NAB cuts savings rates - so where can you get a rate above 1 per cent?

Australia’s third biggest bank, NAB, has today cut savings rates on its main accounts by up to 0.10 per cent.

It’s been a tough start to the year for Aussie savers, with over 60 lenders having cut rates out-of-cycle to the Reserve Bank of Australia’s cash rate in 2021 alone.

This announcement from NAB comes only two weeks after CommBank decreased its savings rates for a second time in February.

Today’s savings rate cuts by NAB

NAB Reward Saver

At least one deposit and no withdrawals per mth for max rate

NAB iSaver

RateCity.com.au research director, Sally Tindall, said NAB savers would be waking up this morning to yet another cut to their interest rate.

“These cuts from NAB are going to hurt regular savers who go out of their way to grow their balance each month to qualify for the maximum rate,” she said.

“NAB isn’t the only bank cutting savings accounts. Since the start of the year, a total of 61 banks have cut over 200 different savings rates.

“Customers with savings in the bank earning less than inflation would do well to find an account that’s offering an ongoing rate of above 1 per cent. They’re hard to find but they are out there,” she said.

Where savers can still nab a high interest rate

Unfortunately, finding a high rate savings account can feel a lot like searching for a needle in a haystack.

According to the Reserve Bank of Australia, the current inflation rate is 0.9 per cent. But the RateCity database shows that the current average ongoing savings rate is only 0.35 per cent.

RateCity research shows that only seven conditional savings account rates and five introductory savings account rates sit above 1 per cent.

This means that there are still a few savings account providers offering interest rates above 1 per cent, but you may need to consider switching banks to nab them.

The highest ongoing savings rate for everyday customers is still ING’s Savings Maximiser at 1.35 per cent. As a conditional savings account, you’ll need to deposit at least $1,000 from an external source (such as income), make 5+ settled card purchases and grow your balance by the end of the month.

Meanwhile young adults can enjoy a whopping 3 per cent with savings accounts from Westpac (age up to 29) and BOQ (age up to 24).

Highest ongoing savings accounts on RateCity

Data accurate as of 10.03.2021. Conditions apply for max interest rate

Highest introductory savings rates

Data accurate as of 10.03.2021.

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