This account currently has a $300 account-opening bonus, which is pretty solid. You just need to complete a total of $7,500 in direct deposits within 90 days. The promotion ends on February 1, 2027.
User reports say LemFi can successfully trigger it, and the bonus posts the same day.
Other things that count as Direct Deposit (source: DOC)
- Ally: 1, 2, 3(didn’t work) , 4 (didn’t work)
- Charles Schwab: 1, 2,
- Chase business: 1, 2, 3(didn’t work) , 4,
- Fidelity: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9,
- Merill Edge: 1,
- Robinhood: 1,
- TreasuryDirect: 1, 2,
- Wise: 1, 2, 3,
This offer is also pretty good, and we’ve added it to our bank account bonus rankings.
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About AMEX Checking
AMEX also launched a personal checking account in 2022. Its biggest perks are no monthly fee, 1% interest on deposits, and the ability to earn some AMEX Membership Rewards on spending. The current account-opening bonus is $250, which is pretty good.
However, they do not have physical branches. You can withdraw cash at MoneyPass ATMs. There are 37,000 nationwide, which is quite a lot.
This account is also FDIC-insured, so your assets are safe and sound.
Accounts offered by American Express National Bank. Member FDIC. Each depositor is insured to at least $250,000. Learn More from FDIC.gov.
Account opening and bonus
Account-opening bonus
See the beginning of the article.
Requirements
One important thing to note is that you need to have held an AMEX personal credit card for at least three months before you can apply. Also, if you currently have or have ever had AMEX Business Checking, you are not eligible for this personal checking account.
We are currently accepting applications from Card Members with a U.S. Basic Consumer Card issued by American Express National Bank with 3+ months tenure. Current and prior American Express Business Checking customers are not eligible to apply at this time.
Account features
- Debit card purchases can earn Membership Rewards points: every $2 spent earns 1 Membership Rewards point, but acceptance is not very good
- No monthly fee, no minimum deposit requirement
- The current deposit APY is 1%
- Does not support Wise payments, overdraft protection, or online Bilt payment, and does not support Zelle
- Only people who have had an AMEX credit card for 3 months or more can open the account
- With this account, you can redeem Membership Rewards points for cash at a rate of 0.8 cents per point, with no cap
- You can link other U.S. bank accounts, the entry is here.
- You can add joint accounts, the entry is here.
- You can order checks, the entry is here. Fee required
Although this is a debit card, AMEX still gives it the ability to earn points. Spending $2 earns 1 Membership Rewards point, which is much weaker than a credit card's 1x earning rate. And since this is an AMEX-issued debit card, it does not work in some places where credit cards cannot be used, such as low-fee tax payments, Plastiq, and so on, so its potential still remains to be developed.
My take
A good signup bonus, a relatively high APY, and debit-card spending rewards — this checking account is basically a jack-of-all-trades. The downside is that none of its individual features is especially standout. If the issuer switched from AMEX to Visa, it would probably be excellent, since a Visa debit card can be used in far more places than a credit card, making it more versatile, whereas AMEX debit is roughly equivalent to an AMEX credit card.That said, this card can't be used with Bilt Pay and does not support Zelle, so its functionality is still a little lacking.
