Join Save Review | The College Investor

Having emergency money set aside in a savings account offers a cushion for whatever life throws your way. Even though you’d probably want that money to earn interest, the reality is, many banks don’t offer a significant way to grow your savings.

Saving money is always a good idea, so putting it into an account that offers a significant APY is an even better idea.

Joinsave.com, or Save, offers the best of both worlds—a relatively high yield with the freedom to access your funds whenever you need it.  

What Is Join Save?

Save is a financial platform with a focus on helping you make the most of your money. Plus, the company makes an effort to choose investments that protect the environment. 

The team behind Save has a wide range of experience in several fields, including insurance, banking, investment banking, fund management, and advisory assets. With this combination, Save is working to provide wider access to sophisticated investment strategies without too much risk. 

What Does It Offer?

If you are looking to make the most of your savings, Save offers several options to consider. 

Market Savings Account

The Market Savings Account presents a spectacular opportunity for savers. Essentially, this account allows you to tap into a better way to store your savings. You’ll still have the access you need without giving up substantial returns. 

As of October 2022, the Market Savings Account offers APYs ranging from 5.74% to 9.37%. In order to tap into these relatively high APYs, sign up for specific lengths of time. Here’s the breakdown:

• 1-year term: 5.74% APY
• 2-year term: 5.79% APY
• 5-year term: 9.37% APY

Compared to other online savings accounts, these APYs are impressive. But there is a catch. The future performance of the market is obviously unpredictable. If the market doesn’t meet Save’s expectations, the actual APY you see in your account will be higher or lower. 

If you want to open an account with a one-year term, you’ll need a minimum deposit of at least $1,000. If you want to open one of the other terms, you need a minimum balance of $5,000. 

Easy Withdrawals

When you work with the Market Savings Account, you’ll have the ability to withdraw your funds at any time. However, withdrawing the funds can come with a penalty. 

For example, if you need to withdraw the funds from your 5-year Market Savings Account early, you could forfeit the potential returns your account might have earned. With this penalty, the Market Savings Account feels more like a CD than a savings account. 

Wealth Card

The Wealth Card is marketed as the world’s first high-yield credit card. And it offers a unique take on getting the most out of your spending. 

According to save, you can earn an average annual return potential of 5.77% on every dollar spent. Without any categories to keep track of or limits on your earnings, this credit card can be a worthwhile option for anyone trying to stretch their dollars farther. 

But many will prefer to stick with other rewards credit cards that offer the ability to stockpile points for travel. 

Are There Any Fees?

When you work with Save, they’ll help you invest your money. In return for this service, the platform takes a 0.35% management fee for its Save Market Savings account. Regardless of how high your returns climb, Save will take this standard percentage. But if your returns are less than 0.35%, Save won’t charge a fee at all. This fee and is charged annually from the investment account before returns are deposited  into your account. 

This is the only fee to worry about because there aren’t monthly fees or set-up fees to work with Save. 

How Do I Contact Join Save?

If you need to get in touch with Save, you can shoot an email to support@joinsave.com. 

Customer service was difficult to gauge, as the company currently only has one Trustpilot review.

How Does Join Save Compare?

When it comes to getting the most bang for your savings buck, high-yield savings accounts are usually the way to go. Save is offering a unique product that combines a CD-style term with an investment strategy behind the scenes. 

If you want a high-yield savings account you can access at any time, without a penalty, Save’s Market Savings Accounts are not a good fit. Instead, a more traditional high-yield savings account through UFB Direct or American First Credit Union might be a better fit. 

How Do I Open An Account?

When you join Save, you’ll have the ability to apply for the Market Savings Account of your choice. Be prepared to provide some personal information, details about your investment goals, and funding information to finalize the account setup. 

Based on the length of the application, it should take around 10 minutes to apply. 

You can get started opening an account here >>

Is It Safe And Secure?

The funds held in your Market Savings account are eligible for FDIC insurance, which means that up to $250,000 of the funds are protected. 

But when investments are made on your behalf, those investments are only eligible for SIPC protection. That means invested funds aren’t protected against market downturns. 

Is It Worth It?

Save is offering the chance to put your money to work for you through a savings account. 

However, when the funds are invested on your behalf, you’ll lose many of the protections that make a savings account so attractive in the first place. Namely, you might have to pay a fee to access your funds before the term ends, and there’s a risk the investments won’t perform as well as expected. 

Depending on your situation, you might be happy with this tradeoff. But if you are looking for more liquidity in your savings and the chance to maximize your investment returns, then consider sticking to a separate savings account and brokerage account.