The new year has already brought some turbulence for British consumers, with mortgage rates creeping up and some savings accounts seeing their appeal lowered – despite the Bank of England (BoE) voting to hold interest rates at 3.75 per cent.
With inflation still running well above 3 per cent and not likely to come down to targeted 2 per cent levels until later in the year, it remains important for savers to ensure their cash is in an account earning them a good amount of interest, thereby avoiding losing out on buying power over the long term as inflation takes its effect.
We’ve therefore produced our usual roundup of the best savings accounts on offer for February 2026, including cash ISAs, easy access accounts and fixed-term deals.
Rates are correct at the time of writing but always ensure an account is right for your circumstances beyond the headline rate, including any bonus periods, withdrawal allowances and more.
As a reminder if you don’t already have one, an ISA is simply a tax-free version of a normal saving account, you won’t pay tax on any interest earned no matter the amount.
It’s a very simple three-way battle right now for the best rate in cash ISA terms; your preference will be dictated by which bonus you may have already used and when you think you might need to withdraw any money in future.
Trading 212’s 3.6% offering isn’t the very highest – but when you use an exclusive code from The Independent, the 4.4% it gives you is the market leader right now. You can make as many withdrawals as you need, with the bonus of 0.8% being valid for one year.
After that, Moneybox have just launched a new rate of 4.32% which puts them near the top – but this comes with a maximum of three withdrawals per year allowed without affecting the rate. It includes a one-year bonus too, of 0.87%, and you need £500 to open the account.
Finally, Plum have upped their rate slightly to 4.3% to remain very competitive – but you need to ensure the terms of this meet your likely needs – you won’t get the full rate until a bonus is paid at the end of 12 months, by which time you still need the account to be open and not have transferred your ISA elsewhere. Otherwise you get a far lower 2.54 per cent, which is also the rate after the first year.
If you’ve maxed your ISA limits or simply need a different “normal” savings account, easy access ones are often the place to go thanks to their flexibility and the amount of choice – just make sure the rate is a competitive one and the wider terms suit your needs.
