Warning Signs Flash for U.S. Retail Bank Customer Satisfaction, JD Power Finds

Primary Bank Relationships Face Heightened Attrition Risk as More Customers Shift Deposits across Multiple Institutions, Creating Opportunities for Banks with Stellar Customer Experience

• Overall customer satisfaction levels off this year; customer experience at key moments of truth declines
• Average retail bank customer now maintains three deposit accounts at different institutions
• Less service friction, better problem resolution help top-performing banks maintain strong customer relationships, position for growth

TROY, Mich.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Like a great marriage, primary banking relationships take work to maintain, and when one partner starts taking the other for granted or fails to show up at key moments of truth, it’s not uncommon for the other to start looking elsewhere for commitment. According to the JD Power 2026 U.S. Retail Banking Satisfaction Study,^SM released today, warning signs of a gradual decline in key customer engagement metrics are starting to flash for retail banks, as customers increasingly open deposit accounts with multiple institutions.

“Retail banks are confronting an incredibly complex, highly nuanced set of challenges in the current marketplace,” said Jennifer White, senior director of financial services intelligence at JD Power. “While overall customer satisfaction is holding steady, cracks are emerging at key points in the customer journey, which are opening the door to quietly establish new accounts with other institutions and gradually shift funds away from their primary bank. JD Power is seeing signs of this ‘soft switching’ phenomenon across various datasets, and it is coming through clearly in the Retail Banking Satisfaction Study in the form of declining levels of customer satisfaction with personal service interactions over the course of the past 12 months.”

Following are some key findings of the 2026 study:

• Customer satisfaction declines across most common touchpoints: While overall customer satisfaction with retail banks climbs 2 points (on a 1,000-point scale) to 657 in 2026, sharp declines in the second half of the year show growing strain in the customer experience with phone, branch, online and automated customer engagement channels.
• More customers move money from their primary bank: The average retail bank checking account customer now maintains three deposit accounts at different institutions, and 20% of retail bank customers have moved money away from their primary bank within the past 3 months, up from 17% last year. Customers most likely to move money are those under age 40 (23%); those in the affluent/mass affluent wealth bracket (25%); and those who are financially healthy¹ (24%).
• National banks close gap with midsize banks on problem resolution: Satisfaction with the problem resolution experience climbs to 587 among national banks, which is up 49 points from 2024. Among midsize banks, the average problem resolution score is 548, which is down 27 points from 2024.
• Banks offering great everyday customer experience positioned for success: The retail banks that are consistently driving the highest levels of overall satisfaction are those that on a regular basis treat routine customer experiences–such as alerts, funds transfers, fees and face-to-face interactions–as opportunities to reinforce clarity and confidence.

Study Rankings

The study measures customer satisfaction with retail banks in 15 geographic regions. Highest-ranking banks and scores by region are as follows:

California: Chase (669) (for a second consecutive year)

Florida: Chase (704)

Illinois: Wintrust Community Banks (707) (for a fifth consecutive year)

Lower Midwest Region: BancFirst (738) (for a fourth consecutive year)

Mid-Atlantic Region: Capital One (693) (for a third consecutive year)

New England Region: Bangor Savings Bank (712) (for a ninth consecutive year)

North Central Region: City National Bank (WV) (700)

Northwest Region: Chase (661)

New York Tri-State Region: Capital One (686)

Pennsylvania: Huntington (702)

South Central Region: FirstBank (705)

Southeast Region: United Community (725) (for a third consecutive year)

Southwest Region: Chase (673)

Texas: Frost (757) (for a 17^th consecutive year)

Upper Midwest Region: Gate City Bank (718) (for a second consecutive year)

To see the official release and complete visual rank charts, visit: http://www.jdpower.com/pr-id/2026024.

The U.S. Retail Banking Satisfaction Study, now in its 21^st year, measures satisfaction across seven dimensions (in order of importance): trust; people; account offerings; allowing customers to bank how and when they want; saving time and money; digital channels; and resolving problems or complaints.

The 2026 study is based on responses from 107,059 retail customers of the largest banks in the United States regarding their experiences with their retail banking institution. It was fielded from January 2025 through January 2026. National banks are defined as banks with $250 billion or more in domestic deposits; regional banks are those with $60 billion-$249 billion in domestic deposits and at least 200 branches nationally; and midsize banks are those with 45-100 branches nationally and at least 20 branches within a respective region.

For more information about the U.S. Retail Banking Satisfaction Study, visit https://www.jdpower.com/business/retail-banking-study-1.

About JD Power

JD Power delivers mission-critical data, analytics and intelligence that help businesses improve customer experience and operational performance with confidence and clarity. Using proprietary, comprehensive data–including millions of consumer interactions and authoritative automotive datasets–combined with advanced analytics, artificial intelligence and deep industry expertise, JD Power enables leaders to respond to market shifts, make smarter decisions and drive measurable performance improvements.

As an objective source of deep insight into real-world customer interactions with brands and products, JD Power provides the independent intelligence organizations need to anticipate change, strengthen customer engagement and advance growth. Learn more at JDPower.com.

¹ JD Power measures the financial health of any consumer as a metric combining their spending/savings ratio, creditworthiness, and safety net items like insurance coverage. Consumers are placed on a continuum from healthy to vulnerable.

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