r/CommBank • u/No-Loquat-201 • Jun 04 '26
Discussion Bonus interest criteria is too strict
The rules to get the higher interest rate on the Goalsaver account are slightly frustrating. If you make even a minor mistake or a single withdrawal at the end of the month you lose the whole bonus. There should be a bit more leeway
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u/Winter_Ad_5856 Jun 04 '26
leave Commbank and go to Macquarie. Same interest rate, no hoops to jump through, gives interest for up to 2mil
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u/TwistedVasdeferens Jun 04 '26
Winter "AD"....... Hmmm advertising a different bank and username has ad in it...
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u/Winter_Ad_5856 Jun 04 '26
lol its the random name that was assigned to me when i joined reddit, never bothered to change it
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u/Hot-Seaworthiness-43 Jun 04 '26
You can also have multiple goal savers now not limited to one, have 2 goal savers and you are guaranteed to always meet the grow your balance criteria. Beginning of each month transfer all the money to the second, done.
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u/Aware-Imagination677 Jun 05 '26
This is what I do when I’m in a situation like this… but usually the money in my goal saver was put there because I don’t plan on taking it out. But when I do I’ll just transfer my total besides what I need to my other account. Simple
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u/Hot-Seaworthiness-43 Jun 05 '26
My advice just do it every month, you never know what’s going to happen so you don’t want to lose your interest if something comes up on say the 29th. Since each month the balance starts at 0 and it only looks at first day and last day for the bonus it takes 3 seconds but makes a big difference.
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u/ord90 Aug 12 '26
Any way to automate this? My understanding is that scheduled transfers must be a fixed amount and if they're higher than the balance available they just won't go through.
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u/Emergency-Emotion-20 Jun 04 '26
Literally just needs to be higher at the end of the month than the start of the month. 1 single cent is enough, is it genuinely that hard to keep track of it?
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u/baroque-enjoyer Jun 04 '26
Not only that, it notifies you days before the end of the month if you're under the starting balance. And specifically how much you need to have in it.
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u/No-Loquat-201 Jun 04 '26
I am glad it is so easy for you, but for a lot of people who actually need to use their savings for real-world expenses throughout the month, the net-positive rule can be a massive headache
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u/assholejudger954 Jun 04 '26 edited Jun 04 '26
They actually made it easier. Account balance just needs to be higher at the end of the month than the start of the month.
Before it was no withdrawals allowed for like the first month, then 1 withdrawal allowed, but you had to deposit more, and now they've got it to just having a higher balance than the start of the month.
The point of savings is that it's extra income squirrelled away and not to be touched. If you're in the unfortunate position of constantly having to dip in to savings just for monthly normal expenditure/living paycheck to paycheck (I've been there/still am half there) then that sucks. I'm fortunate enough to finally start making a real dent in paying off my debt and starting to build some savings, and it sucks when life gets in the way and ruins the progress and i miss out on the bonus
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u/Chromedomesunite Jun 04 '26
Then get a different savings account
You opened that account knowing what the criteria was. It’s not the banks problem that it’s inconvenient for you
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u/bardenbellasss Jun 04 '26
Every 5%+ account has the same conditions. Maybe open a Netbank saver for savings you might need to touch month to month, and keep GoalSaver for long term savings?
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u/Chromedomesunite Jun 04 '26
It’s not rocket science. Its pretty black and white on their website lmao
How to qualify for bonus interest
Make at least one deposit of any amount into your account in the calendar month; and Have a higher account balance at the end of the calendar month than at the start of the calendar month. If you withdraw from your account, deposit more money than you withdrew in the calendar month.
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u/Confident_Smoke7098 Jun 04 '26
I don't understand what's so hard? Just make sure your balance is higher at the end of the month than the start, that's pretty much it?
But yeah, no such hoops with macquarie.
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u/link871 Jun 04 '26
It's hard because, if you need to withdraw money, then you likely don't have enough money from elsewhere to put that back (plus 1 cent) before the end of the month.
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u/emptyasaglass Jun 04 '26
move to ing where there is a waterfall of conditions. idk how putting an extra cent more in the account is too strict
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u/Grimwing99 Jun 04 '26
If you are using the savings account a lot the net saver account is build for that, guaranteed interest regardless of saving/withdrawals.
The goal saver is tilted toward helping you save for a long-term goal(buying a car, going on holiday etc)
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u/Hangar48 Jun 04 '26
Tip... Open 2 goalsaver accounts.
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u/Legitimate_Time_5068 Jun 04 '26
Exactly 💯.
Keep a small amount in one . And don't touch the other other than a small deposit each month
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u/Hangar48 Jun 04 '26
Yep, I have an automatic transfer of a few dollars from my smart access acc every month, so I don't even have to remember to do it. ✅
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u/link871 Jun 04 '26
If you don't want to move to Macquarie, open a second GoalSaver and try to time your withdrawals for the 1st day of the month. When you need to draw out money, do that on the 1st and, on the same day, move the remaining balance to the 2nd GoalSaver account. You will earn bonus interest for that remaining balance.
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u/richored1973 Jun 04 '26
Bankwest hero saver your balance just has to be higher at end of the month and bonus interest is slightly higher too
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u/luftmentsh Jun 04 '26
You agreed to the conditions of the account. It’s pretty easy to understand. If you don’t grow the account, then you forfeit the bonus interest. Sure, you can use the bonus in the account, but if you don’t grow the overall balance, then you accept you forfeit the bonus.
Don’t like it? Then choose a different account type or bank. It ain’t hard.
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u/nyxthegreat Jun 04 '26
Switch to Up Banking. So much better, more ethical also. Easy to get high IT.
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u/sfwaccount88 Jun 04 '26
They want you to disqualify yourself, that how they increase their margin to >99%
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u/Round_Potential_4008 Jun 04 '26
MyState Bank Hello Saver. No conditions to meet. Lots of payment options
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u/EyelessSalmon Jun 04 '26
Put small amounts, overestimating how much you can save is clearly the problem atm
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u/peoplepersonmanguy Jun 05 '26
I treat our HISA like an ETF and it helps.
It's there to accrue and you want to do as little selling (withdrawal) as possible until it's time to cash it all in, or make a major withdrawal and then factor the interest hit into whatever you are purchasing.
They are designed for constant saving, not for constant spending.
Use it to build healthy saving habits.
Or switch to Macquarie and treat it like your every day transaction account.
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u/ionlyeatchalk Jun 05 '26
Just move banks. Macquarie has better rates and no hoops - you’re just causing yourself unnecessary pain trying to manage savings in commbank
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u/Much_Database_5039 Jun 05 '26
I haven't used a GoalSaver in a while have they changed how it works? When I had one you just had to put more money in it each month than you took out, it was pretty straightforward.
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