Martin Lewis shares 'unbeatable' savings account with 'jaw-dropping' 50% returns

has urged thousands of people to check if they can open a Government-backed account offering a "jaw-dropping" 50% return. Help to Save is a savings account offered to people on low incomes who receive the Department for Work and Pensions () benefit.

Savers can deposit between £1 and £50 each month, earning an extra 50 pence for every £1 saved - effectively a 50% interest rate. The Money Saving Expert founder took to the to explain how it works, as nearly half a million more people qualify for the account . Mr Lewis said: "There is an unbeatable savings product that gives you a jaw-dropping 50% boost on what you save in it. It's called Help to Save. An extra 550,000 people are now eligible to open a Help to Save account, bringing the total to 2.7 million."

Explaining eligibility "in a nutshell", Mr Lewis said: "You have to be on Universal Credit, working, and have earned at least £1 in the last month. Then, you can open a Help to Save account. The big change is that you used to have to have earned at least £793. Now it's just £1. So, many more people are eligible for it."

Crucially, the savings expert noted that you only have to meet the eligibility criteria to open the product. If things change, you can still keep it.

Mr Lewis said: "As soon as you're eligible, you should open one. Even if you stop being on Universal Credit, you could still keep the product once it's open."

Mr Lewis explained how it works, detailing that you can save up to £50 per month into the account, which you open through He said: "It's a state-sponsored savings account, and you can keep saving in it for up to two years. At the end of two years, you get a 50% bonus on the highest amount that you had in the account."

He continued: "Let me talk you through a scenario. Let's say you save £50 every month, and you did that until you had £800 in the account. Then, due to a family emergency, you have to take all the money out. And after that, the cost of living means you can't put any more in. You get to the end of the two years, and you've got nothing in Help to Save.

"What happens? The 50% bonus is on the most that you had in. The most you had was £800. The fact that you have nothing in now is irrelevant. 50% of 800 is 400, so you would get a bonus of £400."

After the first two years, you can start the process again. By continuing to deposit £50 a month, you'll earn another 50% bonus at the end of the next two years, based on the highest amount you saved during each of the two-year periods.

Mr Lewis said: "If you were lucky enough to be able to max it out for the entire four years, then you would be getting a bonus of £1,200. You'd have to have put £2,400 in, and you'd have a total of £3,600."

He added: "I have long supported Help to Save and I'm delighted to see it's available for more people. The big thing for me is having savings builds resilience.

"I hope this encourages you to do a little bit more research into Help to Save, double-check if you're eligible, and if you are, open one, get your money in and hopefully get a big bonus."

The Help to Save account closes four years after it is opened, and savers will not be able to reopen it or open another one.