This offer has been extended with a new link and promo code. Thanks to Ashley for letting us know. There’s also a $400 Key Bank bonus (that one expires on July 22), but the $400 bonus is a bit more YMMV. The $300 offer has a space to request a coupon via email which ensures you get the offer.
Offer at a glance
- Maximum bonus amount: $300
- Availability:Â AK, CO, ID, IN, ME, MI, NY, OH, OR, UT, VT, or WA only
- Direct deposit required:Â Yes, a total of at least $500 within 60 days of account opening. Almost any ACH transfer should trigger this requirement, click here to see what has worked in the past.
- Additional requirements:Â Combination of five debit card purchases and or bill paymentsÂ
- Hard/soft pull: Soft
- Credit card funding: Up to $100
- Monthly fees:Â $7, waive-able
- Early account termination fee:Â $25 if closed within 180 days of opening
- Expiration date:Â
May 13th, 2016ÂJuly 1st, 20168/5/16
Contents
The Offer
- Open a qualifying KeyBank checking account with the promotional code EDGF0716Â and receive a direct deposit of at least $500 or more within 60 days of account opening and receive a sign up bonus of $300.
The Fine Print
- All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them
- Offer is available to new bank clients who have not had any type of account with KeyBank within the last 12 months
- Direct deposit transactions are limited to payroll, Social Security, pension and government benefits, although in the past other direct deposits have triggered this bonus.
- Bonus will post within 90 days of meeting the requirements
- Offer is subject to cancellation without notice and cannot be combined with any other offer.
- Limit one gift per individual
- Qualifying accounts are: Key Express Checking® (this is the basic banking account in NY), Key Advantage®, Key Coverage Checking®, Key PrivilegeSM, Key Privilege Select CheckingSM
Avoiding Fees
Key Express Checking $7 Monthly Fee
The monthly fee on this account is waived if you do either of the following each statement cycle:
- Direct deposits of at least $500
- At least 8 customer initiated transactions (any deposits, withdrawals, which includes transfers)
Early Account Termination Fee $25
If you close your account within 180 days, you are required to pay an early account closure fee of $25
Our Verdict
Last year KeyBank offered a $300 bonus but allowed you to do it with their hassle free account (no monthly fees or minimums) twice (once in July and again in December). This deal is still pretty good, but a little harder to keep fee free – that being said it isn’t difficult to rack up 8 debit card transactions a month. You’d need to keep the account open for ~6 months to avoid the early account termination fee that’s 48 debit card transactions, if you bought $0.50 Amazon reloads it’d set you back $24 so you can almost think of this as a $276 and $24 Amazon credit sign up bonus (or use one of the other methods to hit the debit card requirement). What I like about KeyBank is that these bonuses can be churned every 18 months (remember it’s a 12 month wait since you last had an open account).
I’d either jump on this deal, or wait until it’s possible with the hassle free checking account again. We’ve added it to our list of the best bank bonuses.
Useful posts regarding bank bonuses:
- A Beginners Guide To Bank Account Bonuses
- PSA: Don’t Call The Bank
- Introduction To ChexSystems
- How To Use Our Direct Deposit Page For Bank Bonuses Page
- Common Bank Bonus Misconceptions + Why You Should Give Them A Go
- How Many Bank Accounts Can I Safely Open Within A Year For Bank Bonus Purposes?
- Affiliate Links & Bank Bonuses – We Won’t Be Using Them
- Complete List Of Ways To Close Bank Accounts At Each Bank
