With savings rates in the Netherlands differing a lot from bank to bank (see today's rates), where you keep your money matters. Here are five practical strategies to maximise the interest you earn on your savings.
1. Do Not Settle for Your Main Bank's Rate
The big Dutch banks—ING, ABN AMRO, and Rabobank—offer savings rates that are significantly lower than what is available elsewhere. The convenience of keeping everything with one bank costs you real money.
Example: On EUR 30,000 in savings, every extra percentage point of interest is EUR 300 a year. See today's spread between banks in our best instant-access savings accounts.
Opening a separate savings account with a higher-rate provider is one of the easiest financial wins available. The money can usually be transferred instantly.
2. Look Beyond Dutch Borders
Some of the best savings rates available in the Netherlands come from EU-based banks operating under the European passport system. These banks are fully regulated and your deposits are protected up to EUR 100,000 per person, per bank (or the equivalent in the local currency) under the deposit guarantee of their home country (which meets the same EU standards as the Dutch guarantee). Our guide to the deposit guarantee explains which country covers which bank.
Examples include:
- Openbank (Spain): Instant-access savings, covered by the Spanish deposit guarantee
- Bigbank (Estonia): Flexible savings and fixed deposits, covered by the Estonian deposit guarantee
- Trade Republic (Germany): Interest on uninvested cash, held at partner banks. Cash it places in money market funds is not covered by a deposit guarantee
- Klarna (Sweden): Flexible and fixed-term savings, covered by the Swedish deposit guarantee
For a full comparison, visit our savings account comparison page.
3. Use a Tiered Savings Strategy
Not all savings serve the same purpose, and they should not all be in the same type of account:
- Emergency fund (3-6 months expenses): Keep in a high-rate instant-access savings account. Accessibility is essential
- Medium-term goals (1-3 years): Consider a 1-year fixed deposit for a guaranteed rate (one-year deposits, ranked). Check that it beats the best flexible rate, and that you will not need the money early: many deposits cannot be withdrawn early, or only with a penalty
- Long-term savings (3+ years): A longer fixed deposit can lock in a good rate, or consider moving to investments for potentially higher returns
This tiered approach helps you earn a better rate on each portion of your savings while maintaining access to the money you might need.
Waiting for your own bank to raise its rate is rarely worth it: Dutch banks pass on only part of an ECB rise, and late (how the ECB rate reaches your account).
4. Watch for Promotional Rates
Some banks offer promotional rates to attract new customers. These promotions are legitimate, but there are things to watch out for:
- Duration: Promos run for a set period. Know when the promo ends and what the standard rate is
- Set a calendar reminder: When the promo expires, compare your rate to the market and switch if needed
- New customer only: Some promos are only for new customers, so closing and reopening an account may not get you the promo again
- Maximum deposit: Some promos cap the amount that earns the higher rate
Rate hopping—moving your savings to whichever bank offers the best current promo—can earn you extra interest, but it requires active management.
5. Automate Your Savings
The most important factor in building savings is not the interest rate—it is consistent saving. Set up automatic transfers from your current account to your savings account on payday. Even EUR 200/month adds up to EUR 2,400/year plus interest.
Apps like bunq make this particularly easy with automatic savings rules: on its paid Pro and Elite plans you can round up purchases or send a percentage of incoming payments to savings. ING also offers automatic savings features through their app.
Bonus: Understand the Tax Impact
In the Netherlands, savings are taxed under box 3 based on a "deemed return"—not on actual interest earned. This means earning more interest does not raise your box 3 tax, which makes maximising your rate even more worthwhile. (If the actual return on all your box 3 assets together is lower than the deemed return, you can ask to be taxed on the actual return instead.)
The tax-free threshold for box 3 is EUR 59,357 per person in 2026 (EUR 118,714 for fiscal partners). If your box 3 assets minus debts on 1 January are below this amount, you pay no box 3 tax. For more details, see our box 3 guide.
Whether your rate keeps up with rising prices is a separate question: see do Dutch savings rates beat inflation.
The bottom line: switching to a higher-rate savings account is one of the simplest, low-risk ways to improve your financial position as an expat, as long as you stay within the EUR 100,000 deposit guarantee per bank. The extra interest adds up every single day.