Contents
The Offer
- The Upgrade account has $300 signup bonus for new customers who sign up for their Rewards Checking Plus account using a referral link and direct deposit at least $1,000 in 45 days. (see what counts here)
- The referrer gets $100.
- In the past, reports in the comments indicated that it’s possible to stack the referral bonus and the Swagbucks bonus which is currently $120. This says it’s not possible
- See this comment about other stacking discussions.
Our Verdict
Not all links are showing the $300 offer, many are. Previous offers were just $150-$200 for new member and $50 for referrer, so this deal is significantly better.
Do not post a referral link in the comments below. You can find referrals on this dedicated page. Follow instructions there carefully.
Just remembered I still have this account open since the 2024 referral bonus promo. Other than the 4.02% premier savings rate, is there anything other benefits of keeping this account open? Thinking to close them all. TIA!
Fidelity used to work to get the premium APY but no longer working now. US Bank biz didn’t work either. Wise transfer is sent via real time payment and I doubt if it works.
Does anyone have a screenshot of the $300 bonus where it said $300? I have a SS of their terms but they only mention the $1k DD. I forgot to SS the main screen indicating $300 for a $1k DD. They’re trying to tell me I only qualify for $50 because $300 required a $3000 DD but I’m pretty sure the bonus s/h/b $300 for a $1k DD. IF you can email me the SS that w/b much appreciated
I have a connection to an external account, but there’s no way for me to disconnect it through Upgrade’s website or app. I called and they said they retain that information for 5 years no matter what.
Is there a way to disconnect it another way? They use Finicity but, unlike Plaid, I can’t find a way to view/control the bank connections.
I checked and it is same for me: no way to delete/remove/disconnect an external account.
Amalie
Same. I even signed up for the Finicity site below, and it was a waste of a selfie & D/L upload. I don’t recommend it.
Amalie 
mangorunner 🔗
https://consumer.finicityreports.com/
Based on my Googling, it’s on the bank/FI to have the ability to remove that account linkage available. For example, Fidelity uses Finicity and you are able to remove/delete linked accounts. (Granted, Fidelity is probably holding onto that info somewhere, but it’s at least no longer in your view)
I checked and I have never signed up for Finicity. Thanks for the Finicity edumacation.
I have had two other problems with Upgrade so it does not surprise me that they have implemented (allowed?) less customer capability.
Gadget 🕵️♂️ Bank Bonus Geek 🔗
Has any one tried Treasurydirect.gov to see if that counts as direct deposit?
C of I redemption worked. Redeemed to “Cross River Bank”.
Email subject: Important Updates to Your Account Terms and Conditions
Yeah, but just logging into the account in online banking or app should avoid the inactivity fee.
AS
Just remembered I still have this account open since the 2024 referral bonus promo. Other than the 4.02% premier savings rate, is there anything other benefits of keeping this account open? Thinking to close them all. TIA!
There are 2 possible benefits besides the 4.02% APY (which isn’t even good right now).
#1. If you can make use of the CB on the Upgrade Checking Debit card, that could be beneficial.
#2. It’s possible that you will be able to earn money referring people in the future. This isn’t possible for me as Upgrade has eliminated that ability for me. 🙁
Has anyone received a 1099-INT from Upgrade?
I earned a $200 bonus from my Rewards Checking account and was expecting a 1099-INT for tax reporting. When I called Upgrade, a representative (Luz) told me that a 1099-INT is only issued if I earned $600 or more in bonuses and referral rewards. I was under the impression that a 1099-INT should be issued for $10 or more in interest income, but she said that only applies to savings accounts. She also mentioned that since Upgrade didn’t report my $200 to the IRS, I don’t need to claim it on my taxes.
Has anyone else encountered this? Should I still report the $200 as interest income, even without a 1099-INT? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Lots of tax forms and reporting discussion here:
BankBonusChaser
Which Banks Send Out Tax Form 1099? (Discussion Post for 2024 Tax Forms)
Thanks!
Any 1099 for this?
I just logged into my Upgrade account to answer someone’s question in another post and I decided to check out my referral page. It shows “Refer Checking $50 for you, up to $200 for them!* under “Current Promotions”. The offer expires the end of Feb.
This offer was definitely not there a few days ago. The odd thing is that there is no “Copy Link” button. Are any of you seeing the same thing?
If you’ve been getting cashback that they may find questionable, might be best to close your acct before they suspend your acct. Mine was suspended.
What kind of questionable cashback were you getting?
Card was used somewhere that some readers said stopped getting cashback. So, Upgrade probably thought that they closed the loophole, but they didn’t. Don’t want to be too specific and tell them why it still works in case they lurk here.
BTW, I have a feeling that they’ll close the loophole now. I was just posting so that ppl can proactively close their accts in a good status and try to churn later.
They also said that my acct was flagged, but I literally hadn’t used the card in about a month and didn’t even get cashback. So, they may be doing an audit.