Savings Account Comparison Worksheet

Who this is for

Weigh return against access before you choose. Set up to four products side by side, enter each one's AER and the amount you would put in to see a year's interest before and after your own tax rate, then compare notice, terms and limits.

Anyone deciding where to keep savings, from a fund that must stay within reach to money that can be tied up for a fixed term, whether with a bank, building society, credit union or state savings scheme.

What this helps you track

• Each product's type, whether its rate is fixed or variable, and its AER
• A year's interest on your own deposit in each one
• The same interest after the tax rate you enter, if any
• Notice periods, fixed terms and withdrawal limits side by side
• Deposit limits, and whether you have checked deposit protection

How to use it

1. Write what the money is for, when you may need it and your own tax rate on savings interest; leave the rate blank if none applies.
2. For each product, copy the type, whether the rate is fixed or variable, and the AER from the provider's own summary.
3. Enter the amount you would put in each; a year's interest before and after tax is worked out in the browser and the workbook.
4. Fill the access table with notice days, the term, withdrawal limits and deposit limits, and tick Protection once you have checked how deposits are protected where you are.
5. Compare the interest with the access each product gives, against what the money is for.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser
• Excel / Google Sheets workbook

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The workbook uses plain formulas only — SUM, IF, COUNTIF and the like — so it opens in Excel, LibreOffice and Google Sheets without anything breaking, and every calculated cell is grey so you can see which figures it worked out.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

Why use the AER rather than the headline rate?

The AER shows what a rate would pay over a year with interest added, so products that pay monthly and yearly compare fairly. A year's interest here is the amount times the AER, which assumes the money stays in for the year.

What tax rate should I enter?

Whatever rate your own tax authority applies to your savings interest, which depends on where you live and your income. Leave it blank if no tax applies to you; the sheet supplies no rate.

How do I compare a regular saver?

A regular saver builds up month by month, so a year's interest on the full year's deposits would overstate it. Enter the average balance you expect across the year, or use the provider's own projected figure.

What does the protection tick mean?

That you have checked whether, and up to what amount, deposits with that provider are protected by the scheme where you live. Check with the provider and the scheme directly; the sheet does not say which products are covered.