Does changing bank accounts affect your credit score?

There may be several reasons why you’re looking to switch banks. Maybe another bank offers more services or options than your current one, or you may be looking to open additional accounts elsewhere.

Whatever your reason may be, changing banks doesn't directly affect your credit score, but other aspects of opening an account at a new bank can have an effect. In this article, you will learn about:

• How opening a bank account affects your credit
• Types of bank accounts that can impact your score
• How often you can switch banks
• If it’s bad to switch banks

How does opening a bank account affect your credit

Unlike opening a credit card account, which requires the card issuer to run a "hard inquiry" that temporarily hurts your score, opening up a bank account does not affect credit score. These accounts include, but are not limited to:

• Checking accounts
• Savings accounts
  
• 401(k) and IRA accounts (more often opened at brokerages and firms rather than banks)

Types of bank accounts that can impact your score

Opening a bank account doesn’t directly hurt your score; rather, your score is determined by a variety of factors related to your financial responsibility. These include payment history, your credit utilization ratio, credit mix and more.

Even though bank accounts are not a determining factor, they can indirectly impact your ability to become more creditworthy. Let’s explore how this may occur in each of the types of accounts below.

Checking/savings

If you're checking or savings account comes with certain terms, conditions and fees that you ignore or fail to meet, this activity could hurt you. For example, some checking accounts may require you to maintain a minimum balance. If you overspend and your checking account dips below this number, it could hurt your credit.

Mortgage

Mortgages and other types of loans may provide opportunities for improving your score. If you make your payments on time, you’re positively impacting your payment history, a major factor that gets considered when calculating your credit score. Additionally, a mortgage can add to your credit mix, which may help you further establish creditworthiness.

Credit card

Credit cards, on the other hand, have a much bigger impact on your score. Your credit card account is different from a savings or checking account because it reflects the money that you owe back to the bank.

There's no credit involved in a checking or savings account; these are accounts where the total balances are based on contributions. A credit card, however, is essentially a loan—it's a revolving line of credit. This comes with different risks around financial behavior that can, in turn, affect credit scores.

If you miss payments or max out on credit utilization, for example, you could hurt your credit score. That’s why monitoring your credit with tools like Chase Credit Journey^® is helpful—you can track your credit score, receive score refreshes and strategically set goals to achieve a higher credit score.

How often can you switch banks?

If you find yourself switching banks on a regular basis, think a bit about what it is you’re looking to accomplish financially. You may not necessarily need to switch banks, but instead keep accounts open at multiple banks.

According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, there are “no restrictions on the number of checking and savings accounts you can open or the number of banks or credit unions with which you can have accounts.”

That said, more isn't necessarily better and you should have valid finical reasons for opening a new bank account. Are you looking for a higher return on your savings account? Perhaps you would like to have an in-person relationship with your banker and are looking for branch offices nearby. These are just some of the reasons why you may seek to expand your banking relationships and consider establishing an account with a new bank.

Is it bad to switch banks?

Generally, you won’t hurt your score by switching banks, so you can switch them as you need. However, you should check with your banks’ terms and conditions when it comes to keeping your accounts open with them.

Be sure to pick a bank(s) that gives you the tools and services you need to make the right financial choices for you. If you feel like you've decided to expand or change your banking options, it's easy to switch to a new bank and open an account or even go with a credit union, which is a non-profit financial institution that distributes the profits made back to the members of the credit union.

Bottom line

Switching banks may be something you do to better your financial experience, but keep in mind that your overall behavior—such as making payments on time or following your banks’ terms and conditions—can have an impact on your credit score.