Bank of America Keep the Change

Posted by Shelley Elmblad May 6, 2007

Bank of America has a new twist on helping customers save money. Here's how it works: each time you buy something using a Visa debit card issued by BOA, the amount spent is rounded up and the difference is deposited into a savings account. So, if you spend $4.25 on a vanilla latte, it is rounded up to $5.00 and 75 cents is deposited into your savings account.

To make this savings system more enticing, BOA matches the savings deposit on each purchase for the first 3 months, then matches 5% a year up to $250.

Sounds like a great deal, and how can you go wrong with Bank of America's matching? While there is nothing "wrong" with this, you may be able to find another savings program that is "more right".

Read the small print for the Keep the Change program and you will find that the required savings account has a very low variable interest rate of .20% (as of today). Compare that to other online banks like Ing and international online bank HSBC paying 4-5% on for checking or savings accounts right now, and the deal doesn't seem so sweet.

The Discover card pays a cash-back bonus, and my favorite is the Amazon Visa card deal where I get a $25 Amazon certificate for every $2,500 spent using the card. Pay either of these cards off every month and there are high returns to be had. But if you abuse credit cards and carry a balance, or you don't do a lot of shopping on Amazon.com you need other options.

A savings tool that is right for me, or your mom, or one of your friends may not be right for you, so go ahead and get opinions and ideas for savings plans from others but research your options before you sign up.

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