First Tech Federal Credit Union Review
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At a glance
Overview
First Tech Federal Credit Union is likely best for customers on the west coast, where most of its branches are located. It’s easy to open an account since there are no monthly fees and minimum deposits are relatively low. Moreover, the credit union offers competitive yields on its share certificates.
Highlights:
24/7 Customer Service Low Min Deposit No Monthly FeesHighlights:
CDs
Checking
Savings
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These are sponsored offers rated highly by us for competitive rates, fees, and minimums.
APY, or annual percentage yield, is the yearly return on a bank or investment account.
APY, or annual percentage yield, is the yearly return on a bank or investment account.
Bankrate Checking rating = 4.9/5
Bankrate scores are objectively determined by our editorial team. Our scoring formula weighs several factors consumers should consider when choosing financial products and services.
Offers featured here have been sponsored which impacts how, where, and in what order the products appear. Not all offers are displayed on this page.
Bankrate scores are objectively determined by our editorial team. Our scoring formula weighs several factors consumers should consider when choosing financial products and services.
APY, or annual percentage yield, is the yearly return on a bank or investment account.
Overall
First Tech Federal Credit Union offers a large swath of financial services, ranging from traditional deposit products like savings and checking accounts to credit cards and home loans. Though the APYs for the credit union’s share certificates are competitive, the yields for most of its savings and checking accounts leave much to be desired.
Pros
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There’s free access to over 30,000 CO-OP ATMs across the country.
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Share certificates offer competitive APYs.
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There are no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements.
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There’s nearly 6,000 CO-OP shared branch locations you can visit for help.
Cons
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Higher yields for checking and savings accounts can be found elsewhere.
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There aren’t fee rebates for ATMs outside of the CO-OP network for most deposit accounts.
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First Tech Federal Credit Union banking products
APY last updated between 2/15and 2/21.
First Tech Federal Credit Union savings overview
Three other savings accounts are available; two of them require much smaller opening deposits, but they also come with lower yields. The last account, called First Tech Rewards Savings, comes with a sizable APY for balances up to $25,000.
All accounts come with free online and mobile banking, and there’s no monthly fee. You can link your savings account with your checking to avoid overdraft fees.
Pros
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None of the savings accounts charge monthly fees.
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There is overdraft protection available.
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Instant Access Savings is a tiered account.
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A high-yield account option is available.
Cons
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Higher yields can be found elsewhere.
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See how rates for this account have changed over time. Interact with the trend lines to view APY by date.
First Tech Federal Credit UnionAPYAPY last updated between 2/15 and 2/21.APYAPY last updated between 2/15 and 2/21.National average APYHow do we get this data?Bankrate independently tracks hundreds of APYs and product details for banking institutions nationwide. We retain the historical data of every rate we track in our database. If there are any gaps where we weren’t actively tracking a rate at the time, the graph will reflect the missing data.
Bank fees
| Fee | Charged? |
|---|---|
| Overdraft fee | $33 |
| Non-sufficient funds fee | None |
| Monthly maintenance fee | None |
| Out-of-network ATM fee | $2 |
| Excessive transaction fee | $2 |
Customer experience
Customer service. Customer service by phone is available 24/7, but you can also reach a representative through secure online messages or in-person and virtual appointments.
Digital experience. Person-to-person payments can be made using Zelle, and the debit card works with Apple Pay and Google Pay. You can also use your First Tech debit card to freely access over 30,000 CO-OP ATMs across the U.S. First Tech’s mobile app is highly rated by reviewers on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
About First Tech Federal Credit Union Bank
Founded in 1952, First Tech Federal Credit Union is an NCUA-insured institution with its main address in San Jose, California. The credit union has more than $16 billion dollars in assets and more than 30 branches mainly concentrated in California, Colorado, Oregon and Washington. The credit union offers many personal banking products, including share certificates, checking accounts and savings accounts.
Review methodology
We assign a score to each type of account and its features, weigh them carefully based on importance to account holders and determine an overall score. Read our full review methodology.
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