Deal has expired, view more bank account bonuses by clicking here
Update 9/25/19: Deal is back and valid until October 28th, 2019.
Offer at a glance
- Maximum bonus amount: $350
- Availability: Must reside in MA, NH, ME or RI
- Direct deposit required: Direct deposit of $250 – $1,000+ required
- Additional requirements: None
- Hard/soft pull: Soft
- ChexSystems: Yes, sensitive
- Credit card funding: No longer available
- Monthly fees: None
- Early account termination fee: None, bonus will post by January 28, 2020
- Household limit: One
- Expiration date:
July 8th, 2019October 28th, 2019
Contents
The Offer
- Eastern Bank is offering a bonus of $350 when you open a new checking account. The bonus you receive will depend on the direct deposit received:
- For direct deposits of $250-$999.99, the incentive will be: $200
- For direct deposits of $1,000 or more, the incentive will be: $350
The Fine Print
- A minimum of $25 is required to open Eastern Free Checking, $50 to open Eastern eZ Checking, or $500 to open Eastern Premier Checking.
- To qualify for the incentive, you must open an Eastern personal checking account between 06/01/2019 and 07/08/2019 and have a recurring payroll, pension, or government direct deposit in the amount noted below post to your new checking account no later than October 8, 2019.
- Electronic credits other than payroll, pension or government benefits, such as person-to-person payments, transfers between your accounts at Eastern Bank and other institutions or brokerages, and payments through third parties such as Paypal or eBay do not qualify as a “direct deposit”. Incentive amount will vary. See the table below for details.
- The amount of the incentive paid will be based on the largest direct deposit posted to your account by October 8, 2019.
- For direct deposits of $250-$999.99, the incentive will be: $200
- For direct deposits of $1,000 or more, the incentive will be: $350
- This offer is valid for new consumer checking account customers, only. New customers are primary signers who have not had a consumer checking account since 06/01/2018.
- The account must also meet the following requirements on 10/08/2019 to receive an incentive: (a) Customer must reside in MA, NH, ME or RI. (b) Customer must be age 18 or older. (c) Account must be open and have a positive balance.
- Incentives for qualified accounts will be deposited into customer’s account no later than 10/16/2019.
- No incentive will be paid if the account is closed on the date we attempt the deposit.
- The Bank may, at its discretion, pay the incentive earlier than 10/16/19 if all the qualifying requirements have been met.
- Only one incentive per customer and one incentive per household as defined by a common address.
- Customer will receive a 1099 form for this incentive.
Avoiding Fees
Monthly Fees
This account has no monthly fees to worry about.
Early Account Termination Fee
There is no early account termination fee, but keep in mind the bonus won’t post until 10/16/2019.
Our Verdict
Previous best bonus was $200, so this is significantly better than that. Only downside is that previously you could fund up to $2,000 with a credit card and that’s no longer available but obviously that won’t be coming back so I’d jump on this offer. I’ll be adding this to our list of the best checking bonuses.
Useful posts regarding bank bonuses:
- A Beginners Guide To Bank Account Bonuses
- Bank Account Quick Reference Table (Spreadsheet) (very useful for sorting bonuses by different parameters)
- PSA: Don’t Call The Bank
- Introduction To ChexSystems
- Banks & Credit Unions That Are ChexSystems Inquiry Sensitive
- What Banks & Credit Unions Do/Don’t Pull 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
- Banks That Allow/Don’t Allow Out Of State Checking Applications
- Bank Bonus Posting Times
William Charles There seems to be a new $250 offer:
https://www.easternbank.com/eastern-free-checking
Still sensitive to chex though, I got denied.
will have a post on this on the weekend.
10/17/2019 Account open in branch
01/01/2020 $1050 Employer DD
02/05/2020 Bonus posted
Emailed a “notice of adverse action” saying an account will not be opened due to Chex Systems data. One new account in 2019.
This post is missing the latest dates offered from the EB website. Someone please update it. Its still showing june month dates. bit confusing.
Quick question. If i had frozen my all 3 credit bureaus(TU, EX, EQ), can i still apply this checking account application with Eastern bank? or should i unfreeze those 3 CBs before applying?
Beware of this bank. They are big cheaters. Chex sensitive which rejects most of the applications without any proper answer why. They had this bonus few months back, I think they didn’t get any client and they are begging now. My application rejected with this sensitive check and I have inquired with Chex system why.. the answer is just stupid without any logic. So, just don’t waste your time with this bank.
any dp’s of non residents applying in branch and getting approved? i visit maine and new hampshire a couple times a year
Would be interested in knowing this also
So for the readers who received $350 bonus, all of you have one time direct deposit amount over $1000? I work part time so only my combined monthly direct deposit amount is over $1000.
Was excited that this popped back up again for a minute then remembered my wife applied in June since she had fewer bank apps but was “denied” – the e-mail she received said “we were unable to validate some of your information and cannot complete your new account request at this time. Visit a branch with 2 forms of ID as you may still qualify for an account with us”.
I took this as a denial as we couldnt visit a branch. Has this been the text of any actual denials here or is the above an actual problem (ie couldnt validate info)?
I’ll maybe try again online although she has had a few apps since then so an approval not looking likely
Second direct deposit on 7/29, $350 bonus on 8/5