If you’ve never heard of Huntington Bank, you’re likely not in the Midwest. Huntington currently has more than 1,000 full-service branches in 11 states, giving those in the region a great banking option.
This Huntington Bank review will look at the fees, rates, and banking experience for those living in one of the states with branches.
Huntington National Bank Overview
If you live in the Midwest or the South, Huntington Bank brings plenty of benefits. You’ll get fee-free checking and a full suite of savings and loan options. However, with some accounts, you will need to keep a minimum balance to avoid a service fee.
One great thing about Huntington is that they offer bonuses for signing up. If Huntington isn’t local to you, some accounts waive fees on out-of-network ATM use, but you’ll still be on the hook for any fees charged by the third-party ATM provider.
About Huntington National Bank
Headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, Huntington National Bank was founded in 1866 as Huntington Bancshares. Over the years, the bank has expanded beyond Ohio to serve customers in 11 different states throughout the Midwest and South.
Huntington Bank is now considered a regional bank, serving customers in Ohio, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. They offer a full suite of banking services, including checking accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, certificates of deposit (CDs), and business checking accounts.
Huntington Bank Features
If you’re in the market for a new bank, Huntington offers a few benefits that make it a great regional bank. Those include:
- Sign-up bonuses
- Fee-free checking
- Fee-free out-of-network ATM use with some accounts
- One-day grace period on overdrafts
- Automatic transfers to your savings account
- Easy-to-access line of credit
Huntington Bank Checking Accounts
One of the best things about Huntington National Bank is its fee-free checking options. There are four tiers, offering a little something for everyone.
Asterisk-Free Checking Account
Account holders looking for all the basics might like this account. You’ll get a free checking account with no opening deposit, no monthly maintenance fee, and no balance requirements.
Perks Checking Account
For a fee-free checking account that includes all the basics, check out Huntington Perks Checking. This bank account requires a $5,000 minimum balance across all eligible Huntington Bank accounts. You can also qualify for free checking with $1,000 in total monthly deposits. This account comes with free credit score monitoring.
Platinum Perks Checking Account
If you can maintain a $25,000 balance across all qualifying accounts, the Huntington Platinum Perks checking account will provide you with access to exclusive rewards and benefits. Not only will you enjoy no monthly maintenance fee with this account, but you’ll also get fee-free non-Huntington ATM withdrawals, as well as qualifying for better rates on your Huntington money market account.
If you can’t maintain a $25,000 balance, the monthly maintenance fee will be $25 a month. You’ll get free credit score monitoring, which also includes fraudulent activity monitoring.
Huntington SmartInvest Checking
Looking to invest? Become an Investment Advisory customer and qualify for this account. You’ll need at least $100,000 across all your account balances. This is one of Huntington’s interest-bearing accounts, and the interest rate will be based on your balance and zip code. One tier only requires $100,000, but the higher-earning tier requires at least a $1 million average daily balance.
Huntington Bank Savings Accounts and Rates
If you want to set up an emergency fund or save for the future, savings accounts are a must. Huntington’s savings account holders enjoy no maintenance fee as long as you meet some requirements. Here are the two savings accounts Huntington offers.
Huntington Premier Savings Account
Account holders who want a basic savings account can get started with a Premier Savings Account, which has no monthly maintenance fee as long as you meet some minimums. You’ll either need a Huntington Bank checking account or to maintain a $300 average daily balance. But even if you don’t satisfy those requirements, you’ll pay only $4 a month. Interest rates vary by location, but they range around 0.01%APY.
Huntington Relationship Savings
Earn a slightly higher interest rate with a Relationship Savings account. Rates go as high as 0.02% annual percentage yield (APY) for checking account owners and 0.06% APY if you have a Private Client Account. With a Private Client Account, you get interest on checking, a rewards credit card, unlimited ATM fee refunds, and other perks.
As with the Premier Savings Account, you’ll need to either have a linked checking account or maintain an average daily balance of at least $25,000 to get fee-free checking. If not, the monthly maintenance fee is $10.
Huntington Bank Money Market Accounts
The best interest rates come with a Huntington money market account. You’ll have to meet specific requirements to qualify, but it’s worth researching. There are two money market accounts.
Huntington Relationship Money Market Account
You’ll need a $25,000 balance to earn interest with this Huntington account. But if you maintain that balance, you can earn up to 4.18% APY, depending on the other Huntington accounts you have. If your balance falls below $25,000, you’ll be on the hook for a $25 monthly fee.
Huntington SmartInvest Money Market Account
When you enroll in Huntington SmartInvest Checking, you’ll be eligible for this savings option, which offers up to 4.33% APY. There are no monthly fees, and you’ll get fee-free ATM use, both at Huntington Bank and at out-of-network ATMs.
Huntington Money Market IRA
Save for retirement with Huntington’s IRA options, which include both Traditional and IRA options. There are no fees or Huntington-charged early withdrawal penalties, but you’ll still face applicable tax penalties. You’ll need at least $2,500 in this account to start earning interest, and rates currently go up to 0.05% APY.
Huntington Fixed-Rate CDs
If you have some money to set aside for a while, a Huntington Bank CD is the best interest option. Rates start at 5.00% for a 14-month term. CDs require a minimum deposit of $1,000 to get started.
Huntington Bank Credit Cards
Huntington National Bank offers several credit card options that you can pair with a checking or savings account or choose separately. All of Huntington’s credit cards come with no annual fee and one extra day to pay your bill without a late fee.
Huntington Cashback Credit Card
With the Cashback Credit Card, you earn 1.5% unlimited cash back on your spending. There are no fees and no spend categories to track. You can choose whether you want to redeem the rewards yourself or have them automatically credited to your account each month.
Huntington 3x Rewards Credit Card
If you don’t mind a little extra effort, the 3x Rewards Credit Card can be an even better deal. You’ll get three points for every dollar you spend, but you’ll have to spend within ten categories that you pre-select each quarter. The 3x points are limited to $2,000 in spend per quarter. But the good news is, you’ll still earn one point per dollar you spend on everything else.
Huntington Lower Rate Credit Card
You don’t earn cash back with this card, called the Voice Credit Card. Instead, Huntington Bank offers up to a 2% lower interest rate than you get with its other cards.
Useful Financial Management Tools
Financial planning is an important part of setting up banking. Huntington perks include a few free tools that can help you manage your money better.
Money Scout®
Your Huntington checking account allows you to pay bills and spend money. But it’s important to set money aside for a rainy day. Online banking makes it easier to transfer funds from checking to saving, but Money Scout can take it to the next level.
Money Scout monitors your linked checking account for extra funds. Whenever you have extra money to spare, it’s automatically transferred to the linked savings account. The tool only moves $5 to $50 at a time, but those savings can add up.
Savings Goal Getter
Saving can be challenging. Huntington Bank makes it easier with Savings Goal Getter, which lets you set up to ten goals. You can save for things like vacations, holiday shopping, a down payment on a house, or other expenses. The tool includes calculators and progress trackers to help motivate you.
24-Hour Grace
It can be easy to lose track of your balance throughout the month. To help with the occasional slip-up, Huntington accounts automatically come with 24-hour grace. With this feature, you’ll get an extra day to bring your account back to zero after it’s fallen into the negative. This can help you avoid overdraft fees and returned payments.
Standby Cash
Plenty of banks and credit unions offer personal lines of credit to members. Huntington Bank markets theirs as standby cash, which lets you deposit money into your checking account when you need it. Pay the funds back within three months to avoid paying interest, but if you need a little longer, you’ll only be charged 1% on the balance each month until it’s paid off.
Business Banking
Huntington National Bank also offers business checking accounts, savings accounts, credit cards, and business loans.
Huntington’s business checking comes with the same tools you get with a personal account, along with features specific to business banking. There are three tiers of business checking options available:
- Business Checking 101: Designed for small businesses and startups, this account allows up to 100 monthly transactions with no fees.
- Unlimited Business Checking: You’ll get unlimited transactions with this account, which comes with a $20 per month fee. As long as you have at least $10,000 a month in deposits, that fee will be waived.
- Unlimited Plus Business Checking: This is the only interest-bearing business checking account. But you’ll need at least $40,000 coming into your Huntington business deposit accounts to have the $40 monthly fee waived.
But one reason to consider Huntington for your business banking is its loan offerings. Huntington offers business term and real estate loans, business lines of credit, SBA-guaranteed business loans, and dental and vet practice loans. Rates and terms are competitive, and being an existing member will help you stay abreast of any new loan opportunities that come available.
Current Promotional Offers
Before you sign up for an account online, always do a search for promotional offers. Huntington Bank regularly offers cash back for signing up for its various accounts. Here are a few of Huntington’s current offers.
Checking Account Bonus Offer
Save up to $600 with a checking account bonus. This offer is specific to Huntington’s perks checking account tiers. You’ll get $400 if you sign up for a Perks Checking account, and $600 with a Platinum Perks Checking account. You’ll just need to sign up, make the required deposits, and keep the account open for 90 days.
Business Checking Account Promotions
Business checking accounts qualify for a bonus, too. You can earn up to $1,000 on an Unlimited Plus Business Checking account, but you’ll need to deposit at least $20,000 to qualify.
An Unlimited Business Checking account comes with a $400 bonus and only $5,000 to qualify. The basic account, Business Checking 100, requires a $2,000 deposit to earn the bonus.
$100 Credit Card Welcome Bonus
Ready to spend on your credit card? Huntington will pay you for it. All you have to do is open a Huntington Bank credit card and spend $1,000 in the first 60 days.
Banking Experience
In addition to branches and ATMs, Huntington has a mobile app and website packed with all the features. With online banking, you get mobile check deposit, real-time alerts, money transfers, and bill pay. You can also access customer service by phone during business hours.
Fees and Minimum Requirements
Although Huntington Bank strives to keep fees and requirements to a minimum, there are a few to know about.
Minimum Balance Requirements
Unless you go for the Asterisk free checking account, you’ll likely have a minimum balance to avoid monthly fees. It’s important to note that Huntington goes by your average daily balance across all your Total Relationship accounts. Those include all savings, investment, and borrow accounts that are linked to your main account.
Monthly Maintenance Fees
With all of Huntington Bank’s accounts, you’ll enjoy fee-free banking as long as you meet requirements. In most cases, you’ll just need to maintain a minimum balance each month. That balance requirement can vary by account tier, so you’ll have to accurately gauge in advance what your average daily balance will be.
Overdraft Fees
With 24-Hour Grace, you’ll have an extra day to remedy an overdraft before it becomes a problem. At that time, a $25 overdraft fee will kick in for every item Huntington pays on your behalf. If an item is returned, you’ll be charged a $36 fee.
Out-of-Network ATM Fees
If you don’t live near a Huntington Bank ATM, or you travel frequently, it’s important to pay attention to the ATM fees. If you have a Platinum Perks checking account or a SmartInvest Money Market account, you’ll enjoy fee-free non-Huntington ATM use.
Fees can vary by account, but for its basic account, Asterisk Free Checking, Huntington charges $3.50 for each transaction at an out-of-network ATM. That doesn’t include the fees charged by the third-party bank.
Comparable Banking Options
Here are a couple of regional banks with comparable offerings worth considering.
PNC Bank
Although both Huntington and PNC Bank are regional banks, PNC has a larger footprint. PNC now has bank branches in 29 states. Those states are: Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.
This expanded presence not only brings more branches, but also more ATMs. PNC has 60,000 ATMs across the U.S., compared to only 1,600 with Huntington.
There are three PNC checking accounts. Virtual Wallet Checking Pro with Spend, Reserve & Growth offers a full suite of services with no maintenance fees and no minimum balance. If you just need checking, you can choose Virtual Wallet Checking Pro with Spend and still pay no monthly fee regardless of your balance. The other account, Virtual Wallet Campus, is designed for students and has no service charge for the first six years.
Like Huntington, PNC is currently offering a $200 bonus for new checking account customers. You’ll need to open the account and make $2,000 in qualifying direct deposits.
Fifth Third Bank
Fifth Third Bank is another regional bank comparable in offerings to Huntington. The service area covers 11 different states: Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, and West Virginia.
Fifth Third has three checking account tiers. Both Momentum Checking and Express Checking have no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements. Preferred Checking issues interest on your account, but you’ll need at least a $100,000 balance across all your Fifth Third accounts to avoid the $25 monthly service fee.
Like Huntington and PNC Bank, Fifth Third regularly offers promotions to attract new customers. Currently, you can get a $275 checking bonus for signing up for a new account and have direct deposits of $500 or more in the first 90 days.
Huntington Bank is one of the best regional banks, with a large presence in 11 states. The promotional bonuses plus free checking option can help you save money, making it competitive with any national bank.
Bottom Line
Huntington National Bank stands as a prominent regional banking option for those residing in its 11-state service area. With its comprehensive suite of services ranging from personal to business banking, Huntington continues to prioritize customer experience.
Its promotional offers, low fees for those meeting the requirements, and versatile financial management tools further enhance its appeal. While there are other regional banks that offer similar services, Huntington Bank’s commitment to simplicity, flexibility, and customer-centric innovations make it a worthy consideration for individuals and businesses in the Midwest and South.
If you’re seeking a bank that blends the perks of a large institution with the personal touch of a local bank, Huntington might just be the right fit for you.
