Savings account interest rates explained

For almost all of our savings accounts and ISAs, we pay interest once a year and on the day you close your account. If your account has a fixed term, we will also pay interest at the end of the term.

We pay the interest into your savings account. We cannot pay interest into a different account.

You can find when your account pays interest in your terms and conditions. This is often around the anniversary of account opening, which you can find online on our banking app or internet bank.

If you are an existing Nationwide member with a savings account, ISA or bond, you can check your interest rate using our online tool.

If you don’t yet save with us, you can compare the interest rates on each of our accounts here on our website.

Interest rates are the percentage at which interest is earned on the money you save. When you save money in a savings account, ISA or bond, the interest rate determines how much interest you accumulate over time.

A fixed interest rate is where the rate stays the same for a set amount of time. So, the interest rate you get paid will not change for the agreed term.

A variable interest rate is where your interest rate could go up or down. The interest you earn can change over time. This could happen for a number of reasons. For example, when the Bank of England changes the base rate.

The base rate – also known as the bank rate – sets the amount of interest the Bank of England pays to banks and building societies.

The base rate:

• influences how much we charge people who borrow money
• influences how much interest we pay to savers
• regulates inflation – when the base rate goes up or down, it is generally in response to a change in the economy

As a building society, we were set up to help people save money and buy homes. We work by lending the money that members save with us to members who borrow from us.

The interest we receive from our borrowers allows us to pay interest to our savers. We also use it to run our Society.

Because of the way we work, we need to balance the interest rates we give our savers with the rates we charge our borrowers. We also need to cover our running costs.

If there is a change, such as to the base rate, we may need to lower or increase the rates we pay our savers.

If other providers change their rates, we may need to make changes. This is to attract new savers and borrowers as well as keep those already with us.

If our running costs increase, we may need to pay our savers less interest or charge our borrowers more.

Our savings terms and conditions set out all the reasons why we could make changes to your savings interest rate.

If your interest rate drops, you may be thinking about whether your account is still right for you.

You have 3 options:

• Compare our savings accounts and ISAs to find one that suits you better.
• Keep your savings in the same account, at the lower rate.
• Move your savings to another provider by closing your Nationwide savings account.

We can provide an interest certificate for certain accounts, which shows the interest earned.

If you need an interest or Section 975 (S975) certificate for a previous tax year (2015/16 or earlier will be an S975), you can request it from any Nationwide branch or online on our internet bank.

We recommend you sign up to our SavingsWatch service.

With SavingsWatch, we will tell you:

• about any improvements we are making to your savings account’s features
• if your interest rate is changing
• about any new savings products we launch and any improvements to our savings range, including savings-related initiatives and services

We will also email you an annual Savings Summary. This shows your accounts’ interest rates.