California First National Bank VS Pacific National Bank

Which bank is better for you?

  • Financial Rates: 1.0 Star Icon
  • Customer Service: 3.5 Star Icon
  • Website Experience: 2.5 Star Icon
  • Bank Fees: 3.0 Star Icon
No Rate Information
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Pros:

  • Reimbursement of ATM fees
  • Competitive interest rates on accounts
  • Interest rates are not tiered
  • Free first order of checks with checking

Cons:

  • Not a wide variety of accounts
  • High opening required amounts
  • Accounts have monthly fees
  • Not all CDs offer competitive rates
  • Financial Rates: 4.0 Star Icon
  • Customer Service: 5.0 Star Icon
  • Website Experience: 5.0 Star Icon
  • Bank Fees: 3.0 Star Icon
No Rate Information
Advertiser Disclosure
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Pros:

  • Specific online-only accounts
  • Variety of other accounts offered
  • CDs have low required opening amounts
  • Online accounts offer competitive rates

Cons:

  • Large sums required to earn interest
  • High required initial deposit
  • In-branch accounts have tiered rates
  • Accounts have monthly fees
California First National Bank Review

You can withdraw money from any ATMs with the specific “Plus” logo. If you withdraw money from another ATM, you are reimbursed for the fees charged. CalFirst will reimburse up to $6.00 each statement cycle in ATM fees.

Most CalFirst accounts offer competitive interest rates. The interest rates are not tiered, so you earn the highest rates offered on any balance in the account. Interest is paid monthly on the actual daily balance.

The interest rates for CalFirst accounts are not tiered. Any amount you have in their accounts earns the competitive interest rates. You do not have to have a certain amount in the account to earn the most competitive rates.

The first order of checks is free when you open an interest checking account. You get an ATM card when you open an interest checking account. Free online bill pay comes with each CalFirst checking account opened.

CalFirst does not have a wide variety of accounts. No business accounts are available, only personal deposit accounts. One money market account and savings account are available. There is an interest checking and one regular checking account. CalFirst only offers five different CD terms.

CalFirst accounts have high opening amounts. The money market account and CDs require $5,000 to open. The interest checking account requires $2,500 to open. The savings account and regular checking account both require $1,000 to open.

The accounts at CalFirst all have a monthly fee. The fees range from $10 to $20 a month, depending on the account you open. Waive the fee by keeping a set amount in CalFirst accounts. You can also have a combined balance between a variety of CalFirst accounts.

Not all the CD terms offer competitive rates. The most competitive rates are the three-month, six-month, and the one-year terms. The two-year and three-year terms have interest rates much lower than the other terms. Regular CDs require $5,000 to open. The IRA CDs require $2,000 to open. The only fees are if you withdraw the money before the maturity date.

Read the full California First National Bank review.

Pacific National Bank Review

Pacific National Bank offers specific online-only accounts. These accounts include a money market account and 12- month and 17-month CDs. The interest rates are competitive. These account rates are much higher than regular bank rates. The minimum amount required to open the money market account is $5,000. This is also the required balance to avoid a monthly fee. The CDs require $1,000 to open.

Along with online accounts, Pacific National Bank offers a variety of in-branch accounts. That includes personal deposit accounts and business accounts. Savings, checking, and money market accounts are available for personal and business accounts. CDs and lending options are also available.

Pacific National Bank CDs have low opening required amounts. Each of the CDs require $1,000 to open, including the online CDs. The only fee for CDs is withdrawing money before the maturity date.

The Pacific National Bank online accounts offer competitive interest rates. These account rates are competitive with other online-only accounts. These rates are much higher than the in-branch account rates. Online accounts are only offered to new customers to Pacific National Bank.

To earn the most competitive interest rates requires a large average balance. The in-branch and online MMA require $10,000 to earn the competitive interest rate. The checking account requires $2,500 to earn interest.

Accounts with Pacific National Bank have high opening required amounts. The interest earning checking account requires $2,500 to open. International customers require $7,000 to open the account. The money market account requires $5,000 for domestic customers. International customers must have $10,000 to open money market accounts.

Pacific National Bank accounts have tiered interest rates. To earn the most competitive rates requires a large balance in the accounts. The savings account requires a $50,000 balance to earn the most competitive rate. The money market accounts and the SuperNow checking require $1,000,000 for the highest rate. Amounts under these balances still earn interest, just not the most competitive rates.

Pacific National Bank accounts have monthly fees. The fees range from $10 to $25 each month. Waive the monthly fees by keeping a set amount in the accounts. Those amounts range from $500 to $5,000 depending on the account.

Read the full Pacific National Bank review.

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