Why we like Crew more than Greenlight
Last year, when Bart and I were running our Instagram account about money and family finances, one of the things we talked about quite a bit was Crew, the banking app we used for our own emergency fund (because it has a great interest rate!) plus banking for our kids so they can spend money on their own debit cards and we could easily transfer money around.
We may not be doing Jolly Good Dollar anymore, but we still love Crew and so many questions have come in about it that I thought it would be worth having a blog post to talk about it in more detail!
We originally discovered Crew when we were looking for an alternative to Greenlight which we had previously used when it was free with our Chase banking, but once that was phased out, we didn’t want to pay for it since it can get fairly pricey.
Crew was a FANTASTIC alternative because it has pretty much the same features but doesn’t have a monthly fee AND it has high interest rates so that we make more than 0.1% interest on our money that we keep out of investments for an emergency.
Here are some of the questions that came in about Crew!
What even is Crew of it’s not a bank?
Crew is a fintech company (sometimes called a “neobank”). They partner with a bank (Bangor Savings Bank in Bangor Maine) to offer their software with Bangor’s underlying banking products. Basically, Crew built the software that makes it easy for individuals and families to use built on top of Bangor’s bank.
Is Crew FDIC insured?
Yes! Accounts are FDIC insured through Bangor Savings Bank in Bangor Maine.
I know I need to move money into a HYSA but I have no idea what to look for in one
The Federal Reserve (“the fed”) sets interest rates. You should look for a bank that is willing to pay you an interest as close to the federal interest rate as possible. The national average is 0.4% APY and many of the “big banks” pay 0.01% APY. Crew pays 3.7% APY.
Is the 4% rate an introductory offer that drops significantly after a few months?
Crew’s current base checking rate is 3.7% APY. That rate follows the federal interest rate (up or down). Whenever someone sign’s up using a referral code, both the referrer and referee get a 0.5% APY boost for 3 months. So 4.2% APY today.
Would love to find one with “buckets” for different saving goals. My brain likes separation.
My brain likes this too which is why I love that Crew has “pockets”!They come with savings goals, automation tools, and you can even lock them with “piggy bank mode.”
Is it both checking and savings accounts? Any monthly fees?
No monthly fees! Crew used to offer both a checking and savings account, but they recently updated to a single high yield (3.7% APY) checking account with the ability to create “pockets”. (So you could have a “pocket” for money you’re setting aside for a Disneyland trip or a “pocket” for a bike. The need for having a checking and savings account is a relic of the past. Crew decided it’s easier and better to just give people a single high yield account.
Are there any minimum balances?
Nope!
What (if any) is the penalty for withdrawing money?
None!
Do you have to set up a regular deposit to get benefits of the HYSA?
Not with Crew. Any amount of money you leave in Crew will earn the advertised APY. You can make one deposit or one million and get the same benefit.
How long does it need to stay to earn interest?
Money starts earning interest the moment it lands in Crew. There’s no minimum requirement.
Where do you start?
Right here!
Are there multiple folders/accounts within each person?
Yes! Each person gets a single checking account with the ability to create as many “pockets” as you’d like.
Can my teens have their paychecks direct deposit?
Yes! Any child (no age limit) gets their own real checking account with an account and routing number. They also get a free debit card to access that money (and can even pick the color!).
I want it to be in my son’s name for taxes. Easy to work for teens and young adults?
Child accounts are in the parents names with the child added as an authorized user. Once the child is old enough, they can “graduate” and separate themselves from the family and take their account with them. Any interest earned in child accounts is reported in the parents 1099-int.
How would my kids be able to deposit cash into their account?
Crew is about to release cash deposit (end of April 2025). They’ll be able to go to Walmarts, gas stations, CSV, etc. to deposit cash. Way more convenient than having to find a local branch!
Can kids have a Crew account without their own phone number?
Yes! After parents sign up for Crew, they can invite their kids to join. They can manage their kids through the Crew app, or allow their kids to manage their own accounts on their own phones (our girls don’t have phones that allow for apps yet, so it’s all on our phones at the moment).
Could I use Crew if I reside in Canada?
Not yet, unfortunately.
What are your thoughts on Crew for someone with no kids?
Crew is a great product for people without kids! Crew used to call themselves “the best banking app for families” but they realized that excluded a ton of people who could benefit from Crew. Now Crew calls themselves “the worlds most powerful checking account.”
Do you withdraw and invest the interest earned or do you keep it in to compound?
You can do either. If you keep it in Crew, it will compound at the same APY as your other deposits. We just leave ours all in their to compound for simplicity’s sake. Crew tells me they’re hoping to add the ability to invest through Crew later this year.
Do you have a number you cap at for emergency/ HYS and then mostly invest after that? How to know where to aim?
We aim for about 6 months of living expenses (basically, could we keep a roof over our heads, feed our family, and drive our cars if we both suddenly lost all our income?) and after we had that amount of money in our Crew emergency fund, we invest after that.
What do you mean by family banking?
Crew has actually kind of pivoted away from this messaging. Crew initially started there because families have complex banking needs. Specifically, many banks don’t offer bank accounts for kids and don’t have tools like pockets or automated allowances. More recently, Crew realized that promoting family banking can make a lot of people feel like Crew might not be for them. For that reason, they’ve changed their messaging a bit to indicate that they’re the best bank available for everyone!
How easy is it to access your funds from Crew? Fees to withdraw?
No fees to withdraw. You can withdraw from any ATM and Crew will cover up to 20 withdrawal fees per year. You can also use the free Crew debit card.
How to set up multiple savings accounts at Crew. Just got an account and love them already.
Right now, each person only gets one checking account, however, you can split it up with pockets. Eventually, they’ll be adding different accounts types like 529s, IRAs, business accounts, etc.
Pros/cons to switching banks
That’s really a personal preference. If you’re looking for a high yield bank account, a sleek user interface, and modern tools to manage your money, Crew might be right for you. If you’re really happy with where you currently bank, it may not be. The main con is probably the overhead of updating any direct deposits or bills that are drawing from your current account (for us, we have very little that draws from our checking account – we pay almost all our bills through our credit cards so we only have maybe 2-3 bills that draw directly).
Is Crew better? We’ve had Capital One forever.
We think so! That’s a really subjective question, but my best recommendation is to give Crew a try and see what you think.
Does it have online bill pay?
It depends. Currently, Crew don’t mail checks as a form of payment. You can however set up automatic payments to any where that has a bank account or routing number. You can also have your bill companies draw money directly from Crew.
What are the best family banking features it has?
Kids bank accounts with free debit card, account “pockets” (savings, giving, new bike, etc.), and automatic allowances.
How does Crew compare to ALLY?
Crew has “pockets” similar to Ally’s “buckets”. Crew offers a slightly higher interest rate. I asked Crew about this and they said they’ve had many customers move from Ally to Crew and they’ve been very happy .
Difference between HYSA and a money market account?
Traditionally, the difference is that an HYSA is just a savings account and sometimes imposes withdrawal limits, where a MMA is more like a savings account with some checking account features. You can think of Crew’s high yield checking account more like an MMA account. No minimums or limits.
Some positive features of Crew’s over other banks?
No minimums or fees. Free ATM for up to 20 withdrawal per year. Free wires with deposits over $50k. Kids accounts (no age limits) with free debit cards. Budgeting tools built right into your high yield checking account (3.7% APY). Automation tools.
How quickly can you access your money when you transfer from Crew to your main bank account?
Because Crew is built on top of a bank, they use the same rails all other banks use. You can access your money just as quickly as you can at other banks (sometimes quicker). Depending on how you’re depositing or withdrawing money, it can take anywhere from 1-4 business days.
When did you start putting in your kids’ money?
We opened Crew accounts for our kids about a year ago, when our kids were 7, 9, 11, and 13. We’ve been VERY happy with Crew!
Have you switched all banking to Crew? I like to be able to easily and instantly transfer money.
No – we have other bank accounts for our businesses but Crew has been great for our emergency account, the money we set aside to pay our taxes, and our kids accounts!
Any other questions about Crew? I’m happy to help!
Can you easily transfer money both in and out of kids’ checking accounts? Sometimes I pay for something for my kid with my credit card (part of Amazon order). So far we’ve just done digital/physical tracking of their money. But if we actually put it in a separate account, I’ll need to pay myself back from their account for anything I spend on their behalf. Would that be possible?
Yep!
Do you have any recommendation on books to read in educating kids on personal finance with helping them figure out their skills and making income and entrepreneurship?
Do your kids invest through Crew, or do you help them do this using some other bank/app/investment firm?
Crew doesn’t currently have investment features (coming later this year!) – our girls have their investments through Fidelity.