MagnifyMoney 
Truist Bank was formed by the historic merger of BB&T and SunTrust. Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., Truist Bank is a top 10 U.S. commercial bank by assets. Truist offers deposit accounts, asset and wealth management, loans and other financial services. When it comes to Truist Bank’s savings and checking options, you’ll find low interest rates, an array of fees and a relatively smaller ATM footprint compared with banks of similar sizes.
Truist Bank rates may vary by location, so the rates in this article apply to the bank’s headquarters location of Charlotte, N.C.
Truist’s Online Savings account is a typical big-bank savings account: it has a low barrier to entry (no minimum opening deposit or balance requirements) but it pays the absolute minimum in interest (0.01% APY on all balances).Fees are a common theme for this savings account:
While the no monthly fee or minimum deposit amount are positives, you can avoid the low APY and variety of fees by opening a primary savings account elsewhere.
The Truist Money Market account isn’t much different from the Online Savings account — apart from the monthly maintenance fee of $12 and minimum opening deposit amount of $100. You must maintain a minimum daily balance of $1,000 or more to avoid the account’s monthly fee. This account also yields a 0.01% APY on all balances, far below the national average of 0.08% for money market accounts as of May 2022, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC).
Like most money market accounts, you can write checks on the balance from this account. Just like the online savings account, this account allows for up to six free withdrawals; however, the money market account has a higher fee of $15 if you exceed that threshold.
This account can be beneficial if you’re looking to save money while still having quick access to your funds. Just be aware of the lengthy list of fees we’re seeing across many Truist accounts.
Look for accounts with better rates by reading MagnifyMoney’s best high-yield online savings account roundup.
The Truist Dimension Checking account is the bank’s only interest-bearing checking account, with the same low 0.01% APY on all balances. This checking account offers three reward levels based on your balance. Each level rewards you with a credit card loyalty bonus, a discounted annual fee for the Delta SkyMiles Debit Card and a certain amount of no-fee, non-Truist ATM transactions.
Open the account with a minimum deposit of $50, and waive the steep $20 monthly maintenance fee by:
Truist checking accounts come with a high overdraft fee of $36 per instance, with a limit of up to three transactions per day. Fees are waived for overdrafts under $5. Customers can also opt in to overdraft protection by linking Truist accounts together to cover any overdrafts.
Other perks of this account:
This account may be the right fit if you expect to have a higher monthly balance and want to take advantage of the travel perks.
The Truist Bright Checking account is an everyday, non-interest bearing checking account with less challenging ways to avoid the monthly maintenance fee than with the Truist Dimension Checking account. Waive this account’s $12 monthly fee by:
This account comes with many of the same fees as other Truist accounts, including non-Truist ATM transaction fees. Fun added perk: you can design your connected personal debit card.
The Truist Fundamental Checking account is a simple, non-interest bearing account designed for anyone who can’t or doesn’t want to maintain any qualifier to avoid monthly fees.
If you consistently have a low checking balance, this is the cheapest Truist checking account to maintain because it has no minimum balance requirement for avoiding a steep monthly fee.
However, if you intend on maintaining a low checking balance, you can easily find a checking account with no monthly fee and no minimum balance requirement at another bank. If that’s what you’re looking for, our roundup of the best free checking accounts can guide you on your search.
As with other Truist checking accounts, this one offers digital money tools in the form of the Trust banking app, Zelle®, a digital wallet and Click to Pay.
The Truist Student Checking account is for students age 23 or younger who currently attend a high school, college/university or technical/trade school. While it does not yield any interest, this account doesn’t require students to pay a minimum opening deposit or monthly fee — offering a stress-free, affordable option for students looking for a basic checking option. Like Truist’s other checking options, this account offers mobile deposits and text alerts.
Students should still be aware of the common fees they could face: non-Truist ATM transaction fees, returned item fees and overdraft fees (whether they enroll in protection or not). When the student turns 24 years old, the account will be converted into a Truist Bright Checking or Truist Fundamental Checking based on a review of account activity and recent balances.
Use MagnifyMoney’s best checking account roundup as a guide to compare Truist Bank’s checking account features with competitors.
| Term | APY | Minimum deposit to earn APY |
|---|---|---|
| 6 months | 0.05% | $1,000 |
| 12 months | 4.25% | $1,000 |
| 18 months | 0.05% | $1,000 |
Truist Bank does not offer any jumbo CDs or no-penalty CDs, although it does offer a grace period to make a deposit, withdrawal or term change to the CD without incurring an early withdrawal penalty. Their CDs yield a low 0.05% APY regardless of the term or balance tiers. For reference, the average 12 month CD interest rate is 0.21% as of May 2022, according to the FDIC.
You can choose your CD term for anywhere from seven days to 60 months. Your minimum opening deposit depends on which term you choose:
This CD is a mediocre option for folks who need a safe place for their cash and want to watch it grow (though slowly) and earn an FDIC-insured return.
Truist CDs can be opened only at a Truist branch.
Compare Truist CD rates and account features with its competitors using MagnifyMoney’s best CD roundup.
Truist Bank may have an assortment of fees and lower-than-average savings rates, but it does make most of its services easily accessible to their nearly 15 million customers nationwide. For those looking for an in-person experience, Truist Bank has over 2,500 branches and 3,000 ATMs across 17 states and the District of Columbia.
Former BB&T and SunTrust customers who are sticking with Truist should know that the bank has been consolidating and closing certain overlapping branches for the last couple of years. Use the find a location function on the Truist Bank website to see if your regular branch is still operating.When you can’t call Truist during weekdays from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET and Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET — or visit them in person — you can always use their 24/7 automated assistance. Truist does not offer any customer service hours on Sundays.
Many will like Truist’s emphasis on money management tools and technology, including their mobile app that has 4.6 stars on Apple’s App Store, based on over 250,000 ratings, and 4.2 stars for the Google Play app, based on nearly 40,000 reviews.
Truist Bank has earned various reputable awards, some of which were originally given to BB&T or SunTrust before the merger. For example, BB&T was recognized as a leader in “ease of use” and “financial fitness” in Javelin’s 2020 Mobile Banking Scorecard.
Truist Bank has also been recognized for its dedication to workplace culture, earning a 100% score on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index, as well as high rankings on the following lists:
Haley RogersHaley Rogers is a former staff writer at MagnifyMoney covering deposit accounts, investing, the Federal Reserve and personal finance. Haley has worked as a journalist, public relations writer and content marketer in past roles.
Read More
