Bankrate.com announces the Pay My Mortgage Sweepstakes

Bankrate pays six months of your mortgage

NORTH PALM BEACH, FLA. -- October 4, 2000 -- Bankrate.com, the flagship site of Bankrate, Inc. (NASDAQ: RATE), today announced the Pay My Mortgage Sweepstakes.

Participants have the opportunity to win six months of mortgage payments (up to $4,800). The sweepstakes prize is based on the U.S. average monthly mortgage payment, according to the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University (1998). According to their research, the prize amount will actually exceed six months of the average consumer's mortgage payments. Participants can enter the sweepstakes as often as they want by simply completing an entry form located at www.bankrate.com/sweeps. The contest runs through October and the winner will be drawn on or around Nov. 6, 2000.

"Bankrate is a resource for saving money," explained Elisabeth DeMarse, President and CEO of Bankrate, Inc. "A sweepstakes that helps pay your mortgage is an inviting way to assist our users in their money-saving efforts. This is a unique way to introduce users to our money saving content and research. We craft our sweepstakes around the needs of the consumers, who utilize our site when searching for mortgage rates and tools….And of course, winning $5,000 toward your mortgage is certainly one tool that everyone could use."

"Our promotions are designed with our user in mind," noted Jeff Cunningham, Chairman of the Board for Bankrate, Inc. "We offer a wealth of information on personal finance from banking, investing, taxes and small business finance to financial products such as credit cards, auto loans, CD's, ATM fees, and home equity loans. This sweepstakes highlights to the user our valuable content, and hopefully cements the relationship between Bankrate and saving money in their mind."

About Bankrate.com
Bankrate.com is owned and operated by Bankrate, Inc. (NASDAQ: RATE). Bankrate.com is the Internet's leading consumer banking marketplace, with an average of 1.6 million unique visitors per month connecting with over 4,000 financial institutions in 126 markets in 50 states. Bankrate operates a portfolio of personal finance channels, including banking, investing, taxes and small business finance. It is the leading aggregator of 191 financial products, including mortgages, credit cards, new and used auto loans, money market accounts and CD's, checking and ATM fees, home equity loans and online banking fees.

Bankrate provides financial applications and information to a network of over 120 partners including NBCi (NASDAQ: NBCI), Yahoo (NASDAQ: YHOO), America Online (NYSE: AOL), CNN and Smart Money. The company's information is also distributed through more than 100 national and state publications.

Forward-looking statements in this release are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Act. Investors are cautioned that actual results could differ materially from those anticipated by such statements and are advised to consult our current SEC filings for additional information concerning risk factors that affect the Company's business.