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Capital One Bank Review 2024

Updated March 13, 2024
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At a glance

Best big bank
4.8
Rating: 4.8 stars out of 5
Bankrate Score
Caret Down

CDs

Rating: 4.9 stars out of 5

Checking

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

Savings

Rating: 4.9 stars out of 5

About Bankrate Score

Overview

Capital One is ideal for consumers looking for competitive rates and no monthly fees along with the experience of a full-service bank. It offers access to a wide network of no-fee ATMs and branch locations in select states.

Highlights

  • Digital Leader
  • High APY
  • No Monthly Fees
Compare offers
Info
Bank logo
Member FDIC
Savings Account
4.35
%
APY
APY
Info
As of 3/18/2024
Rating: 4.9 stars out of 5
$1
Min. balance for APY
View offer Arrow Right
Promoted offer:
Bank logo
Member FDIC.
Savings Account
5.25
%
APY
APY
Info
As of 3/18/2024
$0
Min. balance for APY
View offer Arrow Right
Promoted offer: No fees. Easy deposits and quick withdrawals.
Bank logo
Member FDIC
CD
5.05
%
APY
APY
Info
As of 3/18/2024
Rating: 4.9 stars out of 5
$500
Minimum deposit
View offer Arrow Right
Promoted offer: Expires 4/17/24. APY may change before CD is opened & funded.

Overall

Capital One Bank is among the 10 largest U.S. banks by assets. While it offers branches in a handful of states, customers can access accounts online from just about anywhere. The bank offers high rates on its savings and CD accounts, and a free checking account that pays interest. There are no balance minimums or monthly fees, and you won’t need to worry about overdraft fees either.

Capital One was named best big bank and best bank for ATM access as part of the 2024 Bankrate Awards, which recognizes the best financial products available to consumers.

Pros

  • Checkmark

    Capital One offers no-fee access to more than 70,000 ATMs.

  • Checkmark

    You’ll earn competitive rates on savings and CD accounts.

  • Checkmark

    Checking and savings accounts feature no minimum balance requirements.

  • Checkmark

    The mobile app is highly rated by iPhone and Android users.

Cons

  • Bank branches are limited to just a handful of states.

  • Capital One no longer offers money market accounts for new customers.

Capital One banking products

4.9
/5
Rating: 4.9 stars out of 5
See methodology Compare savings rates

SCORE BREAKDOWN

APY offering:
4.35%
Rating: 5 stars out of 5
5/5
Info
Minimum balance to earn interest:
$0.00
Rating: 5 stars out of 5
5/5
Info
Monthly service fee:
$0.00
Rating: 5 stars out of 5
5/5
Info
Minimum balance to avoid fee:
$0.00
Rating: 5 stars out of 5
5/5
Info
Access to funds:
Good
Rating: 4 stars out of 5
4/5
Info

FEATURES

Invest Rate
4.35% APY
Info
Loan
$0 minimum deposit to open

Capital One savings overview

Capital One’s 360 Performance Savings account offers a competitive yield and doesn’t have a minimum balance requirement, making it suitable for all savers. Users can set savings goals and automatic savings plans (with funds transferred from a Capital One 360 checking account) for additional budgeting ease.

Pros

  • Checkmark

    The 360 Performance Savings account has no monthly services fees.

  • Checkmark

    The Capital One app allows you to make mobile deposits and set up an automated savings plan.

  • Checkmark

    No minimum balance is required to open or maintain an account.

Cons

  • The 360 Performance Savings account doesn’t include a debit card or an ATM card.

  • Higher rates can be found at other online-only banks.

  • See how rates for this account have changed over time. Interact with the trend lines to view APY by date.

    Capital One
    APY
    APY
    Info
    National average APY
    How do we get this data?
    Info
Compare Offer
Info
Bank logo
Member FDIC
Savings Account
4.35
%
APY
APY
Info
As of 3/18/2024
Rating: 4.9 stars out of 5
Info
$1
Min balance for APY
View offer Arrow Right
Promoted offer:

Bank fees

Fee Charged?
Overdraft fee None
Non-sufficient funds fee None
Account maintenance fees None
Out-of-network ATM fee None
Excessive transaction fee None

Customer experience

Customer support

Physical presence. Capital One has nearly 300 branches in select states for in-person banking, and it operates around 50 Capital One Cafés, where customers can open accounts, as well as deposit cash and checks. Customers can also access more than 70,000 fee-free ATMs through Capital One's owned-and-operated machines, and the Allpoint and MoneyPass networks. Mobile app users can take advantage of the Add Cash in Store feature to deposit cash at CVS and Walgreens stores through a cashier.

Customer service hours. Deposit account holders can reach out to representatives over the phone daily from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. ET. Automated services, including Capital One’s digital assistant Eno, are available 24/7. 

High customer satisfaction. Capital One scored highly in overall customer satisfaction among online-only banks for its checking product, according to J.D. Power’s 2023 Direct Banking Satisfaction Study. Though satisfaction for its savings product was below average.

Digital experience

Highly rated mobile app. Capital One’s mobile app, which has been reviewed by more than 9 million users, earned high marks on the Android and iOS app stores. The bank was the first in the U.S. to launch a skill for Amazon’s Alexa so that customers can voice commands to search for information, such as bank account balances. All this noted, a Bankrate staff member with a Capital One account commented that the app lacked useful breakdowns of spending and saving patterns; instead, there’s just a very basic money in, money out module. 

Digital assistant. Capital One has a digital assistant called Eno, which you can interact with on the app or over text. Eno can be used to check your balance, recent transactions, available credit and payment dates. It can also be used to activate, lock or replace a card and even pay bills. “Eno is very easy to use and I found it helpful when trying to find information on how to set up Apple Pay,” said a Bankrate staff member with a Capital One account. “Although when I asked it to explain how early direct deposit works, it couldn’t come up with an answer.”

Manage Funds


The above images were last updated on March 13, 2024.

Complaints

Data breach fine. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, a U.S. bank regulator, ordered Capital One to pay an $80 million fine because the bank failed to ”establish effective risk assessment processes prior to migrating significant information technology operations to the public cloud environment.” Moreover, the bank failed to correct these deficiencies in a timely manner, resulting in a massive data breach of their customer’s information in 2019.

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Bankrate staff insight

“With Capital One, I can get a solid APY on a checking account that exceeds what most of the big banks are offering on their savings accounts — so that’s a big differentiator,” says a Bankrate staff member who uses a Capital One account personally. “At the same time, knowing that I could get to a branch if necessary gives Capital One a big edge against the top online competitors who lack a physical presence. However, the branch network is on the thin side, so that’s one area that I can note that gives other big banks an edge for convenient access to in-person services.”

About Capital One

The banking unit of Capital One Financial Corp. offers checking and savings accounts, as well as CDs. Richard Fairbank and Nigel Morris started building Capital One (then as a unit of Signet Bank) in 1988. In 1994, Capital One spun off under its name, offering credit cards. In 2012, Capital One acquired ING Direct and rebranded the lender as Capital One 360.

Capital One is ideal for consumers looking for competitive yields, a highly rated banking app and access to a wide network of no-fee ATMs.

Capital One operates almost 300 branches in Louisiana, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Texas, Virginia and Washington, D.C.

How does Capital One compare to other banks?

Capital One vs. Chase Bank

Capital One and Chase are both big banks that maintain some branches and also offer options for digital account management. While Capital One offers nearly 300 branches in a handful of states, Chase operates more than 4,700 branches, with locations in nearly every state.

When it comes to rates, Capital One’s 360 Performance Savings Account pays an APY that’s more than 400 times greater than the rock-bottom yield of the Chase Savings account. Likewise, Capital One’s CD rates are higher than those of Chase, including the higher relationship CD rates Chase offers to customers who also have a Chase checking account.

As far as checking accounts, Capital One’s 360 Checking account earns interest, whereas Chase’s Total Checking account is non-interest bearing. Capital One doesn’t charge for overdrafts, while Chase may charge up to three such fees each day. Neither bank charges a non-sufficient funds fee.

Capital One FAQs

Review methodology

With so many financial institutions to choose from, it can be hard to know who to trust. Bankrate’s ever-growing list of bank and credit union reviews is updated regularly. Our editorial team analyzes and reviews each institution across deposit products such as savings accounts, checking accounts, certificates of deposit (CDs) and money market accounts (MMAs). Banks are rated by important factors such as offered interest rates, fees, minimum balance requirements, access to funds and more.

We assign a score to each type of account and its features, weigh them carefully based on importance to account holders and determine an overall score. Read our full review methodology.