- No monthly, overdraft or minimum balance fees
- 3.75% APY on savings up to $5,000 with $1,000 in monthly direct deposits
- Paychecks up to 2 days early with direct deposit
- 40,000+ free Allpoint ATMs
- National bank, FDIC insured up to $250,000 directly with Varo
| Type | Online national bank. Varo Bank, N.A., Member FDIC |
|---|---|
| Savings APY | 1.00%, or 3.75% on balances up to $5,000 with $1,000+ in monthly direct deposits (Varo’s page says accurate as of July 1, 2026) |
| Monthly fee | $0. No minimum balance, maintenance or overdraft fees |
| Minimum to open | No minimum balance. Opening deposit not stated |
| Early direct deposit | Up to 2 days early |
| ATMs | 40,000+ free Allpoint ATMs. $3.50 per withdrawal out of network or abroad |
| Overdraft | Declined when you lack funds. No overdraft fee |
| Sign-up bonus | None shown on Varo’s pages |
| iPhone app rating | 4.9 out of 5 from 233,489 ratings on the App Store, read October 13, 2026 |
| Android app rating | 4.5 out of 5 from 245,297 ratings on Google Play, read October 13, 2026 |
Our take: Varo suits you if your paycheck comes by direct deposit and you want an account with no monthly or overdraft fees. The 3.75% savings rate only covers the first $5,000 and needs $1,000 in monthly direct deposits.
What Varo offers
A bank account with a Visa debit card, a savings account, and a few borrowing products on the side: Varo Advance, a line of credit and a secured credit card called Varo Believe. This review sticks to the bank account and savings.
Varo isn’t a fintech renting someone else’s charter. It got its own national bank charter from the OCC, the first consumer fintech to do it.
So your deposits sit at Varo itself.
The bank account
No monthly fee. No minimum balance. No overdraft fee.
Set up direct deposit and you get access to employer and government deposits the day Varo receives them, which is typically up to 2 days before your scheduled pay date.
What about overdrafts? If you don’t have the funds, the transaction is declined. One catch: if a purchase is approved for one amount and the final charge comes in higher, you can end up with a negative balance. There’s still no overdraft fee.
Your free ATMs are Allpoint, 40,000+ of them in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. Out of network or abroad, you’ll pay $3.50 a withdrawal, plus whatever the machine’s owner adds.
Cash deposits are free at stand-alone CVS stores, between $20 and $500 per transaction. At other Green Dot Network retailers, the store can charge you up to $5.95.
Savings
You start at 1.00% APY. To get 3.75% on balances up to $5,000, you need $1,000 or more in direct deposits and a positive balance in all your Varo accounts when the month ends. Then the higher rate applies next month.
The math: $5,000 at 3.75% is about $187 a year. Anything above $5,000 isn’t covered by that top rate, so a bigger emergency fund will earn more at a bank without a cap.
Not everything counts as direct deposit. Tax refunds, Venmo-style person-to-person payments and money deposited with a Varo routing number don’t qualify. One more thing: the APY footnote is dated July 1, 2026, so check the current number in the app before you count on it.
What it costs
The account itself costs nothing.
The cost comes from the extras.
A Varo Advance of $20 costs $1.60 if you’ve had $800 in deposits to Varo this month or last, and $4 if not. A $250 advance runs $20 or $50. The line of credit has flat fees, and two Varo pages give different ranges for them, so read the fee disclosure before you borrow.
Zelle has its own gate. You need to be a customer for 60 or more days and have $1,000 in deposits in a rolling 61-day period.
Pros and cons
Pros
- No monthly fee, no minimum balance and no overdraft fee.
- Savings earns 3.75% APY on balances up to $5,000 when you get $1,000 or more in direct deposits.
- Direct deposits are typically available up to 2 days before your pay date.
- 40,000+ free Allpoint ATMs, and free cash deposits at stand-alone CVS stores.
- It is a national bank, so deposits sit at Varo itself.
Cons
- The top savings rate is capped at $5,000 and needs $1,000 in direct deposits each month.
- Varo’s APY footnote is dated July 1, 2026, so confirm the rate in the app.
- Out-of-network ATM withdrawals cost $3.50, plus any fee from the machine’s owner.
- Varo Advance and the line of credit carry flat charges.
- No sign-up bonus is shown on its pages.
Who should open it
Open it if you’re paid by direct deposit and want to dodge overdraft and monthly fees. The 2-day early pay and cashback offers (up to 6% at select brands, capped at $750 a month) are nice extras you can use or ignore.
Skip it if you want one place for a big savings balance. On $20,000, only the first $5,000 earns the top rate.
And be careful with the advance and the line of credit. They’re short-term loans with flat charges.
How to open
Download the app or start at varomoney.com. Support runs through the app. Chat is open 24/7 except federal holidays, and you can call 1-877-377-8276 from 7:00 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. ET daily, also closed on federal holidays.
Varo vs. alternatives
- Chime: no monthly, overdraft or minimum balance fees on any tier, with early direct deposit up to 2 days and SpotMe overdraft starting at $20.
- Current: Savings Pods pay up to 4.00% APY on the first $2,000 per Pod, up to $6,000 total, with an eligible payroll deposit of $200 or more.
- Axos Bank: Axos Checking pays 1.00% APY with $1 in direct deposit in the month, with no monthly or overdraft fees.
Varo could make sense if you get paid by direct deposit, want no monthly or overdraft fees, and keep a modest savings balance of $5,000 or less.
FAQ
Yes. Varo Bank, N.A. is a national bank regulated by the OCC, and deposits are FDIC insured up to $250,000 directly with Varo.
No. There’s no minimum balance, maintenance, overdraft or account fee. Costs show up on out-of-network ATM withdrawals, some cash deposits and optional products like advances.
Receive direct deposits totaling $1,000 or more and end the month with a positive balance in all your Varo accounts. The rate applies to balances up to $5,000 the next month. Everyone else earns 1.00%.
Varo declines transactions when you don’t have enough money. A purchase approved for one amount can post higher, which can leave a negative balance, but Varo doesn’t charge an overdraft fee for it.
None is shown on its bank account, savings or home pages today.
Typically up to 2 days earlier than your scheduled pay date, as soon as your employer or government payer sends the deposit.
Sources (10)
We use primary sources: each company’s own product pages and legal terms.
- Varo Bank. Home page. varomoney.com. Accessed October 13, 2026.
- Varo Bank. Online Bank Account. varomoney.com. Accessed October 13, 2026.
- Varo Bank. Savings Account. varomoney.com. Accessed October 13, 2026.
- Varo Bank. Fee Disclosure. varomoney.com. Accessed October 13, 2026.
- Varo Bank. Contact Us. support.varomoney.com. Accessed October 13, 2026.
- Apple App Store. Varo Bank: Online Banking. apps.apple.com. Accessed October 13, 2026.
- Google Play. Varo Bank: Online Banking. play.google.com. Accessed October 13, 2026.
- Chime. SpotMe. chime.com. Accessed October 13, 2026.
- Current. Home page. current.com. Accessed October 13, 2026.
- Axos Bank. Axos Checking. axosbank.com. Accessed October 13, 2026.
Take the next step.
See how Varo’s no-fee account works.
Rates, terms and availability change. Check the current terms on Varo’s site before you open an account.