NAB vs ubank savings accounts

ubank Save has one ongoing condition: hold a linked ubank Spend account and grow your combined Save balance by at least $1 each month, not counting interest. There is no deposit minimum, no card-spend rule and, importantly for this comparison, no withdrawal rule. You can take money out in a month and still earn the bonus as long as the month ends $1 higher than it started.

The bonus rate applies to balances up to $1 million, and new customers currently receive a higher welcome rate for the first four months. In the current data ubank's ongoing rate is slightly above NAB Reward Saver's and the welcome rate is well above it, so for most balances and time frames the calculated comparison below favours ubank.

NAB Reward Saver pays a small base rate plus a bonus when you make at least one deposit by the second-last banking day of the month and make no withdrawals. There is no linked-account requirement and no balance cap in our data, so the bonus rate applies to the whole balance.

NAB fits a saver who wants a lock-box inside a big bank they already use and who genuinely will not withdraw. Because the no-withdrawal rule is absolute, one transfer out costs the whole month's bonus, which makes Reward Saver a poor home for money you may need at short notice. ubank is NAB-owned, so the deposit sits with the same group either way.

If you might withdraw during a month, choose ubank: its balance-growth rule tolerates withdrawals as long as you top up before month end, while NAB's does not. If you never withdraw and already bank with NAB, the ongoing rates are close enough that convenience is a reasonable tiebreaker.

Check whether you qualify as a new ubank customer, because the four-month welcome rate is the biggest single difference between the two accounts right now, and it only applies once. After it ends the comparison is ongoing rate against ongoing rate.