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Winner: GE Capital Retail Bank and Ally Bank (tie)
Branches: One for GE, none for Ally

Why they are winners

On one-year CDs with balances of $25,000 and up, GE pays more than any other bank surveyed (the average was 0.45%, the median 0.25%). For balances below $15,000, GE pays a high rate, but is outdone by Ally's 12-month CD and tied with Ally's no-penalty 11-month CD.

Caveats

GE's penalty for early withdrawal is 90 days' worth of interest; Ally's is 60 days' interest. Ally's No Penalty CD does not deduct interest if you withdraw after the first six days.

Standout accounts

GE Capital 12-Month CD

• Minimum deposit: $2,000
• Interest rate on...

$10,000: 0.85%
$20,000: 0.95%
$30,000: 1.05%

Ally High Yield 12-Month CD

• Minimum deposit: $1
• Interest rate on all balances: 0.94%

Ally No Penalty 11-Month CD

• Minimum deposit: $1
• Interest rate on all balances: 0.85%

 

Money looked at the 40 biggest retail banks by consumer deposits and number of branches, plus the 15 biggest online banks and three biggest credit unions by deposits, according to financial services consulting firm Novantas. Banks with more than 1,000 branches were in the running for Best Big Bank, while those with fewer were up for Midsize. All banks surveyed were candidates for best customer experience, business accounts, app, and standalone accounts.
The top consideration for checking picks was maintenance fees and ease of waiving them, followed by other charges, restrictions, and perks, like interest. For savings and CDs, Money weighted rates first, followed by fees, minimums and other rules. For customer experience, we looked at the availability of service; for mobile, breadth of features and ease of use. As a tiebreaker, Money used data from independent customer service studies.