Money Market Accounts Worth Considering in 2026
A middle ground between checking and savings — with check-writing privileges and competitive yields.
What a money market account actually is
A money market account (MMA) is a deposit account at a bank or credit union that pays interest at savings-account levels but adds check-writing and sometimes a debit card. It's FDIC- or NCUA-insured up to $250,000. Do not confuse it with a money market mutual fund (a brokerage product, not FDIC-insured, though usually very safe).
Top picks
- Quontic Bank Money Market — 5.00% APY, $100 minimum, debit card and checks.
- Vio Bank Cornerstone Money Market — 5.30% APY, $100 minimum.
- Sallie Mae Money Market — 4.85% APY, no minimum, check writing.
- CFG Bank High Yield Money Market — 5.25% APY, $1,000 to open.
- Discover Money Market — 4.00% APY, no minimum, check-writing and debit card.
- Ally Money Market — 4.20% APY, no minimum, free standard checks.
When an MMA beats an HYSA
- You write checks to contractors, the IRS, charities, or estimated tax payments.
- You want a debit card on the savings bucket for occasional emergencies.
- You prefer one account instead of pairing checking + savings.
When an HYSA is simpler
- You only move money electronically.
- You already have a free checking account for check-writing needs.
- You want the highest possible APY with the fewest features (HYSAs often edge MMAs by 10–25 bps).
Watch the transaction limits
Many MMAs cap outbound transactions at 6 per month (a legacy of the old Reg D rule that the Fed suspended but most banks kept). Going over can trigger a $10–$15 fee per excess transaction or even account closure after repeat offenses.
Money market account vs. money market fund
| Feature | MMA (bank) | MM Fund (brokerage) |
|---|---|---|
| Insurance | FDIC/NCUA $250k | SIPC (different, not principal-guaranteed) |
| Current yield | 4–5.3% | 5.0–5.4% (e.g., SPAXX, SWVXX, VMFXX) |
| Check writing | Usually yes | Some funds, but minimums apply |
| State tax | Fully taxable | Treasury-only funds often state-tax-free |
For retirees with $100k+ in cash, a brokerage money market fund inside Fidelity or Schwab often wins on yield and tax efficiency.
Sweep accounts: the brokerage alternative
Most major brokerages (Fidelity, Schwab, Vanguard, Merrill) will automatically "sweep" idle cash in your brokerage account into an interest-bearing position. The defaults vary widely:
- Fidelity sweeps cash into SPAXX or FDRXX (Treasury money market funds, ~5% yield).
- Schwab defaults to a low-yield bank sweep (0.45%) — manually move cash into SWVXX or SNSXX for ~5%.
- Vanguard sweeps into VMFXX (~5.2% yield).
For an investor with $50,000 in idle cash, the difference between Schwab's default sweep and SWVXX is $2,300/year. Check your settlement fund yield today — many retirees are losing thousands without realizing.
FDIC vs. SIPC: know which protects what
A common point of confusion: MMAs at a bank are protected by FDIC up to $250,000 per depositor. Money market mutual funds held inside a brokerage are protected by SIPC up to $500,000 — but SIPC protects you from brokerage failure, not from the fund losing value. In practice, government and Treasury money market funds have never "broken the buck" by more than a penny in over 50 years, and most retail funds are extraordinarily safe. But the protections are legally different. If absolute principal guarantee matters, stick with FDIC-insured MMAs; for marginally higher yield with near-equivalent safety, brokerage funds win.
Bottom line
For most households, an HYSA is simpler and good enough. But if you write checks to contractors, the IRS, or charities, a money market account at 5%+ makes sense — and beats leaving the money in a 0.01% checking account by a wide margin.