Capital One 360 Review [2024]: It Checks Nearly All the Boxes

Capital One is an excellent option if you’re looking for a one-stop banking shop, offering a suite of loans, credit cards, and bank accounts. Many of these accounts check all of the boxes I look for when evaluating online banks, as they offer high interest rates and no fees, even if you overdraw your checking account. I also place a lot of value on the positive customer reviews and highly rated mobile app.

That said, Capital One may not be the best choice for everyone. For example, if you prefer to do most of your banking in-person or if you are looking for the absolute highest interest rates you can find, there may be better alternatives for you.

Capital One 360 pros and cons

Capital One 360 overview

For a relatively new bank, Capital One has grown rapidly. It launched in 1994, and the original founder Richard Fairbank still serves as chairman and CEO of the company, which is based out of McLean, Virginia. Today, it is one of the top 10 biggest banks in the country, with around 280 in-person branches.

Capital One bank has a unique setup for its in-person branches. There are traditional bank branches that look like the ones you expect at other banks. But the company also offers 56 “Capital One cafés” sprinkled throughout the country, blurring the lines between a hip hangout spot and a retail bank to create a more comfortable atmosphere. Most of its business, however, is online.

360 Checking

As long as you don’t mind banking online, Capital One 360 offers just about the best checking account you can find. One of the benefits that stands out to me the most is the fact that Capital One has flipped the traditional banking model around. Most large banks charge you lots of fees with checking accounts and offer zero interest, but Capital One does the opposite — it charges no monthly maintenance fees and no overdraft fees, yet you’ll earn interest (albeit at a small rate) on all of the money in your account.

Account holders can access their funds at more than 70,000 fee-free ATMs in the MoneyPass and Allpoint network as well as Capital One-branded ATMs. Capital One also offers mobile check deposit, bill pay, and the ability to send funds with Zelle.

Like most online banks, making cash deposits is a bit trickier. However, it is still possible, which is a huge perk. Capital One has partnered up with CVS so you can deposit cash into your account at any CVS location. There are over 9,000 locations nationwide so it’s quite accessible, but you’ll want to check to see if there’s a location near you first if depositing cash is something you’ll need to do frequently.

360 Performance Savings

The Capital One 360 Performance Savings account is exactly what I typically look for in an online savings account — simple and rewarding.

The account itself offers a competitive interest rate compared to most online banks, which is far more than the savings rates you’ll earn at most brick-and-mortar banks. It’s also much higher than the national average. (Even so, it is still possible to find higher rates than Capital One’s.)

360 CDs

You’ll find similarly high rates for Capital One’s 360 certificates of deposit (CDs) with term lengths ranging from six months to five years. One thing I especially like is that there are no minimum deposit requirements. Unlike most banks, which require a minimum balance of several hundred (or thousand) dollars, Capital One’s CDs are accessible to anyone.

Once you open a CD, though, it’s best not to withdraw the money until it matures. If you withdraw funds from your CD early, you’ll need to withdraw the entire CD balance (no partial withdrawals are allowed), and your penalty will be three months’ worth of interest (for term lengths under a year) or six months’ worth of interest (for term lengths over a year).

If you leave it in the account until it matures, though, it’ll automatically renew for another term at whatever rate is currently being offered. But you do have a 10-day grace period to withdraw the cash if you want.

MONEY Teen Checking

Although this account is branded as for teens, any child as young as eight is eligible to open an account and start learning how to manage a checking account, complete with a debit card. Note that this account doesn’t allow them to write checks, although that may or may not be important to you.

This account works as a joint account with an adult. For children between the ages of eight and 12, that adult must be their parent or guardian. Once they do become a teen, though, any adult can serve as the joint adult on the account. Adults have a separate account login to monitor their child’s spending and set up transfers, such as one-time rewards or automatic transfers for an allowance.

Kids Savings

Kids of any age are eligible for the Kids Savings account if they have an adult who can serve as a joint account owner. Just like with the teen checking account, though, only parents or guardians can serve as joint owners until they’re past age 12. Adult joint owners can also log into the account with separate logins to control and view their child’s account.

What we like about Capital One

• No monthly fees: Most large banks charge monthly fees with options to have those fees waived if you have direct deposit or maintain a certain account balance. But with Capital One, you won’t have to worry about tracking and meeting those requirements each month. To me, this is a big perk, as it provides a simple, stress-free experience managing your money.
• No overdraft fees: Another stress-free perk that Capital One pioneered is waiving all overdraft fees. When you sign up, you can opt to have overdrafts declined, set up free transfers from your savings account, or have Capital One cover the charge at its discretion, to be repaid from your next deposit. This is another benefit that allows you to simplify your money management.
• High interest rates: Online banks are known to offer higher interest rates, and Capital One’s high-yield savings account is no exception. And while you could probably find a slightly higher rate elsewhere, to me, the other benefits associated with the savings account make the rates competitive enough to still be very attractive.
• High customer satisfaction ratings: Capital One gets consistently high ratings for its mobile app and for overall customer satisfaction on national J.D. Power surveys. This is something I always look for when evaluating any bank or product. You never know when you will need to reach out for support, and it’s comforting to me to know that customer service is responsive and helpful.
• Great suite of loans and credit cards: This Capital One 360 review focuses on the banking side of things, but should you need other financial products such as a loan or credit card, Capital One also offers some popular credit cards. Learn more about Capital One credit cards.

What Capital One could improve

• Rates for kids' savings accounts: Capital One’s kids savings account offers a rate significantly lower than its standard account. While this is somewhat common among kids savings accounts, you could definitely find higher rates at competitors.
• In-person support: Sometimes you need to deal with things in person. For example, you might need to get a form notarized or deposit cash. It’s hard to do that with any online bank, and Capital One is no different. However, to be fair, if it operated a large number of physical branches, it probably wouldn’t have as many benefits as it does now.

Who is Capital One best for?

If you prefer handling all of your banking from the convenience of the internet and you’re looking for a good all-around banking solution with one financial institution, it’s hard to go wrong with Capital One. Its high rates and low fees combine with a well-designed mobile app to make a truly exceptional online banking experience, and that’s backed up by independent reviewers.

We wouldn’t recommend Capital One or any other online bank if you tend to handle a lot of cash. That said, Capital One still offers more support for cash deposits than most other online banks via its limited network of branch locations and its wider access to CVS stores that accept deposits. Many other online banks don’t allow cash deposits at all, in any form.

Alternatives to Capital One 360

There are many online banks to choose from these days. It’s a good idea to review some of Capital One’s top competitors before you open an account.

Ally

Ally Bank also offers great rates — a bit higher for its checking account, but a bit less for its savings account 0.25% (as of 10/28/24) and 4.00% (as of 10/28/24), respectively, versus 0.10% (as of 10/28/24) and 4.00% (as of 10/28/24)).

Ally’s a better choice if you use ATMs a lot since it’ll reimburse you up to $10 for out-of-network ATM fees, whereas Capital One won’t. Ally doesn’t let you deposit cash at all, however, and it doesn’t offer kid’s accounts.

Visit Ally

…or read our full Ally bank review.

SoFi Checking and Savings

SoFi® is a better choice if you’re looking to earn the highest rate possible — currently 0.50% (as of 10/31/24) APY with direct deposit on checking account deposits and up to 4.20% APY with direct deposit on savings account deposits.¹ You can deposit cash at any GreenDot location. Like Ally, SoFi® doesn’t offer kid’s accounts. SoFi is a Member, FDIC.²

Visit SoFi Checking and Savings

…or read our full SoFi checking and savings review.

FAQs

Bottom line

If you’re looking for a stress-free banking experience without sacrificing quality, Capital One is a great choice. It has a wide range of products that can help you reach your personal finance goals.

If you use cash a lot, pull money from ATMs frequently, or prefer to earn top-level rates, you might be better off with a different bank. Check out our list of the best banks for more options.

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