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Truist Bank Review 2022
Large Branch Network
No monthly fees
Truist Bank is best for consumers who live near one of its nearly 2,500 locations in the South, East and Midwest. The bank also has more than 3,500 ATMs.
The Truist Student Checking account charges no monthly fee to account holders 23 and younger who attend school near one of its branches or ATMs.
Member FDIC
Savings account
Member FDIC
Savings account
Member FDIC
Savings account
Member FDIC
Savings account
Member FDIC
Savings account
Overall
3.3
Bankrate Score
Truist was formed from the 2019 merger of BB&T and SunTrust banks. Truist was the seventh largest U.S. bank as of Dec. 31, 2021, according to the Federal Reserve.
What we like
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You won’t pay a monthly service fee with the Truist Bright Checking account, as long as you have a qualifying direct deposit of at least $500 a month.
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Truist Online Savings account has no minimum deposit requirement and has no monthly service fee, making it accessible to nearly anyone.
What we don't
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Outgoing international wires cost $65.
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Truist doesn’t offer Sunday customer service hours, unlike some competitors.
Checking accounts
4.0
Bankrate Score
Member FDIC
Checking account
Truist offers four checking accounts, including the Truist Bright Checking account, which was scored for this review. It requires just $50 to open but charges a $12 monthly fee unless a $1,500 minimum daily balance is maintained or a monthly direct deposit of $500 or more is made.
Students attending college near a Truist Bank and ATM might want to consider the bank’s Student Checking account, which features no monthly service fee and has no minimum opening deposit requirement. Students must be 23 or younger to be eligible.
What we like
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Only $50 is needed to open Truist’s Bright Checking account.
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A $500 qualifying direct deposit is one way for some account holders to avoid having to maintain a $1,500 average balance in the account.
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Truist has a free checking account for students 23 and younger.
What we don't
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The $12 monthly service fee is high.
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There’s a $3 fee to receive paper statements with the Truist Bright Checking or Student Checking accounts.
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The Truist Bright Checking account doesn’t earn interest.
Savings accounts
2.8
Bankrate Score
Member FDIC
Savings account
The Truist Online Savings account can be opened without making a minimum deposit, and it charges no monthly fee. But the account doesn’t earn a competitive yield. Its APY is lower than Bankrate’s national average.
What we like
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No minimum deposit is required for the Truist Online Savings account.
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The Truist Online Savings account charges no monthly service fee.
What we don't
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The Truist Online Savings account doesn’t earn a competitive APY.
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A $3 monthly fee applies for paper statements.
CD rates
2.5
Bankrate Score
Member FDIC
CD
Truist offers CDs with terms ranging from seven days to five years, according to its website. But Bankrate’s review found just four terms offered online: six months, one year, 18 months and two years. Each of these CD terms showed four balance tiers but all tiers earned the same APY, which was below Bankrate’s national average.
Truist CDs with terms from 32 days to five years have a $1,000 minimum deposit requirement. Truist’s short-term CDs (with terms ranging from seven days to 31 days) require a $2,500 deposit.
What we like
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Truist offers CDs with terms ranging from seven days to five years, according to its website.
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CDs with terms longer than 31 days through five years only require $1,000 to open a CD, lower than what some banks require.
What we don't
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The minimum to open a short-term CD, with a term of 7-31 days, is $2,500.
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Truist’s website says the bank offers CD terms of seven days to five years, but Bankrate’s review found just four terms, ranging from six months to two years.
Money market accounts
2.2
Bankrate Score
You’ll only need $100 to open The Truist Money Market Account.
As long as you keep a daily ledger balance of at least $1,000, you won’t pay a monthly service fee. The account has check-writing privileges.
At the time of Bankrate’s review all six balance tiers paid the same APY, which was below the national average.
What we like
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You can open this account with a $100 deposit.
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Truist’s money market account has check-writing privileges.
What we don't
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Not keeping a daily ledger balance of at least $1,000 will cost you a $12 monthly service fee.
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Withdrawals and transfers are limited to six each statement cycle. Exceeding the limit costs $15 for each additional withdrawal or transfer.
Bank experience
Truist has about 2,500 branches in 17 states and the District of Columbia. Customers can get help with their accounts by phone 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern time, Monday-Friday, and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday. Customer-service representatives aren’t available Sunday, but there is an 24-hour automated assistance line.
Truist’s app was rated 4.5 stars on iOS and 3.2 stars on Google Play. Like many banks, Truist customers can use Zelle to send and receive money. The app can also be used to deposit checks and lock a Truist debit card.
About Truist Bank
Truist was formed by the 2019 merger of BB&T and SunTrust banks. It offers a range of banking products, including checking and savings accounts and certificates of deposit.
Truist Bank has more than 2,500 locations mainly in Southern states, but also in Indiana, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania and the District of Columbia. The bank has its headquarters in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Matthew Goldberg @MATTATBANKRATE
Matthew Goldberg is a consumer banking reporter at Bankrate. He uses his banking and financial services experience to help readers with personal finance. Nearly his entire career has either been as a reporter or working in financial services, in banking and insurance. He’s been in financial services for more than a decade. His banking career includes being a banker in New York City. His reporting career includes working as a staff reporter at two daily newspapers. He earned his first newspaper bylines in 1998. His writing has been honored by both the Illinois Associated Press Editors Association and the Illinois Press Association. His writing has also been featured online on MSN, the Miami Herald, the Houston Chronicle, the Omaha World-Herald, The Kansas City Star, the Arizona Daily Star, and appeared in Sports Illustrated On Campus, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Buffalo News and other publications. Matthew’s radio experience includes being a weekly panelist on the SportsWriter’s show on WGEM AM ESPN 1440 in Quincy, Illinois. He was also an occasional co-host and call-in guest on WGEM SportsCenter. He’s also been a guest on other stations throughout the country. Matthew is currently a member of the Board of Governors at the Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing (SABEW), which is the world's largest and oldest organization of business and financial journalists. He chairs the organization's training committee and is on the finance committee. He has previously served on conference planning committees and has been a Best in Business contest judge for the organization. Matthew earned a bachelor’s degree at Illinois State University and an MBA at William Paterson University. Media mentions CNBC CNBC Acorns + CNBC WGN Radio 720 in Chicago 1080 KRLD Dallas-Fort Worth
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