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CIT Bank Review 2023

Updated September 14, 2023
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At a glance

4.6
Rating: 4.6 stars out of 5
Bankrate Score
Caret Down

CDs

Rating: 4.8 stars out of 5

Checking

Rating: 4.7 stars out of 5

Savings

Rating: 4.9 stars out of 5

MMA

Rating: 3.8 stars out of 5

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. But you must be comfortable solely banking online to earn those yields.

Highlights

  • ATM Fee Refunds
  • Top Savings Rate
Compare offers
Info
Bank logo
Member FDIC
Savings Account
5.05
%
APY
APY
Info
As of 9/25/2023
Rating: 4.9 stars out of 5
$5000
Min. balance for APY
View offer Arrow Right
Promoted offer: CIT Bank, a division of First Citizens, 125+ years of experience.
Bank logo
Member FDIC
Savings Account
4.50
%
APY
APY
Info
As of 9/25/2023
Rating: 5 stars out of 5
$0
Min. balance for APY
View offer Arrow Right
Promoted offer: No account fees & earn up to $250 w/ direct deposit. Terms apply.
Bank logo
Member FDIC
Savings Account
4.50
%
APY
APY
Info
As of 9/25/2023
Rating: 5 stars out of 5
$0
Min. balance for APY
View offer Arrow Right
Promoted offer: Plus, no monthly fees and unlimited free external transfers

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 various types of 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

  • Checkmark

    CIT offers competitive yields on its savings and some of its CD accounts.

  • Checkmark

    There are no monthly fees for any accounts.

  • Checkmark

    The checking account earns interest.

  • Checkmark

    Customers get up to $30 in ATM surcharges reimbursed per month.

Cons

  • Some of the APYs for CDs fall below the national average for their respective terms.

  • The bank doesn’t have physical branch locations.

CIT Bank banking products

4.9
/5
Rating: 4.9 stars out of 5
See methodology Compare savings rates

SCORE BREAKDOWN

APY offering:
5.05%
Rating: 5 stars out of 5
5/5
Info
Minimum balance to earn interest:
$50.00
Rating: 5 stars out of 5
5/5
Info
Monthly service fee:
$0.00
Rating: 5 stars out of 5
5/5
Info
Minimum balance to avoid fee:
$0.00
Rating: 5 stars out of 5
5/5
Info
Access to funds:
Above Average
Rating: 4 stars out of 5
4/5
Info

FEATURES

Invest Rate
5.05% APY
Info
Loan
$5,000 minimum deposit to open

CIT Bank savings overview

CIT Bank’s Savings Connect account is the bank’s highest-yielding savings account, and its rate is highly competitive.

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

  • Checkmark

    The Savings Connect account offers a top-tier yield.

  • Checkmark

    The Savings Builder can motivate you to save since you need to deposit $100 each month in order to get the top APY.

  • Checkmark

    There are no monthly fees for either the Savings Connect or the Savings Builder account.

Cons

  • 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.

  • Compared with other savings accounts at online banks, the Savings Builder doesn’t offer a competitive APY.

  • See how rates for this account have changed over time. Interact with the trend lines to view APY by date.

    CIT Bank
    APY
    APY
    Info
    National average APY
    See table view
    How do we get this data?
    Info
Current Savings Rate
Info
Bank logo
Member FDIC
Savings Account
5.05
%
APY
APY
Info
As of 9/25/2023
Rating: 4.9 stars out of 5
Info
$5000
Min balance for APY
View offer Arrow Right
Promoted offer: CIT Bank, a division of First Citizens, 125+ years of experience.

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 earned a high rating on the Apple App Store, but a low rating on the Google Play Store.

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

With so many financial institutions to choose from, it can be hard to know who to trust. Bankrate’s ever-growing list of bank and credit union reviews is updated regularly. Our editorial team analyzes and reviews each institution across deposit products such as savings accounts, checking accounts, certificates of deposit (CDs) and money market accounts (MMAs). Banks are rated by important factors such as offered interest rates, fees, minimum balance requirements, access to funds and more.

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.