2025 - Where do you bank and why?

[TimRCM]

Schwab as an almost one stop shop for well over a decade now. My direct deposit lands in the checking account, and my brokerage and IRAs there hold 99% of my non-401k assets.

I’ve debated fidelity for better / automated cash sweeps on many occasions, but I can’t get myself to pull the trigger. Apparently my several year old (albeit almost empty) cash management account there is also “risky”, as I recently transferred in $20 as a test and it’s still being held two weeks later. You’d think my old HSA with a couple thousand in it also held there would make them realize I’m not out to scam them for $20, but alas…

Meanwhile Schwab cleared a $30k mobile paper check deposit for me in under 5 minutes last year. The very few times
I’ve ever had to call them have been met with top notch customer service from very knowledgeable reps. I suppose I’m sticking with them forever at this point unless something changes.

[PottedPlant]

We don’t “bank”.
40+ years with a credit union (DCU).

[Fubs]

American Express for business checking. It's a free business checking account with no minimum that pays out 1.3% interest without any monthly activity requirements unlike Bluevine. I went with them mainly because I already had a credit card with them so it was one less login to manage.

Fidelity for primary personal checking and savings. The cash management account (CMA) is not a true checking account, but instead is a brokerage account with check writing and debit card features. Their debit card is one of the best as it offers unlimited ATM fee reimbursement worldwide so long as the ATM is Visa, Star or Pulse. Along with the CMA, I also keep separate brokerage accounts for dedicated savings, T-bills, investments along with a HSA and their 2% Visa credit card. Since they are not a bank, in order to earn interest I keep my uninvested cash in MMFs--namely SPAXX and FDLXX. Their HSA is the best in the industry and their 2% Visa is also one of the best catchall cards as it incurs no foreign transaction fees which synergizes well with their debit.

Discover for checking, savings and credit card. I use them as a backup in case I get locked out of Fidelity. Any online bank would have sufficed for this role, but I already had their credit card so that reduced the need for another login to manage. Furthermore, their checking offers 1% cashback which is useful for the rare times it costs more to pay by credit, such as when I pay my estimated federal taxes.

US Bank for personal checking and credit. I have a checking account here so I can have access to a local branch for the rare times I need to deposit cash or make use of in branch services. Any local credit union could have sufficed, but US Bank is one of the few national banks that waives their checking account fee if you also have their credit card. In this case, I have their US Bank Cash+ card which is also one of the few cards that gives 5% cashback for utilities. I also have a no fee Silver business checking account to give me a local branch to deposit my business cash deposits and to act as a backup to my Amex Business Checking.

Schwab for checking, savings and investments. I could probably consolidate everything into Fidelity, but I kept this because I believe in redundancy. I didn't want to put all my investments at Fidelity in case I get hacked. Also when traveling abroad, it's best not to rely on a single debit card and Schwab's investor checking debit is the best since like Fidelity, it also offers unlimited ATM fee reimbursement worldwide, but without the Visa, Pulse or Star branded ATM requirements. Also, Schwab's solo 401K allows for roth contributions while FIdelity's does not. I don't use their actual savings account, but instead keep my liquid savings in MMFs like SWVXX in the investor checking's linked brokerage account.

Digital Credit Union Savings. They offer 6.17% on balances up to $1000. I just use it like a $1K CD.

Meriwest Credit Union Premier Savings. They offer 5% on balances up to $10K. I use it store a portion of my emergency fund while the rest is in laddered 13-week T-bills at Fidelity.

[Flobes]

I maintain my checking account at a nearby B&M, a local bank with branches scattered among the towns in the region. Checking account is free for anyone older than 50, with a small amount of interest. Hassle-free signature guarantees and bond redemptions. They even sort coins for free. And offer free use of their fax machine.

Very community-centered: rewards for good report cards, funding local celebrations, supporting nonprofits, etc. "Everyone knows your name" casual, with convivial (gossipy) tellers. Free lollipops and dog biscuits (and sometimes donuts!). Nimble response to local emergencies and tragedies. And very supportive of small local businesses.

So I keep my checking account there, as I have for decades, because I live here, and my community deserves a bank that cares and knows who we are.

[anoop]

Well, as Far as banking Goes, there's only one answer for us.

And Wells will even open an account for you without being asked. What service!

It's not unique to Wells.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bank_of_A ... ld_rewards
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JPMorgan_ ... s_by_years

Go to the wikipedia page for any of the big banks and you'll see they have been fined and had lawsuits against them many times.

[bluefish123]

Chase for banking for over 15 years. I do goto a branch a few times a year and customer service is excellent in person. Considering moving to US bank when the current checkbook is low. Is US bank any good? Or might just eat the cost and buy checks from Chase as in the past.

Just opened up Fidelity CMA last year but use it for investing and not much for banking. Working very well with Chase with no issues other than can't get paper statements from Fidelity and online statements are a mess with all my accounts combined rather than separate statements per account.

Used to have Discover checking and savings for a few years, but closed them to simplify accounts.

[Lastrun]

And Wells will even open an account for you without being asked. What service!

It's not unique to Wells.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bank_of_A ... ld_rewards
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JPMorgan_ ... s_by_years

Go to the wikipedia page for any of the big banks and you'll see they have been fined and had lawsuits against them many times.

As well as many credit unions. Navy Federal, popular in my area, has had two significant actions against them recently. Plenty of complaints against CUs if you search the CFPB database. Not just big banks.

[UpperNwGuy]

We don’t “bank”.
40+ years with a credit union (DCU).

I do "bank" at my credit union. My credit union provides checking, savings, high yield savings, certificates of deposit, credit cards, mortgages, auto loans, personal loans, etc. It even has brick and mortar branches. 50+ years for me.

[tj]

American Express for business checking. It's a free business checking account with no minimum that pays out 1.3% interest without any monthly activity requirements unlike Bluevine. I went with them mainly because I already had a credit card with them so it was one less login to manage.

Fidelity for primary personal checking and savings. The cash management account (CMA) is not a true checking account, but instead is a brokerage account with check writing and debit card features. Their debit card is one of the best as it offers unlimited ATM fee reimbursement worldwide so long as the ATM is Visa, Star or Pulse. Along with the CMA, I also keep separate brokerage accounts for dedicated savings, T-bills, investments along with a HSA and their 2% Visa credit card. Since they are not a bank, in order to earn interest I keep my uninvested cash in MMFs--namely SPAXX and FDLXX. Their HSA is the best in the industry and their 2% Visa is also one of the best catchall cards as it incurs no foreign transaction fees which synergizes well with their debit.

Discover for checking, savings and credit card. I use them as a backup in case I get locked out of Fidelity. Any online bank would have sufficed for this role, but I already had their credit card so that reduced the need for another login to manage. Furthermore, their checking offers 1% cashback which is useful for the rare times it costs more to pay by credit, such as when I pay my estimated federal taxes.

US Bank for personal checking and credit. I have a checking account here so I can have access to a local branch for the rare times I need to deposit cash or make use of in branch services. Any local credit union could have sufficed, but US Bank is one of the few national banks that waives their checking account fee if you also have their credit card. In this case, I have their US Bank Cash+ card which is also one of the few cards that gives 5% cashback for utilities. I also have a no fee Silver business checking account to give me a local branch to deposit my business cash deposits and to act as a backup to my Amex Business Checking.

Schwab for checking, savings and investments. I could probably consolidate everything into Fidelity, but I kept this because I believe in redundancy. I didn't want to put all my investments at Fidelity in case I get hacked. Also when traveling abroad, it's best not to rely on a single debit card and Schwab's investor checking debit is the best since like Fidelity, it also offers unlimited ATM fee reimbursement worldwide, but without the Visa, Pulse or Star branded ATM requirements. Also, Schwab's solo 401K allows for roth contributions while FIdelity's does not. I don't use their actual savings account, but instead keep my liquid savings in MMFs like SWVXX in the investor checking's linked brokerage account.

Digital Credit Union Savings. They offer 6.17% on balances up to $1000. I just use it like a $1K CD.

Meriwest Credit Union Premier Savings. They offer 5% on balances up to $10K. I use it store a portion of my emergency fund while the rest is in laddered 13-week T-bills at Fidelity.

The DCU gets you $60 ish pre tax per year. The Meriwesr sounds a little interesting. No hoops?

[djshackesq]

I’ve moved from Chase to a large community (or small regional?) bank that has a substantial footprint in my area. I get a good deal with no fees on anything due to a loan I have with them, and while their tech isn’t at Chase level, it’s not bad and I like how every interaction with them has actually been helpful and positive. Also a HYSA with Amex.

EDIT: I left Chase due to bad phone interactions with mistakes made as a result, and WAY too many false positive security locks requiring tedious calls to overseas call centers.

[LilyFleur]

It's not unique to Wells.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bank_of_A ... ld_rewards
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JPMorgan_ ... s_by_years

Go to the wikipedia page for any of the big banks and you'll see they have been fined and had lawsuits against them many times.

As well as many credit unions. Navy Federal, popular in my area, has had two significant actions against them recently. Plenty of complaints against CUs if you search the CFPB database. Not just big banks.

I didn't know about the CFPB database. Not one complaint or censure reported about my credit union. Good to know.

[bltkmt]

Well, as Far as banking Goes, there's only one answer for us.

Same. I have been with them since the First Interstate days. They work for me.

[cbs2002]

I've been with Capital One back to the NetB@nk days...early adopter. As others have noted, it's free, the interface is outstanding, ATMs are widespread, and you can easily open a variety of accounts if you like to segment your accounting.

I only use this for day-to-day money movements. Cash savings are at Vanguard. I've had Cap One do bait-and-switch on interest rates so it's not worth trying to keep track of.

[Dmslax45]

Local credit union is our main checking account bc we’ve been with them forever and have no reason to leave. Brick and mortar bank nearby, access to ATMs, etc.

Schwab as a secondary account because I can link to brokerage for tbills/mmfs for savings, and general investing. Small cash amount left in checking since the reimburse atm fees, free international atm use, and no wire fees.

Pretty happy with this setup

[tj]

I've been with Capital One back to the NetB@nk days...early adopter. As others have noted, it's free, the interface is outstanding, ATMs are widespread, and you can easily open a variety of accounts if you like to segment your accounting.

I only use this for day-to-day money movements. Cash savings are at Vanguard. I've had Cap One do bait-and-switch on interest rates so it's not worth trying to keep track of.

That was before ING direct?

[privateID]

I'm all in on Chase. It started with the credit cards that can offer excellent redemption values if you play the game a bit (a little bit of churning and some great redemptions at partner sites). Then I did the $900 bonus and opened a checking and savings account. I have no need for the savings account, so closed that, but liked Chase so much more than local credit union that I now use their checking account as my main bank. I love having all the branches around. I think the app is pretty good. There's one view where I can see my checking account balance right next to all my bills that will come due in the next 30 days (I even added some other company's credit bills as ebills and they show up too in that view). I usually have plenty in there, but I like that quick view to make sure.

Edit to add: I ate in a restaurant in Manhattan last night and they offered a 5% discount for using cash. I have seen similar cash discounts. If that trend continues, having cash on me will become more of a thing in the future. Chase has so many cash machines everywhere as well as a great app to find the closest one to you (the one from my credit union was horribly slow).

[GoldStar]

I use a regional bank as my hub. No minimums, no fees, free ATM, etc. Everytime I have looked at the large national banks I have found they required large balances and/or had other unnecessary requirements or would revert to fees. Maybe that has changed. But my regional bank is free and easy and has never charged me a fee for anything. I have paired this with Marcus for my HYSA for many years.
I do have a CMA with Fidelity (initially signed up for the ATM card as a backup for international travel) but never really started using them for banking. I like them as a brokerage and for other account types (HSA, 529, 2% back credit card).

[MtnTravel]

There's one view where I can see my checking account balance right next to all my bills that will come due in the next 30 days (I even added some other company's credit bills as ebills and they show up too in that view).

Edit to add: I ate in a restaurant in Manhattan last night and they offered a 5% discount for using cash. I have seen similar cash discounts. If that trend continues, having cash on me will become more of a thing in the future. Chase has so many cash machines everywhere as well as a great app to find the closest one to you (the one from my credit union was horribly slow).

Just curious, how do you access that in the Chase app?

I hope the days of carrying cash around never come back. Even with a 5% discount, handling dirty cash and wrangling loose coins isn't worth it.

[Fubs]

American Express for business checking. It's a free business checking account with no minimum that pays out 1.3% interest without any monthly activity requirements unlike Bluevine. I went with them mainly because I already had a credit card with them so it was one less login to manage.

Fidelity for primary personal checking and savings. The cash management account (CMA) is not a true checking account, but instead is a brokerage account with check writing and debit card features. Their debit card is one of the best as it offers unlimited ATM fee reimbursement worldwide so long as the ATM is Visa, Star or Pulse. Along with the CMA, I also keep separate brokerage accounts for dedicated savings, T-bills, investments along with a HSA and their 2% Visa credit card. Since they are not a bank, in order to earn interest I keep my uninvested cash in MMFs--namely SPAXX and FDLXX. Their HSA is the best in the industry and their 2% Visa is also one of the best catchall cards as it incurs no foreign transaction fees which synergizes well with their debit.

Discover for checking, savings and credit card. I use them as a backup in case I get locked out of Fidelity. Any online bank would have sufficed for this role, but I already had their credit card so that reduced the need for another login to manage. Furthermore, their checking offers 1% cashback which is useful for the rare times it costs more to pay by credit, such as when I pay my estimated federal taxes.

US Bank for personal checking and credit. I have a checking account here so I can have access to a local branch for the rare times I need to deposit cash or make use of in branch services. Any local credit union could have sufficed, but US Bank is one of the few national banks that waives their checking account fee if you also have their credit card. In this case, I have their US Bank Cash+ card which is also one of the few cards that gives 5% cashback for utilities. I also have a no fee Silver business checking account to give me a local branch to deposit my business cash deposits and to act as a backup to my Amex Business Checking.

Schwab for checking, savings and investments. I could probably consolidate everything into Fidelity, but I kept this because I believe in redundancy. I didn't want to put all my investments at Fidelity in case I get hacked. Also when traveling abroad, it's best not to rely on a single debit card and Schwab's investor checking debit is the best since like Fidelity, it also offers unlimited ATM fee reimbursement worldwide, but without the Visa, Pulse or Star branded ATM requirements. Also, Schwab's solo 401K allows for roth contributions while FIdelity's does not. I don't use their actual savings account, but instead keep my liquid savings in MMFs like SWVXX in the investor checking's linked brokerage account.

Digital Credit Union Savings. They offer 6.17% on balances up to $1000. I just use it like a $1K CD.

Meriwest Credit Union Premier Savings. They offer 5% on balances up to $10K. I use it store a portion of my emergency fund while the rest is in laddered 13-week T-bills at Fidelity.

The DCU gets you $60 ish pre tax per year. The Meriwesr sounds a little interesting. No hoops?

No hoops.

Here is the link: https://www.meriwest.com/personal/savin ... ew-members

The only caveat is you need to live in the following state/counties:

https://www.meriwest.com/join-meriwest# ... %20Arizona.

[mrgeeze]

This is an unpopular opinion, but I don't like credit unions. My experience is that their technology is inferior to big banks and more complex transactions (like international wires) can turn into a hassle. Plus, I've never had a problem using my big bank ATM card overseas, but I've been on trips where travel companions could not get their credit union ATM cards to work.

I get why people like credit unions, but I'll be sticking with the commercial banks purely out of convenience.

And not all banks fit that description. My USAA account has no minimum balance, I can use almost any ATM in the country for free. The bill-pay service suits my minimal needs. They have never screwed up a single transaction, debit or credit in my account. I can lock down the ATM card and the credit card, neither of which I use frequently, and unlock them with the USAA app if I ever need them.

I too use USAA. Ive been a member for 50 years.
Recently they've been dinged by the Feds for some less than good behaviour.
Part of it seems to be due to the fact they are not making any money?
This may merit a separate thread, but does that bother anyone.
Not the kind of thing I would expect from USAA.

Has me scratching my head

[DukeMBAMS]

I use a local credit union, Communication Federal Credit Union. I’ve been with them for a decade and they’ve always done right by me. I have also tried Navy Federal Credit Union but their transaction processing takes forever so I stopped using them for anything other than loans. I do have a Schwab Investor Checking but it is only to move money into if traveling because of their unlimited ATM rebates.

[quaternion]

"Checking:" Fidelity brokerage account with margin

• ~40 basis points expenses on a money market fund is high, but Fidelity still has the greatest yield of any direct-debit-capable account of which I am aware.
• Free ATM withdrawals via automatic overdraft to a Fidelity CMA.
• Margin is a nice convenience. I don't have to fret about how much cash buffer to keep. If I overlook a bill (say, a new credit card with a different due date), then I just incur a small margin loan. Fidelity's margin rates are high, but not usurious a la big bank overdraft fees. Margin loans of a couple hundred dollars for a day or two come out to a few dimes of interest (compare that to overdraft fees!); however, it seems that Fidelity actually forgives monthly margin loan interest less that $.50 or $1. They only time I actually paid margin interest was when I intentionally took out a loan to buy a high rate I bond by the deadline and before my next paycheck. The margin interest was $5.80.
• Despite the hand-wringing about funds holds in recent months, I never encountered any issue. But, I also rarely deposit paper checks (maybe a couple times in the last five years).

Savings: VUSXX at Vanguard

• Greatest after tax yield (I pay state taxes) of any alternative money market fund or FDIC insured account I know, except GABXX.
• GABXX expenses are one basis point lower than VUSXX, but long term returns seem virtually identical. I doubt it's worth switching brokers (and we sorta like Vanguard, right?)
• If we return to a zero interest rate policy, then I expect to revert to bank / credit union HYSAs that paid more than money market funds in those times.

Cash Deposits: BofA

• BofA's credit card rewards program already requires a checking account.
• BofA has branches everywhere.
• BofA accepts foreign currency deposits (sometimes to much confusion of the teller). A lot (maybe most) of my excess paper currency is foreign bills from international travel. Conversion fees are not great, but definitely less than interest earned for a few years until my text trip to the same nation/zone.

Credit Cards: 80% BofA

• I prefer cash back rewards over worrying how to use points.
• BofA's preferred rewards program offers 5.25% on a surprisingly broad range of spend.
• A few other cards from other banks fill out when the higher BofA rates don't apply.

Other Loans: N/A for now

[MtnTravel]

[*] Greatest after tax yield (I pay state taxes) of any alternative money market fund or FDIC insured account I know, except GABXX.
[*] GABXX expenses are one basis point lower than VUSXX, but long term returns seem virtually identical. I doubt it's worth switching brokers (and we sorta like Vanguard, right?)

Is GABXX available at one of the discount brokerages for free?

[indexfundfan]

[*] Greatest after tax yield (I pay state taxes) of any alternative money market fund or FDIC insured account I know, except GABXX.
[*] GABXX expenses are one basis point lower than VUSXX, but long term returns seem virtually identical. I doubt it's worth switching brokers (and we sorta like Vanguard, right?)

Is GABXX available at one of the discount brokerages for free?

At Etrade.

Also available at US Bancorp Investments (investment arm of US Bank) for those doing the US Bank 4% cashback credit card..

[Careful]

This is an unpopular opinion, but I don't like credit unions. My experience is that their technology is inferior to big banks and more complex transactions (like international wires) can turn into a hassle. Plus, I've never had a problem using my big bank ATM card overseas, but I've been on trips where travel companions could not get their credit union ATM cards to work.

I get why people like credit unions, but I'll be sticking with the commercial banks purely out of convenience.

And not all banks fit that description. My USAA account has no minimum balance, I can use almost any ATM in the country for free. The bill-pay service suits my minimal needs. They have never screwed up a single transaction, debit or credit in my account. I can lock down the ATM card and the credit card, neither of which I use frequently, and unlock them with the USAA app if I ever need them.

USAA is not a credit union, though. It is membership based. And the ATM rebates are now capped at $10 a month.

[PatrickA5]

Chase for checking. Attached JPMorgan brokerage for Vanguard MM funds and Premium Deposit Account (similar to a savings account currently paying 3.6%). Also have some Chase credit cards.

Fidelity for all IRAs and brokerage. I have a CMA account that I can use in a pinch if I needed to write a really big check or something by moving money from brokerage. Fidelity credit card where 99% of our charges go.

For a while, we had Fidelity as a one-stop-shop, but decided to split banking from brokerage.

[jebmke]

And not all banks fit that description. My USAA account has no minimum balance, I can use almost any ATM in the country for free. The bill-pay service suits my minimal needs. They have never screwed up a single transaction, debit or credit in my account. I can lock down the ATM card and the credit card, neither of which I use frequently, and unlock them with the USAA app if I ever need them.

USAA is not a credit union, though. It is membership based. And the ATM rebates are now capped at $10 a month.

I don't think membership is required to use the banking; insurance yes. The ATM cap is not a practical limit for me. I use the ATM maybe twice a year. If someone is using a lot of currency, it may not be a good solution, especially since it has no physical locations. If I used a lot of currency I'd use a physical location and pull out large amounts at once to save having to repeatedly tap the account..

[privateID]

There's one view where I can see my checking account balance right next to all my bills that will come due in the next 30 days (I even added some other company's credit bills as ebills and they show up too in that view).

Edit to add: I ate in a restaurant in Manhattan last night and they offered a 5% discount for using cash. I have seen similar cash discounts. If that trend continues, having cash on me will become more of a thing in the future. Chase has so many cash machines everywhere as well as a great app to find the closest one to you (the one from my credit union was horribly slow).

Just curious, how do you access that in the Chase app?

I hope the days of carrying cash around never come back. Even with a 5% discount, handling dirty cash and wrangling loose coins isn't worth it.

I don't see it in the app. I actually made a suggestion for it. It's when I log onto the website that I see it. On the website, I first click on "Pay & transfer" and then 'Pay bills & send money with Zelle".

[Careful]

USAA is not a credit union, though. It is membership based. And the ATM rebates are now capped at $10 a month.

I don't think membership is required to use the banking; insurance yes. The ATM cap is not a practical limit for me. I use the ATM maybe twice a year. If someone is using a lot of currency, it may not be a good solution, especially since it has no physical locations. If I used a lot of currency I'd use a physical location and pull out large amounts at once to save having to repeatedly tap the account..

You actually do have to be eligible to bank with them. I bank with them. Eligible through spouse’s father. We were not eligible for insurance until his father moved his insurance to USAA:

https://www.usaa.com/join/get-started/

I mention the ATM rebate cap because it used to be $15. So far it’s been a non-issue for me but it could be in some international trip where ATM fees are high and cash is required. I’m thinking of getting a backup card for overseas cash needs like Fidelity or Schwab.

[tj]

I don't think membership is required to use the banking; insurance yes. The ATM cap is not a practical limit for me. I use the ATM maybe twice a year. If someone is using a lot of currency, it may not be a good solution, especially since it has no physical locations. If I used a lot of currency I'd use a physical location and pull out large amounts at once to save having to repeatedly tap the account..

You actually do have to be eligible to bank with them. I bank with them. Eligible through spouse’s father. We were not eligible for insurance until his father moved his insurance to USAA:

https://www.usaa.com/join/get-started/

I mention the ATM rebate cap because it used to be $15. So far it’s been a non-issue for me but it could be in some international trip where ATM fees are high and cash is required. I’m thinking of getting a backup card for overseas cash needs like Fidelity or Schwab.

In the past, you didn't. Now you do again.

[Dufus]

I had a number of CU accounts, along with Ally, and Cap One when I was chasing rates while building a 5% plus CD Ladder. As I've been unwinding the ladder, I've been closing any accounts not local.

Currently, it's mostly between Fidelity and my main local credit union. I've been doing treasuries rather than CDs.

[Da5id]

I use Citizens. It is nothing special, but has an ATM in my supermarket. And I've been there forever so inertia. And it is linked to my Treasury Direct account and I'm afraid to change it.