You Can Achieve Financial Freedom in 6 Steps With Your Bank’s Support

Achieving financial freedom is actually more attainable than you think, especially when you leverage the resources your bank already offers. Don’t sleep on what your bank can do for you — many financial institutions today offer a solid range of budgeting tools and investment accounts that can help accelerate your journey to financial independence.

Here’s how you can take advantage of your bank’s support to reach your money goals.

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Having the right checking and savings accounts can make a pretty big difference when it comes to growing your money. Here are some helpful accounts and features:

• High-yield savings accounts: As of February 2025, the national average savings rate in the United States is 0.41%, according to the FDIC. So if your savings account is earning less than that, you’re leaving money on the table and letting your purchasing power get eroded away. Many banks now offer high-yield savings accounts, so check with yours to see if they offer those options to help grow your money faster with better interest rates.

• No-fee checking accounts: If you’re paying a monthly maintenance fee on your checking account, check with your bank to see if they offer free checking accounts or provide cash back on purchases.

• Automatic savings features: Set up an automatic transfer from checking to savings every time you get paid. Some banks even round up your purchases and deposit the extra change into your savings.

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Many banks provide built-in budgeting tools that categorize your spending and send alerts if you’re close to your budget limit.

For example, both Chase and Capital One offer real-time spending insights so you know exactly where your money is going. Some banking apps even help you create budgets for different spending categories like dining out and entertainment so you can organize your finances better.

Banks also offer the following resources to help you improve your credit:

• Secured credit cards: If you’re new to credit or need to rebuild, check with your bank to see if they offer secured credit cards to boost your credit score. If not, check out our list of the best-secured credit cards.

• Credit score monitoring: For example, tools like CreditWise from Capital One and FICO Score Tracking from Discover can help you stay on top of your credit health.

• Credit-builder loans: Another product to look into is a credit-builder loan. Many banks offer these loans to help you build your credit history and credit score. With a credit-builder loan, you’ll have to make a portion of or all of the monthly payments before you receive any funds. Each payment you make is then reported to the credit bureaus to improve your creditworthiness. If approved, the lender typically deposits the loan amount into a secured savings account.

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