PenFed Credit Union Review: Checking, Savings and Share Certificates

Pentagon Federal Credit Union, or PenFed, offers checking and savings accounts, money market certificates and other services to anyone who joins.

Spencer Tierney is a consumer banking writer at NerdWallet. He has covered personal finance since 2013, with a focus on certificates of deposit and other banking-related topics. His work has been featured by The Washington Post, USA Today, The Associated Press and the Los Angeles Times, among others. He is based in Oakland, California.

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Tim Manni is currently an At-Large Lead Assigning Editor at NerdWallet. Tim joined NerdWallet in 2016 and was the Lead Assigning Editor of the Home and Mortgages team from 2017-2022. Prior to NerdWallet, Tim spent eight years as a writer and editor at HSH.com, a financial publisher or mortgage information. Tim and his work have been quoted and featured in numerous publications and broadcasts from coast to coast. Tim lives with this wife and two children in Caldwell, New Jersey.

Ruth Sarreal
Content Management Specialist | Bank accounts, bank account bonuses

Ruth Sarreal is a content management specialist covering consumer banking topics at NerdWallet. She has over a decade of experience writing and editing for consumer websites. She previously edited content on personal finance topics at GOBankingRates. Her work has been featured by Nasdaq, MSN, TheStreet and Yahoo Finance.

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• Certificates of deposit

Overall institution rating

NerdWallet's ratings are determined by our editorial team. The scoring formulas take into account multiple data points for each financial product and service.

Pentagon Federal Credit Union, or PenFed, offers strong rates for online savings and money market certificates. PenFed is easy to join and offers a handy mobile app. Its $30 nonsufficient funds fee, however, isn’t as consumer friendly, especially since PenFed can charge it multiple times in one day.

Best for: Those who prefer a credit union and want high interest rates and plenty of access to free ATMs, and who are unlikely to overdraft.

Full review

Pentagon Federal Credit Union

Certificates of deposit

Federally insured by NCUA

/5 NerdWallet rating

NerdWallet's ratings are determined by our editorial team. The scoring formulas take into account multiple data points for each financial product and service.

4.00% Annual Percentage Yield (APY)

3.40% Annual Percentage Yield (APY)

3.20% Annual Percentage Yield (APY)

PenFed's money market certificates function like share certificates (the term typically used by credit unions). Share certificates are a type of savings account that guarantees its savings rate for a specific time period. In exchange, the customer generally doesn't withdraw their money until the time period ends. (Certificates are similar to certificates of deposit , or CDs, offered by banks.)

PenFed's certificates have average rates. Terms range from six months to seven years.

» COMPARE: See our list of the best CD rates

Savings

Federally insured by NCUA

/5 NerdWallet rating

NerdWallet's ratings are determined by our editorial team. The scoring formulas take into account multiple data points for each financial product and service.

PenFed offers the Premium Online Savings account with a strong 3.00% annual percentage yield on all balances. The basic savings account offers a much lower APY as well as the ability to withdraw money at ATMs, which the online account does not. Both accounts have no monthly fees and require only $5 to open.

Checking

Federally insured by NCUA

/5 NerdWallet rating

NerdWallet's ratings are determined by our editorial team. The scoring formulas take into account multiple data points for each financial product and service.

PenFed’s Free Checking account has no monthly fee. Other than a minimum opening deposit of $25, there are no other requirements for this account. Direct deposits can arrive up to two days early.

PenFed's interest-bearing checking account, which didn’t factor into our rating, has a monthly fee (though it can be waived), and some requirements to get the APY, including a minimum direct deposit, and a hefty minimum balance.

Its massive ATM network includes Allpoint and Co-op machines and is larger than that of many financial institutions.

» Interested in credit? Check out our list of the best PenFed credit cards

Customer experience

NerdWallet's ratings are determined by our editorial team. The scoring formulas take into account multiple data points for each financial product and service.

Though the credit union was originally exclusive to military personnel and family, anyone can now apply to join. All that’s required to be a member is a $5 deposit in a savings account.

The credit union's iOS and Android mobile apps get solid ratings from users, and customer phone support is available late into the Eastern time evening hours and on weekends.

PenFed doesn’t participate in shared branches , which some other credit unions offer, but it has more than 50 branches of its own across the country.

Overdraft fees

NerdWallet's ratings are determined by our editorial team. The scoring formulas take into account multiple data points for each financial product and service.

PenFed’s overdraft policies aren’t easy to find on their site but according to the credit union, it doesn’t charge overdraft fees. Certain transactions, such as debit card purchases or ATM withdrawals, are rejected by the institution and no fee is charged.

Other transactions, such as checks or pre-authorized debits (like a recurring bill payment) would incur a $30 nonsufficient funds fee. What’s more, the NSF fee can be charged multiple times in a day, which can quickly add up.

Members who want overdraft transactions to go through can sign up for a line of credit that has a 17.99% percentage rate and no fee (restrictions for who qualifies for this program apply). If you tend to overdraw your account, consider one of the best banks for overdrafts instead.

How does PenFed Credit Union compare?

NerdWallet's ratings are determined by our editorial team. The scoring formulas take into account multiple data points for each financial product and service.

NerdWallet's ratings are determined by our editorial team. The scoring formulas take into account multiple data points for each financial product and service.

SoFi members with Direct Deposit or $5,000 or more in Qualifying Deposits during the 30-Day Evaluation Period can earn 4.50% annual percentage yield (APY) on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances. There is no minimum Direct Deposit amount required to qualify for the stated interest rate. Members without either Direct Deposit or Qualifying Deposits, during the 30-Day Evaluation Period will earn 1.20% APY on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances. Only SoFi members with direct deposit are eligible for other SoFi Plus benefits. Interest rates are variable and subject to change at any time. These rates are current as of 8/27/2024. There is no minimum balance requirement. Additional information can be found at http://www.sofi.com/legal/banking-rate-sheet.

With $0 min. balance for APY

With $5,000 min. balance for APY

Earn up to $300 with direct deposit. Terms apply.

at SoFi Bank, N.A.

Methodology

NerdWallet’s overall ratings for banks and credit unions are weighted averages of several categories: checking, savings, certificates of deposit or credit union share certificates, banking experience and overdraft fees. Factors we consider, depending on the category, include rates and fees, ATM and branch access, account features and limits, user-facing technology, customer service and innovation. The stars represent ratings from poor (one star) to excellent (five stars). Ratings are rounded to the nearest half-star.

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About the authors

Spencer Tierney is a writer and NerdWallet's authority on certificates of deposit. His work has been featured by USA Today and the Los Angeles Times.Read more

Ruth Sarreal is a content management specialist at NerdWallet. She has written and edited content on personal finance topics for more than five years.Read more

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