Question 1

How is the total annual leak calculated?

Accepted Answer

It is the sum of your explicit fees (maintenance, ATM, overdraft, wire/other) plus the after-tax interest your idle balance would earn at a high-yield savings rate instead of your checking APY. The leak is floored at zero — it can never be negative.

Question 2

Should I move all my checking cash to savings?

Accepted Answer

No. Keep a working buffer in checking for day-to-day spending and to meet any minimum-balance requirement that waives fees. Only the genuinely idle portion should move to a high-yield savings account. The tool warns you if the idle amount you entered is your entire balance.

Question 3

Is switching banks worth it for a fee?

Accepted Answer

Usually yes if you pay a monthly maintenance fee. No-fee checking accounts with no minimum balance are widely available, so an avoidable $12/month fee is $144/year of pure waste. The tool also factors any new-account bonus into the first-year value of switching.

Question 4

Why does the interest opportunity cost get taxed?

Accepted Answer

Savings-account interest is taxable as ordinary income, so the real benefit of moving idle cash is the after-tax amount. The calculator applies your combined federal and state marginal rate to the opportunity cost so the comparison is honest.

Question 5

What is a realistic idle balance?

Accepted Answer

It is the cash sitting in checking beyond what you need for monthly spending and your safety buffer. If you keep $5,000 in checking but only cycle $2,000 of bills, roughly $3,000 is idle and could be earning interest elsewhere.

Checking Fee Leak Calculator

Total annual leak

Explicit fees

Interest opportunity cost

First-year value of switching

Ranked options

Assumptions used

Next steps

Frequently asked questions