Citizens Bank Review - Everything You Need to Know

Citizens Bank is a large banking institution based primarily on the East Coast with additional locations in Ohio and Michigan. It offers full-service options including student loans, home and personal lending, and investment services. Founded in 1828, Citizens Bank has a long history of serving the communities where it’s located. In this review, we will take a closer look at some the highlights of Citizens Bank.

Citizens Bank should appeal to most banking consumers who want a traditional banking experience. It may be a good option for people who:

• Want to bank at a traditional brick-and-mortar location
• Need loan services such as student loans, home loans, or personal loans
• Want wealth management and investment services
• Own a small business

Citizens Bank offers the following types of accounts:

• Checking accounts
• Savings accounts
• Credit cards
• IRA savings and CDs
• Certificates of deposit
• Money market accounts
• Investment options
• Loan options

All of Citizens Bank’s checking accounts carry a fee. And all these fees can be waived if you meet specific requirements. It’s a good idea to understand the fee structure for each account so that you don’t end up getting dinged with maintenance fees. After all, even a maintenance fee of just $3.99 a month can add up to $47.88 a year down the drain.

Brick and mortar institutions like Citizens Bank have much lower or even nonexistent interest rates compared to their online-only competitors. They also tend to have higher fees. This is because there are a lot of overhead expenses in maintaining the building and staff for brick and mortar banks. 

It’s a tradeoff: you can either have a physical location and interaction with local staff, or you can have higher interest rates. You usually can't get both.

Citizens Bank offers four separate savings accounts, some of them have monthly maintenance fees while others don’t.

• Green Savings Rewards – In the Green Savings account you can earn rewards including gift cards for up to $250 to merchants like Applebee’s, Lowe’s, Best Buy, Marriott and more. You can receive that $250 card by saving at least $400 a month for 36 months on top of your opening balance. You can also receive merchant discounts as a reward for saving between $25 and $49 a month for at least eight months.
• CollegeSaver Bonus – Receive a $1000 bonus on your college savings when you open a CollegeSaver account before your child turns twelve. Then deposit at least $25 a year if your child is under six or $50 a year if your child is between six and twelve. The bonus is deposited into the account when the child turns 18. There is a $25 minimum opening deposit if your child is under age six and a $500 minimum deposit if your child is between six and twelve.

Out of all these savings accounts, the CollegeSaver account is the best deal as long as you meet the terms. It’s a good idea to set up automatic transfers to the CollegeSaver account so that you are sure to qualify for the $1,000 payout when your child turns 18.

If you’re looking for a credit card with a good cashback program, then Citizens Bank has a card for you. They offer two separate cards, one that has a cashback program and one that has a slightly better interest rate. Neither card has an annual fee, but both have higher interest rates than more competitive cards.

If you are disciplined about paying off your credit cards every month, then the Citizens Bank Cashback Plus World Mastercard has a cashback program that is easy to understand and very competitive. At 1.8% cash back on every purchase, you can accrue a decent amount of extra money on your spending.

However, both of these cards have high interest rates after the introductory period. If you tend to carry a balance, then you'll probably want to shop for a card with a better rate.

Citizens Bank offers both IRA savings accounts and IRA CD accounts. These accounts allow your money to grow for retirement.

• IRA Savings is an account that you can automatically transfer money into from your checking account on a predetermined basis. This makes saving for retirement easy. To avoid the monthly maintenance fee of $4.99, you just need to maintain a minimum daily balance of $200. This account is FDIC insured up to $250,000 per depositor across all accounts. The interest rate is currently 0.75% APY and can vary with the market.
• IRA CDs are FDIC-insured accounts (insured up to the federal maximum) that will grow your funds with a higher fixed rate that you can get in a savings account. These accounts can be opened with as little as $250 and have time frames of maturity between one and 120 months. Interest rates vary depending on the type of account you hold. Platinum Plus checking customers get the best rates at 2.75% APY.

The biggest advantage to these accounts is the fact that they are FDIC insured for up to $250,000 per depositor per bank. And if you qualify for a Platinum Plus Checking account, the CD rates are relatively competitive — if you don't qualify for that option, then you may want to shop around. As of December 2018, Discover Bank is offering a 3.00% APY on a five-year IRA CD with a minimum deposit of $2,500. 

There are three different Certificates of Deposit available at Citizens Bank: an online-only 13-month CD, a 12-month CD, and a 36-month CD.

It’s strange that the 12-month CD at Citizens Bank outperforms the 36-month CD, because longer terms usually have higher yields. And with the exception of the 12-month CD with a Platinum Plus checking account, these CDs have rates that could be described as "anemic." If you want to earn more, do a quick online search and you’ll find many banks (particularly online-only banks) that are offering rates at 3% and up. That rate is 100 times better than the lowest .03% rate listed here.

Like their other products, Citizens Bank gives the biggest perks to those who have Platinum and Platinum Plus checking accounts. But there is also a Personal Money Market Account which you can open without having a Platinum or Platinum Plus checking account.

Money Market accounts held at Citizens Bank are FDIC insured up to the federal limits. If you open a money market account here, make sure you qualify for one of the promotional APYs on the Platinum or Platinum Plus Money Market account because the other interest rates are super low.

Citizens Bank offers three different investment options and an insurance option. These can be very helpful for safeguarding your wealth.

• SpeciFi Digital Advisor is a digital platform that allows you to build a personalized portfolio specific to your needs.
• Stocks, Bonds, Mutual Funds, ETFs and Managed Accounts are all options within the Citizens Bank investment division.
• Citizens Advisory Solutions (managed accounts) are exactly what they sound like. This is where you have an account manager handling your investment decisions based on your specific needs.
• Insurance Protection is offered for life, disability, and long-term care.

A full array of loan options are offered by Citizens Bank. From mortgage to refinancing, to personal loans, they probably have a loan to meet your needs. Citizens Bank is a prime lender, meaning they require a strong credit history to obtain a loan.

The following is required for completing a loan application:

• Social security number
• Contact information (address, phone number, and email address)
• Current income and employment information

You can open the Citizens Bank account at any branch location or online at any of the specific account pages.

Here’s what you’ll need to open the account.

• Social Security number
• Driver’s license or state ID number
• A way to fund your deposit (check, credit card, or debit card)

Citizens Bank has several ways to reach customer service.

• Call their 24/7 customer service line at 1-800-922-9999
• Log into your online account and email them
• Send them a letter
• Visit a branch

Disappointingly, Citizens doesn’t have a chat feature on their website that you can access on demand (although a chat box does sometimes pop up when you are browsing around). But when you call the customer service line, their agents are prompt and helpful and you don’t have to wade through tons of automated options to get to a real person.

Citizens Bank holds $158.6 billion in assets and deposits of $117.1 billion. They have 1,109 branches and 2,900 ATMs as well as a 24/7 customer contact center and a robust online presence.

Citizens Bank is headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island and was established in 1828. It’s one of the nation’s oldest banks.

They offer standard banking security procedures and have no history of data breaches.

At Citizens Bank, all your accounts are FDIC insured up to $250,000 per depositor.