Union Bank Review: Checking, Savings and CDs

NerdWallet’s rating: 3.0 / 5.0

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Union Bank is a traditional financial institution that scores good marks in customer service but, like other big banks, charges relatively high fees and pays little interest on deposit accounts.

Union Bank may be right for you if:

• You prefer a face-to-face banking experience and live in California, Oregon or Washington state, where the bank has more than 400 branches.
• You aren’t looking for ways to maximize the money you earn on your savings.

» MORE: NerdWallet’s best national banks of 2016

Our Ratings
Checking accounts
Savings & money market accounts
Certificates of deposit (CDs)
Customer experience
Other fees
Overall

Read on for more details about Union Bank’s checking and savings accounts, CDs, customer experience and fees.

Checking accounts

3.5 / 5.0

Union Bank offers four main checking accounts. To get the monthly fees waived, you’ll need to maintain a minimum balance or sign up for mobile or direct deposit, depending on the account.

Pros	Cons
Banking by Design is a basic checking account with a monthly fee ($7 in California, $5 in Oregon and Washington state) that is waived with one $250 mobile or direct deposit per statement period; monthly fees are $2 less if you opt for online statements	Banking by Design isn't available outside of California, Oregon and Washington state
Signature Banking and Priority Banking accounts earn interest; rates may vary by location (APY in California and Washington state, for example, is 0.05% for a Priority Banking account with a balance of at least $50,000)	Ready to Go Checking offers unlimited check writing, but the account charges an $8 monthly fee unless you have $500 in combined direct deposits or a $1,500 average balance; you can find similar accounts with lower monthly fees at other banks
With Priority Banking, the bank's premium checking account, you have unlimited worldwide ATM access without fees	You’ll need a combined average balance of $25,000 to avoid Signature Banking's monthly fee ($20 in California, $15 in Oregon and Washington state); you'll save $2 a month if you opt for online statements For a Priority Banking account, you’ll need at least $50,000 in combined checking, savings, money market, retirement or assets accounts, or a mortgage, to avoid the $30 monthly fee

» MORE: NerdWallet’s best checking accounts

Savings and money market accounts

2.5 / 5.0

Union Bank’s savings and money market accounts require as little as $300 in deposits to avoid monthly fees. But the accounts don’t earn much interest. The best annual percentage yield is only 0.12%; industry-leading financial institutions offer more than 1.00%.

Pros	Cons
None to speak of	Annual percentage yields are low: 0.01% for basic savings, 0.05% to 0.08% for a basic money market account, 0.01% to 0.10% for Preferred Savings and 0.01% to 0.12% APY for a High Rate MoneyMarket account
	If your balance goes below $300 in the basic savings account, or you don’t have at least $25 in deposits a month, you’ll be charged a $4 monthly fee The basic money market account requires a minimum of $2,500 to avoid an $11 monthly fee ($10 if you opt for online statements)
	The Preferred Savings account has a minimum opening deposit of $10,000, and if the balance goes below that amount, there’s a $15 monthly fee
	The High Rate MoneyMarket account has a minimum opening deposit of $10,000. If your balance goes below this amount, you’ll have a $16 monthly service charge, or $15 if you opt for online statements.

Certificates of deposit

3.0 / 5.0
Union Bank has a standard range of CDs with terms from seven days to five years.

Pros	Cons
To open a CD, you'll need only $350 for terms from 32 days to five years (for shorter term lengths, the minimum deposit is $2,500)	Rates for CDs with one- to five-year terms range from 0.15% APY to 1.01% APY; it's not hard to find better CD rates elsewhere

Customer experience

3.5 / 5.0

Union Bank appears to keep its customers happy: The institution ranked seventh out of 32 in American Banker’s 2015 Survey of Bank Reputations, beating out larger competitors such as Bank of America and Wells Fargo.

In addition to offering full-service branches, Union Bank has mobile apps that let you view balances, make transfers and pay bills. But the iOS and Android apps have only average ratings. The biggest complaints seem to be with glitches in mobile check deposits.

If you have a question or complaint, you can reach Union Bank’s customer service by phone and email. But the bank doesn’t have live 24/7 phone service.

Other fees

2.5 / 5.0

Union Bank charges the typical high fees for overdrafts you’ll find at a large financial institution. Overdrafts will cost you $33 each, up to five per day. There’s an additional $6 fee for accounts that have negative balances after seven days.

You can set up overdraft protection by linking your account to another Union Bank checking or savings product, credit card or cash reserve line of credit. But even then you’ll pay a $10 fee for each day you make a transfer. Or, if you use the cash reserve, you’d need to pay a $12 annual fee and a finance charge — an annual rate of 18% — on the amount you borrowed.

Learn More

at Union Bank

Union Bank could be a good choice for you if you’re on the West Coast and you want the convenience of in-person banking, but you can do better if you’re looking to save on fees or to maximize your savings interest. See NerdWallet’s Best Free Checking Accounts and NerdWallet’s Best Savings Accounts for other options.

Margarette Burnette is a staff writer at NerdWallet, a personal finance website. Email: mburnette@nerdwallet.com. Twitter: @margarette.

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Ratings methodology

For banks and credit unions, NerdWallet’s overall rating is a weighted average of each subcategory: checking accounts, savings and money market accounts, CDs, customer experience and other fees. Factors we consider, depending on the subcategory, include rates and fees, ATM and branch access, account features and limits, user-facing tech and customer service. Several Nerds contribute to each financial institution’s ratings to ensure consistency and accuracy.

What the ratings mean:
— Among the very best
— Very good; only minor caveats for most customers
— Good; issues that might make a difference to some customers
— Fair; make sure strengths and weaknesses are a good match for you
— Poor; proceed with great caution
(or below) — Best to avoid