The Best HSA Providers of 2026

If you’re looking for a way to stretch your healthcare dollars, you might consider a health savings account.

Thanks to its flexible withdrawal rules and powerful tax benefits, an HSA can be a potent tool. It can be used as a healthcare checking account or a long-term investment vehicle, or both. But the slew of HSA providers out there, with differing account features and characteristics, can make it daunting to sort through the options. That’s why Morningstar evaluates the top HSA providers that offer retail accounts for those looking to shop around.

Even if you already have access to an HSA provider through your employer, our assessments can help you get the most out of your HSA.

We cover the inner workings of HSAs, address frequently asked questions, and rate HSA providers for different uses. If you decide that an HSA is right for you or you want to see how your employer-sponsored plan stacks up, consider our list of the best HSA providers of 2026.

What Is an HSA?

An HSA is a tax-advantaged account that allows you to spend and invest money for healthcare expenses. An HSA is available only with a high-deductible healthcare plan, with some exceptions, and it’s subject to annual contribution limits.

There are rules around who can qualify and how you contribute to and use the money in an HSA, but you don’t have to worry about using all the funds in any given year. Unspent funds are not forfeited, unlike a flexible spending account. Plus, you can keep the same account even if you change employers or leave the workforce.

You can use an HSA like a spending account to help cover current medical expenses, or you can use it as an investment account to help plan for future costs. Either way, HSAs offer a triple tax advantage:

• Money enters tax-free.
• Money grows tax-free.
• Money can be withdrawn tax-free if spent on qualified medical expenses.

People who use their HSA dollars on current healthcare expenses benefit because HSA contributions through employers are excluded from income, Medicare, and Social Security taxes. People who invest and grow their HSA dollars to pay for future medical costs further benefit from the tax-free growth of HSA dollars.

Based on the tax merits alone, HSAs are more attractive than other retirement savings vehicles like IRAs and 401(k)s.

Using your HSA for qualified medical expenses is key to getting the full tax advantage of the account. These qualified expenses generally include dental, vision, and prescription costs for you, your spouse, and your dependents. You can see a full list of qualified medical expenses on the IRS website.

Withdrawals for nonqualified expenses by people under 65 are subject to ordinary income taxes plus a 20% tax penalty. People 65 and older can withdraw funds without the 20% penalty but will still pay income tax if the money is not used for healthcare expenses.

The Best HSAs for Spending

When using an HSA as a spending account to cover current healthcare costs, the best HSAs do the following:

• Offer spending accounts without maintenance fees regardless of account size.
• Pay reasonable interest rates on deposits.
• Eliminate or limit additional fees.
• Offer FDIC insurance on the spending account.

The Best HSAs for Investing

When using an HSA as an investment account to cover future healthcare expenses, the best HSAs follow these practices:

• Offer investment strategies in all core asset classes while limiting overlap.
• Provide strong investment strategies that earn
  Morningstar Medalist Ratings
  of Gold, Silver, or Bronze.
• Charge low fees for active and passive strategies.
• Don’t require investors to keep money in spending accounts before investing.

Rating HSA Providers

Below, we lay out what these top 11 HSA providers are doing well and what we think they need to improve. They are listed from highest to lowest based on combined spending and investing account assessments.

HSA Bank

Pros

• The spending account comes with no maintenance fee and very few additional fees.
• The investment menu offers the highest percentage of funds with Gold Medalist ratings among the providers surveyed, and they are also cheaper on average relative to category peers.
• HSA Bank no longer requires a minimum spending account balance before participants can access the investing account features.

Cons

• HSA Bank pays a decent interest rate, but only with an account balance of at least $50,000.

HSA Bank doesn’t charge a spending account maintenance fee, a critical cost advantage for savers. But the provider’s spending account payout has failed to keep pace with steadily rising interest rates. The provider recently paid no more than 0.30% for balances under $50,000, and 0.05% for our use case balance of $2,500. HSA Bank earns an Above Average assessment for its spending account.

Its investment offering is the strongest of the group, earning a High assessment. The price tag is cheaper than other competitors; a 0.25% investment charge is waived for investment account balances of at least $7,500. The average price rank of its underlying funds compared with peers is middling, but the lack of an investment fee at our $20,000 use case for investment accounts means its total costs rank in the 20^th percentile. The investment menu offers the full suite of State Street target-date funds at an industry standard of five years, as well as a decent mix of active and passive funds.

Fidelity

Pros

• The spending account comes free of charge and pays an exceptional interest rate.
• The investment account charges no fees beyond those of the underlying funds.

Cons

• The investment menu’s funds are pricey on average relative to their category peers.

Fidelity earns top billing, a High, for its spending account. Its investment offering has been downgraded to Average as the funds on its menu are pricier than many relative to its category peers; our price assessment methodology changed in part to use this measure.

The Fidelity spending account cemented its place as the industry’s top offering by delivering significantly larger returns on cash balances. Fidelity’s 1.82% interest rate, regardless of account balance, stands far above rates paid by other providers. The next-highest is First American Bank, with an interest rate that’s still less than half what Fidelity offers (and is paid only on balances of $100,000 or more). Fidelity has also shunned both maintenance and additional fees since first offering its HSA to individuals in 2018.

The investment offering checks most of the key boxes. Fidelity follows industry best practices by not charging an investment fee—it is one of only two providers that don’t levy any expenses outside of the underlying fund fees—and by not requiring an investment threshold. That means participants don’t need to retain a balance in the spending account to invest. It offers a sensible menu of funds for investment that covers all the broad asset classes.

The fund lineup is pricey on average, though, relative to category peers and earns a price rank in the 50^th percentile overall. So, its investing account earns an Average assessment. Fidelity is one of seven providers we cover that offers a brokerage window for those looking for additional investment choices. (A brokerage window offers access to investments beyond the funds on a provider’s standard menu.)

HealthEquity

Pros

• There are no maintenance fees for the spending account.
• The investment account offers high-quality funds and has no investment threshold.

Cons

• Smaller balances are stuck with meager interest rates.
• The investment menu is a bit heavy on specialty options.

HealthEquity is a solid HSA provider. Like other topnotch spending accounts, HealthEquity does not levy a maintenance fee, driving its Above Average assessment. It pays interest rates of up to 0.40%—close to the national average for FDIC-insured accounts—but savers at HealthEquity receive that rate only on balances greater than $10,000. For a $2,500 balance, the effective rate is 0.05%.

Although its 0.32% charge on investment accounts is higher than the 0.23% average, HealthEquity’s lineup of Vanguard strategies is on average far cheaper than its average category peers. HealthEquity also allows accountholders to invest without maintaining a minimum balance. Its investing account also garners an Above Average assessment.

There is some room for improvement, though. HealthEquity’s lineup, while cheap, includes a number of narrowly focused options, some of them volatile.

Saturna

Pros

• The account has a below-average investment threshold.
• The firm doesn’t charge a maintenance fee.
• The investment menu is well designed and full of higher-quality options.

Cons

• The spending account pays a paltry interest rate.
• It has a relatively pricey fund menu.

Saturna’s HSA offering is attractive. Its spending account pays a low interest rate: 0.05% for accounts with a $2,500 balance. But it doesn’t charge a maintenance fee, leading to an Above Average assessment. Saturna’s investing account is appealing, too, and earns an Above Average assessment. The menu is compact and features strong offerings, and participants can begin investing when their balance reaches a modest $500. But because active funds predominate, the menu’s options are on the pricey side on average compared with category peers. There’s also a 0.30% investment fee for non-Saturna funds. Thus, the overall costs rank in the 55^th percentile.

Associated Bank

Pros

• A well-rounded, high-quality investment lineup and relatively small investment threshold highlight the investment account.

Cons

• The spending account interest rate peaks at 0.25%.
• The investment account comes with somewhat pricey underlying funds and significant administrative fees.

Associated Bank has some pockets of strength but needs work elsewhere. Spending accountholders must maintain an account balance of at least $2,500 or have an account with a firm that has a “preferred relationship” to have the yearly maintenance fee of $36 waived. The spending account also pays a relatively modest interest rate (0.15% for a $2,500 balance) and earns an Average assessment.

A thoughtfully designed investment menu gives the investment account an edge. It features well-regarded investment managers, including American Funds, T. Rowe Price, and Vanguard, while giving investors a good balance of passive and active options. It also includes straightforward allocation funds, and the investment threshold of $500 is lower than most providers covered. The investment account’s modest overall fees land in the 35^th percentile and help drive an Above Average assessment for the investment offering.

First American Bank

Pros

• There are no maintenance fees, and the spending account has relatively reasonable interest rates.
• The investing account has a menu of high-quality funds.

Cons

• The investment account’s appeal is dampened by high fees and a $1,000 investment threshold.

First American Bank offers a compelling spending account as it shuns maintenance charges. It also offers a decent interest rate schedule; while it starts at just 0.05%, it pays 0.15% at $2,500 and roughly 0.20% for balances over $5,000. It earns an Above Average assessment.

Its investment account, however, is merely average. First American Bank has a group of funds that charge above-average fees, and the firm levies a 0.30% investment fee. Thus, its overall costs rank in the 65^th percentile. Its investment menu includes limited choices for international stock exposure. It also requires that savers maintain a $1,000 spending account balance before investing and offers a brokerage window.

Lively

Pros

• The spending account has no maintenance fee.
• The investment account has no investment threshold and comes with an exceptionally designed investment menu.

Cons

• The spending account offers low interest rates.
• There’s a hefty custodial fee on the investment account.

Lively’s Above Average spending account comes without a maintenance fee. Its interest rate schedule, however, pays just 0.03% on $2,500 plan balances and peaks at just 0.12%.

Lively’s investment account boasts a compact yet well-rounded investment menu and no investment threshold, meaning investors don’t need to retain certain balances in the spending account to invest. Yet Lively’s hefty 0.50% investment charge overwhelms its relatively cheap group of funds and waters down its investment offering. Its overall fees rank in the 65^th percentile, and its investing account garners an Average assessment.

UMB

Pros

• The spending account doesn’t charge a maintenance fee.

Cons

• The spending account has a subpar interest rate schedule for smaller plan balances.
• The investment menu is unwieldy and pricey.

UMB does not charge a maintenance fee and thus garners an Above Average spending account assessment. However, like most providers, interest rates are low on modest account balances—a $2,500 balance earns just 0.05% annually.

The investment account is bursting at the seams with 40-plus options, which can be tough to navigate given the large number of specialty options and substantial strategy overlap. UMB’s investment menu also contains a lot of funds that are expensive relative to their category peers, and the firm charges a $36 investment fee as well. Thus, its total fees land in the 60^th percentile. The firm also mandates a $1,000 investment threshold. In all, it merits a Below Average investment account assessment.

NueSynergy

Pros

• Offers one of the strongest fund lineups around.

Cons

• Spending account pays a low interest rate.
• Substantial investment fee.
• The investment menu is limited, with no allocation options.

NueSynergy’s spending account doesn’t stand out. It charges a maintenance fee on balances below $2,000, while most of the providers surveyed don’t levy one at all. And the interest it pays is quite low—just 0.06% for a balance of $2,500. The provider earns an Average assessment here.

The investment account’s appeal is limited as well. True, the fund menu consists solely of very cheap exchange-traded funds; the lineup charges less than every other provider surveyed. The lineup also earns a score of High on fund quality. That said, the fund menu would look better if it offered participants an allocation option and more than just one mid- or small-cap stock fund. And a 0.40% investment fee means the investment account’s total costs rank in the 40^th percentile. Thus, NueSynergy earns an Average on the investment account side as well.

Optum

Pros

• All of the funds on the investment menu earn a Medalist Rating of Bronze or better.
• The menu design has improved.

Cons

• Its interest rate is very low.
• Total investment costs are higher than average.

Optum’s spending account ranks below average. Its low 0.06% interest rate for a $2,500 balance isn’t appealing, and the maintenance fee of roughly $25 per year isn’t waived until the balance hits $3,000.

The investment account can’t be accessed until participants hit a threshold of $1,000. The category ranks of the fees for the funds offered are better than most, but a 0.36% investment fee means overall costs rank in the 55^th percentile. The better-than-average investment menu design, coupled with a list of high-quality funds, pulls the investment account assessment up to Average. Optum is one of the seven providers to feature a brokerage window.

Bank of America

Pros

• The investment account offers higher-quality strategies.

Cons

• The spending account has a rigid maintenance fee.
• The relatively large fund lineup in the investment account has several narrow offerings, and those funds are on average expensive compared with category peers.

Bank of America’s spending account is one of just two such offerings that received a Below Average assessment.

It charges accountholders a yearly maintenance fee of $30 no matter the account size. And while it provides somewhat higher interest rates on larger balances, an accountholder with a $2,500 balance will earn 0.3% annually.

The investment account’s relatively large menu has a number of high-quality offerings, but it includes a couple of redundancies, including four small-cap funds (two of them in the small-blend category) and three global large-blend equity funds. The plan also includes Pimco Commodity Real Return Strategy PCRIX, which, while rated Silver, is too far afield for an HSA. The investment lineup is one of the pricier menus around, thus total costs rank in the 60^th percentile. Bank of America thus earns a Below Average for the investment account as well.

HSA FAQs

Who qualifies for an HSA?

HSAs are available to people with high-deductible health plans (with deductibles of at least $1,700 for individuals or $3,400 for families in 2026). Your health insurance plan’s out-of-pocket maximum also cannot exceed $8,500 (or $17,000 for family coverage). Your HDHP can cover telemedicine before your deductible is met without forfeiting HSA eligibility.

Some changes went into effect in 2026 that expand HSA eligibility. Bronze or Catastrophic-level Affordable Care Act marketplace plans are considered HSA-compatible HDHPs, and HSAs are available if you have a low-cost Direct Primary Care arrangement.

You cannot be a dependent on a tax return, enrolled in Medicare, or enrolled in another health insurance plan (unless permitted under other health coverage) to open or contribute to an HSA.

What are the HSA contribution limits?

In 2026, the combined contributions of you and your employer must be at or below $4,400 for a self-only insurance plan and $8,750 for a family plan. If you’re 55 and older, you can contribute $1,000 more each year. You can make 2026 contributions until tax day, April 15, 2027.

The 2027 HSA contribution limits are higher. The limit is $4,500 for self-coverage and $9,000 for family coverage. You can still contribute an extra $1,000 each year if you’re 55 or older.

How is an HSA different from an FSA?

Both HSAs and FSAs offer tax advantages. You can elect for your employer to defer pretax dollars into the account, and you can withdraw these funds tax-free to cover qualified medical expenses. FSAs and HSAs have some key differences, and even if you qualify for both, the IRS lets you have only one because of their overlapping tax benefits.

What if my company-provided HSA isn’t the best?

Even if it isn’t your first pick, don’t abandon your company-provided HSA. Take advantage of the option to defer pretax dollars to the account, as well as any company match your employer offers. From there, you can periodically transfer money out to your HSA of choice. Assuming the money stays within the HSA, you won’t have to worry about taxes on the transfers.

How We Evaluated the HSA Providers

Our report on the HSA landscape was designed to provide useful information to individuals either enrolled in or considering an HSA. Morningstar evaluates the largest and most popular HSAs available to individuals and also smaller HSAs if their features merit attention. The report does not include HSAs available through employers, as fees in such plans can vary, making comparisons difficult.

Morningstar’s analysts evaluated the providers on two use cases: as spending accounts to cover current medical costs, and as investment accounts to save for future medical expenses. Morningstar scored both account types on a 5-point scale (High, Above Average, Average, Below Average, and Low).

Three factors potentially drive the quality of HSA spending accounts: interest rates, maintenance fees, and additional fees. Morningstar evaluated the spending accounts along two dimensions: maintenance fees (70% weighting) and interest rates (30%). Morningstar weighted each category score and summed it to arrive at an overall score, which was then used to rank the providers.

In assessing HSA investment accounts, Morningstar’s analysts prioritized low, transparent fees; sound investment menus that steer clear of questionable asset classes and limit overlapping positions; high-quality investment strategies that earn Medalist Ratings of Gold, Silver, or Bronze; and no required spending account balance in order to invest. Morningstar scored each investment account on four criteria: price (40% weighting), menu design (20%), quality of investments (20%), and investment threshold (20%). Morningstar weighted and combined each category score to arrive at an overall score and rank the providers.

In our evaluation of each provider, we assumed a $2,500 spending account balance and a $20,000 investment account balance for ease of comparison, and we noted providers whose fees increase or decrease for higher investment amounts.