WahLiao reference desk · Researched guide · Bank terms checked 29 September 2026. General information, not a recommendation to open, close or fund a particular account. Current monthly quotations remain on Rates; this page owns the durable calculation behind the headline rate.
A savings account can advertise 3.4%, 4.1%, 4.7% or 5.85% a year and still pay a very different effective rate on the balance you actually keep. The headline may be a marginal rate on only one slice of the balance, a maximum reached only after several banking activities, a temporary promotion, or a bonus that lasts for a limited number of months.
The right question is not “What is the highest savings rate in Singapore?” It is “What interest will this account pay on my balance if I meet only the conditions I would normally meet?” Once the question is phrased that way, the comparison becomes arithmetic instead of advertising.
Go to headline rate versus EIR · UOB One · OCBC 360 · Standard Chartered Bonus$aver · DBS Multiplier · worked balances · the cost of conditions · comparison checklist · questions and answers.
Headline rate, marginal rate and effective interest rate are not the same thing
Suppose an account pays 1% on the first S$75,000 and 2.5% on the next S$25,000. The highest rate visible in that two-tier example is 2.5%, but a S$100,000 balance does not earn 2.5% on every dollar. Annual interest is S$75,000 × 1% + S$25,000 × 2.5% = S$1,375. Divide S$1,375 by S$100,000 and the effective annual rate is 1.375%.
That calculation is the foundation of this guide. For each account, identify the balance bands, apply the rate to each band, add the interest, then divide by the total balance. Only after that should you ask what salary credit, card spend, GIRO activity, saving behaviour, insurance or investment was required to get there.
| Term | What it means for a comparison |
|---|---|
| Base or prevailing rate | What the account pays without the relevant bonus conditions, subject to its balance rules. |
| Bonus rate | Additional interest triggered by a stated activity such as salary credit, card spend or saving. |
| Marginal rate | The rate on one balance slice. It must not be applied automatically to the entire account. |
| Effective interest rate (EIR) | Total annualised interest divided by the balance used in the illustration, under the stated conditions. |
| Promotional rate | A rate limited by dates, new-money rules or another temporary condition; it should not be treated as the standing account rate. |
| Average daily / monthly average balance | The balance basis used by the bank. Moving money late in the month may not produce the result implied by an end-of-month screenshot. |
A bank calculator can still be useful, but record its assumptions. A result based on S$150,000, a credited salary, a credit-card spend and three linked products is not evidence that the same account pays that effective rate on S$30,000 with no banking activity.
UOB One: “up to 3.4%” includes a 3.4% balance tier, not a 3.4% EIR on S$150,000
UOB One Account currently requires at least S$500 monthly eligible card spend to unlock bonus interest. Pair that spend with salary credit of at least S$1,600 a month and UOB publishes total rates of 1.00% on the first S$75,000, 2.50% on the next S$50,000 and 3.40% on the next S$25,000. Balances above S$150,000 receive the published 0.05% base rate.
The 3.40% is therefore the rate on the final S$25,000 tier under that route. UOB’s own worked example gives annual interest of S$2,850 on S$150,000: S$750 from the first tier, S$1,250 from the second and S$850 from the third. S$2,850 ÷ S$150,000 = 1.90% EIR.
| Illustrative UOB One balance | Assumption | Annualised interest from published tiers | Effective rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| S$50,000 | S$500 card spend + qualifying salary credit | S$50,000 × 1.00% = S$500 | 1.00% |
| S$100,000 | Same | S$75,000 × 1.00% + S$25,000 × 2.50% = S$1,375 | 1.375% |
| S$150,000 | Same | S$75,000 × 1.00% + S$50,000 × 2.50% + S$25,000 × 3.40% = S$2,850 | 1.90% |
UOB also publishes a card-spend-plus-three-GIRO route. At S$125,000, its current tiers are 1.00% on the first S$75,000 and 2.00% on the next S$50,000, which UOB states as a maximum 1.40% EIR on S$125,000. The card-spend-only route pays 0.65% on the first S$75,000 and UOB states a 0.65% EIR at that balance.
The lesson is not that one UOB route is universally preferable. It is that “up to 3.4%” is insufficient for a household calculation. Write down the balance first, then apply the path the household actually meets every month.
OCBC 360: six bonus categories can stack, and one is temporarily higher
OCBC 360 publishes separate Salary, Save, Spend, Insure, Invest and Grow categories on the first S$100,000, plus 0.05% base interest on the account balance. Salary requires at least S$1,800 monthly. Save requires the average daily balance to increase by at least S$500 from the previous month. Spend requires at least S$500 on selected OCBC credit cards.
Under the standing post-May-2026 structure, Salary has an EIR of 1.25% on S$100,000: 1.00% on the first S$75,000 and 2.00% on the next S$25,000. Spend is 0.25% across those bands. Insure and Invest each have a 1.25% EIR on S$100,000 under their published 1.00% / 2.00% band structure.
The Save category is temporarily boosted from 1 August to 31 December 2026. OCBC displays 0.50% on the first S$75,000 and 1.10% on the next S$25,000 for a 0.65% EIR, compared with the ordinary 0.40% EIR outside that promotion. That temporary increase lifts Salary + Save + Spend to a displayed maximum 2.20% EIR during the promotional period, and Salary + Save + Spend + Insure + Invest to 4.70% EIR. OCBC states that the temporary Save bonus ends on 31 December 2026.
| OCBC 360 condition on S$100,000 | Current EIR contribution shown by OCBC | Condition note |
|---|---|---|
| Base | 0.05% | Applies regardless of bonus-category fulfilment. |
| Salary | 1.25% | At least S$1,800 qualifying salary credit monthly. |
| Save | 0.65% during 1 Aug–31 Dec 2026 promotion | Increase average daily balance by at least S$500 monthly; ordinary EIR outside the promotion is lower. |
| Spend | 0.25% | At least S$500 on selected OCBC credit cards. |
| Insure | 1.25% | Eligible insurance product; product conditions and bonus period apply. |
| Invest | 1.25% | Eligible investment product; product conditions and bonus period apply. |
The Grow category is separate: OCBC states 1.20% on the first S$100,000 when the account maintains at least S$250,000 average daily balance. That number cannot simply be added to a S$100,000 comparison without also recognising the S$250,000 balance requirement.
Standard Chartered Bonus$aver: the highest headline requires several independent decisions
Standard Chartered Bonus$aver currently advertises up to 5.85% p.a. on the first S$100,000. From 1 May 2026, its published components are 0.05% prevailing interest, 0.90% Salary, 0.90% Card Spend, 1.50% Invest and 2.50% Insure.
Salary requires at least S$3,000 monthly through the specified salary-credit routes. Card Spend requires at least S$1,000 of eligible spend in the calendar month. The Invest category currently requires at least S$30,000 in eligible Unit Trusts or Online Equities, and its bonus interest is paid for a consecutive six-month period. The Insure category requires an eligible policy meeting the published premium condition and also has a defined bonus-payment period.
| Bonus$aver combination on eligible balance | Annualised rate components | What the headline leaves out |
|---|---|---|
| Prevailing only | 0.05% | No bonus condition satisfied. |
| Salary only | 0.05% + 0.90% = 0.95% | Requires the qualifying salary credit. |
| Salary + Card Spend | 0.05% + 0.90% + 0.90% = 1.85% | Requires both salary and at least S$1,000 eligible card spend. |
| All four bonus categories | 0.05% + 0.90% + 0.90% + 1.50% + 2.50% = 5.85% | Investment and insurance requirements are separate financial products and their bonus periods are not the same as a permanent deposit rate. |
The arithmetic explains why the maximum should not be the starting point. Buying an investment or insurance product is a larger decision than collecting deposit interest. Compare its fees, risks, liquidity and suitability on its own terms. The extra savings-account interest is one consequence of that decision, not a reason to treat the investment or policy as costless.
The account also publishes a S$5 fall-below fee when average daily balance is below S$3,000, plus an early-account-closure fee within the stated period. Those costs belong in a low-balance comparison. WahLiao’s separate bank-account fees guide owns the wider fee mechanics.
DBS Multiplier: rate depends on total eligible transactions and number of categories
DBS Multiplier currently advertises up to 4.10% p.a. on SGD savings, with bonus interest applicable up to the first S$100,000 under the qualifying structure. DBS recognises income plus activity in categories including Credit Card/PayLah retail spend, home-loan instalments, insurance and investments. The eligible transaction amounts are aggregated for the month.
DBS is useful as a different kind of example because the rate is driven not only by a single threshold but by the amount of eligible transactions and the number of categories. DBS’s current worked examples show a working adult with S$3,500 salary and two transaction categories, S$3,800 total eligible transactions, receiving 2.10% p.a. on the first S$100,000. Adding another recognised category in the bank’s example raises the rate to 2.40%.
DBS also has a separate route for customers aged 29 and below: current product material states 1.50% p.a. on the first S$50,000 with qualifying Credit Card, PayLah or eligible debit-card retail spend, without requiring income. That route should not be used as the rate for an older customer.
The product page states no minimum transaction amount across the recognised categories for the main Multiplier calculation, but the combined amount still determines the bonus tier. A person with a small eligible transaction total and one category is therefore not automatically at the 4.10% maximum. The account also has a S$5 monthly service charge if average daily balance is below S$3,000, with the current age-based waiver conditions stated on the product page.
Worked balances: why the same account changes as the balance changes
These are calculation examples, not recommendations. They use the current published tiers identified above and assume the conditions are met for the period modelled. They do not include taxes, opportunity costs of unrelated products, sign-up gifts or future rate changes.
Example 1: S$100,000 in UOB One with salary and card spend
Under the current salary-plus-card route, annualised interest is S$75,000 × 1.00% + S$25,000 × 2.50% = S$1,375. Effective rate: S$1,375 ÷ S$100,000 = 1.375%. The account’s 3.40% headline tier does not enter this S$100,000 calculation because that tier begins only on the next S$25,000.
Example 2: S$100,000 in OCBC 360 with Salary + Save + Spend during the current Save promotion
OCBC currently shows 1.25% Salary EIR, 0.65% promotional Save EIR, 0.25% Spend EIR and 0.05% base interest on the first S$100,000, producing the bank’s displayed 2.20% maximum EIR for that combination during the temporary Save promotion. If the Save promotion ends without replacement after 31 December 2026, the same behaviour should be recalculated against the standing Save rate rather than carrying 2.20% forward.
Example 3: S$100,000 in Bonus$aver with salary and card spend only
Using only the prevailing, Salary and Card Spend components gives 0.05% + 0.90% + 0.90% = 1.85% p.a. on the eligible first S$100,000, assuming both monthly conditions are met. That is far below the 5.85% maximum because the illustration deliberately does not buy an investment or insurance policy merely to reach the headline.
Example 4: DBS Multiplier follows the transaction profile, not a single balance formula
DBS’s current product examples show that two people with the same S$50,000 or S$100,000 balance can receive different rates because the recognised income, transaction total and number of categories differ. For this account, copy the current month’s recognised transactions into the bank’s calculator rather than applying the maximum rate to the balance.
The conditions have costs, even when the account has no lock-in
A salary credit can be nearly costless if it simply redirects an existing payroll deposit. A S$500 or S$1,000 card-spend requirement is different: it can change which card you use and which rewards you give up elsewhere. A S$500 monthly balance increase ties up additional cash. An investment or insurance condition can involve fees, market risk, surrender conditions and a much larger capital commitment.
Do not count the same behaviour as “free” in every comparison. If you would already spend S$500 on an eligible card, the account condition may fit existing behaviour. If you need to buy an unnecessary item to reach the spend requirement, the interest is not the only financial effect. Likewise, an insurance premium or investment subscription should not be justified solely by a deposit bonus.
There is also a portfolio cost to concentrating cash. Singapore’s deposit-insurance limit applies in aggregate per depositor per Scheme member, not separately to every account at the same bank. The exact coverage mechanics stay with WahLiao’s existing SDIC deposit-insurance guide. This page does not duplicate that scheme.
Average daily balance can defeat an end-of-month shortcut
Several accounts calculate bonus interest from average daily or monthly average balances. Moving S$50,000 into an account on the final day does not make the month’s average balance S$50,000. Conversely, a large withdrawal halfway through the month can reduce the average even if the month ends at the original balance.
A simple approximate model is to multiply each daily balance by the number of days it was held, add those balance-days and divide by the number of calendar days. The bank’s actual method and rounding rules govern, but the model prevents one common error: using only the closing balance to estimate a bonus based on the month’s average.
| Illustrative 30-day month | Balance-days |
|---|---|
| S$50,000 held for 15 days | S$750,000 balance-days |
| S$100,000 held for 15 days | S$1,500,000 balance-days |
| Total / 30 days | Average daily balance = S$75,000 |
A savings-account comparison sheet that does not need a “best” label
| Field | What to enter | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Balance | The amount you expect to maintain, not the maximum the account accepts. | Marginal rate bands change EIR. |
| Base rate | The rate without bonus conditions. | Shows the downside if a condition is missed. |
| Salary condition | Minimum amount, permitted credit method and recognition wording. | A normal FAST transfer may not be recognised as salary. |
| Spend condition | Amount, eligible cards, posting period and exclusions. | Required spend can create opportunity cost or unnecessary purchases. |
| Save condition | Required increase in average balance and measurement method. | A one-time balance increase may not qualify every later month. |
| GIRO / transaction categories | Number and type of recognised transactions. | One account may reward number of categories, another the dollar amount. |
| Invest / insure | Capital, premium, minimum holding period, fees and bonus-payment period. | The deposit bonus is only one part of a larger product decision. |
| Bonus balance cap | The balance that actually earns each bonus rate. | Cash above the cap can pull total EIR down. |
| Fees | Fall-below, early closure and linked-product fees relevant to your usage. | A S$5 monthly fee is S$60 a year before interest. |
| Promotion end date | The exact date and what the normal rate becomes. | A temporary September EIR should not become the January assumption. |
Once these fields are filled, compare annual interest in dollars as well as EIR. A 2% effective rate on S$20,000 is about S$400 a year before compounding assumptions; a condition that costs more than that in unnecessary spending or fees changes the economics.
When should a monthly Rates page and this evergreen page disagree?
They should disagree when time moves. Rates owns the current monthly figures and dated offers. This page owns the calculation method and representative account mechanics. If OCBC’s temporary Save promotion expires, Rates should update immediately; this guide should update the relevant worked example and retain the explanation of why promotions must be separated from standing rates.
The same separation prevents cannibalisation. A search for “current savings account rates” belongs to the monthly instrument. A reader asking “Why does the 3.4% headline not equal my account’s EIR?” belongs here.
Questions people ask
Which savings account has the highest interest rate in Singapore?
A maximum headline does not identify a universal winner. The relevant result depends on balance, salary credit, card spend, transaction categories, promotions and whether investment or insurance conditions would have been undertaken anyway. Use the monthly Rates page for current quotations and this page to calculate the effective result.
Why does UOB say up to 3.4% when its S$150,000 example is 1.90% EIR?
Because 3.40% is the published rate on the final S$25,000 balance tier under the salary-plus-card route. The first S$75,000 and next S$50,000 earn lower rates. Weighted across S$150,000, the bank’s own example produces S$2,850 annual interest, or 1.90% EIR.
Is a temporary bonus rate useless?
No. It can increase interest during the stated period. The problem is treating it as permanent. Record the promotion end date and calculate the following period using the standing terms unless a new offer is confirmed.
Should I buy insurance or investments to unlock savings-account interest?
This guide does not make that decision for you. Treat the insurance or investment as a separate product with its own costs, risks, time horizon and suitability. The deposit bonus is an additional effect, not a substitute for evaluating the underlying product.
Does money above S$100,000 or S$150,000 earn nothing?
Not necessarily. Many accounts pay a base or prevailing rate above the bonus-interest cap. The point is that the headline bonus may stop at a stated balance, so the effective rate on the whole account can fall as more cash sits above that cap. Check the current tier table.
Sources and maintenance
Official bank material checked 29 September 2026: UOB One Account, OCBC 360 Account, Standard Chartered Bonus$aver and DBS Multiplier. Each bank’s current terms and calculator govern. The examples here are not bank quotations for a particular reader.
Refresh triggers: any change to a tier rate, balance cap, salary or spend threshold, bonus category, promotion end date, fall-below fee or qualifying-product condition. The OCBC Save promotion requires a specific review after 31 December 2026. A modification date alone does not mean all accounts were rechecked unless this source line is updated.
For deposit-insurance rules use the existing SDIC guide; for bank charges use the bank-fees guide; for current monthly bank and government-security quotations use Rates. This article does not duplicate those owners.
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