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CIT Bank Review 2021
Member FDIC
Savings account
Member FDIC
CD
Member FDIC
CD
Member FDIC
Checking account
Member FDIC
Checking account
Overall
4.3
Bankrate Score
CIT Bank is an online bank that offers competitive annual percentage yields (APYs) on its savings accounts. CIT Bank also offers a checking account and a money market account.
What we like
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CIT offers competitive yields on its savings and CD accounts.
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There are no monthly fees for savings accounts.
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The checking account earns interest.
What we don't
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The APYs for CDs are not the very best available nationally.
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The bank doesn’t have physical branch locations.
Savings accounts
4.0
Bankrate Score
Member FDIC
Savings account
CIT Bank’s Savings Builder account offers a competitive yield. However, there are requirements in order to earn the payout: You can either keep $25,000 in the account or you can deposit $100 into the account and continue to deposit $100 or more every month to get a top-tier APY.
There are no monthly fees.
What we like
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The account offers a competitive rate.
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The Savings Builder can motivate you to save by forcing you to deposit $100 each month in order to get the top APY.
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There are no monthly fees.
What we don't
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The minimum balance is steep (if you don’t deposit $100 or more each month).
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You can find higher yields at some other banks.
Money market accounts
4.3
Bankrate Score
The yield on the bank’s money market account is competitive. There’s no monthly fee on this account and you get the top APY on any balance. It only requires $100 to open the account, making it a good option for most savers.
What we like
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The APY is competitive.
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There is no monthly fee.
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There is only a $100 minimum balance.
What we don't
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There are higher money market account APYs out there.
CD rates
3.8
Bankrate Score
Member FDIC
CD
New CIT Bank customers have access to standard CDs, jumbo CDs and a no-penalty CD. Standard CDs require minimum opening deposits of $1,000. The yield is higher than the national average, but you can still find higher APYS elsewhere if you shop around.
What we like
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The bank offers a wide variety of terms.
What we don't
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Other online banks pay higher yields.
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You can find CDs with lower minimum balance requirements.
Checking accounts
4.6
Bankrate Score
Member FDIC
Checking account
CIT Bank offers an interest-bearing checking account. As long as you deposit $100 into the account, you will earn interest. But you need to keep a minimum balance of $25,000 to earn the highest APY.
There is no fee to use out-of-network ATMs.
What we like
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It offers a top APY.
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There are no monthly fees.
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There is no fee to use out-of-network ATMs.
What we don't
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The minimum deposit to open the account is $100; some online banks are free to open an account.
Bank experience
The mobile banking app takes care of the basics, such as letting you check your transaction history and transfer funds between your CIT Bank accounts.
While you won’t be able to use a branch, CIT’s customer service hours are decent. You can reach the bank via the phone from 9 a.m. until 9 p.m. Eastern on weekdays. You can also reach a human on Saturday, but with reduced hours. You can also access your account 24/7 online or by using CIT's automated telephone banking system.
About CIT Bank
CIT Bank is the internet-based bank that is part of CIT Bank, N.A., the principal banking subsidiary of CIT Group, Inc. – a financial holding company founded in 1908. CIT Bank, N.A. was founded in 2009.
CIT Bank, N.A. and OneWest Bank, which is a division of CIT Bank, N.A., are under the same FDIC insurance.
CIT Bank is known for offering a top-tier APY on its Savings Builder account.
Mary Wisniewski @MARYMWISNIEWSKI
Mary Wisniewski is a banking editor for Bankrate. She oversees editorial coverage of savings and mobile banking articles as well as personal finance courses. She occasionally writes on fintech trends — a beat she has covered for more than a decade. Mary is a frequent speaker at a variety of leading digital banking events and podcasts, including: Money Next Summit, the Money Experience Summit, the Future of Fintech, Fintech South, Breaking Banks and more. She was named as one of 200 revolutionists in fintech and one of top 100 fintech influencers in 2019. She was also a judge for the Finovate Awards in 2020 and 2019. Previously, Mary covered fintech for American Banker and edited op-eds for the publication's BankThink section. She was also a blogger and editor at Bank Innovation and served as a fashion editor for National Jeweler, where she reported on fashion shows and jewelry news. Her work has appeared in American Banker, Bankrate, the Associated Press, Star Tribune, Billboard, MSN and more. Her stories are referenced in numerous industry reports, like this one by Deloitte. Mary grew up in the Michigan suburbs and now lives in Los Angeles with a maltipoo, a record player and roller skates.
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