 TITLE: What Is a Checking Account? CONTENT: Different Types of Bank Accounts\n--------------------------------\n**Checking accounts** differ from other types of consumer bank accounts in their accommodation of frequent deposits and withdrawals. In contrast to accounts that pay interest to encourage long-term deposits, and which often charge fees for frequent withdrawals, checking accounts often pay little or no interest on deposits, but they typically allow unlimited transactions each month.\n**Certificate of deposit (CD)** accounts pay comparatively high interest rates (currently around 2.7%) on funds you agree to leave in the account for a fixed period of time (typically 12 or 18 months). You can withdraw funds from a CD in an emergency, but banks typically charge a penalty for doing so.\n**Savings accounts** pay a lower interest rate than CDs (roughly 2.4% at this writing), but allow withdrawals without penalty—although many charge fees if you make more than a certain number of withdrawals per month.\nMany checking accounts pay no interest at all, and those that pay interest typically offer lower rates than savings accounts (generally 1% or less in today's market). They may also require you to meet specific conditions to qualify for interest payments, such as setting up automatic paycheck deposits, maintaining a specific minimum balance (or average monthly balance), and making a minimum number of electronic bill payments each month. END