X Money promises 6% APY and 3% cash back, and Clark Howard is skeptical
As seen on the 24/7 Wall St. homepage on August 18, 2026.
A 6% APY teaser far exceeds what top online savings accounts pay, and consumer advocate Clark Howard is publicly questioning whether X Money can hold it. Note the deposits sit at a partner bank rather than X itself.
X Money touts that subscribers can earn up to 3% cash back on eligible spending with the X debit card and up to 6% APY on deposits that are FDIC-insured through a partner bank. That’s bold. But is it too good to be true? https://t.co/v3ISaVn6Hz
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X Money is marketing two headline numbers to prospective subscribers: up to 6% APY on deposits, plus cash back on eligible spending through its debit card. Consumer advocate Clark Howard posted publicly on August 18, 2026, questioning whether those figures are realistic.
The 6% APY figure is the one drawing scrutiny. Top online savings accounts have not come close to that rate in the current environment, which is precisely why Howard flagged it as bold and worth scrutinizing before anyone moves money.
Disclosure
1 INVESTMENTS ARE NOT FDIC INSURED • ARE NOT BANK GUARANTEED • MAY LOSE VALUE Brokerage and Active investing products offered through SoFi Securities LLC, member FINRA( www.finra.org )/SIPC( www.sipc.org ). 2 The probability of a member receiving $3,000 is 0.028%. If you don’t make a selection in 45 days, you’ll no longer qualify for the promo. Members must fund their account with a minimum of $50.00 to qualify. The probability percentage is subject to decrease. Members are only eligible for the Stock Award promotion upon opening their first brokerage account; subsequent cash brokerage accounts are ineligible for the promo, including for members with multiple accounts. 3Other fees, such as exchange fees, may apply. Please view our fee disclosure to view a full listing of fees. 4There are limitations with fractional shares to consider before investing. During market hours fractional share orders are transmitted immediately in the order received. There may be system delays from receipt of your order until execution and market conditions may adversely impact execution prices. Outside of market hours orders are received on a not held basis and will be aggregated for each security then executed in the morning trade window of the next business day at market open. Share will be delivered at an average price received for executing the securities through a single batched order. Fractional shares may not be transferred to another firm. Fractional shares will be sold when a transfer or closure request is initiated. Please consider that selling securities is a taxable event.
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A structural detail matters here: the deposits are not held by X itself. They sit at a partner bank, which is where the FDIC insurance comes from. That distinction affects who is actually responsible for the money and what protections apply if the broader X Money product changes.
The cash back rate carries its own qualifier. The 3% figure applies only to eligible spending, a category X Money has not fully defined in the marketing language Howard cited. Investors and consumers alike should treat both numbers as ceilings, not guarantees, until the fine print is public.