Savings6 providers Updated Jun 2026

Best Cash ISA Rates UK 2026

Quick answer - our pick

Trading 212

Best for: Emergency funds and short-term savings up to £120k per partner bank

For an emergency fund or any savings you might need on short notice, Trading 212's flexible Cash ISA hits the trifecta: a top-tier rate, instant access, and the flexible-ISA feature so you can withdraw and replace money in the same tax year without it counting against your allowance. Caveat: your money is held by partner banks rather than Trading 212 directly, so check the current banking partners and stay below £120k per partner (the FSCS deposit limit, raised from £85k on 1 December 2025). For balances above £120k or if you prefer a single regulated bank, Atom Bank or Cynergy Bank cover the same use case with direct FSCS protection (neither is a flexible ISA).

Visit Trading 212 See full comparison

Referral link. Capital at risk. Not financial advice.

The best Cash ISA rates UK savers can get sit at around 4.5-5% on top easy-access products and 4.5-4.85% on 1-year fixes (as of June 2026, rates change frequently). Headline high-street brands are typically 1-2% behind; the actual best rates are at challenger banks and app-based providers most savers have never opened an account with. A Cash ISA pays interest tax-free regardless of how big the balance gets. For anyone holding a meaningful emergency fund or saving toward a near-term goal, a Cash ISA almost always beats an ordinary savings account once you cross the Personal Savings Allowance (£500 a year of interest for higher-rate taxpayers, £1,000 for basic rate). We rank the main UK Cash ISA options across three formats: easy access (best for emergency funds), fixed-rate (best for money you can lock away), and app-based (best if you value the UX over rate-chasing). For the broader explainer covering all four UK savings account types and the tax rules, see our [Best Savings Account UK guide](/articles/best-savings-account-uk-2026). Rates change constantly. Always check the provider site before applying.

Interest at a glance

£1,000 balance

Trading 212 ★

≈ £45/yr

Chip

≈ £35.50/yr (standard)

Moneybox

≈ £43/yr

Atom Bank Easy Access Cash ISA

≈ £42.50/yr

Shawbrook (2-Year Fixed)

≈ £45/yr

Cynergy Bank

≈ £40.50/yr

£100,000 balance

Trading 212 ★

≈ £4,500/yr

Chip

≈ £3,550/yr (standard)

Moneybox

≈ £4,300/yr

Atom Bank Easy Access Cash ISA

≈ £4,250/yr

Shawbrook (2-Year Fixed)

≈ £4,500/yr

Cynergy Bank

≈ £4,050/yr

Approximate annual interest at the rate shown, based on June 2026 figures. Rates change with the Bank of England base rate. FSCS covers £120k per banking institution (raised from £85k on 1 December 2025). Provider names link to each platform's published fee schedule.

Full comparison

Provider	Type	Rate (June 2026)	Access	Flexible ISA	FSCS protected	Best for
Trading 212	Easy access	Approx 4.5% AER	Instant	Yes	£120,000	Emergency funds and short-term savings up to £120k per partner bank
Chip	Easy access	Approx 3.55% AER (3.81% promo for new customers, 12mo)	Instant	Yes	£120,000	App-first savers who like behavioural nudges
Moneybox	Easy access	Approx 4.30% AER (3.45% after 12-month bonus expires)	Instant	No	£120,000	New savers who want a guided, app-led experience
Atom Bank Easy Access Cash ISA	Easy access	Approx 4.25% AER	Easy access	No	£120,000	Savers who want direct FSCS coverage with easy access to their money
Shawbrook (2-Year Fixed)	2-year fixed	Approx 4.5% AER	Locked 2 years	No	£120,000	Medium-term savings goals (e.g. house deposit 18-24 months out)
Cynergy Bank	Easy access	Approx 4.05% AER	Instant	No	£120,000	Rate-chasers who want direct FSCS coverage rather than a partner-bank structure

Provider details

Trading 212

Emergency funds and short-term savings up to £120k per partner bank

TypeEasy access

Rate (June 2026)Approx 4.5% AER

AccessInstant

Flexible ISAYes

FSCS protected£120,000

Pros

Top-tier easy access rate
Flexible ISA: withdraw and replace within the tax year
Same login as Trading 212 ISA / SIPP / GIA

Cons

Variable rate, can drop without notice
Money is held by partner banks; check current banking partners
Newer product than incumbents

Trading 212 Cash ISA page Visit Trading 212 Referral link. Capital at risk. Not financial advice.

Chip

App-first savers who like behavioural nudges

TypeEasy access

Rate (June 2026)Approx 3.55% AER (3.81% promo for new customers, 12mo)

AccessInstant

Flexible ISAYes

FSCS protected£120,000

Pros

Strong app with savings goals features
Flexible ISA
Auto-saver round-ups on day-to-day spending

Cons

Money held by partner bank (ClearBank); check at signup
App-only; no web interface
Standard rate trails Trading 212 once the new-customer bonus expires

Chip Cash ISA page Visit Chip

Moneybox

New savers who want a guided, app-led experience

TypeEasy access

Rate (June 2026)Approx 4.30% AER (3.45% after 12-month bonus expires)

AccessInstant

Flexible ISANo

FSCS protected£120,000

Pros

Simple, polished app
Round-ups auto-save spare change
Strong brand for new savers

Cons

Not a flexible ISA: withdrawals reduce your allowance permanently
Rate drops to 3.45% after the 12-month bonus expires
App-only

Moneybox Cash ISA page Visit Moneybox

Atom Bank Easy Access Cash ISA

Savers who want direct FSCS coverage with easy access to their money

TypeEasy access

Rate (June 2026)Approx 4.25% AER

AccessEasy access

Flexible ISANo

FSCS protected£120,000

Pros

Direct FSCS coverage (Atom is its own bank)
Competitive easy-access rate from a regulated UK bank
Simple online application via the Atom app

Cons

Variable rate, can drop without notice
Not a flexible ISA: withdrawals reduce your allowance permanently
App-only, no physical branches

Atom Bank Savings page Visit Atom Bank Easy Access Cash ISA

Shawbrook (2-Year Fixed)

Medium-term savings goals (e.g. house deposit 18-24 months out)

Type2-year fixed

Rate (June 2026)Approx 4.5% AER

AccessLocked 2 years

Flexible ISANo

FSCS protected£120,000

Pros

Direct FSCS coverage (challenger bank)
Lock in a rate for 24 months
Online and phone access

Cons

Money locked for 2 years
Early-access penalty applies
Not flexible

Shawbrook Cash ISA page Visit Shawbrook (2-Year Fixed)

Cynergy Bank

Rate-chasers who want direct FSCS coverage rather than a partner-bank structure

TypeEasy access

Rate (June 2026)Approx 4.05% AER

AccessInstant

Flexible ISANo

FSCS protected£120,000

Pros

Direct FSCS coverage
Frequently in best-buy tables for headline rate
Established UK challenger bank

Cons

Not a flexible ISA: withdrawals reduce your allowance permanently
Less polished interface than the app-only providers
Rate sometimes drops after introductory period

Cynergy Bank Online ISA page Visit Cynergy Bank

Honourable mentions

Atom Bank Easy Access Cash ISA

Runner-up

Best for: Savers who want direct FSCS coverage with easy access to their money

A direct-FSCS easy-access alternative to the partner-bank app providers. Slightly behind on rate, but you are dealing with a single regulated UK bank rather than a roster of partner institutions.

Visit Atom Bank Easy Access Cash ISA

Chip

Runner-up

Best for: App-first savers who like behavioural nudges

If you are an app-first saver who likes behavioural features (round-ups, savings goals, auto-save), Chip pairs a competitive rate with a polished UX.

Visit Chip

How we picked

Rates and structural features verified June 2026, cross-referenced against the live trackers at MoneyHelper, MoneyFacts, and MoneySavingExpert. Rate values fluctuate with the Bank of England base rate; we publish a representative 2026/27 figure and lean on structural features (FSCS coverage, withdrawal restrictions, flexibility) for the editorial comparison rather than chasing the top of best-buy tables. Quarterly refresh - next review scheduled September 2026.

Background

What is a Cash ISA?

A Cash ISA is a tax-free savings account. Interest earned inside the wrapper is never taxed, regardless of how big the balance grows. You can pay in up to £20,000 per tax year (the overall ISA allowance, shared with Stocks and Shares ISAs, Lifetime ISAs, and Innovative Finance ISAs). The wrapper has existed in its current form since 1999 and is the most-used tax shelter in UK personal finance. Around 12 million UK adults hold one. For anyone with a meaningful emergency fund or who is saving toward a near-term goal, a Cash ISA almost always beats an ordinary savings account once you cross the Personal Savings Allowance, which is £1,000 of interest a year for basic-rate taxpayers and £500 for higher-rate. Additional-rate taxpayers get no PSA at all, which is why high earners almost always max their Cash ISA first.

Cash ISA vs a regular savings account

If you only ever hold a small balance and pay basic rate tax, the Personal Savings Allowance (PSA) covers you for the first £1,000 of interest a year. At a 4.5% rate that's about £22,000 of balance before you'd pay any tax at all. Below that level, a high-street savings account paying a slightly better rate can beat a Cash ISA. The arithmetic flips quickly above the PSA. Every pound of interest above £1,000 is taxed at your marginal income rate - 20%, 40%, or 45%. A higher-rate taxpayer earning £2,000 of interest pays £600 in tax on the chunk above their £500 PSA. The same £2,000 of interest inside a Cash ISA is tax-free. The other case where the Cash ISA wins is the long-run structural one. Move banks every year chasing the best rate and HMRC sees the interest reported on each account. Tax tracking gets fiddly. A Cash ISA shields you from that whole headache. Once a balance is inside the wrapper it stays tax-free even if it grows for 30 years.

Easy access vs fixed-rate vs notice Cash ISAs

Three structural formats, each with different trade-offs: - **Easy access** - withdraw whenever, rate is variable, often the best home for an emergency fund. Trading 212, Chip and Atom Bank cluster at the top of the easy-access table. - **Fixed-rate** (1, 2, 3 or 5-year) - higher rate in exchange for locking the money in. Most providers will allow early access with an interest penalty (typically 90 to 365 days of interest forfeited) but it is mechanically painful. Right for money you genuinely won't need until the term ends. - **Notice** - intermediate option, e.g. 30, 60 or 90-day notice. Slightly higher than easy access, slightly lower than fixed. Less common since fixed-rate ISAs improved. Most savers benefit from layering: easy access for the emergency fund, fixed-rate for any savings goal with a known horizon (e.g. tax bill due in 18 months, house deposit in 3 years).

The flexible ISA feature (and why it matters)

A 'flexible' Cash ISA lets you withdraw money and replace it within the same tax year without using more of your annual £20,000 allowance. Standard (non-flexible) ISAs treat any withdrawal as permanent - if you put £10,000 in then withdraw £3,000, you've still used £10,000 of your allowance and can only contribute another £10,000 that year. With a flexible ISA, the same withdrawal frees up £3,000 of headroom that you can replace before April. For an emergency fund parked in an ISA this is the difference between 'usable savings' and 'savings I'll only touch as a last resort'. Trading 212, Chip and Tembo all currently offer flexible Cash ISAs. Atom Bank and the building-society fixed-rate accounts typically do not. If the wrapper is going to hold money that might genuinely need to come out and go back in (e.g. tax-bill cash sitting between January self-assessment and April), insist on flexibility. The rate difference vs a non-flexible alternative is usually irrelevant compared to the allowance you'd otherwise burn.

FSCS protection and partner-bank risk

Cash held in a UK Cash ISA is protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme up to £120,000 per banking authorisation, per person (raised from £85,000 on 1 December 2025). If your provider goes bust, FSCS will refund up to £120k within seven working days for most claim types. The nuance: some app-based ISA providers (Trading 212, Chip) are not banks themselves. They are platforms that place customer deposits with one or more partner banks. The FSCS limit applies at the partner-bank level, not the platform level. If your platform spreads £300,000 across three partner banks, all of it is covered. If two partner banks happen to be the same banking authorisation (e.g. NatWest and Royal Bank of Scotland share one), you're only covered for £120k against the pair. Always check which banks your platform uses and the FSCS coverage statement on their site. Direct-FSCS providers (Atom Bank, the building societies, Nationwide) are simpler: one provider, one £120k limit, no cross-bank arithmetic. Worth considering if you hold balances near or above the FSCS threshold.

Cash ISA vs Stocks and Shares ISA

The wrong frame for this comparison is 'which one wins on returns'. The right frame is 'which one wins for the money you are putting into it'. - Cash ISA - for money you might need within the next 5 years, including your emergency fund and any near-term savings goals. The trade-off is that cash interest tends to lose to inflation over long horizons. - Stocks and Shares ISA - for money you won't need for at least 5 years and ideally 10+. Historic real returns of global equities are around 5% a year; cash interest barely matches inflation. The trade-off is that equities can drop 30% or more in a single year, so don't use one if the money has to be there on a specific date. Most UK savers benefit from holding both. Build the emergency fund first in a Cash ISA. Once that's covered (3 to 6 months of essential expenses), redirect new contributions into a Stocks and Shares ISA where the long-run real return is meaningfully higher. The combined £20,000 annual allowance is shared. From April 2024 you can fund multiple ISAs of the same type in one tax year, so you can run a Trading 212 Cash ISA alongside a Vanguard Stocks and Shares ISA simultaneously without restriction.

Frequently asked questions

Who is offering the best Cash ISA rates right now?

In June 2026, top easy-access Cash ISA rates sit at around 4.5-5% (Trading 212, Chip, Atom Bank, Cynergy) and top 1-year fixed-rate Cash ISAs at 4.5-4.85% (Shawbrook, Aldermore, Charter Savings). High-street brands typically pay 1-2% less than the best-buy rates. Rates rotate within days as challenger banks compete for headline-rate positions, so check the live tables at MoneyFacts or MoneyHelper before applying.

What ISA does Martin Lewis recommend?

Martin Lewis at MoneySavingExpert recommends shopping around using a live rate tracker rather than going with your existing bank, where the rate is almost always behind the market. He has been positive about Trading 212's flexible Cash ISA arrangement (combining cash interest with the flexible-ISA feature). The brand-specific recommendation rotates every few weeks as rates move; the principle - switch when your rate slips behind the market - does not.

What is the best Cash ISA for over-60s?

For over-60s the same rate-comparison logic applies but two factors matter more: access (avoid long fixed-term locks if care costs might need cash at short notice) and FSCS protection (split balances above £120k across separate banking authorisations). Easy-access ISAs at challenger banks remain the right default. The Cash ISA wrapper is particularly valuable for retirees whose Personal Savings Allowance is already used against pension drawdown income, so additional non-ISA savings interest would be fully taxed.

Are Cash ISAs worth it for basic-rate taxpayers?

It depends on the balance. Basic-rate taxpayers have a £1,000 Personal Savings Allowance. At a 4.5% rate that is roughly £22,000 of savings before any interest gets taxed. Below that level, an ordinary savings account paying the same rate is just as good (and you keep the ISA allowance for stocks and shares investing, which compounds far more over decades). Above £22,000, the Cash ISA wins. For higher-rate taxpayers the threshold drops to about £11,000 because the allowance is only £500.

Where can I get 7% interest on my savings in the UK?

The only UK accounts paying 7% or more are regular saver accounts with low monthly caps (typically £200-£500 per month) and a 12-month lock - First Direct, Nationwide member-only, Lloyds Club. The headline rate is real but applies only to the drip-fed monthly amount, so total annual interest at 7% on £200/month is around £91 over the year, not 7% of a lump sum. For lump-sum money, top easy-access Cash ISAs at 4.5-5% are the realistic ceiling.

Easy access vs fixed-rate Cash ISA?

Easy access for any money you might need on short notice, including your emergency fund. Fixed-rate for money with a defined timeline (house deposit in 18 months, wedding in 2 years). Splitting savings across both is fine and uses the same £20,000 ISA allowance.

Can I transfer an existing Cash ISA?

Yes, and you should. Use the receiving provider's ISA transfer form rather than withdrawing and re-depositing - that way the money stays inside the ISA wrapper and does not count against your annual allowance. Most transfers complete within 15 working days. Some fixed-rate providers charge an exit fee if you transfer out before the term ends; check the small print. If you have several legacy ISAs, see our consolidate ISAs UK guide for the order to do it in.

What does FSCS protection actually cover?

FSCS protects up to £120,000 per person per banking institution (raised from £85,000 on 1 December 2025). If the bank fails, the FSCS pays out the protected amount within seven working days. Watch for shared banking licences: some app-based providers route deposits through partner banks, and the £120k limit is per partner not per app. If you have £200k in cash savings and care about protection, split across multiple banking groups.

Disclosure: Some links on this page may be affiliate links, which means we receive a small commission if you sign up. This never affects the rankings or which platforms we recommend. We only feature platforms that meet our editorial standards.