A new survey found that most U.S. consumers stick to the same checking and saving accounts through a significant portion of their lives if their institutions have physical locations.
According to Bankrate’s most recent checking account survey, U.S. residents with a checking account held onto the same account for an average of 19 years if their bank or credit union had physical locations. Residents with savings accounts held on that account for an average of 17 years. Both those figures shrank to six years for online-only institutions.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the average length of an account corresponded to age, with baby boomers typically averaging 26 to 27 years with the same checking and saving accounts compared to less than six years for Gen Z. Asked why their stuck with their accounts, no or low monthly fees was the most popular answer, followed by “it’s the account I’ve always had,” satisfaction with customer service, convenient branch or ATM locations and too much hassle to switch.
