Trust is important when it comes to where you keep your money. Not all financial institutions offer the same level of financial strength, security protection or long-term stability.
To help consumers identify the safest places to bank, we developed a comprehensive rating system that evaluates banks based on a variety of key factors, including asset size, insurance coverage, credit ratings, security measures, and more, to identify the safest banks in the US (see our full methodology here).
Safest Banks in the USA
While no bank is completely risk-free, some are better positioned than others to weather economic downturns and protect customer data. Here’s a closer look at the banks that scored highest in our analysis and the factors that helped them earn a spot on our list of the safest banks in the US.
1. Chase Bank
Chase Bank is the largest national bank in the US by asset size. It operates more than 5,000 branches and 15,000 ATMs nationwide and offers a wide range of products, including deposit accounts, credit cards, home and auto loans, and commercial and business banking products.
Chase ranked first on our list with a Texas ratio of 3.55% and a near-perfect Moody’s rating of Aa1.
Chase also consistently ranks highest among global systemically important banks (G-SIBs) on the Financial Stability Board’s (FSB) annual list, which considers capital reserves, total loss absorption capacity, resolvability, and heightened supervisory expectations.
However, it is important to note that even the largest and most secure banks are not immune to data breaches. In 2014, the bank suffered a cyberattack that compromised the accounts of 76 million households and 7 million small businesses.
The bank has since significantly increased its cybersecurity budget; It currently offers several security features for consumers, such as fraud alerts, credit monitoring, and multi-factor authentication.
Read more: 6 important security features to look for in a bank
2. Bank of America
Bank of America is the second largest bank in the United States by asset size. It offers a range of products for personal and business clients, including deposit accounts, credit cards, lines of credit and wealth management services. The bank also operates more than 3,500 financial centers and has a network of approximately 15,000 ATMs.
Bank of America ranks just behind Chase on the FSB’s list of systemically important global banks. It also earned an Aa2 credit rating and has a Texas ratio of 3.17%.
That said, this bank was penalized in the rankings for experiencing data breaches as recent as 2024, when an unauthorized party gained access to its systems, compromising the names, addresses, passport numbers, phone numbers, Social Security numbers, and loan numbers of BofA customers.
3.Citibank
Citibank operates 660 branches and 2,300 branded ATMs within the U.S. Customers also have access to a network of more than 60,000 surcharge-free ATMs nationwide. Citibank offers a number of deposit accounts, retirement accounts, mortgage and personal loans, business bank accounts and more.
Citibank came in third on our list with a rating of Aa3, which is considered stable, and a Texas ratio of 2.79%, which is considered excellent and significantly lower than that of our top two banks. It also ranks just below our top pick as one of the most systemically important banks.
Citibank offers fraud protection features such as multi-factor authentication and fraud alerts. Still, like other banks on this list, Citi is no stranger to data breaches and has run into trouble with regulators in the past over its handling of data management issues.
Read more: Are online banks safe? Here’s what you need to know.
4. Wells Fargo
Wells Fargo offers banking products and services to personal, small business, commercial and corporate customers. This includes checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit (CDs), home and auto loans, lines of credit, business financing, investments, and wealth management services. The bank operates more than 4,000 branches in the US and has a network of more than 11,000 ATMs.
Wells Fargo ranked fourth on our list with $1.82 trillion in consolidated assets and $1.81 trillion in domestic assets. It has a long-term deposit rating of Aa2 and a Texas ratio of 5.16%, which is excellent, but still the highest on our list. This bank is also considered a global systemically important bank, but is currently at the bottom of that list.
5. US Bank
US Bank was founded in 1863 and is the fifth largest US bank by asset size. It has a large national presence with over 2,000 branches nationwide, one overseas branch, and an extensive ATM network through the Moneypass ATM network.
This bank offers a wide range of personal and business products and services, including checking and savings accounts, credit cards, personal loans and lines of credit, mortgage loans, and auto loans.
This bank came in last on our list with just over $676 billion in consolidated assets and nearly $670 billion in domestic assets. Unlike the other banks on this list, US Bank is not considered a global systemically important bank, but it has a long-term deposit rating of Aa3, according to Moody’s, and a Texas ratio of 3.1%.
It is important to note that in recent years, US Bank has experienced data security incidents, including a breach in 2022 that affected 11,000 customers.
Methodology of the safest banks
Our rating system, compiled and carefully reviewed by our personal finance experts, included hundreds of data points to develop our list of the safest banks in the US.
We evaluate these banks according to several key metrics; Here’s a closer look at the categories we considered:
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FDIC Insurance: We award points to FDIC-insured banks up to the limit of $250,000.
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Moody’s credit rating: Banks with higher long-term deposit ratings earned higher scores than those with less favorable ratings.
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Fraud Liability Policies: We reward financial institutions for offering fraud liability protection to consumers in the event of an unauthorized purchase.
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Multi-factor authentication: Apps that offer an extra layer of security through facial or fingerprint recognition, security codes, or other forms of two-factor authentication scored more favorably than those that don’t.
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Asset size: Banks with larger assets under management earned higher scores, as banks with more assets spread across multiple categories can absorb losses better and offer more stability than smaller banks.
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texas ratio: The Texas ratio is a formula that measures the health of a bank by taking its non-performing assets and dividing them by its tangible capital and loan loss reserves. Banks that had a lower Texas index scored more favorably on our list.
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History of data breaches: Financial institutions that did not have a publicly reported data breach in the last five years received a ranking increase.