Guides
Short reads on the rules behind bank bonuses, each linked to the official source it relies on.
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How bank account bonuses work
What a bank account bonus is, the four kinds of requirement, the dates that decide whether you get paid, and the costs to weigh before you open an account.
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What counts as a direct deposit for a bonus
Each bank defines a qualifying direct deposit in its own terms. What usually counts, what usually does not, and how to reach the total in time.
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Are bank bonuses taxable?
Bank bonuses are generally taxable income. Which form the bank usually sends, the year the bonus counts, and how to see what a bonus leaves after tax.
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How the annual rate is calculated
The annual rate turns a bonus into a yearly percentage of the cash it ties up. The formula, a worked example, and what the rate leaves out.
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Monthly bank fees and how to avoid them
How a monthly fee eats into a bank bonus, the waivers banks publish, and how the Bonus Tally calculator counts the fee while you hold the account.
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Early closure fees and bonus clawbacks
Why banks ask you to keep a bonus account open, the early closure fees and clawbacks in their terms, and how to pick a date to close the account.
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Does a new bank account affect your credit?
A checking or savings account is not credit, so a bonus account adds no credit account to your report. What banks check instead and when they pull credit.
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How often can you earn a bonus from one bank?
Banks limit how often one customer earns an account bonus. The waiting periods in the terms we read, how each counts, and what to check before you apply.
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