Affirm Money Review [2024]: Savings and Short-Term Loans All in One

What is Affirm — and what is the Affirm Money account?

Affirm is a financial technology company (fintech) or neobank founded in 2012 that’s primarily known for its Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) service. BNPLs are short-term, point-of-sale loans that let you buy big-ticket items and pay them off over time. Because the process doesn’t involve a credit check, Affirm is great if you can’t or don’t want to open a new credit card.

But more to the point, Affirm also offers the Affirm Money savings account. Created in 2020, the account offers an above-average APY and simplifies making payments on your BNPL loan. Add in no monthly fees or balance requirements, and you have an account that’s accessible to nearly every type of consumer.

Because Affirm isn’t a bank, it doesn’t actually hold your money. Instead, it partners with Cross River Bank to provide Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Insurance (FDIC). It’s very common for online savings accounts offered by fintechs to be issued and insured through other banks — but that doesn’t mean there can’t be drawbacks to this. More on this later.

Affirm Money account details

Annual percentage yield (APY)	3.85% (as of 10/28/24)
Minimum deposit requirement	None
Monthly maintenance fees	None
ATM access	None
FDIC insured	Up to $250,000 through Cross River Bank (Certificate No. 58410)

What I like about the Affirm Money account

Competitive APY

When your money can earn a noticeable amount of money for you, you know you’ve found a good savings account. Affirm’s high-yield savings account earns 3.85% (as of 10/28/24) APY. This is fairly competitive, but there are higher savings APYs available — including rates over 5.00% APY — if you do your homework. Still, Affirm’s yield isn’t bad. Many big banks like Chase and Wells Fargo offer savings rates of just 0.01% or 0.02% on savings accounts, and the national average rate is 0.43% (as of 11/18/24), according to FDIC data for program banks.

Interest on the Affirm savings account is compounded daily and credited to your account on a monthly basis. Many savings accounts credit interest monthly, but interest can be compounded daily, monthly, or even quarterly. Having your interest compounded daily is the best-case scenario because more frequent calculations offer the highest earning potential.

While Affirm’s APY is high now, it might not always be. As with any variable-rate account, it can fluctuate depending on the Federal Reserve's actions to increase or lower interest rates.

No fees

In this day and age, any bank account that charges a monthly maintenance fee is pretty much not worth your time. Luckily, Affirm doesn’t charge fees for monthly maintenance, excess transactions, or minimum balances on its savings account. There are also no overdraft fees or insufficient funds fees.

You can also open an account without a minimum deposit. This is great because it means you don’t have to constantly monitor your account to make sure you’re meeting requirements. It makes passive saving easier.

Generous transaction limits

Affirm doesn’t limit the number of transfers and withdrawals you make within a month. Many other banks limit you to six monthly withdrawals from a savings account because of a previous Regulation D rule. This rule was eliminated in 2020, but not all banks updated their policies.

Without a transaction limit in place, you could treat Affirm Money like a checking account and use it to pay your online bills while earning a much higher interest rate than most other checking accounts.

Keep in mind, there is a $25,000 limit for individual withdrawals or transfers, and the daily transactions total is capped at $100,000 per day. But this won’t be a problem for most people unless you’re in a financial emergency.

Early direct deposit

It’s pretty common for checking accounts to offer early direct deposit, but it’s relatively rare for savings accounts. The Affirm Money account can get your paycheck in your hands up to two days early. If you’re on a tight budget, having your money come in sooner can help you pay your bills without needing to deal with paycheck advance apps.

What the Affirm Money savings account could improve

Provide ATM access

Once you deposit your money in an Affirm savings account, it may be difficult to access. The account currently doesn’t support ATM access, so to deposit or withdraw money, you’ll need to link your bank account and transfer the money. Transfers can take anywhere from one to five days. That certainly won’t do if you need cash today.

Improve customer service

Customer service at Affirm appears to be a bit lacking, as over 2,300 Affirm customers have complained about the company to the Better Business Bureau over the past 12 months. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has also received over 4,800 complaints filed against the company since 2021. On the review website Trustpilot, Affirm only has a 3-star rating.

What are people complaining about? When I focused on reviews about the Affirm Money account, I saw that many customers were having problems withdrawing their money from Affirm. Some couldn’t link up an external account, while others had their accounts completely frozen for weeks or months. Obviously, this isn’t ideal, especially if you need your money quickly.

I also don’t like how Affirm makes it hard to reach a real person for help. On the support page, you have to click through numerous “relevant” help articles before you can finally get to the online chat or phone number to call.

Who is the Affirm Money savings account best for?

On the whole, I’d recommend Affirm if you can’t qualify for a credit card but still want to pay for online purchases over time. You can make your BNPL installment payments directly from your Affirm Money account, keeping your finances in one tidy location.

Affirm’s savings account may also be suitable for those who want to save money for a rainy day. Because you can’t access funds in the savings account through an ATM or checks, you may be less tempted to withdraw your funds and let them grow as they earn 3.85% (as of 10/28/24) interest.

Affirm might also work if you want a high-yield account that you can use for bill pay. There are no monthly withdrawal limits with this savings account, which makes it good for earning interest while using it to pay for utilities, credit cards, and more.

Who shouldn’t open an Affirm Money savings account?

If you want all your banking under one roof, Affirm may not be the best option for you. Although the company offers an attractive, high-yield savings account, it doesn’t offer checking accounts. That said, if you don’t actually need checks, then you could probably do fine with having the Affirm Money as an all-in-one account.

Current customers of Cross River Bank partners might also need to steer clear of Affirm. While it’s not a bad thing that Affirm is insured through this bank, Cross River Bank acts as the partner bank for several other fintech institutions, including popular companies like Upgrade, Current, and Coinbase. If you have accounts at any of these institutions and you also open one with Affirm, you’ll only have $250,000 in FDIC insurance between them all. It’s something you’ll need to pay attention to if your total combined balances are near that amount.

Even if you don’t have an account with another Cross River Bank partner or need to bank and save with one institution, I still wouldn’t recommend Affirm Money unless you’re sold on using its BNPL program. There are better online-only savings accounts where you can get higher yields without paying a monthly fee or having a minimum balance requirement.

Alternatives to Affirm

SoFi Checking and Savings

SoFi® is a better option than Affirm for most people because it offers both a savings and checking account in one place. SoFi Checking and Savings accounts also don’t require monthly fees or minimum opening deposits.¹ <p>New and existing Checking and Savings members who have not previously enrolled in Direct Deposit with SoFi are eligible to earn a cash bonus of either $50 (with at least $1,000 total Direct Deposits received during the Direct Deposit Bonus Period) <b>OR</b> $300 (with at least $5,000 total Direct Deposits received during the Direct Deposit Bonus Period). Cash bonus will be based on the total amount of Direct Deposit. Direct Deposit Promotion begins on 12/7/2023 and will be available through 1/31/2026. Full terms at <a href="http://sofi.com/banking">sofi.com/banking</a>. SoFi Checking and Savings is offered through SoFi Bank, N.A., Member FDIC.</p> <p>SoFi members with Direct Deposit can earn 4.00% annual percentage yield (APY) on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances. There is no minimum Direct Deposit amount required to qualify for the 4.00% APY for savings (including Vaults). Members without Direct Deposit will earn 1.20% APY on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances. Interest rates are variable and subject to change at any time. These rates are current as of Dec. 3, 2024. There is no minimum balance requirement. Additional information can be found at <a href="http://www.sofi.com/legal/banking-rate-sheet">http://www.sofi.com/legal/banking-rate-sheet</a></p> ² <p>We do not charge any account, service or maintenance fees for SoFi Checking and Savings. We do charge a transaction fee to process each outgoing wire transfer. SoFi does not charge a fee for incoming wire transfers, however the sending bank may charge a fee. Our fee policy is subject to change at any time. See the SoFi Checking & Savings Fee Sheet for details at <a href="http://sofi.com/legal/banking-fees/">sofi.com/legal/banking-fees/</a></p>

SoFi’s high-yield savings account earns up to 4.00% APY with direct deposit, and its checking account earns 0.50% (as of 12/3/24) APY with direct deposit.³ <p>SoFi members with Direct Deposit or $5,000 or more in Qualifying Deposits during the 30-Day Evaluation Period can earn 4.00% annual percentage yield (APY) on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances. There is no minimum Direct Deposit amount required to qualify for the stated interest rate. Members without either Direct Deposit or Qualifying Deposits, during the 30-Day Evaluation Period will earn 1.20% APY on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances. Only SoFi members with direct deposit are eligible for other SoFi Plus benefits. Interest rates are variable and subject to change at any time. These rates are current as of Dec. 3, 2024. There is no minimum balance requirement. Additional information can be found at <a href="http://www.sofi.com/legal/banking-rate-sheet">http://www.sofi.com/legal/banking-rate-sheet</a></p> .

Plus, since SoFi is a Member FDIC itself ⁴ <p><b>SoFi Bank is a member FDIC and does not provide more than $250,000 of FDIC insurance per legal category of account ownership, as described in the FDIC’s regulations. Any additional FDIC insurance is provided by the SoFi Insured Deposit Program. Deposits may be insured up to $2M through participation in the program. See full terms at <a href="http://sofi.com/banking/fdic/terms">SoFi.com/banking/fdic/terms</a> See list of participating banks at <a href="http://sofi.com/banking/fdic/receivingbanks">SoFi.com/banking/fdic/receivingbanks</a></b></p> , you don’t have to worry about accounts being held at third-party banks.

Visit SoFi Checking and Savings | Read our full SoFi Checking and Savings review

Synchrony High Yield Savings Savings

If your goal is to score a higher APY and have more access to your money, then you’ll want to consider the Synchrony High Yield Savings. It offers a 4.10% (as of 12/6/24) APY, which is nearly half a percentage higher than Affirm’s rate. It also comes with a full-service ATM card that lets you make cash withdrawals — something you can’t do with Affirm.

Like Affirm, Synchrony also doesn’t charge monthly maintenance fees, overdraft fees, or excess transaction fees. Overall, this account works much better as both a rainy day fund and a general savings account because of its higher interest rates and better withdrawal options.

Visit Synchrony High Yield Savings | Read our full Synchrony Bank review

FAQs

Bottom line

When it comes to the Affirm Money account, I’d recommend it for Affirm BNPL customers or people who want to transact frequently from a savings account without bumping into fees.

However, for most people, there are better savings accounts out there offering just as high (if not higher) APYs. Many of these accounts also offer ATM access — something Affirm does not. Also, Affirm has an alarming number of complaints with the Better Business Bureau and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that prevent me from suggesting you open an account here.