Best High-Interest Checking Accounts for December 2024—Up to 6.25%

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With its limited balance threshold, it's best for customers who keep relatively minimal funds on hand.

For those who like to keep more than $10,000 in a checking account, Credit Union of New Jersey boasts the top rate.

Fitness-oriented banking customers willing to connect their daily activities to an app can earn a great rate at Fitness Bank.

Direct deposit not a great option for you? Garden Savings offers one of the best APYs and a generous maximum earning balance while allowing you to qualify without establishing a direct deposit.

Pelican's requirements are relatively easy to meet for those who regularly use a checking account.

This is the best high-APY nationwide checking account that we've found. But earning the top rate requires opening and actively using a credit card from the credit union.

Orion Federal Credit Union's requirements to earn its top rate are among the easiest to meet.

Although this isn't the highest APY on the list, the high yield is extended to a much higher balance than with other accounts. It's also the only top-paying checking account that doesn't absolutely require debit card transactions, offering other electronic withdrawals as alternate qualifiers.

For those with a reliable direct deposit of $1,000 or more each month, Signature offers a generous maximum balance, one of the easiest debit card requirements, and a minimal cost to join.

The Fed cut rates by a quarter point at its Nov. 7 meeting, its second rate cut in two meetings. Coupled with September's half-point cut, the federal funds rate has been reduced by a cumulative 0.75 percentage points to a range of 4.50%–4.75%.

Interest rate cuts can directly impact the rate you receive on your high-yield checking account. They can also impact your