EL SEGUNDO, Calif.–Despite the economic uncertainty created by the pandemic, a majority of Americans say they’re happy with their financial institution even though most also say they could be getting better rates and lower fees, according to a new survey.
The new GoBankingRates’ survey found an overwhelming 90% of Americans are currently satisfied with their banking products, with 89% of Americans saying they have not even considered changing banks in the past year, a finding that is similar across all age groups.
The new survey is separate from another survey conducted by GoBankingRates, a comprehensive analysis of more than 4,300 data points across 120 American banks, that identified what it said were the best banks and credit unions. BestBankingRates.com named Navy Federal, Alliant CU, Delta Community, SECU, Eastman CU, Lake Michigan CU, Wright-Patt CU, Wings Financial, Golden 1, America First, United Nations FCU, Hudson Valley CU, DCU, Patelco, Bellco, Ent, Randolph-Brooks FCU, BECU, Space Coast CU and American Airlines CU as the nation’s best.
According to GoBankingRates, there are several reasons for the strong satisfaction by Americans with their financial institutions, the biggest of which is the lack of information about how much banks differ from each other, including in terms of APY rates and minimum deposits.
“There is a stigma around banking that it is overly complicated and that it would just be too much of a hassle to change,” says Andrew Murray, content data researcher at GOBankingRates. “So even if [customers] are dissatisfied with their banking choices, they’d rather just stay put than go through a process they believe to be long and difficult.”
The Findings
The survey found:
- 37.36% use national banks, such as Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo and US Bank
- 24.18% used local banks (banks located in four states or less)
- 20.28% use credit unions
- 9.79% use online banks
- 8.39% use regional banks
By age group, the survey found the users of online banks include
- 10.47% of those age 18-24
- 15.18% of those 25-34
- 11.18% of those 35-44
- 11.2% of those 45-54
- 4.19% of those 65 and older
No Surprise
Following the same trend, GoBanking Rates said it’s also not surprising to see that younger generations favor mobile banking (via an app) with 42.93% favoring this method for the 18-24 age group; 43.46% for the 25-34 age group; 33.54% for the 35-44 age group. The figure falls to 29.6% for the 45 to 54 age group; 16.9% for the 55-64 age group and 8.38% for the 65 and over.
“The split in old vs. young when it comes to banking with an app or banking in person at a branch just comes down to who was raised in which era and with what technology,” GOBankingRates associate researcher Julia O’Brien says.
In terms of the key feature people would change in their banks, most people say that lower fees are on the top of their list when opening a bank account, GoBankingRates reported, noting this feature is the top priority, with 25.67% of respondents across all age groups.
Other Important Features
Other important features when opening a new bank account include accessibility (locations, comprehensive mobile banking) with 21.18%; good rates, 20.98%; 24/7 customer service, with 12.49%; low minimum deposit requirement with 10.49%; and the variety of accounts, services or products offered with 8.79%.
GoBankingRates said the survey found that while a majority of respondents (61%) said they would not have different types of accounts across multiple banks, that sentiment varied widely by age group. The survey found a resounding “no” for the 25 to 34 age range at 70.68%, while the 35 to 44 and 45 to 54 age groups are much closer to 50-50.