With more and more national banks vying for your hard-earned cash, it can be tough to choose which bank is best for you.
Every bank has its pros and cons, so we evaluated the best nationwide banks and today’s current promotions to help you choose, no matter where you live across the US.
14 Best National Banks
Here are the top 14 nationwide banks for 2023:
- Chase Bank
- CIT Bank
- Discover Bank
- NBKC
- PNC Bank
- Wells Fargo
- Ally
- Barclays
- CitiBank
- Bank of America
- TD Bank
- US Bank
- Capital One
- Huntington Bank
1. Chase Bank
🏆 Best Overall
As the largest bank in the US, you’d expect Chase to have a lot to offer, and it does. Its credit cards perennially have some of the best perks you’ll find anywhere, and they have impressive options for personal and business checking.
One of the things that attract people to Chase is its incredible sign-up bonuses. In addition to its highly lucrative sign-up bonuses for credit cards, Chase regularly offers sizable cash bonuses for its checking and savings accounts.
Many of today’s banks are online, but if you prefer physical branches, Chase is also suitable for that. They have more than 4,700 branches and 16,000 Chase ATMs.
The biggest strike against Chase could be that they don’t offer any high-yield checking or savings accounts. Its basic checking account earns no interest at all, and savings accounts only have 0.01% APY.
Still, there’s a lot that is good about Chase, as Chase Credit Cards have fantastic benefits that you may not be able to find elsewhere.
Learn More:
- Current Chase Bank Promotions
- Read our full Chase Bank Review
2. CIT Bank
CIT bank offers checking accounts, savings accounts, CDs, and money-market accounts.
CIT Bank has excellent savings rates with several accounts. We primarily see this with the Savings Builder and Savings Connect accounts, which offer rates that are slightly higher than most other institutions
Interest rates on its money market and some of its CDs have higher interest rates than you’ll typically see elsewhere. Home loans and mortgages are also available.
Learn More:
- Read our full CIT Bank Review
3. Discover Bank
If you were under the impression that Discover is a credit card and nothing else, you would be mistaken. Discover actually has a full suite of banking products, much like the other banks on this list.
Yes, with Discover, you’ll have access to online banking (checking, money-market, CD, etc.), personal loans, and even student loans. Home equity lines of credit (HELOC) are also available. You also gain access to over 60,000 fee-free ATMs with their checking accounts.
One of the only things missing from this picture is business banking, which Discover does not offer. Still, their online savings accounts, money market accounts, and CDs have competitive to excellent interest rates, and their website has a friendly interface. They are certainly worth a look.
Learn More:
- Current Discover Bank Promotions
- Read our full Discover Bank Review
4. nbkc bank
The National Bank of Kansas City is a national bank that’s mostly online, but they do have four branches in the Kansas City area if you happen to live there.
The main banking products nbkc bank offers are personal and business checking, home loans, and business and personal credit cards. Their personal checking and money-market accounts offer high-interest rates, with the checking account rates being much higher than you would typically see.
Personal checking accounts require a $5 minimum deposit to open, but there is no minimum balance after that. Currently, you can use over 32,000 ATMs fee-free, and there are no overdraft fees.
There is a lot to like about the things nbkc offers, even though you may have never heard of them.
5. PNC Bank
Fresh off the heels of its merger with BBVA, PNC has a solid national presence when it comes to brick-and-mortar locations.
PNC operates in 21 states across 2,300 locations — making it one of the biggest national banks in the country.
PNC’s Virtual Wallet is one of its most popular products. It’s a bundle of accounts, including: checking, short-term savings, and long-term savings accounts all included in the same package.
6. Wells Fargo
Speaking of banks with a lot of branches, Wells Fargo takes the cake on this one. With roughly 4,700 branches (as of 2022), Wells Fargo has by far the most. They also have over 13,000 ATMs.
All of Wells Fargo’s checking accounts have monthly fees ($10-$30), but those fees can be avoided within reason. For example, with the lowest-tier account, you can avoid the fee by having ten or more debit card transactions or direct deposits totaling $500 or more per month.
You also have access to all of the other standard banking products, such as credit cards, loans, and investing. Thus, Wells Fargo has a lot to offer, especially if you prefer having a physical location nearby.
7. Ally
Ally is an online-only bank that has become more popular in recent years. You’ll have access to all of the typical banking products through Ally, such as checking, savings, auto, and home loans, and investing.
One of the main reasons people are drawn to Ally is the high-interest rate it offers on its savings accounts. Their rates are much higher than brick-and-mortar banks traditionally provided. Many online banks are catching on now, though.
Interest on Ally checking is modest but still higher than interest rates of the past. Also, there are no monthly fees and no minimum balance required. And although the bank is online-only, you do gain access to 43,000+ Allpoint ATMs, making it convenient to withdraw cash.
Learn More:
- Read our full Ally Bank Review
8. Barclays
Unlike the other banks on this list, Barclays is a global bank. Based in London, England, Barclays is popular in the UK and the US alike.
Barclays doesn’t offer quite the breadth of banking products of some other banks (no checking accounts, for example), but what they do offer is solid. Perhaps most attractive are their credit cards, which have some very lucrative sign-up bonuses, and their online savings, with interest rates among the best in the industry.
Learn More:
- Read our full Barclays Bank Review
9. Citibank
Citi has a lot to offer – though not everyone will be able to take advantage. For instance, they have sign-up bonuses for some of their checking accounts, but all of them have monthly fees. It’s possible to avoid the fee, but only at certain monthly balances – the lowest of which is $1,500.
And given that their checking account interest rates are under 0.05%, you may not want to keep so much cash in your checking; however, their Citi Accelerate Savings product is over 1% APY.
Citi does offer some nice products anyone can appreciate, such as the Citi Double Cash card. And you’ll find CDs, IRAs, and lending and investment products here, too.
10. Bank of America
Although Bank of America’s branch footprint has shrunk significantly due in large part to mobile banking, there are still over 4,000 of them nationally. That’s fewer than Chase has now, but there’s still likely to be a branch near you.
Bank of America also has excellent customer support; you can call them from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. 7 days a week. Plus, you can message them on Facebook or Twitter at any time.
That said, interest rates on their checking and savings accounts are quite low. There are monthly fees on their checking, which can be avoided, but only if you have at least a $10,000 balance.
11. TD Bank
TD Bank offers comprehensive banking services, with checking and savings accounts, investing options, loans, and credit cards for personal and business use.
It also ranked third in the 2021 J.D. Power National Banking Satisfaction Survey.
TD Bank prides itself on making banking convenient. There are more than 1,100 branches and over 700 ATMs, which is pretty impressive, but TD Bank’s hours stand out the most.
While most national banks close their doors on the weekends, most TD Bank locations are open on Saturdays and Sundays, and you can access their ATMs 24/7. If you prefer to do your banking online, TD’s online and mobile banking experiences are solid, too.
Learn More:
12. US Bank
If you live in the West, Midwest, Florida, or North Carolina, U.S. Bank is definitely worth considering. It has over 2,000 branches and around 5,000 ATMs.
One of its biggest advantages is its flexible lineup of account options. You can choose from 5 checking accounts, 5 savings accounts, 3 CDs with competitive rates, and several credit cards.
It also has the other products you can expect from a large national bank, like loans, investment options, wealth management resources, and business banking.
US Bank ranked among the nation’s top banks in J.D. Power’s 2022 U.S. Banking Mobile App Satisfaction Study, so you can count on a streamlined mobile experience, too.
13. Capital One
Capital One doesn’t have as many branches as some of its competitors, with 755 locations, but its mobile platform is unmatched, ranking first in J.D. Power’s annual study.
But there’s more to Capital One than a great app. It also makes the list for its competitive interest rates on its 360 Performance Savings account and 360 Checking account, both of which are fee-free.
Capital One also has a pretty unique perk with its Capital One Cafés. There are over 40 of these locations that offer full-service banking in a laid-back coffee shop setting.
Capital One Cafés are open to anyone but offer 50% off for Capital One cardholders and give you access to Capital One Ambassadors and 1:1 financial mentoring sessions.
14. Huntington Bank
Huntington offers a variety of banking products so you can pick one that matches your needs.
They offer three different checking accounts:
- Asterisk-Free
- Huntington 5
- Huntington 25
None require a minimum balance, but each has different bells and whistles. However, the 5 and 25 accounts have monthly fees that match their names ($5 and $25).
Huntington also offers investing, borrowing, and insurance products for personal accounts. On the business side, they have banking, loans, treasury management, and insurance.
Methodology
To determine the best national banks, we evaluated several institutions and rated them based on the following factors:
- Third-party ratings: We factor in third-party ratings from sources like the BBB, J.D. Power’s Banking Mobile App Satisfaction Survey, and the J.D. Power U.S. Retail Banking Satisfaction Survey to assess each bank’s reputation with customers.
- Products: We also look at each bank’s product lineup, factoring in how many checking, savings, lending, and investment products are on offer.
- Account features: To gauge how competitive the products are, we compare features like their fees, account minimums, APY, and welcome bonuses.
- User experience: Additionally, we look into each bank’s online experience, mobile app, customer service availability, and online tools and resources and look at customer reviews and industry studies.
- Branches and ATM locations: We look into each bank’s availability to see how many brick-and-mortar bank and ATM locations there are and take their business hours into account.
FAQs
Who Is The Best Nationwide Bank?
The best nationwide bank, in terms of having a physical presence, has to be Chase.
Chase has over 5,000 branches and over 16,000 ATMs. In addition, many of Chase’s credit cards have some of the best sign-up bonuses and travel perks in the banking industry. Even their checking accounts regularly have nice sign-up bonuses.
The most significant thing Chase is lacking is checking/savings accounts with high-interest rates. If that is something you have to have, you may want to look elsewhere.
Which Banks Are All Over The United States?
Bank of America, Chase, and Wells Fargo easily have the largest U.S. presence of any of the best banks in terms of brick-and-mortar locations.
These three banks have a combined 17,000+ branches and 45,000+ ATMs nationwide. If you are looking for a bank with brick-and-mortar locations, any of these banks are likely to have them in your area.
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