(Image credit: Future)
For the fourth year, we’re pleased to present the winners of our annual Readers’ Choice Awards. In a survey we conducted on Kiplinger.com in January and February, more than 4,200 readers rated the financial products and services they use in 13 categories, from credit cards and banks to brokers, wealth managers and annuity providers. The results here offer valuable insight into the everyday experiences that Kiplinger readers have with their financial providers.
Respondents made their judgments on such criteria as their interactions with customer service, the likelihood they would recommend the product or service to others, and their overall satisfaction with it. They also had the option to leave comments about their providers, and we have shared some of them here (remarks may be lightly edited for length and clarity).
For each category, we’ve listed an overall winner that earned the highest total score as well as other providers that earned above-average ratings for the various criteria that readers assessed. Our thanks to all of you who participated in the survey.
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Kiplinger Readers’ Choice Awards 2026: National Banks
These traditional, brick-and-mortar banks have branches in a number of states, making them great choices if you prefer to do your banking in person. We asked readers to rate their bank based on its customer service, how likely they are to recommend it to others, and their overall satisfaction with it.
OVERALL WINNER: First Citizens Bank
Outstanding for:
- Customer service
- Most recommended
- Overall satisfaction
First Citizens Bank has more than 500 branches in 23 states, with many in California, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. “Excellent service at local branches on the rare occasion I need them. Online banking is very easy to use,” one reader comments.
The bank offers a few checking accounts, including the basic Primary Checking, which charges no monthly fee if you sign up to receive electronic statements, and the premium Prestige Checking, which waives its $25 monthly fee if you meet certain criteria, such as having monthly direct deposits of at least $6,500 or a combined average daily balance of at least $25,000 among all your deposit accounts with the bank.
The perks include unlimited reimbursement of out-of-network ATM surcharges and free cashier’s checks and money orders. Among the bank’s savings options, the five-month CD recently stood out for its 3.45% yield ($5,000 minimum deposit).
KeyBank
Outstanding for:
- Customer service
- Most recommended
- Overall satisfaction
KeyBank has almost 1,000 branches stretching across 16 states, including Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Maine, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Utah and Washington. “I have been with KeyBank for decades and am quite satisfied with their services,” says one reader.
KeyBank offers a handful of checking accounts, including two free ones and two that offer more benefits and waive the fee if you meet certain balance or deposit requirements.
The bank also has savings and CD accounts. Recently, you could earn a 3.5% yield on a six-month CD, provided you deposit at least $10,000 and have a qualifying checking account with the bank.
U.S. Bank
Outstanding for:
- Most recommended
- Overall satisfaction
With 2,000 branches in 26 states, including California, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, Wisconsin and Washington, U.S. Bank has a large footprint.
The bank”s Smartly checking account is free if you have monthly direct deposits of at least $1,500 or meet other requirements, and you’ll earn cash back on certain purchases as well as discounts on loans from U.S. Bank. Among U.S. Bank’s savings options, the CD Special recently offered a 3.5% yield for five months with a minimum deposit of $1,000.
Fifth Third Bank
Outstanding for:
Fifth Third operates about 1,100 branches in more than a dozen states; among them are Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and North Carolina. The bank has some loyal customers among Kiplinger readers. One says, “I’ve been with them over 30 years and speak highly of them.” A couple of other survey respondents commended Fifth Third for excellent service.
Fifth Third has a few checking accounts, including the free Momentum Checking as well as the premium Preferred Banking, which provides plentiful perks. Customers who keep at least $100,000 in deposit and investment accounts with the bank avoid Preferred’s $25 monthly fee. Some of the CDs offer attractive rates, including a recent yield of up to 3% on a four- or eight-month promotional CD ($5,000 minimum deposit).
Kiplinger Readers’ Choice Awards Categories
How Readers Chose the Winners
Kiplinger readers were invited to take the Readers’ Choice Awards survey on Kiplinger.com between January 22 and February 19, 2026. The survey asked respondents to choose the financial product or service that they most frequently use in 13 categories: brokerage firms, wealth managers, IRA providers, cash-back credit cards, travel rewards credit cards, airline credit card rewards programs, national banks, internet banks, annuity providers, homeowners insurers, auto insurers, tax software and peer-to-peer payment services.
We asked readers to rate each provider they selected on a scale of one to 10 based on a few criteria. In many categories, readers rated the strength of customer service, how likely they would be to recommend the product or service to others, and how satisfied they are overall with the provider. In some categories, we included more nuanced criteria. With wealth management firms, we asked respondents to rate the trustworthiness of a firm’s advisers and the quality of its financial advice and retirement-planning services. For IRA providers, respondents assessed the mix of investment choices available to them. For peer-to-peer payment apps and tax software, respondents evaluated ease of use, and for auto and home insurance companies, readers judged the competitiveness of rates and strength of the claims experience.
We calculated an average (mean) score for each criterion with each provider. We also calculated an overall mean score for all providers for each criterion we asked readers to judge. We compared individual provider mean scores with the overall mean, and the three highest-scoring providers that had a score above the overall mean won an “outstanding” accolade; in cases of a tie, more than three providers are named, and if fewer than three qualifying providers achieved an above-average score, only those providers are named “outstanding.” In each category, providers are generally listed in descending order by the number of criteria for which they received the “outstanding” designation — so a product or company that is deemed “outstanding” in three areas, for example, is listed before a provider with one or two “outstanding” awards.
To choose an overall winner in each category, we added together the mean scores for each criterion rated for each product or service. The provider with the highest total score in each category took the prize for overall winner.
