Is Robinhood a good savings account?
Standard Robinhood members earn 1.5% annual interest on their uninvested cash, while Robinhood Gold members receive a higher 5.25% APY annual interest on their uninvested brokerage cash. While not exceeding inflation rates, this interest is more competitive than some high-yield savings accounts.
Is it worth it? Yes, it's worth moving your savings to Robinhood if you want to earn a decent interest rate along with other Gold perks, like Morningstar stock analyses and advanced charts. There is a caveat, however, and it has to do with the monthly subscription fee.
You can use the card the same way you would a debit card issued by any bank. Robinhood customers have access to over 75,000 ATMs, including more than 15,000 international ATMs, through a partnership with Allpoint and MoneyPass.
Robinhood uses Plaid to allow its users to link their bank accounts to the app. Robinhood doesn't get this information. It goes only to Plaid, which is a financial intermediary with a good reputation for security. It's mostly safe to provide your bank password in this instance.
Until the money is "swept," it is insured by the SIPC (up to $500,000, which includes a $250,000 limit for cash). Once it's swept to a program bank, that money is still accessible to you to withdraw, to spend, or to invest through your Robinhood brokerage account.
“I advise my clients that any money they are going to need to spend in the next two to three years should not be invested in stocks,” says Itkin. “You do not want to have to sell during a bear market and risk losing principal.”
For example, $1,000 put into an account with an annual interest rate of 5% would, in theory, earn $50 at the end of the year. However, if the rate is 5% with interest earned monthly, the APY would actually be 5.116%, earning you $1051.16 by the end of the first year.
The bottom line is that Robinhood Gold is worth it for certain Robinhood customers, but not others. If you max out your IRA contributions every year, being a Robinhood Gold member can get you far more value than the annual membership cost.
Is my money insured? Cash in your Robinhood spending account is eligible for FDIC insurance coverage of up to a total maximum of $250,000.
Program banks pay interest on your swept cash, minus any fees paid to Robinhood. The Annual Percentage Yield (APY)* is 1.5% as of August 11, 2022 or 5% for Robinhood Gold members as of Nov 15, 2023. The APY might change at any time at the program banks' discretion.
Is Robinhood going to survive?
Today, though, Robinhood is still standing. In a new Wall Street Journal profile, Tenev says the company is done with distractions and is focused again on building for the long term. This includes retirement accounts and a credit card business, which will make it less dependent on the highly volatile trading markets.
First things first, Robinhood is SIPC insured, which means that customers' accounts are protected up to $500,000, including a $250,000 limit for cash. So, there's a certain level of safety in terms of account security and protection.
If you're linking a bank account, we recommend linking a checking account rather than a savings account to avoid potential transfer reversals. You can also link an external debit card account for instant transfers to your Robinhood brokerage or spending account.
Robinhood Gold's 5.00% APY, under the Robinhood Brokerage Cash Sweep program, is competitive with some of the best high-yield savings accounts. Robinhood customers who don't subscribe to the Gold tier will earn 1.50% APY (5.00% APY for Gold customers), which is still more than triple the national average.
The Robinhood Cash Card and Robinhood Spending Account comes with some bank fees you might want to avoid: a $2.50 ATM fee for both in- and out-of-network ATMs and a variable fee up to 1.75% for bank transfers to external bank accounts.
There are certain more complex investment strategies that aren't available to you when you have a cash account. Futures trading requires the use of margin, so you typically can't trade futures in a cash account. Options trading is available, but it's more difficult to write options contracts.
Imagine you wish to amass $3000 monthly from your investments, amounting to $36,000 annually. If you park your funds in a savings account offering a 2% annual interest rate, you'd need to inject roughly $1.8 million into the account.
The 50-30-20 rule recommends putting 50% of your money toward needs, 30% toward wants, and 20% toward savings. The savings category also includes money you will need to realize your future goals.
For savings, aim to keep three to six months' worth of expenses in a high-yield savings account, but note that any amount can be beneficial in a financial emergency.
Year 1 | $5,000 x 3% = $150 |
---|---|
Year 2 | $5,000 x 3% = $150 |
Year 3 | $5,000 x 3% = $150 |
Total | $5,000 + $450 = $5,450 |
What interest rate do you need to turn $1000 into $5000 in 20 years?
So 8.38% will turn $1,000 into $5,000 in 20 Years.
Simple Interest Examples
You want to know your total interest payment for the entire loan. To start, you'd multiply your principal by your annual interest rate, or $10,000 × 0.05 = $500.
- Best for Global Traders: Interactive Brokers.
- Best for Intermediate Traders: Webull.
- Best for Futures Trading: TradeStation.
- Best for Traders of All Levels: Moomoo.
- Best for Trade Ideas: Public.com.
Although Robinhood is typically thought of as a beginner-friendly investing app, Fidelity has repeatedly earned title of Best Broker for Beginning Investors and the Best App for Investing in NerdWallet's Best-Of Awards.
We work with partner banks to process transactions. ACH account and routing numbers may be issued by Sutton Bank or JPMorgan Chase Bank, and the Robinhood debit card is issued by Sutton Bank.
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