U.S. Bank Smartly Checking bonus: up to $450 and what it takes

How to earn it

1. Open U.S. Bank Smartly Checking online or at a branch, as a new customer.
2. Fund the account with at least $25 when you open it.
3. Receive direct deposits within 90 days that add up to the amount for your tier: $2,000 for $250, $5,000 for $350 or $8,000 for $450.
4. Wait for the bank to pay the bonus. Its terms say when it pays once you meet the requirements.

Day counts follow the bank's terms, which say when each period starts.

Payments that count differ by bank: what counts as a direct deposit.

When the bank pays. U.S. Bank credits the bonus, which it calls adjusted interest, within 30 days after you complete the requirements.

Open through the offer page by November 10, 2026; applying from another page loses the offer. Fund the account with $25 within 60 days, enroll in the mobile app or online banking within 90 days, and receive two or more direct deposits within 90 days. The total sets the tier.

U.S. Bank counts paychecks sent by ACH and government benefits such as Social Security. Other electronic deposits and person to person payments do not count.

The terms say the offer may not be open outside the U.S. Bank footprint without listing it. Our state list is the 26 states where U.S. Bank publishes branch location pages, not a list from the offer, so confirm with the bank before you apply from another state.

You are excluded if any owner has a U.S. Bank consumer checking account, had one in the last 12 months, or received another U.S. Bank consumer checking bonus in that time. The $12 fee is waived for the first 2 statement periods, and after that with $1,500 a month in direct deposits or a $1,500 average balance, among other ways.

The numbers

Bonus

Up to $4503 tiers, from $250.

Cash to park

None

Direct deposits

$2,000 in total for $250, $5,000 in total for $350, $8,000 in total for $450Within 90 days.

Annual rate

None: no cash to parkThe rate measures the bonus against cash you park. This tier asks for none.

Monthly fee

$12 a monthWays to avoid it that the bank publishes include $1,500 a month in direct deposits or a balance of $1,500.

Early closure

Not published

Tax form

Form 1099-INTAs the terms name it.

Guides to these figures: how the annual rate is calculated, monthly fees and how to avoid them and early closure fees and clawbacks.

Who can get it

For

Personal accounts

Customers

New customers only

Where

Branch states (no list in the terms)The bank decides at application

Branch states

26 statesThe bank has branches in Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin and Wyoming. The terms do not limit the offer to them, and the bank decides at application.

Minimum age

Not published

Before you apply: how often you can earn a bonus from one bank and whether opening an account affects your credit.

Source

Checked against the bank's own page on October 6, 2026.

Read the offer on U.S. Bank's page (opens in a new tab)

Bonus Tally may earn a commission when you open an account through links on this page. It never changes the math or the ranking.

Pages we read

• Offer page on www.usbank.com, read October 6, 2026
• Other page from the bank on www.usbank.com, read October 6, 2026

• Banks change and end offers without notice. Confirm every term on the bank's own page before you apply.
• Bank bonuses are generally taxable as interest income, and banks usually report them on Form 1099-INT. Are bank bonuses taxable has the detail.
• Bonus Tally is an information service, not a bank or a financial adviser. Nothing here is financial, tax or legal advice.

The verification log lists every offer with its source, and the methodology gives every formula.