How to Use Bankrate.com to Find High Yield Savings Accounts

Sorting the Data

1). Navigate to the Bankrate.com website. On the home page, look for a menu item labeled "Checking and Savings" and click on it. A new window will open.
2). Look toward the middle of the Checking and Savings web page and you'll find a box with the header "Money Market Account/Savings Rate." Refine and personalize your search by selecting either the "National" or "Local" check box. Click on the drop down menu labeled "select a product" and highlight the types of money market accounts. Scroll down and select the item labeled "MMA/Savings." Click the red "search" button to continue.
3). Choose the savings accounts products to compare. Your filtered search results will appear under the heading "Compare MMA rates." Refine your results even more by selecting to view only those banks you plan to investigate further. Each bank listed has the current interest rate offered, the minimal deposit to open the account, its location and occasionally a review or rating, so pick those that match your criteria.
4). Compare the rates and products of the savings accounts side-by-side. Savings and money market accounts with brand name banks generally offer higher interest rates. And cyber-branches -- accounts only available online -- have reduced fees because of lower overhead. Make a list of the most attractive accounts. To save your online search, use the "email this list" function and send yourself a copy. The email will contain any descriptive message you write and a hyperlink to the page with your results.
5). Select two or three banks for further research. A better-than-average interest rate has definite benefits. But drill deeper. How much does the bank charge for non-bank ATM transactions and check writing fees? Find out how the Annual Percentage Yield, or APY, gets calculated -- daily, monthly or yearly. This will make a difference regarding how fast and how much your account grows. Read the disclosure statement and watch out for clauses that can rack up fees, such as inactivity fees or charges for not meeting minimum balance requirements. When you're ready, open the account.