DCU VS CommunityWide FCU

Which bank is better for you?

  • Financial Rates: 4.0 Star Icon
  • Customer Service: 4.5 Star Icon
  • Website Experience: 4.5 Star Icon
  • Bank Fees: 5.0 Star Icon
No Rate Information
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Pros:

  • Variety of accounts offered
  • Competitive interest rate for savings
  • Can open all accounts online
  • Low opening amounts and no fees

Cons:

  • Must become a member first
  • Tiered interest rates on MMA
  • High balances to earn interest
  • Only one withdrawal per month for Ltd.
  • Financial Rates: 4.0 Star Icon
  • Customer Service: 4.5 Star Icon
  • Website Experience: 4.0 Star Icon
  • Bank Fees: 5.0 Star Icon
No Rate Information
Advertiser Disclosure
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Pros:

  • Accounts offer competitive rates
  • Low opening amounts and no monthly fees
  • Variety of savings accounts offered
  • Funds savings account

Cons:

  • Must join the credit union first
  • No ATM fee reimbursement
  • Only one checking account offered
  • CD early withdrawal penalty can be high
DCU Review

Digital Federal Credit Union offers a wide variety of personal deposit accounts. These accounts include:

  • Free checking with different benefit levels
  • HSA checking
  • Primary savings
  • Money market savings
  • Ltd. savings
  • Holiday Savings Club
  • Regular CDs with terms from 3 to 60 months
  • Jumbo CDs from 3 to 60 months
  • Jump-Up CDs with a 15-month and 27-month term
  • QuickStart CDs from 3 to 60 months
  • Loans and credit cards
  • Business accounts and lending options

The Primary savings account offers competitive interest rates. For the first $1,000, you earn over a six percent interest rate. Any amount over $1,000 earns a lower rate of 0.25 percent. Between the two rates, the account earns competitive interest rates. The Primary savings account is the account you must open to become a member of DCU.

You can open all DCU accounts online. You do not need to visit a branch location to open the accounts. To open DCU accounts, you must be at least 18 years old. You must provide a government-issued ID and Social Security Number. Your address, phone number, and date of birth are also required.

The highest amount required to open a DCU checking or savings account is only $5. To earn interest for some accounts requires a larger balance. The CDs require $100 or $500, depending on the CD. Jumbo CDs require $25,000. DCU accounts do not have monthly fees or a required amount to keep in the account to avoid a fee.

To open an account with DCU, you must become a member of the credit union. You become a member by opening the Primary savings account with at least $5. Once you open that account and become a member, you can open any other DCU account.

The DCU money market account has tiered interest rates. To earn the most competitive interest rates requires a balance of at least $100,000. Lower balances earn interest, just not the highest rate.

The Ltd. savings account requires a balance of $25,000 to earn any interest. Any balance over $25,000 earns the most competitive rate, but balances below do not earn any interest.

Only one withdrawal is allowed per month from the Ltd. savings account. For every other withdrawal, there is a fee of $25. To earn interest on this account requires a balance of $25,000. There is no required amount to open the account.

Read the full DCU review.

CommunityWide FCU Review

Accounts at CommunityWide FCU offer competitive interest rates. The rates are competitive with other online accounts. CommunityWide rates are much higher than typical bank rates. Their rates are not tiered. Any balance above the required amount earns competitive interest rates.

CommunityWide accounts have low opening required amounts. The savings accounts require $5 to open. The checking account requires $15 to open. The CD terms each require $1,000 to open. The CommunityWide FCU checking and savings accounts do not have a monthly fee. If you only open a savings account and the account does not have any activity, there is a $5 dormant account fee. That fee applies for each month with no activity.

CommunityWide offers a wide variety of savings accounts. The accounts offered include:

  • Personal savings account
  • High-yield savings account
  • Funds savings account
  • CD terms from six months to five years
  • IRA accounts

A Funds savings account is available through CommunityWide FCU. This account acts as a savings account but earns a higher interest rate. Members can only withdraw money deposited in the account at specific times. You can choose whether to withdraw the money monthly or quarterly. Money can be deposited into the Funds savings account anytime.

Before you can open an account with CommunityWide, you must become a member of the credit union. To be eligible to join, you must have worked for a certain company or be a spouse of someone who has. Members of certain organizations are eligible. Immediate family members of CommunityWide members qualify to open an account. Once you qualify, you must show a valid government-issued ID and your Social Security Number.

CommunityWide Federal Credit Union does not offer ATM fee reimbursements. They offer over 30,000 ATMs free for members to use. If you make a transaction with another ATM, not in their network, you may be charged a fee. CommunityWide will not reimburse you for those fees.

CommunityWide FCU offers many accounts, but only one checking account. The checking account earns interest for balances over $1 and requires $15 to open. It is the only checking account available through CommunityWide FCU.

The early withdrawal fee for CommunityWide FCU CDs can be higher than other CD fees. CommunityWide FCU uses a specific formula to determine the penalty. First, they take the withdrawn amount times the remaining days at twice the current APR. They then divide the amount by 365. There is not a set penalty based on term length.

Read the full CommunityWide FCU review.

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Min to Open $0
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Monthly Fee $0.00
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Min to Open $0
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APY 4.35%
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Min to Open $100
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APY 4.10%
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Monthly Fee $0.00
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Min to Open $10
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Monthly Fee $0.00
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