Bank of America customers holding cash in a standard savings account are earning 0.01% APY, according to the bank's published rate disclosures.
On a $10,000 balance, that works out to about one dollar a year.
Meanwhile, the same bank has been paying well over 4% on certificates of deposit and has leaned on high-rate products to pull in deposits.
The gap exists because most people never move their money.
Banks count on inertia, and the big four have built sprawling branch networks and apps designed to make staying easy.
A savings account at 0.01% is not a service to you.
It is cheap funding for the bank's lending operation, and you are the one paying for the privilege of providing it.
The Federal Reserve's rate cuts in late 2024 and 2025 pulled down yields across the board, but the spread between the national average savings rate and top online accounts stayed wide.
As of early 2025, the national average sat around 0.4%, while many online banks and credit unions still advertised 3.5% to 4.5% on savings.
So who benefits from you leaving your money parked?
Bank of America's net interest income, which is the profit it earns lending out deposits at higher rates than it pays you.
That number runs into the tens of billions annually.
Every customer who never checks their APY is a small, quiet subsidy.
Switching means opening a new account, linking it, moving direct deposits, and updating autopay.
That friction is real, and banks know it.
Some institutions have made it worse by adding monthly maintenance fees unless you hit balance or deposit thresholds.
If your savings account charges you a fee while paying 0.01%, you are effectively paying the bank to hold your money.
There is no single right answer for everyone.
Some people value branch access, a familiar app, or the convenience of having checking and savings under one roof.
Others just want the highest yield with the least hassle.
The honest framing is that loyalty to a brand has a price, and right now that price is measured in hundreds of dollars a year for anyone with a meaningful balance.
What to actually check: your current APY, any monthly fee, the minimum balance to avoid it, and whether the rate is promotional or ongoing.
Then compare against a short list of FDIC-insured online savings accounts and local credit unions.
Our take: Bank of America is not doing anything illegal, and it is not hiding its rate.
It is simply betting that you will not look.
That bet pays off for shareholders every quarter.
Final Thoughts
The only way to stop being the funding source is to move the money yourself, and the cost of not doing it is one of the easiest household savings wins available right now.