TAB Bank Review: Competitive APYs With Low Minimum Opening Deposits
Written by
Cynthia Measom
Edited by
Joe Evans
Commitment to Our Readers
GOBankingRates' editorial team is committed to bringing you unbiased reviews and information. We use data-driven methodologies to evaluate financial products and services - our reviews and ratings are not influenced by advertisers. You can read more about our editorial guidelines and our products and services review methodology.
20 Years
Helping You Live Richer
Reviewed
by Experts
Trusted by
Millions of Readers
GOBankingRates Score
-
Checking Accounts
4.0
-
Savings Accounts
4.5
-
CD Accounts
4.5
-
Money Market Accounts
4.0
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Banking Experience
4.4
Pros
- Low minimum opening deposits
- Competitive annual percentage yields
- Lack of monthly maintenance fees
- Solid mobile experience
Cons
- Lack of savings and money market options
- Online-only bank
TAB Bank Overview
TAB Bank is a relationship-driven financial institution based in Ogden, Utah. Founded in 1998, TAB — which stands for Transportation Alliance Bank — initially provided banking services exclusively for truckers. Decades later, TAB is an online bank serving individuals, families and businesses.
TAB Bank’s personal banking products include checking and savings accounts as well as a money market account and certificates of deposit. Although it still tailors its services to truckers, you don’t have to work in the transportation industry to open a TAB Bank account. Whether you should open one depends on how well TAB fits your banking preferences and financial goals.
In GOBankingRates’ Best Banks rankings for 2024, TAB Bank’s offerings ranked among the Best High-Yield Savings Accounts. Here’s everything you need to know.
TAB Bank Review
To help you decide if TAB Bank is right for your financial needs, here’s information about its deposit accounts and banking experience.
Checking Accounts
TAB Bank has two checking options — one of which allows you to earn rewards.
Kasasa Cash Back
With the Kasasa Cash Back account, there’s no minimum deposit to open. Also, you won’t have to worry about minimum account balances or monthly maintenance fees, and you’ll be eligible to start earning rewards in your first monthly cycle.
You can earn unlimited 1% cash back on debit card purchases. However, you’ll have to qualify to earn rewards by making at least 15 purchases of $5 or more and one qualifying direct deposit, bill pay transaction or ACH payment each month. The account also will refund out-of-network ATM withdrawal fees, up to $5 each and a maximum of $15 monthly.
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Chrome Checking
Because TAB Bank recognizes that truckers have unique needs when it comes to depositing payments, such as Comdata checks, T-Cheks or EFS checks, its Chrome Checking account is the perfect pick for such individuals. The account requires only $25 to open and pays a APY on the account’s balance.
One drawback is that the account does have a monthly service charge of $8. However, TAB Bank will waive the charge if you maintain a $1,000 minimum daily balance, have at least eight debit card purchases post to your account during each monthly statement cycle, or have at least $1,200 in direct deposits per monthly statement cycle.
Savings Accounts
TAB Bank’s High Yield Savings account ranked among GOBankingRates’ picks for the Best High-Yield Savings Accounts of 2024. The account has no minimum deposit to open. It also features no minimum monthly balance requirement and no monthly maintenance fees, which means that your funds stay where they belong — in your savings account.
The minimum balance to obtain the APY is 1 cent. But with the APY, you’ll likely want to put as much money as you can into the account so you can reap the profits.
CD Accounts
By investing in a CD at TAB Bank, you can earn more money than with most of the bank’s other deposit options, but you have to be willing to let your CD mature until the end of its term before you can reap the profits.
TAB Bank has eight different CD options, with terms ranging from six to 60 months. The highest rates are APY for six-, nine- and 12-month CDs, and the lowest rate offered is APY for a 60-month CD. You must maintain a $1,000 minimum daily balance to earn the published rates, and you’ll incur an interest penalty if you withdraw your money before the CD matures.
Money Market Accounts
While TAB Bank only offers one money market account, it has a low minimum opening deposit as compared to other banks at just $25, and there are no monthly service fees. Plus, the minimum balance to earn interest is just 1 cent.
The money market account offers a lower rate than the bank’s high-yield savings account — APY vs. APY. However, the practical difference between the accounts is that you can write checks from the money market account, which could make a difference if you like to write an occasional check to access your funds.
Banking Experience
TAB Bank is an online-only bank, so you won’t be able to visit a branch in person. However, you can reach TAB Bank at 800-355-3063 six days per week. Customer service hours of operation are 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. MT, Monday-Friday, and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. MT on Saturday. You can also reach the bank through a secure online message by filling out the contact form on its website.
If you’re interested in opening a new account, you can reach TAB Bank’s New Accounts Team at 800-215-7128 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. MT, Monday-Friday.
TAB Bank offers a solid mobile experience, and because it is an online-only bank, that’s important. The app allows you to complete banking tasks like checking your balances, transferring money between accounts, paying bills and submitting mobile deposits.
The app is available for both Android and iOS users with a rating of 4.7 stars on the App Store and 4.3 stars on Google Play.
Comparable Banking Options
Now that you know more about TAB Bank’s products and services, here’s how the bank stacks up to its competitors.
Axos Bank
Axos Bank offers up to APY on its high-interest checking account, and TAB Bank’s APY on its interest-bearing Chrome Checking account pales in comparison.
However, Axos Bank can’t compete with TAB Bank’s CD rates. Axos offers up to APY, while TAB Bank offers up to APY.
Ally Bank
Ally Bank offers account holders the convenience of Zelle to transfer money, while TAB Bank does not.
Ally Bank’s money market account offers a APY, which is higher than TAB Bank’s APY on its money market account. However, TAB Bank’s high-yield savings account offers a APY, giving it the edge over Ally Bank’s savings account, which offers a APY.
Final Take
TAB Bank offers competitive rates on its deposit accounts, plus a lack of fees for most of its accounts and easy options for avoiding fees on accounts that have them. If you’re looking for an online-only bank with a solid mobile experience, this bank is worth considering.
TAB Bank FAQ
Here are answers to some of the more commonly asked questions about TAB Bank.- How do I transfer money from TAB Bank?
- You can transfer money from a TAB Bank account to an external account through a wire transfer or ACH transfer.
- Is TAB Bank FDIC insured?
- Yes, TAB Bank's accounts are insured up to the maximum limits offered by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
- Is TAB Bank an online bank?
- Yes, TAB Bank is an online-only bank.
- Is TAB Bank a good bank?
- TAB Bank is a good bank if you're interested in an online bank that offers deposit accounts, including CD accounts with very competitive rates. However, if you are looking for a bank that offers non-business-related lending to individuals, you'll want to look elsewhere.
- What does TAB Bank do?
- TAB Bank is an online bank that serves small businesses, families and individuals through its deposit accounts and business lending products.
- What does TAB stand for in TAB Bank?
- It stands for Transportation Alliance Bank.
Compare to Other Banks
- Ally Bank Review
- American Express National Bank Review
- Discover Bank Review
- Capital One Bank Review
- Marcus by Goldman Sachs Review
- All Bank Reviews
Daria Uhlig contributed to the reporting for this article.
Rates are subject to change; unless otherwise noted, rates are updated periodically. All other information on accounts is accurate as of Dec. 11, 2023.
Editorial Note: This content is not provided by any entity covered in this article. Any opinions, analyses, reviews, ratings or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the author alone and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any entity named in this article.
To determine rankings for the Best High-Yield Savings Accounts, GOBankingRates looked at the following factors from all banks: (1) minimum deposit to open an account; (2) monthly savings fee ratio (percentage based on the minimum to avoid the fee compared to the monthly fee itself); (3) minimum needed to earn APY; (4) savings APY; and (5) the average mobile app rating between the Google Play (Android) and Apple app stores. All factors were then scored and combined, with the lowest score being the best. Factors (2) and (3) were weighted 1.5 times; factor (4) was weighted 4 times; and factor (5) was weighted 0.5 times. To be considered for the high-yield savings account, the product offered had to have an APY above 0.45%.
