At a glance

4.0

Bankrate Score

CDs

Savings

Bankrate scores are objectively determined by our editorial team. Our scoring formula weighs several factors consumers should consider when choosing financial products and services.

Overview

BMO Alto is a new option for online-only accounts that launched in April 2023. It offers a high-yield savings account and six terms of CDs and is part of the BMO Financial Group. Customers who are looking for a competitive yield on those products will find BMO Alto to be an appealing option.

Highlights

Top CD Rates
24/7 Customer Service
No Min Balance

Overall

BMO Alto’s online high-yield savings account and CDs made their debut in 2023.

BMO Alto offers competitive yields and nationwide availability – even if you have a BMO branch near you. There are no monthly service fees and no minimum balance requirements, so the accounts are very accessible for all types of savers.

If you’re someone who relies on mobile check deposit, the savings account doesn’t currently offer that feature. So you’d need to deposit a check into another account and transfer that money over to your BMO Alto Online Savings Account.

Pros

BMO Alto’s savings APY is very competitive and the account doesn’t charge any monthly fees.
BMO Alto is available nationwide.
Both BMO Alto’s savings account and CDs don’t require a minimum opening deposit or minimum balance.
BMO Alto customer service is available 24/7.

Cons

There’s no BMO Alto app available at this time.
BMO Alto doesn’t offer mobile check deposit or a debit card.
You won’t be able to use BMO branches with your BMO Alto accounts.

We want to know what you think about BMO Alto

Do you have experience with BMO Alto? Let us know your thoughts.

BMO Alto banking products

4.7

/5

See methodology Compare savings rates

SCORE BREAKDOWN

APY offering:

5.10%

5/5

APY, or annual percentage yield, is the yearly return on a bank or investment account. APY includes the effects of compounding interest.

Minimum balance to earn interest:

$0.00

5/5

The lowest deposit amount an account must have before it can earn interest.

Monthly service fee:

$0.00

5/5

A monthly charge a financial institution deducts from an account if certain requirements are not met.

Minimum balance to avoid fee:

$0.00

5/5

The lowest balance an account must maintain in order to avoid a fee.

Access to funds:

Subpar

2/5

A procedure that allows an individual or organization to access and manage the funds of another account holder.

BMO Alto savings overview

The BMO Alto Savings Account offers a competitive yield. There’s no minimum opening deposit requirement and the account has no fees, according to the bank.

BMO Alto doesn’t offer mobile check deposit. The savings account also doesn’t come with ATM access or a debit card at this time.

While the BMO Alto Savings Account doesn’t have a minimum opening deposit requirement, you must make a deposit within 90 days of your account opening date.

Customers can see their balances on the Alto website, but don’t currently have access to an app to manage their accounts.

Pros

The savings yield is very competitive.
There’s no minimum opening balance needed to get started and the account doesn’t have an ongoing minimum balance requirement either.
There are no monthly fees.

Cons

The BMO Alto Savings Account doesn’t currently support mobile check or in-person cash deposits.
You won’t be able to access your money from an ATM with the BMO Alto Savings Account and there’s no branch access for Alto accounts.
People who leave their account with a zero balance for 90 straight days will have their account closed.

Rate history for BMO Alto's Savings account

BMO Alto

APY

APY last updated between 7/3 and 7/9.

National average APY

How do we get this data?

Bankrate independently tracks hundreds of APYs and product details for banking institutions nationwide. We retain the historical data of every rate we track in our database. If there are any gaps where we weren’t actively tracking a rate at the time, the graph will reflect the missing data.

BMO Alto

APY

APY last updated between 7/3 and 7/9.

National average APY

How do we get this data?

Bankrate independently tracks hundreds of APYs and product details for banking institutions nationwide. We retain the historical data of every rate we track in our database. If there are any gaps where we weren’t actively tracking a rate at the time, the graph will reflect the missing data.

Compare Offer

BMO Alto CD overview

BMO Alto offers six terms of CDs ranging from six months to five years.

The online-only bank doesn’t have a minimum balance requirement. But you will need to fund your CD within 10 days after opening it.

Pros

BMO Alto CDs offer competitive yields.
Available CD terms range from six months to five years.
BMO Alto CDs are available nationwide.

Cons

BMO Alto doesn’t offer a no-penalty CD.
Some banks offer higher yields on CDs and savings accounts.

Rate history for BMO Alto's CD accounts

See how rates for this account have changed over time. Select the CD term length from the dropdown and interact with the trend lines to view APY by date.

BMO Alto

APY

APY last updated between 7/3 and 7/9.

National average APY

Term length

How do we get this data?

Bankrate independently tracks hundreds of APYs and product details for banking institutions nationwide. We retain the historical data of every rate we track in our database. If there are any gaps where we weren’t actively tracking a rate at the time, the graph will reflect the missing data.

See how rates for this account have changed over time. Select the CD term length from the dropdown and interact with the trend lines to view APY by date.

BMO Alto

APY

APY last updated between 7/3 and 7/9.

National average APY

Term length

How do we get this data?

Bankrate independently tracks hundreds of APYs and product details for banking institutions nationwide. We retain the historical data of every rate we track in our database. If there are any gaps where we weren’t actively tracking a rate at the time, the graph will reflect the missing data.

Bank fees

Fee	Charged?
Overdraft fee	None
Non-sufficient funds fee	None
Account maintenance fees	None
Out-of-network ATM fee	N/A
Excessive transaction fee	None

Customer experience

BMO Alto offers 24/7 customer service. BMO Alto doesn’t currently have an app available for download. You also won’t be able to go into a BMO branch for withdrawals or help with your BMO Alto account. BMO Alto doesn’t offer mobile check deposit or ATM access. You’ll need to deposit a check into another account and then transfer it to BMO Alto or transfer existing funds at another bank to BMO Alto if you’re looking to move funds to your BMO Alto Savings Account.

Features

Screen view

Desktop Mobile

The above images were last updated on Jan. 23, 2024.

About BMO Alto

BMO Alto launched in April 2023. BMO Alto is a trade name of BMO Bank. BMO Alto is an online bank that offers a high-yield savings account and CDs nationwide. BMO is a well-known bank that’s been around for more than 200 years.

How does BMO Alto compare to other banks?

Review methodology

With so many financial institutions to choose from, it can be hard to know who to trust. Bankrate’s ever-growing list of bank and credit union reviews is updated regularly. Our editorial team analyzes and reviews each institution across deposit products such as savings accounts, checking accounts, certificates of deposit (CDs) and money market accounts (MMAs). Banks are rated by important factors such as offered interest rates, fees, minimum balance requirements, access to funds and more.

We assign a score to each type of account and its features, weigh them carefully based on importance to account holders and determine an overall score. Read our full review methodology.

Date Bankrate gathers rate data either directly from our partners, or through our proprietary rate surveying service. The rate change date is based on when Bankrate received or captured the rate change and may differ from the actual date the rate changed.	BMO Alto APY APY last updated between 7/3 and 7/9. APY last updated between 7/3 and 7/9	National average APY The “national average” is determined by Bankrate’s comprehensive national survey of savings accounts and CDs and reflects the monthly average APY for each product.
01/29/2024	5.10%	0.58%
09/14/2023	5.10%	0.57%
08/25/2023	4.85%	0.54%

Date Bankrate gathers rate data either directly from our partners, or through our proprietary rate surveying service. The rate change date is based on when Bankrate received or captured the rate change and may differ from the actual date the rate changed.	BMO Alto APY APY last updated between 7/3 and 7/9. APY last updated between 7/3 and 7/9	National average APY The “national average” is determined by Bankrate’s comprehensive national survey of savings accounts and CDs and reflects the monthly average APY for each product.
07/03/2024	4.80%	1.41%
05/31/2024	4.80%	1.42%
01/29/2024	4.60%	1.43%
01/02/2024	4.75%	1.43%
12/19/2023	4.90%	1.43%
11/02/2023	5.25%	1.45%
09/11/2023	4.50%	1.43%

BMO Alto Bank Review 2024

The Bankrate promise

At a glance

Overview

Highlights

Overall

Pros

Cons

We want to know what you think about BMO Alto

BMO Alto banking products

BMO Alto savings overview

Pros

Cons

Rate history for BMO Alto's Savings account

BMO Alto CD overview

Pros

Cons

Rate history for BMO Alto's CD accounts

Bank fees

Customer experience

About BMO Alto

How does BMO Alto compare to other banks?

Review methodology

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