bank comparison

In this bank comparison, five financial institutions are analyzed across various features and offerings. Alliant Credit Union, Ally Bank, Fidelity, Schwab, and ING Direct provide different services and benefits for checking and savings accounts, as well as other banking features.

Starting with checking accounts, both Alliant CU and Ally Bank offer high interest rates, while Fidelity, Schwab, and ING Direct do not. All five banks provide free bill pay services, and all checking accounts come with free first sets of checks, except for ING Direct, which charges $0.10 per check. For additional checks, Alliant CU offers 150 checks for $15, while Ally Bank provides them for free. Schwab also offers free checks but has a note that they provide free duplicate checks. The additional checks from ING Direct are available at a cost of $0.10 each, with a tradeoff between free checks and high interest rates noted for customers who write few checks but maintain large balances.

When it comes to ATM access, Alliant CU, Ally Bank, Fidelity, and Schwab participate in the Co-Op Network, while ING Direct does not. Alliant CU boasts access to 80,000 ATMs in partnered networks, ensuring easy access to cash without fees. However, fees are reimbursed at All ATMs in the U.S. by Ally Bank, Fidelity, and Schwab, but not by Alliant CU or ING Direct. For international ATM usage, Schwab stands out as the best option, offering no foreign currency conversion fees, while the others charge varying rates. Alliant CU, Ally Bank, and Fidelity impose a 1% fee, and ING Direct has a higher fee of 3%.

In terms of savings accounts, Alliant CU, Ally Bank, and Schwab offer them, while Fidelity and ING Direct do as well. Both Alliant CU and Ally Bank provide high interest rates above 0.50%. Conversely, Fidelity does not offer a high interest rate for savings, while Schwab does. For money market accounts, only Ally Bank has this option, and it offers a high interest rate as well.

Electronic deposit services are available at all five banks, and mobile deposit capabilities are also provided by each. The daily limit for mobile deposits varies, with Alliant CU allowing up to $20,000, while Ally Bank, Fidelity, and Schwab allow $10,000 each, and ING Direct has a limit of $3,000. Deposit availability ranges from instant at Alliant CU to five days at ING Direct. Alliant CU is the only bank that allows ATM deposits at Co-Op ATMs, while all banks permit deposits of checks by mail.

ACH transfers can be set up online at Alliant CU, Ally Bank, Fidelity, and ING Direct, but Schwab requires a fax and a canceled check, making it more cumbersome. The maximum number of external ACH accounts varies, with Alliant CU allowing unlimited accounts, Ally Bank permitting 20, Fidelity allowing unlimited, and ING Direct limiting to three. ACH speed is next day at Alliant CU, while it takes three days at Ally Bank and four to six days at Fidelity and ING Direct. Schwab does not specify a speed for ACH transfers.

For transaction syncing, Alliant CU, Fidelity, Schwab, and ING Direct support Quicken and Yodlee, while Ally Bank does not support Quicken. All banks except ING Direct provide native English support, and all but Schwab offer 24-hour phone support. Email support is available at Alliant CU, Ally Bank, and ING Direct, while Schwab and Fidelity do not guarantee a response within one day.

In terms of financial stability, Ally Bank had to be bailed out and received TARP funds, while Alliant CU, Fidelity, and Schwab did not. Ally Bank has not paid back its TARP funds, raising concerns about its ability to maintain high interest rates.

Political contributions from 2012 show that Alliant CU and Ally Bank contributed 100% to Republican candidates, while Fidelity contributed 75%, Schwab 49%, and ING Direct had a lower percentage. Contributions against Democrats were non-existent from Alliant CU and Ally Bank, while Fidelity had 1%, Schwab 28%, and ING Direct 0%. For Democratic candidates, Fidelity contributed 23%, Schwab 16%, while Alliant CU and Ally Bank contributed nothing. The contribution amounts varied significantly, with Fidelity leading at $414,989, followed by Schwab at $501,939, and Alliant CU at $500.

Ownership structures reveal that Alliant CU is member-owned, Ally Bank is federally owned, Fidelity is private, Schwab is public, and ING Direct is owned by Capital One. All banks offer $250,000 FDIC/NCUA insurance, but only Fidelity provides deposit insurance over FDIC limits, sweeping amounts over $250,000 into multiple accounts for increased coverage.

In terms of security, Alliant CU offers no free security software, while Ally Bank provides Pervx, Fidelity offers a 25% discount on Turbotax, and Schwab offers a 35% discount, with ING Direct providing no security software or discounts.