At a glance

4.1

Bankrate Score

CDs

Checking

Savings

MMA

Bankrate scores are objectively determined by our editorial team. Our scoring formula weighs several factors consumers should consider when choosing financial products and services.

Overview

Those who live or work in California and are looking for a reliable credit union with a solid branch footprint and low fees may find Golden 1 a good fit for their banking needs.

Highlights

Free Checking
No Monthly Fees

Overall

Golden 1 Credit Union is one of the largest credit unions in the U.S. and offers members a wide selection of products and services. Membership is open to those who live or work in California. Most accounts require a small amount to open, and many also feature low or no monthly fees.

Pros

There are no monthly service fees for basic accounts such as Free Checking and Regular Savings.
Members can access more than 30,000 in-network ATMs and 70 Golden 1 branches, in addition to shared ATMs and branches in the CO-OP network.
Membership requirements are easy for those living or working in California.

Cons

Yields are not as attractive as at other top credit unions.
The money market account doesn’t include check-writing capabilities.

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Golden 1 Credit Union banking products

3.0

/5

See methodology Compare savings rates

SCORE BREAKDOWN

APY offering:

0.10%

1/5

APY, or annual percentage yield, is the yearly return on a bank or investment account. APY includes the effects of compounding interest.

Minimum balance for APY:

$1.00

5/5

The lowest deposit amount an account must have before it can earn interest.

Monthly service fee:

$0.00

5/5

A monthly charge a financial institution deducts from an account if certain requirements are not met.

Minimum balance to avoid fee:

$0.00

5/5

The lowest balance an account must maintain in order to avoid a fee.

Access to funds:

Great

5/5

A procedure that allows an individual or organization to access and manage the funds of another account holder.

FEATURES

0.05% – 0.10% APY

APY last updated between 11/14 and 11/20.

$1 minimum balance for APY

$1 minimum deposit to open

Golden 1 Credit Union savings overview

The Regular Savings Account establishes you as a member of Golden 1, and it requires only $1 to open and has no monthly maintenance fee. The account offers three balance tiers. The highest tier, for balances of $100,000 or more, pays the highest rate, although the rate is still below average.

Golden 1 also offers Youth Savings, FlexSavings, Santa Saver and Coverdell Education Savings accounts, all of which require low opening deposits.

Pros

The Regular Savings Account requires just $1 to open.
There’s no monthly maintenance fee with the Regular Savings Account.

Cons

You can find a higher APY at many online banks or other financial institutions.
At least $100,000 is required to earn the top rate, which is still below average.

Rate history for Golden 1 Credit Union's Savings account

See how rates for this account have changed over time. Interact with the trend lines to view APY by date.

Golden 1 Credit Union

APY

APY last updated between 11/14 and 11/20.

National average APY

How 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.

See how rates for this account have changed over time. Interact with the trend lines to view APY by date.

Golden 1 Credit Union

APY

APY last updated between 11/14 and 11/20.

National average APY

How 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.

4.5

/5

See methodology Compare CD rates

SCORE BREAKDOWN

APY offering:

3.45%

4/5

APY, or annual percentage yield, is the yearly return on a bank or investment account. APY includes the effects of compounding interest. APYs are selected based on Bankrate reviews of the highest rates a bank offers between the term ranges of 7 and 17 months. This excludes jumbo CDs and applies when the minimum deposit is $25k or less.

Minimum deposit:

$500.00

5/5

The minimum deposit amount a financial institution requires in order to open a CD.

Range of term lengths:

3 mos – 5 yrs

5/5

A designated amount of time that funds must be held within a CD.

Early withdrawal penalty:

Good

4/5

A penalty incurred when funds have been withdrawn from a CD before its maturity date.

Offer no-penalty or bump-up CDs:

No

0/5

A CD that doesn’t incur a penalty if funds are withdrawn before its maturity date.

Offer IRA CDs:

Yes

5/5

An IRA account which consists of CDs that typically earns fixed interest over a specified period of time.

FEATURES

3.00% – 3.80% APY

APY last updated between 11/14 and 11/20.

$500 minimum balance for APY

$500 minimum deposit to open

3 months – 5 years

Golden 1 Credit Union CD overview

Golden 1 Credit Union offers share certificates with terms in monthly increments ranging from three months to five years, which makes it easy for consumers to find a term for their financial goals. In addition, each term is tiered by balance, with different balances earning different rates in some cases (but not always).

You’ll need at least $500 to open a share certificate with Golden 1, but balances above $100,000 generally come with the highest annual percentage yields (APYs).

As of this review, Golden 1 offers a 16-month certificate that earns a highly competitive rate — much more so than other terms offered.

Pros

You can get started with just a $500 opening deposit.
Golden 1 offers share certificate terms in monthly increments ranging from three months to five years, allowing customers to customize terms to their needs.
Monthly dividends can be added to the certificate balance or transferred to a different account without penalties.
The 16-month certificate has a highly competitive APY.

Cons

While many of the certificate rates are above national averages, higher rates can be found elsewhere.

Rate history for Golden 1 Credit Union's CD accounts

See how rates for this account have changed over time. Select the CD term length from the dropdown and interact with the trend lines to view APY by date.

Golden 1 Credit Union

APY

APY last updated between 11/14 and 11/20.

National average APY

Term length

How 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.

See how rates for this account have changed over time. Select the CD term length from the dropdown and interact with the trend lines to view APY by date.

Golden 1 Credit Union

APY

APY last updated between 11/14 and 11/20.

National average APY

Term length

How 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.

3.4

/5

See methodology Compare MMA rates

SCORE BREAKDOWN

APY offering:

1.00%

2/5

APY, or annual percentage yield, is the yearly return on a bank or investment account. APY includes the effects of compounding interest.

Minimum balance for APY:

$100.00

5/5

The lowest balance an account must maintain in order to earn interest.

Monthly service fee:

$0.00

5/5

A monthly charge a financial institution deducts from an account if certain requirements are not met.

Minimum balance to avoid fee:

$0.00

5/5

The lowest amount an account must maintain in order to avoid a fee.

Check writing:

Yes

5/5

The ability to write a certain amount of checks within a statement cycle.

Debit/ATM access:

Subpar

2/5

The ability to withdraw funds from an account through the use of debit or ATM card.

Golden 1 Credit Union money market overview

The Money Market Savings Account requires a minimum opening deposit of $100, and no minimum balance is required to earn interest. It doesn’t charge a monthly service fee.

The account has a tiered structure, with higher balance tiers earning better APYs. You’ll need a balance of at least $500,000 to earn the highest APY. Better rates can be found at some other banks and credit unions, however.

Pros

Only $100 is required to open the Money Market Savings Account.
There’s no monthly fee.

Cons

The account doesn’t offer check-writing privileges.
Account balances of under $10,000 earn a much lower APY that’s far below the national average.

4.6

Bankrate Score

Compare top checking rates

Golden 1 Credit Union checking overview

Golden 1 Credit Union offers five checking accounts. There’s the Free Checking account (the product evaluated for this review), Premium Checking, MarketRate Checking, Easy Checking and Student Checking.

The Free Checking account requires no minimum balance, and users have access to online bill payment as well as peer-to-peer payments through Zelle. While no NSF fee is charged, a $20 fee is imposed for overdrafts per item.

Golden 1 offers its own ATMs as well as access to more than 30,000 fee-free ATMs in the Co-Op network. Customers get their first box of 40 checks for free.

Pros

There’s no minimum balance requirement or monthly fee on the Free Checking Account.
Members receive their first box of Golden 1 checks for free.
There’s no NSF fee, and the $20 overdraft fee is below average.

Cons

The Free Checking account is noninterest-bearing.

Compare Offer

Bank fees

Fee	Charged?
Overdraft fee	$20
Non-sufficient funds fee	None
Account maintenance fees	None
Out-of-network ATM fee	$2
Incoming wire transfers	None

About Golden 1 Credit Union

Golden 1 Credit Union was founded in 1933 and has become one of the largest credit unions in the U.S., with more than 1 million members and over $20 billion in assets. Membership is open to those who live or work in California.

The credit union offers checking accounts, savings accounts, a money market account, CDs and other financial products. Golden 1 is headquartered in Sacramento and has a network of 70 branches.

Customer experience

Branch access. Golden 1 Credit Union has 70 branches in California, plus its members have free access to shared branches in the CO-OP network.

Customer service. Member representatives are available 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. PT, Monday-Friday, and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., on weekends, to answer questions or help with member accounts. If members need extra assistance for navigating account-related problems, they can also contact a specialized Member Advocate Team via email and expect a response within 24 hours.

Highly rated app. The credit union’s mobile app is highly rated on iOS with a 4.7 rating and on Google Play with a 4.5 star rating.

Review methodology

With so many financial institutions to choose from, it can be hard to know who to trust. Bankrate’s ever-growing list of bank and credit union reviews is updated regularly. Our editorial team analyzes and reviews each institution across deposit products such as savings accounts, checking accounts, certificates of deposit (CDs) and money market accounts (MMAs). Banks are rated by important factors such as offered interest rates, fees, minimum balance requirements, access to funds and more.

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.

Golden 1 Credit Union Review 2024

The Bankrate promise

At a glance

Overview

Highlights

Overall

Pros

Cons

We want to know what you think about Golden 1 Credit Union

Golden 1 Credit Union banking products

Golden 1 Credit Union savings overview

Pros

Cons

Rate history for Golden 1 Credit Union's Savings account

Golden 1 Credit Union CD overview

Pros

Cons

Rate history for Golden 1 Credit Union's CD accounts

Golden 1 Credit Union money market overview

Pros

Cons

Golden 1 Credit Union checking overview

Pros

Cons

Bank fees

About Golden 1 Credit Union

Customer experience

Review methodology

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