PNC Bank Review: Checking, Savings and CDs
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- Savings
- Checking
- Certificates of deposit
- Customer experience
- Overdraft fees
Overall institution rating
4.3
PNC Bank is the sixth-largest bank in the country by assets. Through a series of acquisitions in 2021, PNC has absorbed all former BBVA and Simple customers. PNC offers a combo checking, short-term planning and long-term savings account called Virtual Wallet Checking Pro. The trio of products — named Spend, Reserve and Growth, respectively — comes with a nice set of online financial management tools. The most competitive interest rate on savings accounts is much higher than you’ll find at traditional banks and comparable to what online banks offer, and there’s no monthly fee.
Best for: Those who want a combination checking and account and live in regions where the bank offers its highest interest rates.
Pros
- No monthly fee on some savings accounts.
- Large branch network.
- Large, free, nationwide ATM network.
- Overdraft grace period.
Cons
- Expensive overdraft fee.
- Low rates on some savings accounts and CDs.
- Monthly fees on some accounts (though they are avoidable).
Full review
PNC Bank
Savings
Savings
Member FDIC
4.8
/5 NerdWallet ratingPNC’s more competitive offering, Virtual Wallet Checking Pro, isn’t available nationwide but is offered in states without PNC branches (and a handful of states that do have branches); where Virtual Wallet Checking Pro is unavailable, Virtual Wallet, a low-yield alternative, is available. PNC’s Virtual Wallet Checking Pro bundle includes Growth, a savings account. The Growth account offers a competitive rate of 4.65% APY on balances over $1. Customers in regions where Virtual Wallet Checking Pro is not available earn a lower rate on their Growth accounts.
» COMPARE: Check out the best high-yield online savings accounts
Checking
Checking
Member FDIC
4.9
/5 NerdWallet ratingVirtual Wallet Checking Pro Spend offers free mobile banking and online bill pay. There’s no monthly fee and no minimum deposit required to open an account.
The bank offers a network of 60,000 ATMs across the country.
The account offers tools that let you schedule bill reminders, track your balance and set up budgets and alerts.
In addition to the Spend account, Virtual Wallet Checking Pro automatically includes a secondary checking account called Reserve. This account, which didn't factor into our ratings, is meant for setting aside money for upcoming expenses and doesn’t earn interest.
» Compare another checking and savings combo: See our SoFi review
Certificates of deposit
CD
Member FDIC
1.4
/5 NerdWallet ratingPNC's fixed-rate CD yields for popular terms are some of the lowest. Other banks and credit unions have lower minimums and much higher yields on CDs.
» SHOP AROUND: See the best CD rates this month
Customer experience
4.5
NerdWallet ratingCustomer service representatives are available Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. ET and on weekends from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET. Support is also available by live chat. PNC Bank earned second place in the 2021 J.D. Power National Banking Satisfaction Study; it performed highest in resolving customer problems, according to the study. In 2022, the bank placed fourth in the study.
The PNC mobile apps also earn good ratings from both Android device users and iOS device users.
» COMPARE: See how PNC stacks up against the other best banks and credit unions for mobile banking
Overdraft fees
3.9
NerdWallet ratingPNC Bank has high overdraft fees but it also offers some easy, free ways to avoid them. If a transaction causes your account to go more than $5 negative, the fee is $36 per item and can be charged a maximum of once per day. PNC offers a Low Cash Mode program, which is available with Virtual Wallet accounts. With the program, customers get a 24-hour grace period to bring negative balances to $0 or higher to avoid overdraft fees.
Plus, customers can decide whether certain transactions should be paid or returned to avoid balances going negative, though the bank has the final say on how to handle transactions. PNC doesn't charge for overdraft transfers if you link an account as a backup, as long as the backup account has available funds.
» MORE: Get more details on PNC Bank’s overdraft fees and policies
Methodology
NerdWallet’s overall ratings for banks and credit unions are weighted averages of several categories: checking, savings, certificates of deposit or credit union share certificates, banking experience and overdraft fees. Factors we consider, depending on the category, include rates and fees, ATM and branch access, account features and limits, user-facing technology, customer service and innovation. The stars represent ratings from poor (one star) to excellent (five stars). Ratings are rounded to the nearest half-star. How we rate banks, credit unions and other financial service providers.
