3.5 per cent p.a..
Note that it’s a whole lot less liquid than any other savings account, so for the love of God, please don’t put your emergency stash in here.
10. HSBC Everyday Global Account
The HSBC Everyday Global Account is a multi-currency account that also doubles up as a savings account… masquerading as an interest/cashback-earning hybrid. Let me explain.
Unlike the other savings accounts on this list, the HSBC Everyday Global Account doesn’t stack bonus interest the more you spend/save/borrow/invest/insure. Instead, the account works hand in hand with the HSBC Everyday+ Rewards Programme to earn you a maximum of 4.50 per cent interest per year.
3.45 per cent p.a. Everyday Global Account Bonus Interest
0.05 per cent p.a. Everyday Global Account’s prevailing interest rate
1.00 per cent p.a. when you qualify for the HSBC Everyday+ Rewards Programme
To qualify for the HSBC Everyday+ Rewards Programme, you need to:
Deposit at least $2,000 (for Personal Banking customers) or $5,000 (for Premier customers) into the account
Make five eligible transactions, with no minimum amount. These can be any combination of the following types:
Transactions made with a HSBC personal credit card
Transactions made with a HSBC Everyday Global Debit Card
GIRO bill payments
Fund transfers
Qualifying for the Everyday+ Rewards Programme also gets you one per cent cashback (capped at $300/month).
On top of the interest and cashback, HSBC will give you one-time cash bonuses of up to $150 (for Personal banking customers) or $300 (for Premier banking customers) when you deposits at least $100,000 (Personal banking) / $200,000 (Premier Banking) and meets the eligibility criteria above for the first six months.
ALSO READ: Best credit card promotions in Singapore (November-December 2023): Citibank, DBS, HSBC, UOB and more
This article was first published in MoneySmart.
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