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High-Yield Savings Account Comparison

Ivy Bank vs. Varo Bank

Ivy Bank's High-Yield Savings Account advertises 4.00% APY. The 4.00% applies to balances of $2,500 or more, up to $1,000,000. Below $2,500, the account advertises 0.05%. The bank states no rate for the balance above $1,000,000.

Varo Bank's High-Yield Savings Account advertises up to 3.75% APY. The 3.75% applies to the first $5,000. The balance above that earns 1.00%. On a $10,000 balance the account earns 2.37% overall, about $237 in a year.

See how they compare on rate stability, mobile app ratings, and more below.

Analysis by Aviel Fahl
Newest reading October 5, 2026

The Bottom Line

On a $10,000 balance, Ivy Bank's High-Yield Savings Account earns about $163 more in a year than Varo Bank's High-Yield Savings Account: $400 against $237.

Choose Ivy Bank if getting the best rate matters most. Choose Varo Bank if you're an Android user (no Android app for Ivy Bank), or you want Zelle for quick transfers.

Important Considerations

Warning:

Varo Bank's 3.75% APY applies only up to $5,000. The balance above that earns 1.00%.

Confirmed:

Varo Bank's High-Yield Savings Account advertises its top rate only if you also open a checking account with Varo Bank, while Ivy Bank's High-Yield Savings Account stands alone.

Comparison of Ivy Bank vs Varo Bank savings accounts
Metric

Ivy Bank

High-Yield Savings Account

Oct 5, 2026

Varo Bank

High-Yield Savings Account

Oct 5, 2026
APY4.00%On balances of $2,500 to $1,000,000 · 0.05% belowUp to3.75%On the first $5,000 · 1.00% above
Earns in a year
$5,000+$200
$10,000+$400
$25,000+$1,000
$5,000+$187
$10,000+$237
$25,000+$387
Min. Deposit
$2,500$0

Snapshot view. Rates subject to change.

Terms
-Earn the stated APY on up to $5,000 and a lower APY on the rest. A Varo bank account & direct deposit required.
Features
FDIC InsuredMod. MinimumGreat iOS AppDaily CompoundingRate Changes Often
FDIC InsuredNo MinimumsGreat iOS AppGreat Android AppZelle® SupportedDirect Deposit ReqChecking BundleDaily CompoundingRate Changes Often

Market Reality Check

Both of these institutions offer rates below the top 10 savings and money market accounts we track. Those institutions all pay at least 4.36% APY.

See the highest rates

Comparison Analysis

Comparing Ivy Bank vs. Varo Bank

Newest reading:

Why Ivy Bank?

  • Higher potential APY (4.00% vs 3.75%) on all balances (balances of $2,500 to $1,000,000 only)
  • No checking account or direct deposit required

Why Varo Bank?

  • Higher rated iOS app (4.9 vs 4.6)
  • Higher rated Android app (4.5 vs 0.0)
  • Fast transfers via Zelle®

Key Feature Differences

Better Returns at $10,000
Ivy Bank

Ivy Bank's High-Yield Savings Account earns more on smaller deposits (approx. $400 vs $237/yr).

Better Returns at $25,000
Ivy Bank

Ivy Bank's High-Yield Savings Account pulls ahead with larger amounts (approx. $1000 vs $387/yr).

Better Mobile App Experience
Varo Bank

Varo Bank offers an iOS app rated 4.9 (vs. 4.6) and Android app rated 4.5 (vs. 0.0)

Shared Benefits

Both offer monthly maintenance-free account options Available Nationwide Available to New & Existing Customers
The Bottom Line on APY (Interest Only)

Over a 1-year period, Ivy Bank's High-Yield Savings Account pays $163 more interest on a $10,000 balance than Varo Bank's High-Yield Savings Account.

*This calculation assumes current rates remain consistent for 1 year and does not include temporary bonuses.

Varo BankIvy Bank
Verify At
Ivy Bank

Non-sponsored link to official site

Verify At
Varo Bank

Non-sponsored link to official site

Top Market Contenders

American Express
3.10% APY
Capital One
3.10% APY
CIT Bank
3.75% APY

Ivy Bank vs. Varo Bank Savings Calculator

Calculations based on current APY for High-Yield Savings Account and High-Yield Savings Account
$
$

You earn $162.5 more with Ivy Bank than Varo Bank on a $10,000 initial deposit for 1 year*.

*This calculation assumes that APYs remain unchanged for 1 year, and takes into account known promo rate periods, but does not factor in bonuses. You can see how often these banks have changed their rates in the Compare Savings Rates Over Time section below.

Ivy Bank

High-Yield Savings Account

4.00% APY
Tiered rates: 0.05% ($10 - $2,499.99), 4.00% ($2,500 - $1,000,000)No rate is stated above $1,000,000. The calculator earns nothing on that portion.

Savings Breakdown

  • Interest Earned
    +$400.00(3.8%)
  • Total Contributions
    $0
  • Initial Deposit
    $10,000

Projected Balance

$10,400.00

Effective APY
4.00%

Varo Bank

High-Yield Savings Account

3.75% APY
3.75% on first $5,000, 1.00% on amounts above $5,000.01.

Savings Breakdown

  • Interest Earned
    +$237.50(2.3%)
  • Total Contributions
    $0
  • Initial Deposit
    $10,000

Projected Balance

$10,237.50

Effective APY
2.37%

The Banksparency Savings Calculator provides estimated savings growth based on user input and our latest data.

Still at a large branch bank?

A typical branch-bank savings rate is 0.05% APY. On a $10,000 balance, the gap to these two banks is at least $232 a year in interest.

Both Ivy Bank and Varo Bank advertise far more than that typical branch-bank rate.

0.05% APY at a typical branch bank, against 3.75%+ here
See the highest rates
FeatureIvy BankVaro Bank
APY
4.00%
Range: 0.05% - 4.00%
Observed: 10/5/2026
0.15%90-day change
3.75%
Range: 1.00% - 3.75%
Observed: 10/5/2026
Stable over 90 days
Product NameHigh-Yield Savings AccountHigh-Yield Savings Account
Minimum Deposit$2,500$0
Min. Balance for APY$2,500$0.01
Monthly Fee$0$0
Compound FrequencyDailyDaily
BranchesNoneNone
Physical BranchesNot reported1 (UT)
Direct Deposit Req.None
Required
Checking BundleNo Yes
Mobile Apps
iOS4.6
Android-
iOS4.9
Android4.5
FDIC or NCUA Insured
Zelle® Support
Not Supported
Available
Requires history of qualifying direct deposits.
BBB RatingA-A+
Important Notes-Earn the stated APY on up to $5,000 and a lower APY on the rest. A Varo bank account & direct deposit required.
Next Steps
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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.

Ivy Bank

2.77%
Q2 2026 ·
4.00% APY
As observed Oct 5, 2026

The two figures answer different questions, so they sit side by side and are not combined. The 4.00% applies to balances of $2,500 or more, up to $1,000,000. Below $2,500, the account advertises 0.05%. The bank states no rate for the balance above $1,000,000.

In Q2 2026, Cambridge Savings Bank paid a higher average rate on savings and money market deposits than 90% of banks that reported a figure (FDIC call report). The all-bank median was 1.45%.

2.80%
Q2 2026 ·
$5.4B
Total deposits
Q2 2026
17.5%
Q2 2026

What Ivy 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 Oct 5, 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.

CD rates, term by term

Varo Bank has no CD listed on Banksparency. Ivy Bank lists 6 CD terms, from 3 to 60 months. Its highest rate is 4.25% APY on the 3-month CD. Each row below is one term, with the FDIC national average for that term beside it.

TermIvy Bank FDIC average (Sep 2026)
12 months4.05% APY$1,000 minimum1.73%
3 months4.25% APY$1,000 minimum1.13%
6 months4.25% APY$1,000 minimum1.41%
24 months3.00% APY$1,000 minimum1.61%
36 months2.75% APY$1,000 minimum1.36%
60 months2.50% APY$1,000 minimum1.38%

Varo Bank: no CD listed on Banksparency.

FDIC national averages

Compare Savings Rates Over Time

Historical Performance

Last 11 Months Analysis
MetricIvy BankVaro Bank
High-Yield Savings AccountHigh-Yield Savings Account
Current APY
4.00%3.75%
Trend
Stable Stable
Speed of change
-0.04-0.11
Days Since Change
1895
11-Month High
4.25%5.00%
11-Month Low
3.85%3.75%
Changes per month
0.370.09
Steadiness
0.0240.050
How to read these metrics(Click to expand)

Trends and speed

  • Trend: The general direction of the rate over the analyzed period. Useful for seeing whether a bank is raising its rate or letting it slip.
  • Speed of change: How fast the rate moves. A high positive number means they raise rates quickly. A reading of 0.10 is a tenth of a percentage point each month.
  • Changes per month: How often the rate moves. A high number means it changes constantly; a low number means it holds.

Risk & Range

  • High/Low: The absolute ceiling and floor of the rate during the 327-day window.
  • Steadiness: How far the rate swings around its average. A lower score means a steadier, more predictable rate.
  • Days Since Change: A high number, for example above 90, means the rate rarely moves. A low number means it changed recently.

More Comparisons

Compare Ivy Bank's APY of 4.00% with other banks
Compare Varo Bank's APY of 3.75% with other banks