America’s Best Regional Banks and Credit Unions 2024

Regional banks and credit unions play a pivotal role in the financial fabric of communities nationwide. Unlike their larger counterparts, these institutions are deeply rooted in local economies, understanding the unique needs of the people they serve. Regional banks, with their localized focus, often cultivate strong relationships with customers, enabling them to provide personalized services. These institutions become familiar in the neighborhood; they offer a sense of trust and community that resonates with account holders.

Credit unions, too, play a role in a community. As financial cooperatives owned by their members, they foster a sense of shared ownership and responsibility. This unique structure translates into a commitment to the financial well-being of its members, often resulting in lower fees, competitive interest rates, and a more flexible approach to lending. The community engagement of credit unions extends beyond financial transactions. Many credit unions actively contribute to local initiatives, reinforcing their role as integral community partners.

In an era where digital advancements can overshadow personalized service, regional banks and credit unions stand out for their customer-centric financial services. These institutions prove that a community-centered approach can redefine the banking experience.

For this reason, Newsweek and market data research firm Plant-A Insights Group are proud to share this ranking of America's Best Regional Banks and Credit Unions, recognizing the top 250 Regional Banks and 250 Credit Unions in the United States.

We hope this list helps you identify your state's best community banking options.

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Best Banks and Credit Unions in California 2024

Star Rating

Bank Name

Institution Type

Employees

HQ Location

Operating States

Profile

★★★★★El Dorado Savings Bank FSBBank261Placerville, CaliforniaCA, NV★★★★★Comerica BankBank7501Dallas, TexasCA, TX, AZ, MI, FL, NY★★★★★Valley National BankBank3901Passaic, New JerseyFL, NJ, AL, NY, IL, CA★★★★½Exchange BankBank371Santa Rosa, CaliforniaCA★★★★½Banner BankBank1930Walla Walla, WashingtonWA, ID, CA, OR★★★★½Mechanics BankBank1595Walnut Creek, CaliforniaCA, OR★★★★½Commerce West BankBank67Irvine, CaliforniaCA★★★★½Sofi Bank National AssnBank997Cottonwood Heigh, UtahCA, UT★★★★½Flagstar Bank National AssnBank6787Hicksville, New YorkFL, NJ, MI, NY, AZ, OH, CA, IN, WI, NC, CT, NV★★★★½Bank of San FranciscoBank48San Francisco, CaliforniaCA★★★★½Bank of America California NABankNASan Francisco, CaliforniaCA★★★★Citibank National AssnBank191482Sioux Falls, South DakotaCA, NY, DC, CT, IL, FL, MD, SD, NJ, NV, VA, DE, PR, TX★★★★Universal BankBank58West Covina, CaliforniaCA★★★★★Partners Federal Credit UnionCredit Union418Burbank, CaliforniaCA, FLView Profile★★★★★PatelcoCredit Union818Dublin, CaliforniaCA★★★★★Fedex Employees Credit AssociationCredit Union126Memphis, TennesseeTN, AR, IN, CA, PA, TX★★★★★First CityCredit Union97Pasadena, CaliforniaCA★★★★½SchoolsFirstCredit Union2636Santa Ana, CaliforniaCA★★★★½First CaliforniaCredit UnionNAFresno, CaliforniaCA★★★★½AlturaCredit Union389Riverside, CaliforniaCA★★★★½Sandia LaboratoryCredit Union445Albuquerque, New MexicoNM, CA★★★★½RedwoodCredit Union779Santa Rosa, CaliforniaCA★★★★½Wescom CentralCredit Union860Pasadena, CaliforniaCA★★★★½Central StateCredit Union50Stockton, CaliforniaCA★★★★½Families And Schools TogetherCredit Union39Hanford, CaliforniaCA★★★★½San Francisco FireCredit Union195San Francisco, CaliforniaCAView Profile★★★★½North BayCredit Union25Santa Rosa, CaliforniaCA, UT★★★★½SchoolsCredit Union34Torrance, CaliforniaCA★★★★½Farmers Insurance GroupCredit Union229Los Angeles, CaliforniaCA, WA, KS, OK, MI, AZ, TX★★★★½BlupeakCredit Union151San Diego, CaliforniaCAView Profile★★★★Delta SchoolsCredit UnionNAAntioch, CaliforniaCA, WA★★★★KinectaCredit Union805Manhattan Beach, CaliforniaCA, NY, FL, NJ★★★★San Diego CountyCredit Union919San Diego, CaliforniaCA★★★★Sea AirCredit UnionNASeal Beach, CaliforniaCA★★★★North CountyCredit UnionNASan Diego, CaliforniaCA★★★★LA FinancialCredit Union83Pasadena, CaliforniaCA, AZ★★★★MissionCredit Union612San Diego, CaliforniaCA

LICENSING

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METHODOLOGY

For the first time, Plant-A Insights Group and Newsweek partnered to determine America's Best Regional Banks and Credit Unions 2024. The study analyzed all regional banks and credit unions in the United States (approx. 9,440 institutions) and applied the following methodology:

* To keep the focus on regional banks and credit unions, we excluded the nationwide operating banks and credit unions such as JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America from the ranking.

* Furthermore, we applied our own set of parameters to all remaining institutions. The selected parameters* covered various aspects such as profitability, financial relevance, risk exposures to financial uncertainties and overall health and stability of the financial institution:

⚬ Adjusted Texas Ratio: The Adjusted Texas Ratio is considered a valuable tool for evaluating bank creditworthiness as it provides a measure of a bank's ability to absorb potential losses on its non-performing assets.

⚬ Profitability: Profitability allows to build and maintain financial reserves, which act as a buffer against potential losses and economic downturns.

⚬ Net loan and lease: Net loans and leases amount given by a bank is a key measure of its lending activity and overall financial health.

⚬ Media Monitoring: We screened the press coverage of all institutions over the last two years to identify potential customer risks or legal and reputational risks (monitoring period: November 4, 2023–December 18, 2023). Institutions with negative findings were removed from the ranking.

The analysis was followed by an elaborate large-scale independent customer survey of >35,000 U.S. citizens. The survey was designed to review institutions through their customer journeys on 12 categories using 75 items. The survey collected > 140,000 reviews for regional banks and credit unions distributed across all states.

In addition, we programmatically collected more than 1.3 million social media reviews and 148 million Apple App store and Google Play store reviews to support our scoring model.

A score per institution has been calculated based on our scoring model. The best 250 regional banks and the best 250 regional Credit Union have been recognized as America's Best Regional Banks and Credit Unions 2024. The number of institutions included in the ranking varies by state, based on the number of evaluations gathered and the overall scores. The performance of regional banks and credit unions that are not included in the ranking is not disputed.

Note: As with all our rankings, America's Best Regional Banks and Credit Unions 2024 is continually updated based on available information. We have deleted two companies from this list.

Plant-A Insights Group has a strict no-pay-to-play policy. All awards are based on independent research and unbiased data analysis. No applications.

Disclaimer:

This work is based on primary and secondary market research and analysis of publicly available data or provided to Plant-A Insights Group LLC. Placement in the ranking is a positive recognition based on research of publicly available data sources at the time, the information provided in the validation survey and an extensive survey of bank and credit union customer in the U.S. The ranking is the result of a detailed research process. Furthermore, events following December 18, 2023, were not a subject of this ranking. Newsweek and Plant-A make no claim to the completeness of the companies examined. The information provided in this ranking should be considered in conjunction with other available information. The results of this ranking should not be used as the sole source of information for future deliberations. The information provided in this ranking should be considered in conjunction with other available information about regional banks and credit unions or, if possible, accompanied by a visit to a branch. Plant-A nor any of its subsidiaries or their respective officers, directors, shareholders, employees or agents accept any responsibility or liability with respect to the use of or reliance on any information or analysis contained in this document. The quality of companies that are not included in the ranking is not disputed. This work is copyright by Plant-A and may not be published, transmitted, broadcast, copied, reproduced or reprinted in whole or in part without the explicit written permission of Plant-A Insights Group LLC .Copyright © 2023 Plant-A Insights Group LLC. All rights reserved.

The desk research was kindly supported by Onclusive, the leading media monitoring partner with its world-class sentiment technology and PrivCo, a service that tracks private company financial information in a proprietary database.

Are you on the list? Click here to claim your award and learn how to use it.

Click here to request the detailed methodology document.