Axos advertises up to 5.00% APY on its ONE Savings account, the highest rate among six high-yield accounts NerdWallet picked out after the Federal Reserve’s September increase. The catch is in the conditions, and on closer reading the number is a six-month teaser.
The Fed raised its benchmark rate by a quarter point on September 16, 2026, to a range of 3.75% to 4.00%. NerdWallet called it the first increase since 2023. For scale, the site puts the national average savings rate at 0.38%, and some big-bank accounts pay as little as 0.01%.
The Axos conditions
The 5.00% lasts six months. It requires a linked Axos checking account plus one of two deposit setups. The first needs a $1,500 average daily balance and $1,500 in monthly direct deposits. The second lifts both figures to $5,000 and counts transfers or checks, so it suits someone paid by check or moving money in from another bank. After the promotion the account pays 4.21%, which is 0.79 points lower. Both rates are variable.
The alternatives
Openbank pays up to 4.35% on balances of at least $500, which is also the amount needed to open the account. There is no monthly fee. EverBank Performance Savings pays 4.20% with no minimum balance, and NerdWallet gave it a 5.0 rating out of 5.
Happen Bank’s LevelUp Savings also pays 4.20%, but only to savers who deposit at least $250 in the prior statement cycle. Skip a cycle and the rate drops to 3.00%. SoFi advertises up to 4.40% when direct deposit is set up, a rate that includes a 1.10% boost. Its standard rate is 3.30%, and savers who meet none of its conditions earn 0.80%.
Marcus by Goldman Sachs sits at the bottom of the group at 3.50%. It asks for no minimum balance and charges no monthly fee. NerdWallet credits it with years of reliably strong rates.
Deposits at these banks are federally insured up to $250,000 per depositor. Every rate is variable, and NerdWallet’s figures were current as of October 28, 2026. The Fed’s next rate announcement was set for that same day.
