WASHINGTON—The wrong checking account can cost consumers as much as $755 per year and can have up to 49 different fees, according to the personal-finance website WalletHub’s 2017 Checking Account Cost and Transparency Reports.
The report also states that “surprisingly,” credit unions rank last in terms of checking account transparency, earning a WalletHub Score of 78.57%--versus 83.13% for traditional banks and 92.5% for online-only banks.
WalletHub compared checking accounts from 35 of the country’s largest banks and credit unions to see how costs vary across institutions and usage profiles as well as how difficult it is to find this information online.
Study highlights include:
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The average checking account has approximately 22 total fees, and 66% of accounts have 20-40 different fees
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The average checking account user pays roughly $194 in fees each year
- All consumers can save on everyday banking by gravitating to checking accounts from credit unions and online-only banks, with “cash strapped” consumers able to save the most: up to $387 per year
For the complete Checking Account Cost & Transparency Reports, please visit:
https://wallethub.com/edu/checking-account-cost-comparison-report/6269/