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SoFi Bank vs Varo Bank

The two banks compared as banks: the charter, branches, checking, the other products they sell, their apps and their deposit rates. Each fact has its source and the date it was confirmed.

By Aviel FahlNewest rate reading Sep 26, 2026Savings and CD rates only
In short

Choose SoFi Bank or Varo Bank

Choose SoFi Bank if

  • You want a mortgage from the same bank. Varo Bank does not offer one.
  • You want an investment account from the same bank. Varo Bank does not offer one.
  • The savings rate matters most. SoFi Bank advertises the higher savings APY.
  • You want a sign-up bonus. SoFi Bank has one on offer now: Up to $400 bonus.

Choose Varo Bank if

  • The app matters to you. Varo Bank rates 4.5 on Google Play and SoFi Bank rates 3.7.
Side by side

SoFi Bank and Varo Bank compared

FieldSoFi BankVaro Bank
What each bank sells
Savings accountYesBanksparency rate dataYesBanksparency rate data
CDsNone trackedBanksparency rate dataNone trackedBanksparency rate data
Money market accountNone trackedBanksparency rate dataNone trackedBanksparency rate data
Checking accountYesBank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026YesBank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026
Credit cardsYesBank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026YesBank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026
Personal loansYesBank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026Small loans only ($600 to $2,000, a line of credit)Bank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026
MortgagesYesBank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026NoBank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026
InvestingYesBank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026NoBank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026
Deposit rates
Best savings APYUp to 4.20% APYAdvertised, newest reading Sep 26, 2026Up to 3.75% APYAdvertised, newest reading Sep 26, 2026
Sign-up bonusUp to $400 bonusBank offer, confirmed Sep 27, 2026None on record
Checking
Account comparedSoFi Checking and SavingsBank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026Varo Bank AccountBank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026
Monthly feeNoneBank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026NoneBank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026
How to avoid the feeNo fee to avoidBank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026No fee to avoidBank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026
Overdraft feeNoneBank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026NoneBank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026
ZelleYesBank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026Yes, after 60+ days as a customer and $1,000 in deposits within a rolling 61 daysBank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026
Branches and ATMs
BranchesSoFi accounts are online only. Its Golden Pacific Bank division has 3 branches in California for its own customers.Bank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026No branches (online only)Bank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026
Fee-free ATMsAllpoint, 55,000+Bank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026Allpoint, 40,000+Bank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026
Other banks' ATM feesNo refundBank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026Not statedBank site, confirmed Sep 27, 2026
Apps
App Store rating4.7 of 5Store listing, confirmed Sep 27, 20264.9 of 5Store listing, confirmed Sep 27, 2026
Google Play rating3.7 of 5Store listing, confirmed Sep 27, 20264.5 of 5Store listing, confirmed Sep 27, 2026
The bank behind it
CharterUtah · one of 44 insured banks chartered thereFDIC call report, Q2 2026Utah · one of 44 insured banks chartered thereFDIC call report, Q2 2026
Size46th-largest by deposits of 4,238 insured banksFDIC call report, Q2 20262,713th-largest by deposits of 4,238 insured banksFDIC call report, Q2 2026
Deposit growthHigher than at 99% of 4,226 insured banks over the four quarters to Q2 2026FDIC call reportHigher than at 96% of 4,226 insured banks over the four quarters to Q2 2026FDIC call report

“Not stated” means the bank’s own pages say nothing that answers the question. “Not confirmed yet” means no one has confirmed the fact against its source.

Tracked here

How each bank has moved its rates

Banksparency reads each bank’s rates every day. A bank that cuts often, or lets a promotion lapse to a lower rate, costs more over a year than its rate today shows.

SoFi Bank

  • SoFi Savings: 3 rate changes since Jan 21, 2026, 2 cuts and 1 raise.The last was on Sep 23, 2026, up 0.20 points.Its 4.20% APY is a promotion for 180 days. After that the rate falls to 3.30%.

Varo Bank

  • High-Yield Savings Account: one rate change since Jan 21, 2026, 1 cut.The last was on Jul 2, 2026, down 1.25 points.

What each bank pays on deposits

An advertised rate tells you what a new savings account earns today. It cannot tell you how the bank has priced the savings and money market deposits it already holds, over time. This section shows that. The figure is computed from the interest expense and deposit balances that every bank files with the FDIC in the same form. That is what makes it comparable across banks and across quarters.

SoFi Bank

3.19%
Q2 2026 ·
Up to4.20% APY
As observed Sep 26, 2026

The two figures answer different questions, so they sit side by side and are not combined. That 4.20% is a promotional rate for six months. The account advertises 3.30% after it ends. 6-month 0.90% APY Boost on top of the standard 3.10% rate; requires Eligible Direct Deposit or $5,000+ qualifying deposits per 31 days. Without qualifying activity the account earns 0.80%.

In Q2 2026, SoFi Bank paid a higher average rate on savings and money market deposits than 96% of banks that reported a figure (FDIC call report). The all-bank median was 1.45%.

2.90%
Q2 2026 ·
$46.8B
Total deposits
Q2 2026
0.3%
Q2 2026

What SoFi Bank actually pays

Each figure is that bank's own charter-level average across its whole deposit book, so the two are shown one after the other and are not a ranking.

Varo Bank

—
Not available for Q2 2026: The bank held under $10 million in savings and money market deposits this quarter, so no rate is computed.
Q2 2026 ·
Up to3.75% APY
As observed Sep 26, 2026

The two figures answer different questions, so they sit side by side and are not combined. The 3.75% applies to the first $5,000. The balance above that earns 1.00%.

3.33%
Q2 2026 ·
$210M
Total deposits
Q2 2026
55.9%
Q2 2026

What Varo Bank actually pays

How to read these figures

What the average covers. It is an average across the whole bank, taken from its own quarterly FDIC call report. It covers savings accounts and money market deposit accounts, personal and business, at every balance tier. It also covers accounts that were opened years ago and keep the rate of those years. The FDIC line does not separate consumer accounts.

The second figure. The scale row also shows the average across all interest-bearing deposits: savings, interest checking, money market accounts, CDs, personal and business. That figure covers the whole deposit book. The two are shown separately and are not combined.

What the advertised rate covers. It is the rate that this bank advertises now for a new savings account. Banksparency records it from the bank's website on the date shown beside it.

Why the two differ. They measure different things, so this page shows them side by side and keeps them apart. An advertised rate applies to one account, opened now, at today's price. The average also includes older savings balances at the rates of earlier years, money market balances that were priced in a different rate environment, and business accounts. An average below an advertised rate is the usual result of that arithmetic. On its own it is not evidence about the account that you would open.

What the average is useful for. The bank files the data itself, under reporting instructions that are the same for every filer, and the same computation runs for every bank on this site. That makes it comparable in a way that an advertisement is not. Two things on this page read it: the percentile, which shows where the quarter sits among all filers, and the chart, which shows the direction the figure has moved across quarters.

What the average cannot tell you. It cannot tell you the rate that you would earn. No single customer earns the average. For your rate, read the advertised rate above and the rate tables on this page, each with the date it was observed.

What to do next. Use the advertised rate to work out what a new account earns. Use the chart to see how the quarterly average has moved against the all-bank median. Then compare the advertised rate against the current rates on the savings-rate tables before you open an account.

Definitions: · · · ·

Average annualized rates paid on savings and money market deposits, and on all interest-bearing deposits, quarterly. The FDIC line for savings includes money market deposit accounts and business savings deposits and does not separate consumer accounts. Source: FDIC call report data, as reported; it may be amended. The compares all FDIC filers, count-weighted. A missing quarter is suppressed, never interpolated. The percentile counts the banks that paid strictly less on savings and money market deposits, one vote per bank, among the banks that reported a figure for the quarter.

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