For years, consumers had to pay for the convenience of being able to write cheques for the goods and services that they purchased. As time has gone by, however, a number of banks have not only gotten rid of some of the excess charges and fees associated with chequeing accounts but have also begun creating chequeing accounts that pay interest to the account holder.

These interest-bearing chequeing accounts are a great boon to customers who maintain a healthy balance in their account, but not all interest-bearing chequeing accounts are created equal.

The information below should help you to shop around and compare the features and interest rates of different cheque accounts so that you can find the best account for you and your financial needs.

Make Sure the Account Pays Interest

Obviously, there is a major difference between an account that pays interest and one that simply doesn't charge additional fees. While looking for interest-bearing accounts, you'll likely find many that are simply free chequeing... make sure that you don't confuse these two aspects or else you might end up with an account that doesn't have one of the main features that you're looking for.

When inquiring about different cheque accounts, the informational pamphlets that many banks offer should tell you about any accounts that offer interest; the information is also likely contained on the bank's website. Should you still have questions, a teller or customer service representative should be able to tell you what you want to know.

Shopping Around for Accounts

Just because you've always done business with a specific bank doesn't mean that you have to do all of your banking business with them. Since the account that you're looking for pays interest, you're going to want to find the highest interest rate available... that means that you should take the time to shop around and compare the rates that are offered by a variety of different banks.

Ask for interest rate quotes, as well as a copy of the fee schedule and any additional information that might be pertinent to your decision. Take the time to find out whether cheques are included with the account or if you have to purchase them yourself, and make sure that overdraft and insufficient fund fees aren't excessive.

Comparing to Find the Best Deal

Once you've received several different rate quotes and have all of the related information for each of those accounts, it's time to start comparing the different account options to each other and determine which chequeing account offers you both the best interest rate and the most reasonable terms and fees.

Sort your quotes by their respective interest rates, making note of any accounts that seem to have a rate much higher or much lower than the rest. You're looking for the highest rate, but you want to make sure that you don't take a higher rate and get stuck with inferior account terms. Begin looking at the various fee schedules and other information for the highest interest accounts, taking into consideration the cost of purchasing cheques or other common expenses that might come with your account.

After careful consideration, you should be able to determine which account is the best one for you and your needs, and which accounts should be left alone. All that's left from that point is actually opening the account and beginning to draw interest on your chequeing balance.