At a glance

Overview

Synovus Bank is an attractive option for consumers who prefer in-person banking and live near a branch in one of the five Southeastern states where branches are located. It’s not the best option for consumers seeking top-tier rates. While Synovus offers digital banking tools, accounts can’t be opened online by those who aren’t residents of a state where there are branches.

Highlights:

Low Min Deposit

Highlights:

Low Min Deposit

3.2

Bankrate Score

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

CDs

2.5 /5

Checking

3.4 /5

Savings

2.8 /5

MMA

2.4 /5

Overall

Established in 1888, Synovus is a full-service bank that offers deposit products, loans and financial planning and investing services. Most of the bank’s accounts require low minimum deposits, but rates are much lower than what other banks are offering.

Pros

It’s a good fit for customers in the Southeast who like a combination of branch and digital banking.
It offers a wide selection of CD terms, enabling savers to build a CD ladder.

Cons

It has branches in only five states: Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina.
The ATM network is geographically limited to the Southeast.
You can find higher yields at other banks.
There is limited information about CDs on the bank’s website.

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Synovus Bank banking products

2.8

Bankrate Score

Compare top savings rates

FEATURES

Synovus Bank savings overview

Synovus offers three savings accounts, but for this review Bankrate focused on the Personal Savings account. The interest-bearing account requires only $100 to open. Interest is earned on all balances, but the rate isn’t competitive. Much higher yields can be found at other banks, especially online-only banks.

There is a $5 monthly fee unless you maintain a $200 "relationship" balance across all of your Synovus deposit and investment accounts. The account comes with digital banking options, such as online bill payment.

Pros

The opening deposit for Personal Savings is fairly low.
Account holders have access to online bill pay and other digital banking features.

Cons

APYs are low; many online banks offer far better rates.
There is a $5 monthly service charge unless you keep a combined $200 "relationship" balance across Personal Savings and other Synovus deposit and investment accounts.

Rate history for Synovus Bank's Savings account

Synovus Bank

APY

APY last updated between 2/15 and 2/21.

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.

Synovus Bank

APY

APY last updated between 2/15 and 2/21.

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.

2.5

Bankrate Score

Compare top CD rates

FEATURES

Synovus Bank CD overview

Synovus offers nine terms of CDs, but it does not offer specialty products such as no-penalty or bump-rate CDs. Its yields are not competitive and all terms require at least $1,000 to open. The terms range from a week to over five years.

Early withdrawal penalties are high. The penalty for withdrawing early from a one-year CD, for example, is six months of interest.

Also, there is scant information on its website about the bank’s CD products. You must visit a branch or call or email to get rate information.

Pros

A variety of term lengths are offered, enabling savers to build a CD ladder.

Cons

You can find higher yields on CDs elsewhere, especially at online banks.
CDs must be opened at a branch location.
There is little product information on the website. Consumers must call or email to get rates and other CD details.
Early withdrawal penalties are high.

2.4

Bankrate Score

Compare top money market rates

Synovus Bank money market overview

Synovus’ Relationship Money Market Account offers tiered interest rates, but there is no minimum balance required to earn interest. Higher "relationship" APYs kick in for savers with at least a $25,000 balance across Synovus deposit and investment accounts. You must have $500,000 in the bank to earn the very highest APY, but it's easy to find better rates with lower deposit requirements at online banks. Only residents of the states where the bank has branches are able to open accounts online.

A $100 deposit is required to open the account. There is a $10 monthly service fee unless a $2,500 balance is maintained. The account comes with access to digital banking access, and notary services are free. Account holders can make up to six free withdrawals per month.

Pros

The minimum opening deposit is a reasonable $100.
Customers have the opportunity to earn a higher relationship rate.

Cons

There is a $10 monthly service fee unless you maintain a $2,500 balance across all Synovus accounts.
You must have $500,000 across Synovus accounts to earn the highest APY.
You can find higher yields at other banks.

3.4

Bankrate Score

Compare top checking rates

Synovus Bank checking overview

Synovus offers four checking accounts, but for this review Bankrate focused on the Plus Checking account. Plus Checking requires $100 to open, and its $10 monthly service fee can be avoided if you’re a military community member or if you meet some relatively steep requirements for monthly balance or deposits. Account holders have access to online and digital banking tools that allow them to monitor and manage the account 24/7 from anywhere.

ATM usage could become costly if you're not in a state with Synovus branches or Publix grocery stores Presto! ATMs — although Synovus provides one ATM fee refund per month for the Plus Checking account. An out-of-network ATM balance inquiry, transfer or withdrawal will cost $2.50 per transaction. Overdraft fees are high at $36 per transaction.

Synovus also offers Inspire Checking, an interest-bearing account, that charges a $50 monthly fee unless you maintain a combined account balance of at least $100,000. The bank also offers a Student Checking account to students under the age of 26, as well as a Budget Checking account with a $5 monthly fee and no overdraft fees. The Plus, Inspire and Budget accounts can be opened online if you’re a resident of the states where the bank has branches.

Pros

Plus Checking comes with complimentary Credit and Identity Protection Services.
The account’s monthly fee is waived for military members.
Plus Checking account holders receive preferred rates on some other Synovus deposit accounts.

Cons

Customers outside Synovus' limited branch and ATM footprint could incur costly ATM fees.
The $36 overdraft fee is high.
The minimum opening deposit for most Synovus checking accounts is higher than what some other banks require for checking accounts.
The Plus Checking’s monthly service fee is costly to avoid for non-military members.

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Bank fees

Fee	Charged
Overdraft fee	$36
Non-sufficient funds fee	$0
Monthly maintenance fee	$10 for Plus Checking; waived if requirements are met.
Out-of-network ATM fee	$2.50
Excessive transaction fee	$5

Customer experience

Customer support

Branch availability: Synovus maintains branches in five states: Alabama, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina and Tennessee. The bank offers fee-free transactions at its Synovus ATMs and at Publix Presto! ATMs.

Customer service: Synovus offers phone support in both English and Spanish through its toll-free number. Customers can also call their local branch for support.

Digital experience

Synovus Bank offers a mobile banking app that’s rated highly by iOS and Android users. It allows you to deposit checks, pay bills, transfer money between accounts, view account balances and locate Synovus branches and ATMs.

How Synovus Bank compares to other banks

Synovus Bank vs. Capital One Bank

Both Synovus Bank and Capital One offer branches in a handful of states. Capital One accounts can be opened online by residents anywhere in the U.S., whereas Synovus accounts can’t be opened online if you don’t live in the states where it maintains branches.

Capital One doesn’t charge monthly maintenance fees for its accounts, while Synovus charges fees that often require significant balances to waive. Both offer a range of deposit accounts, although Capital One doesn’t offer money market accounts to new customers. Capital One’s accounts earn competitive yields, while Synovus’ savings account earns a low balance and its money market earns an above-average balance with a tiered rate.

About Synovus Bank

Based in Columbus, Georgia, Synovus is a full-service financial company that offers personal, business and corporate banking products and services throughout the Southeast. It has 253 branches in Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Tennessee and South Carolina. It provides loans and deposit products, investment services, financial planning and wealth management.

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.

Synovus Bank Review 2024

The Bankrate promise

At a glance

Overview

Highlights:

Highlights:

Overall

Pros

Cons

We want to know what you think about Synovus

Synovus Bank banking products

Synovus Bank savings overview

Pros

Cons

Rate history for Synovus Bank's Savings account

Synovus Bank CD overview

Pros

Cons

Synovus Bank money market overview

Pros

Cons

Synovus Bank checking overview

Pros

Cons

Bank fees

Customer experience

Customer support

Digital experience

How Synovus Bank compares to other banks

Synovus Bank vs. Capital One Bank

About Synovus Bank

Review methodology

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