Simple Bank is Closing – Here Are 45+ Alternatives Ranked in a Spreadsheet

Discussion
#1

Earlier this week Simple Bank announced it’s shutting down.

All Simple accounts will merge into its parent bank BVAA, which in turn was recently acquired by PNC. The timeline and specifics have not yet been announced:

“Simple will be ceasing operations in 2021. There’s no immediate impact to our customers, and you can still access your account as usual. Account servicing will be transitioned to BBVA USA later this year—we’ll keep you updated every step of the way.”

This is sad news for the many users who used and loved Simple.

Personally, I’ve had a Simple account since it launched back in beta back in 2012. The concept of an online-only, app-centric digital bank (neobank) was quite new back then.

It took a few years, but Simple became my primary checking and savings account. I mostly used it for two reasons:

  • It offered the best joint-banking features of any other bank. My spouse and I could easily track our shared, household expenses, and move money between our accounts.
  • It worked flawlessly with Tiller Money, the main tool I use to manage my financial life.

I’ll wait and see what BBVA / PNC offers before I ultimately move my accounts, but I’ve already started looking for an alternative.

Simple Bank Alternatives for Online Checking and Debit Accounts Ranked in a Free Spreadsheet

Simple Bank Alternatives
Simple Bank Alternatives1200×854 154 KB

For my own use, I started to assemble a Google Sheet of Simple Bank alternatives. After a tedious half-hour, I was smart enough to look on Reddit to see if anyone had already started work on this.

Turns out Redditor 11jwolfe2 had already assembled an amazingly helpful spreadsheet with 45+ banks. It’s still growing with lots of crowdsourced feedback. (The hive mind of Reddit + the collaborative nature of cloud-based Google Sheets is better than chocolate + peanut butter.)

There are two ways to view this spreadsheet:

Do you use Simple card? Are you thinking of switching to a different bank, or will you see what happens next? Do you use an online checking account that you love? Please share below!

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#2

If you’re using it solely for savings, and don’t need checks or easy access, I’d go for Yotta. I am currently earning far more than the .2% it says on the sheet. As of now, I’m over 1% due to winning some money in their weekly raffle.

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#3

I’ve also been with Simple since beta but had been seriously considering leaving recently. The innovation had all but stopped and when they did release new features, they were always “almost good” but with some stupid flaw that made them not really that useful in reality. With support also going down the can lately and Tiller taking over what I really loved Simple for in the first place, the end was probably near for me regardless.

#4

Man I wish betterment would come out with a joint checking account already.

#5

The offering from onefinance.com is pretty interesting. I think I’m going to go with something a little more traditional for now though. Tiller has taken care of most of my “extra” needs that I’d get from a fintech