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Citizens Access Review 2023

Updated October 9, 2023
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At a glance

3.9
Rating: 3.9 stars out of 5
Bankrate Score
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CDs

Rating: 4.2 stars out of 5

Savings

Rating: 4.9 stars out of 5

About Bankrate Score

Overview

Citizens Access is an online bank with no branches that offers savings products. It’s a division of Citizens Bank. Citizens Access generally offers competitive yields on its deposit accounts, but only offers a savings account and a handful of CDs. If you’re looking for a money market or checking account, you’ll need to look elsewhere.

Highlights

  • No Monthly Fees
  • High APY
Compare offers
Info
Bank logo
Member FDIC
Savings Account
4.35
%
APY
APY
Info
As of 3/19/2024
Rating: 4.9 stars out of 5
$1
Min. balance for APY
View offer Arrow Right
Promoted offer:
Bank logo
Member FDIC
CD
5.05
%
APY
APY
Info
As of 3/19/2024
Rating: 4.7 stars out of 5
$0
Minimum deposit
View offer Arrow Right
Promoted offer:
Bank logo
Member FDIC
Checking Account
0.50
%
APY
APY
Info
As of 3/19/2024
Rating: 4.9 stars out of 5
$0
Min. balance for APY
View offer Arrow Right

Overall

If you’re looking to park your money in a high-yield account with no fees, Citizens Access may be worth considering. But you’ll need to be comfortable solely banking online as the bank doesn’t have any branches. While the savings account can be opened with just one cent, its CDs require a $5,000 deposit, which is sizable compared to what other banks require.

Pros

  • Checkmark

    Citizens Access offers a competitive savings APY.

  • Checkmark

    Customer service is available by phone seven days a week or by using the chat function on the bank’s website.

  • Checkmark

    The Citizens Access savings account doesn’t have a monthly service fee.

Cons

  • Citizens Access has no physical branches or ATM access.

  • The online bank offers a limited selection of products.

Citizens Access banking products

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

SCORE BREAKDOWN

APY offering:
4.50%
Rating: 5 stars out of 5
5/5
Info
Minimum balance to earn interest:
$1.00
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:
$1.00
Rating: 5 stars out of 5
5/5
Info
Access to funds:
Good
Rating: 4 stars out of 5
4/5
Info

FEATURES

Invest Rate
4.50% APY
Info
Loan
$1 minimum deposit to open

Citizens Access savings overview

Citizens Access offers a competitive APY on its savings account. And that competitive yield is on all balances.

You only need a penny to open a new Citizens Access Savings account. The online bank doesn’t have any fees, according to its website.

The bank now offers mobile deposit, but you won’t have ATM access with this account.

Pros

  • Checkmark

    Citizens Access offers a competitive APY.

  • Checkmark

    The bank does not charge any monthly service fees.

  • Checkmark

    All balances earn a competitive APY.

Cons

  • Citizens Access doesn’t provide an ATM card for withdrawals.

  • Citizens Access doesn’t offer accounts for those under 18 years old.

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

    Citizens Access
    APY
    APY
    Info
    National average APY
    How do we get this data?
    Info
Compare Offer
Info
Bank logo
Member FDIC
Savings Account
4.35
%
APY
APY
Info
As of 3/19/2024
Rating: 4.9 stars out of 5
Info
$1
Min balance for APY
View offer Arrow Right
Promoted offer:

Bank fees

Fee Charged
Overdraft fee None
Non-sufficient funds fee None
Account maintenance fees None
Out-of-network ATM fee N/A
Excessive transaction fee None

Customer experience

Customer service

Long support hours. Citizens Access customer service representatives are available to answer questions about CDs and savings accounts seven days a week: 6 a.m. to midnight weekdays; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday; and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sunday. (All times are Eastern.) The bank also offers a chat option. 

Support wait times. Though there are many ways to connect, customer service isn’t always easy to get in contact with, according to a Bankrate staff member. There isn’t a way to contact support through the app, and when making a call, there’s always a wait time to get in touch with a representative. Even then, sometimes you get transferred to another department, making that wait even longer. 

Digital experience 

Highly rated mobile app. Citizens Access’s mobile app earns top marks on both the Apple App and Google Play stores. Citizens Access customers can use the mobile app to check account balances, move money and make mobile deposits. That noted, the app is missing many digital features that come with more advanced mobile banking apps, according to a Bankrate staff member who has a Citizens Access account. The app doesn’t have a virtual assistant or budgeting tools and you can’t dispute transactions or open new accounts through the app.

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Bankrate staff insights

“You can get a very competitive savings rate with Citizens Access, but shouldn’t expect much more than a place to store and grow your money,” said a Bankrate staff member who uses the account personally. “One of the main reasons I opened the Citizens Access savings account is because of its competitive rate. Customer service, on the other hand, isn’t one of Citizens Access’s strengths — getting in touch with a customer service representative can be an unnecessary hassle.”

About Citizens Access

Citizens Access is an online-only bank that offers a competitive yield on its savings account and charges no monthly fee. Its products, which also include CDs, are available nationwide. Citizens Access, a division of Citizens Bank, made its debut in July 2018.

How does Citizens Access compare to other banks?

Citizens Access vs. CIT Bank

Citizens Access and CIT Bank are both divisions of First Citizens Bank.

While Citizens Access only offers a savings account and CDs, CIT Bank offers two savings accounts, a money market account, and a checking account as well as CDs.

Citizens Access only requires a penny to open a savings account. Meanwhile, you’ll need at least $100 to open a CIT Bank savings account.

At Citizens Access, it takes at least $5,000 to open a CD. But at CIT Bank, you only need $1,000.

CIT Bank’s checking account is the main offering that differentiates it from Citizens Access.

Citizens Access 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.