Should I open a Money Market Savings account or general Savings account?

Stay away from Monkey markets; otherwise the interest on a conservative (Vanguard.com) money market fund is about 0.17%. Pathetic, but at least your principal is safe and if the feds raise the prime rate anytime, the interest rates for MM and bond funds will rise. The bank will show you the comparative interest rates on the three types of funds. Check to see what the minimum starting deposit is.

Here is a list of some banks that are paying slightly higher rates ($16.90 vs. $2.40/annum).

…Thank you bunches. :).

I, too, would stay away from Monkey Markets. However, if you have a fair chunk that you won’t want to access often, then a money market account might do fine. Your best bet is, if you can, go into a Chase bank physically and get a customer service person to walk you through the pros and cons of all three types of accounts.

And there is nothing wrong with having more than one type of account as long as you understand the rules and have the minimum to get the best interest rate. This page for Chase bank also offers a phone number if you want to stay home but still talk to a real person: Call 1–888-963–1111 for help.

Go for whatever has the highest interest rate. In this case it sounds like what is important is that you have quick access to your money, and that the principle you put in is safe. I move my money around all of the time, even savings for an extra couple percents. The banks I deal with many times have specials, like you can get 4% for 6 months if you start a new account, when they are giving everyone else 3%. Both banks I bank with will let me be a “new cutsomer” if I contribute $10K new dollars to my current account, so I move the money between the banks.

Unfortunately, right now interest rates are sooo low that it is difficult to reap much benefit either way.

I didn’t say this before because I didn’t think of it, but the reason I would stay away from Monkey Markets is because they are full of Cheetahs. Badump-Bum!