Most of us tend to prioritize the bank interest rate as the sole criterion of importance while looking for a savings account. However, there is a lot more to a savings account today than the basic function offered by them of helping us grow our savings at a fixed rate.

In this article, we will summarise five other features that must be present in your basic savings bank deposit account for it to prove effective in increasing your savings.

The bank must offer monthly interest credits

Among the reputed banks in India, a select few offer monthly interest credits to their customers on opening a new account today.

To take IDFC FIRST Bank’s case, not only does the bank provide competitive interest rates, but it also offers monthly interest credits. Any bank account that offers this feature is geared towards helping the customer save more and is therefore desirable for customers.

A digital account opening must be supported and made easy

Most banks today offer customers the option of an online account opening.

However, you must look for a bank that incentivizes any customer who opts for this procedure.

To continue with IDFC FIRST Bank’s example, any customer who opts for an online account opening can access his/her account more efficiently and benefit from their ‘Zero Fee Banking’ services.

Mobile banking must be convenient

The mobile banking services offered by the bank must be efficient. Reputed banks offer a technically sound mobile banking app to their customers which provides ways to invest their saved income and apply for personal loans.

While finalizing a savings account, you must prioritize the ones whose banking apps do not have frequent glitches or pose network-related issues to customers.

Easy accessibility and online fund transfer

In addition to being user-friendly, the mobile banking app must allow you to access your savings account easily and must provide multiple modes of online transfer.

The IDFC FIRST Bank mobile banking app, for example, offers two other money transfer options besides the famed Unified Payments Interface (UPI) – ‘One-Swipe Pay’ and ‘Auto Pay’.

Such a feature will keep you from relying on a payment method for all your transactions.

Fees and charges must be minimal

Lastly, you must check the fees and charges included by the bank and must opt for a bank that charges you the least.

The ‘Zero Fee Banking’ offer on more than 25 commonly-used banking services by IDFC FIRST Bank is an ideal choice since it helps you save a lot of money on fees such as charges for insufficient balance per transaction at ATMs or passbook charges.

While a high-interest rate matters a lot in helping you save more, you must also ensure that the bank offers features such as the ones listed in this article. Since the next step to saving more money after opting for an efficient savings account is making smart investments, you must specifically check the investment-related features of the bank’s net banking and mobile banking services.