Best checking account bonuses of July 2024

To attract new customers, many banks will often offer a sign-up bonus when opening a new account. For checking accounts specifically, these bonuses can be at least $100.

Qualification is usually easy, with new account holders tending to just need to set up a direct deposit and transfer cash within a certain amount of days, like 30 to 90 days from account opening, to earn the bonus. Sometimes, there’s a minimum deposit you have to make to earn the bonus.

CNBC Select analyzed and compared dozens of consumer checking accounts offered by online, brick-and-mortar banks and credit unions that offer sign-up bonuses for new account holders. To rank the best bank bonuses, we focused on the following criteria: reasonable bonus requirements, available nationwide, physical branch locations, online and mobile accessibility, large ATM network and NCUA- or FDIC-insured up to $250,000. The accounts on our list had to meet all of these requirements to be considered one of the best. (See our methodology below for more information on how we created this list.)

Bonus: $100

Expiration: July 24, 2024

How to earn the bonus: Open a new Chase College Checking ℠ account and complete 10 qualifying transactions within 60 days of coupon enrollment. Qualifying transactions include:

• Debit card purchases
• Online bill payments
• Chase QuickDeposit℠
• Zelle®
• ACH credits

Bonus: $300

Expiration: July 24, 2024

How to earn the bonus: Be a new Chase checking customer, open a Chase Total Checking^® account and make direct deposits totaling $500 or more within 90 days of coupon enrollment.

Bonus: $1,000 to $3,000

Expiration: July 24, 2024

How to earn the bonus:

• Earn $1,000 when you when you open a Chase Private Client Checking account and deposit $150,000 to $249,999
• Earn $2,000 when you when you open a Chase Private Client Checking account and deposit $250,000 to $499,999
• Earn $3,000 when you when you open a Chase Private Client Checking account and deposit $500,000+

Bonus: $300

Expiration: July 8, 2024

How to earn the bonus: Open a new eligible Citi^® Checking account with enhanced direct deposits, and enroll in this offer by applying directly from this special offer page. Deposit at least two enhanced direct deposits, totaling $1,500 or more, directly into your new checking account within 90 calendar days from account opening.

Bonus: $100 to $400

Expiration: February 29, 2024

How to earn the bonus:

• Earn $100 when you open and use a new PNC Virtual Wallet® (minimum $500 direct deposit)
• Earn $200 when you open and use a new Virtual Wallet with Performance Spend (minimum $2,000 direct deposit)
• Earn $400 when you open and use a new Virtual Wallet with Performance Select (minimum $5,000 direct deposit)

Bonus: Up to $700

Expiration: June, 27 2024

How to earn the bonus: Open a new U.S. Bank Smartly^® Checking and Standard Savings and enroll in the U.S. Bank Mobile App or online banking and complete two or more direct deposits totaling $3,000 to $4,999.99 to earn $100, $5,000 to $9,999.99 to earn $300 or $10,000 or more to earn $500, all within 90 days of opening the account. Open a U.S. Bank Standard Savings Account to earn $200 when you deposit $3,000 to $4,999.99 within 90 days of opening an account and enrolling in online banking or getting the U.S. Bank app, and make at least two qualifying direct deposits.

Bonus: $300

Expiration: April 1, 2024

How to earn the bonus: Open a new Wells Fargo Everyday Checking account with a minimum opening deposit of $25 and receive a total of $1,000 or more in qualifying direct deposits to your new checking account within 90 calendar days of account opening (the qualification period).

Bonus: Up to $500

Expiration: July 31, 2024

How to earn the bonus: Open a new Axos Bank Rewards Checking and use promo code RC500 by July 31. To earn the welcome bonus, ensure your account receives qualifying direct deposits of at least $1,500 each calendar month (starting from the statement cycle 30 days after account opening) and maintain a minimum average daily balance of at least $3,000 in your rewards checking account. You must meet these requirements in the first six calendar months after opening your account. Each qualifying month earns you $100, credited to your checking account within 15 business days after the statement cycle ends. You’d earn a maximum of five $100 payouts over the six statement cycles.

Virtually everyone has a checking account, but it might be worth switching yours to easily score some extra cash. These checking accounts offering welcome bonuses up to $400 are a good place to start.

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 checking account review is based on rigorous reporting by our team of expert writers and editors with extensive knowledge of banking 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. See our methodology for more information on how we choose the best bank bonuses.

To determine which consumer checking accounts provide the best place to deposit your money and earn a bonus, CNBC Select analyzed dozens of U.S. checking accounts offered by the largest national banks and credit unions. We narrowed down our ranking by only considering consumer checking accounts that have bonuses available to new applicants and that come from brick-and-mortar banks with broad availability, offering access to at least 700 physical branches and over 4,000 fee-free ATMs in the U.S.

While the accounts we chose in this article all have bonus offers, we also compared each checking account on a range of features, including:

• Reasonable bonus requirements
• Available nationwide
• Physical branch locations and/or online accessibility
• Large ATM network
• NCUA- or FDIC-insured up to $250,000

All of the accounts included on this list are NCUA or FDIC-insured up to $250,000. This insurance protects and reimburses you up to your balance and the legal limit in the event your bank or credit union fails.

Product and feature availability vary by market so these accounts may not be offered depending on where you live. Most brick-and-mortar banks require you to enter your zip code online for the correct account offerings. The rates and fee structures for checking accounts are subject to change without notice. Any return on your checking depends on any associated fees and the balance you have in your checking account. To open a checking account, some banks and institutions may require a deposit of new money, meaning you can’t transfer money you already had in an account at that bank.

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