Macquarie raises savings account rates, but there's a catch

Macquarie had the jump on the market, releasing its interest rate changes five minutes after the Reserve Bank of Australia raised the cash rate by 25 basis points to 4.6% on Tuesday afternoon.

Australia's 'fifth big bank' announced it would be increasing its variable home loan reference rates by 25 basis points and also raise ongoing variable rates on its transaction and savings accounts, all from 15 October.

But, as part of the hikes, not all balance tiers of Macquarie's popular no-strings Savings Account will receive a uniform 25-basis point rate increase.

Here's the new rates schedule:

Macquarie pays interest according to the proportion of the account balance within each bracket.

Essentially, 5.25% p.a. interest will be paid on the first $250,000 with a rate of 5.05% p.a. applying on any amount over $250,000 up to $2 million.

Some balance portions see only 5 bp increase

It's the jump of five basis points on Macquarie's middle-tier interest rate that has sparked some comment on online forums.

"Macquarie quick to use the tiers they only very recently introduced," one Whirlpool commentator wrote. "Passing on a meager [sic] 0.05% for the 250k - 2M bracket."

The Whirlpool user was likely referring to Macquarie's announcement on 1 September it was introducing new balance brackets on its Savings Account, although they don't take effect until 1 November.

Macquarie has been paying the same ongoing variable interest rate on all account balances up to $2 million since 1 August 2025 when it doubled its previous bracket cut-off of $1 million.

Such aggressive plays in the deposit space in recent years are likely part of the reason Macquarie has grown its market share at more than triple the rate of the industry average.

The latest APRA data shows Macquarie currently holds a 6.56% share of Australia's household deposits with annual growth of 35% over the last 12 months.

It's worth mentioning some depositors choose not to place more than $250,000 with any one institution, given it's the maximum amount the federal government's financial claims scheme guarantees in the unlikely event of a bank going under. 

But some mid-range depositors who prefer keeping their cash in one place may be prompted to look elsewhere.

Enter Judo Bank

As if sniffing an opportunity, Judo Bank made its savings account rate change announcement on Wednesday, upping its variable savings rates by 25 basis points across the board from 7 October.

Judo has a bonus and base rate (currently 0.05% p.a.) structure and hasn't made clear how the 25-basis point increase will be apportioned, but the new total rates will be as follows:

(Judo currently doesn't pay bonus interest on balance amounts over $2 million which attract the base rate of 0.05% p.a.)

Judo's relatively new savings account product, launched in February, conspicuously sat out the last round of interest rate changes triggered by the May cash rate increase.

It disappointed some online forum commentators who had initially welcomed Judo's relatively high opening rates and single condition of depositing $300 a month to achieve the bonus interest rate.

Big depositors see generous payday

But while account holders with substantial mid-tier deposits may be tempted to shop around, those with even larger deposits will likely be keeping their funds at Macquarie.

Those with Savings Account balances over $2 million will see a significant rate windfall of an extra 185 basis points, taking the old rate of 2.75% p.a. to 4.6% p.a.

Savvy depositors will no doubt calculate whether the interest they can earn on balance portions over $2 million will make up for the the less generous rate hike on balances between $250,000.01 to $2 million. 

Macquarie's play in the higher deposit space could attract highly liquid customers (who are confident Macquarie can withstand financial collapse) looking for a relatively risk-free place to park their cash.

It's safe to say few savings account rate increases in the current round of interest rate hikes will likely offer such largesse.

Savings.com.au will be updating further savings account rate changes as they come through.

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Bank	Savings Account	Base Interest Rate	Max Interest Rate	Total Interest Earned	Introductory Term	Minimum Amount	Maximum Amount	Linked Account Required	Minimum Monthly Deposit	Minimum Opening Deposit	Account Keeping Fee	ATM Access	Joint Application	Tags	Features	Link	Compare	Promoted Product	Disclosure
Revolut	Revolut Instant Access Savings Account ($0 - $100,000)	5.05% p.a.	5.50% p.a. Intro rate for 3 months then 5.05% p.a.	$1,047	3 months	$0	$99,999		$0	$0	$0				Intro rate for 3 months up to $100k, then 5.05% p.a. on paid Ultra plan up to $250k No deposit or withdrawal conditions. New to Revolut customers for a limited time. Open savings account within 1 month of joining. Total Interest Earned shown is for illustrative purposes and is based on monthly compounding. Actual Interest Earned will be higher from interest compounding daily instead of monthly.	Go to site	Compare	Promoted	Disclosure
ING	ING Savings Booster (balance up to $500k)	2.25% p.a. Bonus rate of 3.15% Rate varies on savings amount.	6.00% p.a. Intro rate for 4 months then 5.40% p.a.	$1,134	4 months	$0	$499,999		$0	$0	$0					Go to site	Compare		Disclosure
Rabobank	Rabobank High Interest Savings Account (<$250k)	4.00% p.a.	5.90% p.a. Intro rate for 4 months then 4.00% p.a.	$936	4 months	$0	$249,999		$0	$1	$0					Go to site	Compare		Disclosure