BMO Bank Review: Pros, Cons, And Alternatives

BMO is a full-service bank that offers competitive checking accounts, savings accounts, loans, and more.

If you're looking for a high yield savings account, you might have stumbled upon BMO. They currently offer a great checking option for college students since there are no overdraft fees. Also, their Savings Builder is a great way to make real financial progress since they give you a $5 bonus each month grow your balance by $200 in the first year*!

BMO is a full-service bank with branches in several states, from the mid-west, to Arizona, to Florida. So how do they compare to the top money market accounts? 

Find out in our BMO review below!

What Is BMO?

BMO is a full-service bank offering checking, savings, money market accounts (MMAs), certificates of deposit (CDs), mortgages, credit cards, wealth management, IRAs, branches, and more. BMO has over 12 million customers and is the 8th largest bank in North America by assets.

BMO has two events in its founding history: being N.W. Harris & Co. in 1882 and being Samuel Marshall & Co., Exchange Brokers in 1847. Its parent company is Bank of Montreal and the holding company is BMO Financial Group. The bank is headquartered in Chicago, IL.

What Do They Offer?

As with any full-service bank, BMO has everything you could need financially. Starting with branches, they have over 500 in Illinois, Indiana, Arizona, Missouri, Minnesota, Kansas, Florida, and Wisconsin. There are over 40,000 ATMs across the US through their partnership with the Allpoint ATM network.

In this article, we’ll look at BMO’s deposit products such as checking, savings, MMAs (money market accounts), and CDs.

Checking Accounts

There are three different checking consumer accounts available.

BMO Smart Money Checking

• $5/month maintenance fee (waived if you’re under age 25)
• No overdraft fees (items that overdraw the account may be returned).
• Unlimited, fee-free BMO ATM usage
• $25 minimum opening deposit

BMO Smart Advantage Checking

• $0 monthly fees with eStatements
• Unlimited, fee-free BMO ATM usage
• $25 minimum opening deposit

BMO Relationship Checking

• $25/month maintenance fee but waived with qualifying activities
• Unlimited non-BMO ATM transactions with no BMO fee
• Get a rebate of up to $25 per statement period on ATM surcharge fees charged by other banks
• Overdraft Services available with certain fees waived
• Fees waived on cashier’s checks and money orders
• Can earn interest
• $25 minimum opening deposit

Overdraft Funding service can be set up by linking your savings account, MMA, or other checking account. There is a $15 fee for each overdraft with a maximum of three overdrafts per day ($45/day). 

Each BMO checking account offers a debit card. They’re chip-enabled for better security. You’ll also have access to services such as BMO Bill Pay, Mobile Deposit, Zelle, and Apple Pay. Visit the BMO Digital Banking Frequently Asked Questions page to learn more about all the features.

Check out BMO Checking Account options here >>

Savings Builder Account

The Savings Builder account is a unique way to help you save money. To encourage you to save, BMO will give you $5 each month you grow your balance by $200 or more into your Savings Builder Account for the first year. That's awesome! 

The account has just a $25 minimum to open, and $0 monthly maintenance fees. The interest rate isn't great, but the bonus you can get for saving money is pretty awesome.

For full details, you can open an account on the Savings Builder webpage >>

Premier Money Market

This is what BMO is known for. If the account is paired with a BMO Premier account, the Premier Money Market account may be eligible for a higher rate of interest with Relationship Packages. Right now, you can get up to 0.05% APY on your account. They do require a minimum $25 opening deposit. There is a $10 monthly maintenance fee, but this can be waived by maintaining a $10,000 balance. 

If you like sending money into your checking or savings at regular intervals, you can set up automated transfers. Once it is set up, it will send a set amount of money into your account at the frequency selected.

BMO Bank Promotions

Right now, BMO has three different promotions going on:

$500 Cash Bonus With BMO Relationship Checking

Get a $500 cash bonus when you open a new Relationship Checking account and have a cumulative total of $7,500 in qualifying direct deposits within 90 days of opening. Offer valid until September 9, 2024.

Open a BMO Relationship Checking account here >>

$350 Cash Bonus With BMO Smart Money Checking

Get a $350 cash bonus when you open a new Smart Money Checking account and have a cumulative total of $4,000 in qualifying direct deposits within 90 days of opening. Offer valid until September 9, 2024.

Open a BMO Smart Money Checking account here >>

$350 Cash Bonus With BMO Smart Advantage Checking

Get a $350 cash bonus when you open a new Smart Advantage Checking account and have a cumulative total of $4,000 in qualifying direct deposits within 90 days of opening. Offer valid until September 9, 2024.

Open a BMO Smart Advantage Checking account here >>

Are There Any Fees?

It depends on the banking product. Some of the checking accounts have monthly maintenance fees, but they can be waived.

• Smart Advantage™ Account - $0/mo with paperless statements
• Smart Money™ Account - $5/mo, but waived if you're under 25 years old
• BMO Premier™ Account - $25/mo, but waived with qualifying activities
• Premier Money Market Account - $10/mo, but can be waived with a $10,000 minimum balance

Depending on the account, you may also have fees related to overdrafts, NSF, cashier checks, money orders, and more.

How Do I Open an Account?

You can open an account online at https://www.bmo.com, by visiting a BMO Bank branch, or by calling 888-340-2265.

Is My Money Safe?

Yes — BMO uses bank-grade encryption and is FDIC-insured.

Why Should You Trust Us?

The College Investor has been testing and reviewing checking and savings accounts for over 10 years. I personally have been actively writing about banking products and the need for free checking since 2009. 

In creating this review, we've looked at our extensive list of bank reviews, our knowledge of the banking industry, and compared BMO to how other banks of similar size and offerings compare.

Furthermore, our compliance team checks the accuracy of any rates on this list every weekday, to ensure that you're getting the most accurate information we can create.

Who Is This For And Is It Worth It?

The only thing really compelling about BMO is its top yielding money market account. It’s a no-frills, full-service bank. It doesn’t offer any competitive yields on its savings products.

If you’re looking for a full-service bank, live in one of the states that BMO has branches in, and aren’t concerned about earning interest, BMO will probably suit you just fine.

DISCLAIMERS

Accounts are subject to approval. BMO Bank N.A. Member FDIC

* Conditions Apply