CIT Bank Review 2023
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At a glance
CDs
Checking
Savings
MMA
About Bankrate Score
Overview
CIT Bank is a great choice for customers looking for savings accounts and CDs that pay above-average yields as well as an interest-bearing checking account at an online bank.
Highlights
- ATM Fee Refunds
- Top Saving Rate
Offers featured here have been sponsored by our partners, which impacts how, where, and in what order the products appear.
APY, or annual percentage yield, is the yearly return on a bank or investment account.
APY, or annual percentage yield, is the yearly return on a bank or investment account.
Bankrate Savings rating = 4.9/5
Bankrate scores are objectively determined by our editorial team. Our scoring formula weighs several factors consumers should consider when choosing financial products and services.
APY, or annual percentage yield, is the yearly return on a bank or investment account.
APY, or annual percentage yield, is the yearly return on a bank or investment account.
Bankrate Savings rating = 4.7/5
Bankrate scores are objectively determined by our editorial team. Our scoring formula weighs several factors consumers should consider when choosing financial products and services.
APY, or annual percentage yield, is the yearly return on a bank or investment account.
APY, or annual percentage yield, is the yearly return on a bank or investment account.
Bankrate Savings rating = 4.7/5
Bankrate scores are objectively determined by our editorial team. Our scoring formula weighs several factors consumers should consider when choosing financial products and services.
Overall
CIT Bank is an online institution that offers competitive annual percentage yields (APYs) on its Savings Connect savings account and some of its CDs. It also offers an interest-earning checking account, a money market account and CDs.
While interest rates are competitive for some CDs, other CDs and the money market accounts have a less competitive rate. But customers won’t have to worry about high fees eating into their deposits, since the bank doesn’t charge many fees, including a monthly service fee or an overdraft fee.
Pros
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CIT offers competitive yields on its savings and some of its CD accounts.
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There are no monthly fees for any accounts.
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The checking account earns interest.
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Customers get up to $30 in ATM surcharges reimbursed per month.
Cons
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Some of the APYs for CDs fall below the national average for their respective terms.
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The bank doesn’t have physical branch locations.
CIT Bank banking products
CIT Bank savings overview
You only need $100 to open this savings account, and it has no monthly maintenance fee.
CIT Bank also offers its Savings Builder account. This account has a much lower APY but still yields more than the national average for savings accounts. Savings Builder is a little more complex, since you need to have at least a $25,000 monthly balance or recurring deposits of $100 or more every month to earn this APY. The account doesn’t have a monthly service fee.
Pros
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The Savings Connect account offers a top-tier yield.
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The Savings Builder can motivate you to save since you need to deposit $100 each month in order to get the top APY.
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There are no monthly fees for either the Savings Connect or the Savings Builder account.
Cons
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To earn the higher APY on the Savings Builder savings account, you need to either maintain a steep minimum balance or deposit $100 or more each month.
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Compared with other savings accounts at online banks, the Savings Builder doesn’t offer a competitive APY.
Offers featured here have been sponsored by our partners, which impacts how, where, and in what order the products appear.
APY, or annual percentage yield, is the yearly return on a bank or investment account.
APY, or annual percentage yield, is the yearly return on a bank or investment account.
Bankrate Savings rating = 4.9/5
Bankrate scores are objectively determined by our editorial team. Our scoring formula weighs several factors consumers should consider when choosing financial products and services.
Bank fees
| Fee | Charged? |
|---|---|
| Overdraft fee | None |
| Non-sufficient funds fee | None |
| Monthly maintenance fee | None |
| Out-of-network ATM fee | None |
| Excessive transaction fee | None |
| Returned deposit item fee | $10 |
About CIT
CIT Bank, an online bank founded in 2009, became a division of First Citizens Bank when the two merged in January 2022. The bank offers a range of deposit accounts — including a top-yielding savings account — as well as home loans.
Bank experience
CIT Bank’s mobile banking app takes care of the basics, such as letting you check your transaction history and transfer funds between your CIT Bank accounts. The app also allows you to make mobile check deposits.
CIT Bank had earned a 4.6 rating on iOS and a 3.4 rating on Google Play from users as of Bankrate’s review of the bank.
CIT has no branches, but customers can reach a customer service representative by phone 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Eastern time weekdays and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern.
The bank works with a Community Advisory Board to provide investments and services to communities in Southern California. Nearly half of the bank’s grants have gone toward economic development and affordable housing in the Southern California region.
How does CIT Bank compare to other banks?
CIT Bank vs. Citizens Bank
While CIT Bank is online-only, Citizens Bank might be a good fit for someone living in the Eastern U.S. who wants access to branches and a fee-free ATM network. However, one of the benefits of banking with an online bank like CIT Bank is that you can get much higher yields. CIT Bank offers a very competitive yield on its Savings Connect account and even offers a decent yield on its checking account; savers will not get the same boost at Citizens Bank.
Another factor to consider is fees. CIT Bank charges few fees. Meanwhile, Citizens Bank’s checking account comes with a lofty overdraft fee and out-of-network ATM fee — neither of which are charged at all by CIT Bank.
CIT Bank FAQs
Review methodology
We assign a score to each type of account and its features, weigh them carefully based on importance to account holders and determine an overall score. Read our full review methodology.
