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First Tech Federal Credit Union Review

Updated May 5, 2025
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At a glance

Overview

First Tech Federal Credit Union is likely best for customers on the West Coast, where most of its branches are located. It’s easy to open an account since there are no monthly fees and minimum deposits are relatively low. Moreover, the credit union offers competitive yields on its share certificates.

Highlights:

24/7 Customer Service Low Min Deposit No Monthly Fees
4.0
Rating: 4 stars out of 5
Bankrate Score
Info Icon

CDs

Rating: 4.1 stars out of 5
4.1 /5

Checking

Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5
4.5 /5

Savings

Rating: 3 stars out of 5
3.0 /5
Sponsored offers
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These are sponsored offers rated highly by us for competitive rates, fees, and minimums.

Bank logo
Member FDIC
Savings Account
4.00
%
APY
APY
Info Icon
As of 6/12/2025
Rating: 4.6 stars out of 5
$5,000
Min. balance for APY
View offer Arrow Right Icon
Promoted offer:
Bank logo
Member FDIC
Savings Account
4.30
%
APY
APY
Info Icon
As of 6/12/2025
Rating: 5 stars out of 5
$0
Min. balance for APY
View offer Arrow Right Icon
Promoted offer: No monthly maintenance fee, $0 to open, easily grow your money
Bank logo
Member FDIC
Savings Account
3.65
%
APY
APY
Info Icon
As of 6/12/2025
Rating: 4.2 stars out of 5
$0
Min. balance for APY
View offer Arrow Right Icon
Promoted offer: Backed by the financial expertise of Goldman Sachs.

Overall

First Tech Federal Credit Union offers a large swath of financial services, ranging from traditional deposit products like savings and checking accounts to credit cards and home loans. Though the APYs for the credit union’s share certificates are competitive, the yields for many of its savings and checking accounts leave much to be desired.

Pros

  • Checkmark Icon

    There’s free access to over 30,000 CO-OP ATMs across the country.

  • Checkmark Icon

    Share certificates offer competitive APYs.

  • Checkmark Icon

    There are no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements.

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    There’s nearly 6,000 CO-OP shared branch locations you can visit for help.

Cons

  • Higher yields for checking and savings accounts can be found elsewhere.

  • There aren’t fee rebates for ATMs outside of the CO-OP network for most deposit accounts.

First Tech Federal Credit Union banking products

First Tech Federal Credit Union savings overview

3.0
/5
Rating: 3 stars out of 5
SCORE BREAKDOWN
APY offering:
0.01%
Rating: 1 stars out of 5
1/5
Info Icon
Minimum balance for APY:
$5.00
Rating: 5 stars out of 5
5/5
Info Icon
Monthly service fee:
$0.00
Rating: 5 stars out of 5
5/5
Info Icon
Minimum balance to avoid fee:
$0.00
Rating: 5 stars out of 5
5/5
Info Icon
Access to funds:
Great
Rating: 5 stars out of 5
5/5
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Pros

  • Checkmark Icon

    None of the savings accounts charge monthly fees.

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    Overdraft protection is available.

  • Checkmark Icon

    Instant Access Savings is a tiered account.

  • Checkmark Icon

    A high-yield account option is available.

Cons

  • Higher yields can be found elsewhere.

Rate history for First Tech's Savings account

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

First Tech Federal Credit Union
APY
APY
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National average APY
How do we get this data?
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First Tech Federal Credit Union CD overview

4.1
/5
Rating: 4.1 stars out of 5
SCORE BREAKDOWN
APY offering:
3.10%
Rating: 4 stars out of 5
4/5
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Minimum deposit:
$500.00
Rating: 5 stars out of 5
5/5
Info Icon
Range of term lengths:
6 mos – 5 yrs
Rating: 3 stars out of 5
3/5
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Early withdrawal penalty:
Average
Rating: 3 stars out of 5
3/5
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Offer no-penalty or bump-up CDs:
Yes
Rating: 5 stars out of 5
5/5
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Offer IRA CDs:
No
Rating: 0 stars out of 5
0/5
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Pros

  • Checkmark Icon

    All certificates are available to open for just $500.

  • Checkmark Icon

    There’s a large range of terms to choose from.

  • Checkmark Icon

    The APYs are competitive.

  • Checkmark Icon

    Bump-up certificates are available.

Cons

  • There are hefty withdrawal penalties on share certificates with terms of more than 2 years.

Rate history for First Tech's CD accounts

See how rates for this account have changed over time. Select the CD term length from the dropdown and interact with the trend lines to view APY by date.

First Tech Federal Credit Union
APY
APY
Info Icon
National average APY
Caret Down Icon
How do we get this data?
Info Icon

First Tech Federal Credit Union checking overview

4.5
/5
Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5

Pros

  • Checkmark Icon

    None of the checking accounts charge monthly fees or have minimum balance requirements.

  • Checkmark Icon

    There’s free access to over 30,000 CO-OP ATMs.

  • Checkmark Icon

    Checking accounts feature free mobile banking with BillPay and e-deposits.

  • Checkmark Icon

    A high-yield account is available.

Cons

  • Most of First Tech’s checking accounts don’t offer ATM fee rebates.

  • Higher yields can be found elsewhere.

Bank fees

Fee Charged?
Overdraft fee $33
Non-sufficient funds fee None
Monthly maintenance fee None
Out-of-network ATM fee $2
Excessive transaction fee None

Customer experience

Customer service. Customer service by phone is available 24/7, but you can also reach a representative through secure online messages or in-person and virtual appointments. 

Digital experience. Person-to-person payments can be made using Zelle, and the debit card works with Apple Pay and Google Pay. You can also use your First Tech debit card to freely access over 30,000 CO-OP ATMs across the U.S. First Tech’s mobile app is highly rated by reviewers on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

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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.