AIB gives the best rate (7.1%) for smaller savings of between 10 and 300 a month.

For larger amounts EBS and Anglo Irish Bank offer 7% on monthly deposits up to 1,000.

Irish Nationwide offers a fixed rate of 4.64% fixed APR over two years on sums above 20,000.

BEST CREDIT CARDS

NIB gives some of the best credit card deals to its own customers with a rate of 9.4% for its MasterCard Gold card.

For a less exclusive flexible friend go to Halifax whose purchase-rate is just 9.5% after six months at 0%. Halifax's cash rate is also competitive at 11.2%

BEST CURRENT ACCOUNTS

Pay your salary or 1,500 a month into a Halifax current account and you can earn 10% interest on your balance up to 2,000. There are no transaction fees and Halifax also has the best overdraft rate at 9.43%.

BEST SAFE PLACE FOR YOUR SSIA LUMP SUM

First Active's eSavings internet account gives the best value for SSIA savers with a rate of 5.22% on amounts up to 15,000 and 4.07% on amounts up to 1m.

BEST PERSONAL LOAN

The cheapest money in Ireland can be had from First Active which charges 6.8%interest on loans between 2,000 and 30,000.

Tesco also offers a competitive 6.9% interest rate.

BEST STOCKBROKING CHARGES

Sharewatch charges 60 a year and 0.3% commission per online trade for buying and selling Irish shares. The minimum charge is 20.

For a more traditional institution try NIB's e-banking where fees start at 75.

For international trading check out "rsttrade. com or etrade. com where fees start at $7 .

BEST MORTGAGE SWITCHER

NIB's mortgage switcher rates go between 0.5 and 0.59 points above the ECB interest rate. For a mortgage at 60% of the value of your home, it can be a big saving.

NIB also doesn't penalise you if you switch again.

Halifax offers better value for higher loan-to-value ratios.

BEST FIXED-RATE MORTGAGES

BOI will give you a fixed rate of 4.79% on the first two years of a mortgage. For a five-year fixed rate go to Halifax whose APR is 5.43% over that term.