UFB Portfolio Savings Account: A no-frills account with a very high APY (2024)

Editor's Note: APYs listed in this article are up-to-date as of the time of publication. They may fluctuate (up or down) as the Fed rate changes. CNBC Select will update as changes are made public.

High-yield savings accountsare essential savings vehicles ideal for an emergency fund or a large upcoming purchase. That's because, true to their name, they typically offer higher interest rates than a traditional savings account would and offer greater liquidity than CDs.

The UFB Portfolio Savings provides a simple, no-frills solution to savers who just want their money to grow quickly and safely — plus it currently offers one of the highest interest rates available for a savings account. Below, CNBC Select takes a closer look at theUFB Portfolio Savings by breaking down its annual percentage yield (APY), access to your cash, features and fees so you can decide if this savings account is right for you.

At the time of this writing, the UFB Portfolio Savings offers an APY of up to 5.15%. This is one of the highest interest rates currently available on the market. If you want to grow your money with no-risk and still have quick access to it, this is one of the best accounts to do so.

A disclaimer at the bottom of UFB's website states that this APY is a tiered offering. However, every deposit tier currently listed on the website earns the maximum APY of 5.15%. Whether this will remain true in the future is unknown, but for now all deposits — regardless of the amount — will earn 5.15%interest.

For existing UFB account holders

UFB sometimes changes the name of its savings accounts when it raises the APY, and the bank does not automatically enroll existing customers into the new account. For instance, the UFB Portfolio Savings was previously known as UFB Priority Savings. Anytime UFB increases the APY on an account, customers should get in touch with the bank to make sure they're enrolled in the account offering the best APY.

Unlike many savings accounts, the UFB Portfolio Savings comes with a complimentary ATM card that lets you easily withdraw funds from 91,000 ATMs across the country without paying any fees.

According to UFB's website, there are some daily limits on ATM withdrawals:

• For cash withdrawals from ATMs using their ATM card, customers can withdraw up to $510.
• You can use your ATM card to spend a daily max of $500 for a point-of-sale transaction (in other words, simply using your ATM card to make a purchase online or offline.)
• For cash withdrawals from an ATM using a Visa® Debit card, customers can withdraw up to $1,010 per day from their UFB Portfolio Savings.
• You can use a Visa® Debit card to spend a daily max of $2,500 for point-of-sale transactions.

If you'd prefer another way to access your funds, UFB also allows you to make transfers between external direct deposit accounts (i.e. checking or savings accounts) at no charge. There's no limit on the number of fund transfers you can make, but UFB does restrict how much money you can transfer in and out of the account:

• You can transfer a max of $250,000 into your UFB Portfolio Savings at funding.
• You can transfer up to $30,000 per day into or out of your UFB Account once your account is funded.
• You can transfer a max of $60,000 per month into or out of your UFB Account once your account is funded.

The UFB Portfolio Savings account gives you access to a few digital tools that can come in handy for efficiently managing your money, such as online banking access. UFB also offers what they call SMS banking — you can access account features via text messaging for when you don't have Wi-Fi.

And aside from transferring funds into the account through direct deposit, customers can also deposit checks using their phones.

UFB accounts are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) through Axos Bank for up to $250,000. Although interest rates may fluctuate, the value of your cash is safe.

There are no monthly maintenance fees, but UFB may charge an overdraft fee for overdrawn accounts (though, the exact amount is not specified). However, the bank offers an overdraft protection service for linked accounts. With this service, you authorize UFB to make an automatic transfer from your linked account to cover the amount of the payments or transactions that would have caused the overdraft.

Just keep in mind that there may be an associated cost with the overdraft protection service, though specific charges are not outlined on the UFB website.

For savings account options that don't charge any overdraft fees, you might considertheMarcus by Goldman Sachs High Yield Online Savings or theLendingClub LevelUp Savingsaccount.

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The UFB Portfolio Savings is a straightforward account that gives you a very high APY compared to the offerings of some other savings accounts.

This account also offers some appealing capabilities, like SMS banking. And while there are no maintenance fees for this account, there may potentially be an overdraft fee if you don't enroll in the bank's overdraft protection service (again, though, the website doesn't specify a specific fee amount).

At CNBC Select, our mission is to provide our readers with high-quality service journalism and comprehensive consumer advice so they can make informed decisions with their money. Every personal finance article is based on rigorous reporting by our team of expert writers and editors with extensive knowledge of financial products.While CNBC Select earns a commission from affiliate partners on many offers and links, we create all our content without input from our commercial team or any outside third parties, and we pride ourselves on our journalistic standards and ethics.

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