SoFi® vs. Chime®: Which Reigns Supreme?

SoFi® and Chime are online financial companies offering banking services like checking and savings accounts and debit and credit cards.⁵ For most people, we recommend SoFi over Chime due to its range of financial products and competitive annual percentage yield (APY) on bank accounts like its high-yield savings account.

That said, Chime may be a better choice if you have a less-than-stellar credit history because it offers a Secured Chime Credit Builder Visa^® Credit Card, a secured credit card with a $0 annual fee.⁶⁶

Let’s compare the advantages and disadvantages of SoFi and Chime so you can determine which may be the best option for you.

Key takeaways

• Both SoFi and Chime offer interest-bearing savings accounts, but the APY on SoFi's account is significantly higher than what Chime offers, making it a better choice for most.
• SoFi and Chime both offer checking and savings accounts with no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements.²
• SoFi offers a “one-stop shop” for a number of different financial products.
• Chime only offers checking, savings, and a credit card account.
• Chime doesn’t require credit checks to apply for accounts, while SoFi® does a soft credit check.
• SoFi’s checking and savings accounts come as a package deal. It doesn’t offer standalone checking or savings accounts.⁷
• Chime has FDIC insurance coverage through its partner banks The Bancorp Bank and Stride Bank. SoFi is a Member, FDIC.

SoFi vs. Chime at a glance

	SoFi	Chime
Year founded	2011	2012
Number of fee-free ATMs	55,000+3	50,000+8
Products offered	Checking Savings Credit cards Personal loans Student loans Mortgage loans Small business loans Insurance Auto loan refinancing Investing IRAs ETFs Crypto trading	Checking Savings9 Credit Builder Credit Card
Checking APY	0.50% (as of 10/31/24) with direct deposit	N/A
Savings APY	Up to 4.20% with direct deposit1	2.00% (as of Sept. 9, 2024) Note: You can’t open a Chime Savings account without opening a Chime Checking account10
Best for …	One-stop shop	Rebuilding credit
	Visit SoFi®	Visit Chime

Checking comparison

SoFi Checking	Chime® Checking
0.50% (as of 10/31/24) APY with direct deposit No monthly fees No balance minimums Overdraft coverage up to $5011 Get paid up to two days early with direct deposit12 $1,000 daily limit on ATM transaction	No APY No monthly fees No balance minimums Overdraft coverage up to $200 with SpotMe13 Get paid up to two days early with direct deposit4 $515 daily limit on ATM withdrawals

SoFi and Chime are nearly identical. Both have no monthly fees, no minimum balance requirements, and have the option for qualifying customers to get their direct deposits up to two days early.⁴

A distinction is that SoFi’s checking account earns interest at 0.50% (as of 10/31/24) APY with direct deposit, while Chime’s checking account pays no APY.

While both SoFi and Chime have access to tens of thousands of ATMs, their daily withdrawal limits are different. SoFi’s is $1,000, while Chime’s is $515.

Both SoFi and Chime have options to protect you from overdraft fees. SoFi requires at least $1,000 in monthly direct deposits to qualify for overdraft coverage. Only qualifying members can use Chime’s SpotMe® service.¹³

Winner: SoFi due to the higher APY and more generous daily ATM withdrawal limit.

Savings comparison

SoFi®	Chime
Up to 4.20% APY with direct deposit No monthly fees No minimum balance required Ability to set up automatic roundups on debit card purchases to build savings AutoSave feature automatically puts a portion of your direct deposit into savings	2.00% (as of Sept. 9, 2024) APY No monthly fees No minimum balance required Offers round-ups on debit card purchases to build savings14 Offers the ability to automatically transfer 10% of direct deposits over $500 into savings15

When it comes to rewarding the habit of saving, both SoFi and Chime are excellent. Savings accounts with both companies provide automatic round-ups on debit purchases and automatic transfers to savings accounts so you can grow your money.¹⁴¹⁵

While Chime’s automatic transfer takes 10% of direct deposits over $500, with SoFi you can set the amount or portion you want to be transferred. So if you like having more control over that feature, SoFi would be better.

But let’s talk about the main feature I always look at before opening a high-yield savings account: the APY. Obviously, SoFi offers a higher APY on its savings account, but the catch is that you must have direct deposit to earn that high rate. Unfortunately, that would exclude me from earning on my savings with SoFi, but you might have no problem meeting that requirement.

Chime’s savings account APY is lower, but you are only required to have one penny in your account to start earning interest.

Winner: SoFi due to its higher APY, but Chime if you don’t have a direct deposit option.

3 important differences between SoFi and Chime

SoFi offers higher APY on its accounts

For your emergency fund or other savings, SoFi offers a competitive APY of up to 4.20% with direct deposit on its savings accounts and even provides 0.50% (as of 10/31/24) APY on checking accounts with direct deposit.

Chime only provides 2.00% (as of Sept. 9, 2024) APY on its savings accounts, which is on the low end. Chime checking accounts aren’t interest-bearing.

Let’s look at how your savings could grow with a Chime vs. a SoFi savings account, if you deposited $2,000 via direct deposit and added nothing more to it for five years. Interest is paid monthly with both Chime and SoFi.

	Total after 3 years	Total after 5 years
Chime	$2,123 ($123 interest earned)	$2210 ($210 interest earned)
SoFi	$2,295 ($295 interest earned)	$2,516 ($516 interest earned)
Note: Reflects potential earnings as of August 23, 2024. APY is subject to change and your results could be different.

Here’s another way to look at it. Let’s say you put in $1,000 as an initial deposit and continue contributing $100 each month to your savings account for up to ten years.

	Balance after 3 years	Balance after 5 years	Balance after 10 years
Chime	$4.768 ($168 in interest)	$7,409 ($409 in interest)	$14,493 ($1,493 in interest)
SoFi	$5,000 ($400 in interest)	$7,989 ($989 in interest)	$16,783 ($3,783 in interest)
Note: Reflects potential earnings as of August 23, 2024. APY is subject to change and your results could be different.

Clearly, you’ll earn more dollar-for-dollar with the SoFi savings account as long as you maintain direct deposits to qualify for that rate. Without direct deposit, Chime’s savings account is better.

Winner: SoFi because it offers higher interest rates on its savings and checking accounts.

Chime has generous overdraft protection coverage

Overdraft protection helps you if you don’t have enough money in your account to cover a purchase or charge. Chime’s SpotMe overdraft protection covers qualifying members for up to $200 on debit card purchases and cash withdrawals without fees or interest. (Note that SpotMe limits start at $20 and can be increased up to $200 based on your account history and activity.)

SoFi also offers overdraft coverage with no fees. However, not everyone is eligible to receive it. To be eligible for overdraft protection, you need to set up a qualifying direct deposit of at least $1,000 or more per month. If you are eligible, the most SoFi will cover you for overdrafts is $50.¹¹

Winner: Chime because the potential overdraft coverage is four times the coverage SoFi offers (although there are caveats for each account’s overdraft protection, so read the fine print).

SoFi offers a full suite of financial products

There’s something to be said about having all your financial products under one roof. SoFi offers almost every financial product you need, from loans and banking services to insurance and investing. I can see the convenience of keeping, for example, my savings and checking account at the same place where I get my auto and life insurance.

Chime provides only accounts for checking, savings, and a credit card. While these are all essential, they’re also pretty basic.

Winner: SoFi for being a one-stop shop for all your financial needs.

Which company should you choose?

When you should choose SoFi

• If you like all your financial needs under one roof
• If you want to earn high APY on your checking and savings accounts
• If you need more FDIC insurance than the standard $250,000 coverage¹⁶

When you should choose Chime

• If you need more than $50 in overdraft coverage
• If you need to rebuild your credit
• If you prefer to send paper checks (through an app)

FAQ

Bottom line

Overall, we recommend SoFi over financial technology company Chime due to its higher APYs and product availability. It’s convenient to have your bank accounts and other accounts, like personal loans and investments, all in one place.

However, if you’re rebuilding your credit or just starting out, Chime may be a better option for you. Chime doesn’t require a credit check when you open a checking or savings account, and the Chime Credit Builder Card could help with that goal as well if you apply and qualify for the card.