Offer at a glance
Maximum bonus amount: $700
Availability: CT, DE, MA, MI, NH, NJ, NY, OH, PA, RI, VT, VA, D.C., MD, FL
Direct deposit required: Yes, $500+
Additional requirements: See below
Hard/soft pull: Soft pull as long as you opt out of over draft protecton.
ChexSystems: Mixed data points
Credit card funding: None
Monthly fees: $9.99, avoidable
Early account termination fee: None
Household limit: None
Expiration date: 9/7/24
The Offer
Citizens Bank is offering a $700 bonus when you open a new checking & savings account. Bonus broken down as follows:
Open your first new personal checking account and set up and make at least one single direct deposit of $500 or more within 60 days of account opening
Open a savings account on the same day and earn a bonus of up to $600 (funds must be maintained until December 31, 2024):
$200 bonus: make a single or multiple deposits totaling $5,000
$400 bonus: make a single or multiple deposits totaling $10,000
$600 bonus: make a single or multiple deposits totaling $15,000
The Fine Print
To Earn Bonus: To earn a $100 Checking bonus, open your first new personal checking account between 8/30/24 and 9/7/24 and have at least one single direct deposit of $500 or more post into your new checking account within 60 days of account opening. To earn a Savings bonus, open your first new personal savings account on the same date as the above new checking account (direct deposit not required) and have the required minimum total deposit (with money not currently on deposit with Citizens) post into your new savings account within 10 days of account opening and remains on deposit until date stated in the table below. Deposits between $5,000.00-$9,999.99 will receive a $200 bonus, or deposits between $10,000.00-$14,999.99 will receive a $400 bonus, or deposits equaling $15,000 or more will receive a $600 bonus.
To earn the total bonus up to $700, you must qualify for both the Checking and one of the Savings bonuses noted above. Qualifications: Primary signer on the new checking and savings accounts may not be or have been a signer on any Citizens personal checking or savings account within the previous six months.
Your new account(s) must have a balance greater than zero and remain open and active through the payout date stated in the table below to qualify for this offer.
Direct deposit is recurring income electronically deposited into your Citizens checking account and may include salary, pension, and other regular income. Certain forms of electronically deposited funds may not be considered eligible direct deposits, including those originating from peer-to-peer money transfer applications such as Zelle®, CashApp®, Venmo® or PayPal®. Eligibility: Customer will only be paid a one-time bonus for this program. Only one checking account and one savings account are eligible for a bonus.
Offers may be withdrawn without notice and cannot be combined with any other checking offer.
Offer eligibility is determined at Citizens’ sole discretion.
Payout: Bonus will be deposited to the new checking account by the date stated in the table below and will be labeled as “Balance Builder Bonus”. If your new checking account is closed prior to payout date stated in the table below, then your new savings account will also no longer be eligible for this offer.
Bonus will be reported to the IRS for income tax purposes.
All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them
Avoiding Fees
Monthly Fees
Need to sign up for online statements otherwise there is a $3 fee.
Citizens Bank One Deposit Checking Account $9.99 Monthly Fee
The One Deposit checking account comes with a $9.99 monthly fee. Fee is waived by making one deposit each statement period. (According to this comment they really do count any deposit – even a transfer from another Citizens Bank account will trigger this.)
Early Account Termination Fee
As far as we know there is no early account termination fee.
Our Verdict
Normally there is a $400 checking bonus, so this is an extra $300 if you max out the bonus. Basically need to tie the funds up for 3 months, if you put $15,000 into an account for 3 months that earned 5% you’d earn $187.5 so this bonus is worth doing if you can spare the $15,000 for that long. The smaller bonuses aren’t worth doing as you are better off sticking to the standard $400 checking bonus that is frequently available. We will add this to our list of the best bank account bonuses.
Hat tip to reader Alex
Useful posts regarding bank bonuses:
A Beginners Guide To Bank Account Bonuses
Bank Account Quick Reference Table (Spreadsheet) (very useful for sorting bonuses by different parameters)
PSA: Don’t Call The Bank
Introduction To ChexSystems
Banks & Credit Unions That Are ChexSystems Inquiry Sensitive
What Banks & Credit Unions Do/Don’t Pull ChexSystems?
How To Use Our Direct Deposit Page For Bank Bonuses Page
Common Bank Bonus Misconceptions + Why You Should Give Them A Go
How Many Bank Accounts Can I Safely Open Within A Year For Bank Bonus Purposes?
Affiliate Links & Bank Bonuses – We Won’t Be Using Them
Complete List Of Ways To Close Bank Accounts At Each Bank
Banks That Allow/Don’t Allow Out Of State Checking Applications
Bank Bonus Posting Times