| 5 star: | (27) | |
| 4 star: | (21) | |
| 3 star: | (3) | |
| 2 star: | (10) | |
| 1 star: | (33) |
I've been a customer for over 2 years and have had no issues opening online savings and many cds.
The good news is the great rates. Some have complained of web issues transfer nightmares, etc. I've not experienced any so far. Transferring money to and from multiple external banks has been smooth and easy.
The bad is really bad! If you need to call for customer service, it's dreadful. They won't even be helpful when you want to transfer money to deposit at Synchrony. I've been trying to fund an IRA CD for a month, uncounted numbers of calls. They don't seem to care if I deposit money in the bank or not. Most unhelpful customer service ever! Check out the Traditional IRA transfer form. There is no room for a signature guarantee stamp, but the current custodian requires it. My bank providing the stamp says there isn't enough room. Customer service at Synchrony says, there is no form with space and you can't altered form to make space just squeeze in the stamp anywhere. My bank won't do it. Looking on bankrate for different bank for my IRA now.
I have sizable deposits with 6 or 7 online banks. I have never experienced the problems I had with trying to set up an account with Synchrony. I literally spend 90 minutes on the phone over 3 different calls with people who had nothing to give but one lame excuse after another. The last call I just gave up. Now I know the answer to the question "why do they have to offer a bit more interest to attract customers?" Answer: Because nobody in their right mind would go through this for 5 basis points of yield. Do yourself a favor and go elsewhere.
Synchrony simply can't upload March 2016 statements to my account online. There are statements through February and then they start up again in Apil. When I ask about the missing March statement I'm told there was an issue, and they will never be able to upload March statements online. They say they have my March statement (I haven't seen it yet) but they can't put it online within my account. I'm waiting for the CD I have there to mature, and then I'm out of there!
$50k) out!!!! Everything we do they have a problem with. Can't link accounts to it, they deny withdrawals through other accounts. We have literally spent over 2 hours on the phone with them and are no where.
This bank is relatively new and a recent branch off of General Electric, but don't be discouraged from putting your money here. They are fully insured by the FDIC like any other bank. What makes this bank better than traditional brick and mortar banks, and even other internet only banks, is it offers much better savings and money market rates. While it may only be 0.10 to 0.15% higher, that is still higher yield for the same safety you'd get anywhere else. And if you want CD rates, Synchrony has very competitive rates for short and intermediate term CDs. But like any bank, the long term CD rates are not as attractive, but this is not unique to Synchrony. That just seems to be the trends these days. Overall, I highly recommend this bank since it offers great rates
I cannot believe the rudeness of the supervisor I spoke to about a mysterious debit to my savings account. I can't believe someone with her attitude is in a position dealing with customers. As soon as the money they erroneously debited is returned to my account, I will absolutely close this account.
Follow up 8/23/2015: I tried contacting Synchrony to explain what I wanted to do with my maturing CD. Again, I could not reach anyone and could not leave a message. They don't seem to read email messages, either. It was easy to set up the account, but nearly impossible to reach anyone since then. Beware of this Venus Fly Trap - easy and enticing to get into, difficult to get out of when you need to.
I was on hold twice for an hour each time on 7/6/15 trying to reach a customer service agent, but never got through. I left an email to be contacted, but received no reply. It's my only financial institution that does not allow Mint.com access, making it very difficult to manage my finances. Synchrony has great rates, but they come at a great price of personal time. I'm trying to decide whether the rates are worth the customer service hassle.
Down for three days over the weekend, trying to move the last $31 out, was using them to hold cash until interest rates changed.
They insisted I create a new PW, had to have two #'s, couldn't be either end, couldn't be together. Yes, I'm serious. Tried 3 times.
Finally got on, couldn't make a transfer.
20 minutes on the phone, I got a confirmation # and the rest. Two days later, site is down for maintenance, no return date mentioned.
All this after changing their EWP to a full year.
Just opened a 5 year cd, everything was completed over the phone. Very easy process, the rep. was very helpful.
We had a CD mature and wanted some funds transferred to a savings account and the remainder renewed but for a different term. It took two phone calls, as I gave up on the long wait the first time, and then waited it out for over 20 minutes the second time. I told the rep what needed to be done -- but she couldn't do it herself, only pass it on to another department. She said it might take a couple of days. It took five days!
I have recently opened an account with Synchrony and it have been difficult to talk to someone live on the phone. After waiting for about 20 minutes twice, a live customer service answered the phone and took my name down to schedule a call back due to high volume. I have not received a call back on both occasions. This is disappointing as the GE Capital products were superior.
My wife and I have opened many accounts with this bank, due to their higher interest rates,both IRA and not IRA, in person and by phone. Generally everything went smoothly. From the beginning we gave the bank our mutual POAs, and they do not create any problems when I deal for my wife.
Two problems reduce my star rating to 4 instead of 5: 1) when you open an account over the phone and send them a check by mail that takes a day to be delivered inside NJ, it is frequently credited in a week; 2) when at the end of December we needed urgently to change the instructions about my wife's RMD, it took sending a fax twice plus at least 5 phone calls to make it right.
One of the worst online banks I've ever dealt with. Trying to open up an account for my mother in law who has Alzheimers. We have full power of attorney. We have filled out all their paperwork more than once, called multiple times and they refuse to give us information on the status of opening the account. They always say they will send a letter in the mail, but never do.
Setting up an account was easy. Linking it to external accounts was easy. I have had it funded for several months, and now when I tried to transfer money out, my account is 'locked' from transfering money out.
Customer service verifies that my external accounts were set up properly and are available, and can give me no reason for why the account is locked. So have no access to my money for 48-72 hours while a 'supervisor' 'unlocks' my account.
Total BS.
I do not understand the complaints in these reviews. Have 2 accounts. Opened the 2nd today in almost no time. First was easy also. Interest rates are great compared to other online banks and customer service is exceptional. the account opened today is a Trust account and these usually take a lot of paperwork and time to open. Did it all in less than 10 min on the phone. Could not be more pleased.
After several interactions with customer service and their online system I have up trying to open an account. Just too many bugs in the system and I lost all trust in it. It's amazing how poorly the online banking systems are put together. So far, the only one I have had success with is Ally.
We discovered Synchrony Bank's High Yield Savings about a year ago. At the time, our regular savings account from our local branch was offering less than 0.1% a year. We compared with other online savings including AMEX, and decided Synchrony had the best rate: 1.05% a year. That is more than ten times what our local bank was giving us, and without any annual fees. For us, the entire sign-up process was accomplished online with ease. Then transferring between our bank's checking account and Synchrony was simple and straight forward. The interest is added toward our principal on a monthly basis. The only drawback is the time for funds to clear. Once we submitted a transfer request from Synchrony to our own checking account, it can take up to three business days for the funds to be available. But unless you are always pressed for time, it makes sense to allow your money to earn more interest for yourself versus your local bank.
AVOID THIS BANK.
Until recently, I was a huge supporter of this bank and encouraged others to put their savings here because of the high interest rate for a savings account.
HOWEVER, I put in a request to transfer money into the bank. During the request the website crashed so I put in another request. Apparently, BOTH requests went through. This lead to an over draw of my external account, for which i incurred several fees.
So I called customer service and they told me that it was my fault and not an issue on their end and that all they could do was send the money back to my bank. When i asked about the fees, the support politely told me to fuck off.
I will be closing this account in favor of Ally or Barclays because their rate is only 5 bps lower and im sure their customer service is worth the difference.
I just started a savings account that I funded from another internet bank I use. The process to enroll involving mailing forms and waiting for the electronic transfer from the other bank went smoothly. However here I am sitting in front of the web site and I try to set up another transfer account. The first thing I see is that they require me to get a text or phone call with a code I need to enter into the web site to continue. My only problem? It was a phone number from my landline from like 1998. I no longer own THAT number but as I looked at my personal information sure enough my REAL number is there. So I CAN't receive the code necessary to add the account to move more money into this ridiculous bank. I called customer service expecting to easily have them change the information and be on my way but was surprised again. Although the call was answered quickly I was informed that he could not change the number. He also explained that the program was using old numbers for people that were entered into my credit report for the contact number rather than my actual contact number...Genius! He promised that they were working on a fix for the issue and that I could send in FORMS VIA MAIL to get my accounts set up for now. Ummm no....Is there a lemon law for banks?
Anyway, if it isn't fixed in a week I am out. Maybe they should hire real programmers that know to look at the newest records in the credit report for information instead of the first record. OR better yet....use the information provided by the customer.
Synchrony Bank has the poorest customer service of any bank. Now, they say my account is "restricted", and I cannot get my money out. Why? I am filing complaints with three (3) federal banking agencies as well as the state attorney general. DO NOT TRUST THIS BANK!!!!!
We were banking with our local Chase Bank for several years. We had a checking and saving accounts. However, when our interest on our savings was only .30% APY, we decided we'd had enough. So we started researching and found Synchrony Bank had tons of good reviews and a decent 1.05% interest on our savings. We also liked the fact that it was so convenient to bank with them online. I think online banks are the banks of the future, and Synchrony Bank is going to be at the top of the list. The thing I like best has been their responsiveness. I had several questions about various things that I emailed to them, and I got a response back in less than 30 minutes. Now that is great online customer service!
Be warned that in order to link external accounts you need to use a One Time Password (OTP). I've tried twice now to use their system, once to have it call me and once to have it text me. In both cases I was unable to get it to send me the code and the LOCKED MY ACCOUNTS!
Come on, seriously, your system is broken so your action is to lock my account. What a PAIN!
And the worst part is, they know there's a problem. "We're aware there's an issue and we're replacing the system, in a few months".
EDIT: Updating to 1 star overall. Even after getting them to unlock my accounts and verifying my trial deposits, one of my banks (Alliant Credit Union) apparently isn't in their "system" so now they want me to mail them a copy of my statement to prove I own the account, as if.
For me, the web connect feature in Quicken is essential. Before attempting to open several accounts with Synchrony, I contacted them, as I had seen something negative in an Intuit forum. Customer Support confirmed that they do not support Quicken:
Hello and thank you for contacting Synchrony Bank.
Although we recognize the benefits of Quicken, we are no longer supporting the use of this application to view your Synchrony Bank account(s). We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
I have had an awful banking experience with Synchrony Bank and attempted to ACH my funds out of this bank the end of July but had some issues with the website. After waiting for the trial deposits to “hit” it became apparent that the ACH failed. I tried again and had some on-line issues. I finally called the bank on Monday, August 11, 2013 and requested that the money be sent via ACH to a bank here in Atlanta. Today is August 20, 9 days after I requested the ACH transfer and the money has still NOT been posted at the bank here. I called again. Apparently Synchrony finally sent the funds yesterday. What if I really needed that money urgently! I ENQUIRED ABOUT THE INTEREST AND WAS TOLD THAT IT WAS ONLY PAID THROUGH AUGUST 11 AND THAT THE INTEREST AFTER THAT DATE WAS FORFEITED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THEIR TERMS AND CONDITIONS. IT SEEMS ABSOLUTELY AWFUL THAT I HAD SUCH A HASSLE GETTING MY MONEY OUT AND THE BANK IS KEEPING THE INTEREST ON MY MONEY. TYPICALLY NOBODY READS THE TERMS ANYWAY!
I have been trying to open a savings account for the last 12 days. First, the customer service rep said they would email me an acknowledgment and instructions. Never came. When I called back, they said two trial deposits would be made to my external account from which I wanted to transfer funds to Synchrony. Never happened. When I called back, the customer service rep said no test deposits should have been made. She said I should mail in their Authorization Agreement for Electronic (ACH) Debits and Credits. When I called back with a question about how to respond to one of the questions on the form, I was put on hold for over twenty minutes before I lost patience and hung up. The bank offers great rates but they need to improve their customer service.
When funding my account, Synchrony executed an extra ACH transfer, overdrawing my other account. The extra unauthorized transfer was not credited to me.
My other bank provided them with the ACH tracer and confirmation info. After a week of waiting, they still couldn't locate the unauthorized transfer. Finally, I gave up on them and reported an unauthorized transfer under Regulation E. My bank reversed the transfer and all was resolved.
Their offerings are great and service personnel are polite. However, their inability to correctly execute an ACH transfer or resolve their error shook my confidence. I closed out my account and went elsewhere.
I am wondering whether they are legitimate an how many customer do they actually have if they are open for business.
On the 5th attempt to open an account, the application process reached a point where the application can not be completed.
There is also no way to contact them electronically.
I am giving them 1 start because just like other websites, nobody thinks of what is being produced and this website does not accept 0 stars.
I love Synchrony Bank. Their customer service is excellent, and they are always able to answer any questions that my husband or I have about our accounts. Additionally, I actually pay less than half the fees that I was paying at my other bank, and that's more money in the bank (pun intended!).
I've opened 3 accounts with Synchrony. No problems opening CD's and High Yield Savings online. Great friendly service when I called.
Found an unadvertised special (not listed on their website) https://www.myoptimizerplus.com/banking/promotions/promo0214_13monthcd?gemid1=xp1
Enjoy
I had 2 accounts with this bank because of the high CD rates. When I tried to close the first one at maturity, they completely messed up the closing, gave me bad information, promised to transfer the money to my personal account at another bank and then ended up mailing a very large check to my home. While we were out of town! So even though it was all set up to receive the money via wire transfer to my personal account, someone messed up and mailed the check instead. It will end up costing me about 2+ weeks of interest plus hassle. So even though their rates are the highest for my next CD deposit, I will NOT bank with them again. Take heed!
Their website and registration has so many twists and turns and about 15 different passwords you need to use. After carefully recording everything including all the passwords, they now won't accept my login. They tell me I'm using illegal characters, when I'm not using any characters other than letters and numbers. Chances are I won't be able to get my money back from them at maturity, so I'm trying to get it back now without any penalty. It's been 4 days since I transferred them my money. I should have read the reviews and not bothered in the first place.
I came across Synchrony bank's savings account through reading an article on the penny hoarder blog about the best savings account rates available. After reading the article I did some research and found that Synchrony bank seemed easy to use and their savings account only required a small minimum deposit to open an account and had a very competitive interest rate and no fees.
Having found all this information out I opened an account the beginning of May to be my little stash savings account where I put money from side jobs I do online. Over the past 4 months I have had absolutely no issues with Synchrony Bank. Their website is very user friendly and easy to figure out, while still having good security measures you would expect from a high quality banking institution. The statements I get are easy to read and very well done.
I had dedicated myself to using this account to stash $100 a month in from freelance work, and have been able to do so every month- there is no limits on incoming transfers so I can easily transfer from my checking account at another bank into Synchrony. The only issue I do have is it seems to take a long time for the transfers to show up, but other than that it is great!
It has truly been a pleasure dealing with Synchrony, and would highly recommend them!
Just received a direct mail solicitation offering a 1.25% APY CD for 18 months. Must open by Sept 15, 2014.
When my IRA CD matured, Synchrony followed my instructions to mail the proceeds to another online bank. Except they stopped payment on their own check. For two days, Synchrony denied stopping payment. Two days later I was told that they indeed stopped payment. They were willing to mail a new check but insisted they didn't make a mistake. They said they didn't stop payment on my check; they said they stopped payment on a check that had the identical number as my check. And they didn't compensate me fully for my lost interest. And they didn't apologize. And it took me about 10 hours to deal with their error. Beware of Orwellian banks like Synchrony.
I have never seen such bad service!
My complaint stems from the fact that it's been over a week to request an error the bank created.
I have spent 5 days, 20 hours time due to long holds over an hour to correct THIER MISTAKE!!!!
Briefly, the bank withdrew funds from my bank
TWICE!!! when I requested only one withdraw from my bank. I have incurred a $35.00 charge which I have asked Synchrony bank to pay my bank.
They promise to put this error on a fast track. NOTHING HAS HAPPENED!!!
For all the pain and suffering that they have caused me, one would think that for good PR they would compensate me for my mental & physical
suffering!!!
They have not reimburse my bank $35.00 and showed concern for my situation!!!!
Worst banking experience for my 50+ years with financial institutions!!!
ABA should be notified!!
How can I rate anything other than 1 Star!
I set up two 60 month CDs with two banks on the same day - Synchrony Bank and Barclays. Same amount, same EVERYTHING. With Barclays, everything went off without a hitch. Seamless transfer of funds on the day they said they would transfer, and I am getting my interest transferred monthly to my outside checking account. This is being done perfectly. Synchrony is a different story. They said they would transfer the initial funds on a certain date. They didn't. I called 3 days later and they said they would pull the funds from my other bank that day or the next. They didn't. It took several calls and 15 days later and they FINALLY pulled the funds. I complained because that was 15 days I didn't get the higher interest rate from them that I was supposed to be getting. They said they would credit my account with the amount I should have gotten. That's great customer service!! But it didn't happen. It didn't even show up in my online account. I called again. Of course they were very apologetic.... They did whatever they needed to do, it showed up online, but it was in LIMBO. It wasn't added to my balance. It was just "there" as an amount. I figured I'd wait to see what happened when my interest was transferred over to my outside checking account. Well, that happened but that courtesy interest was left just sitting there doing nothing. It took another call for it to get transferred. Now I'm waiting to see if my interest is going to be automatically transferred at the end of the monthly cycle or if it's going to take several more calls to make this happen. I really don't think I should have to babysit a bank account.
Too much exposure to low grade private label credit cards.
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Their representatives had me fill out 3 forms to open an ira cd. I did that and mailed them to the Atlanta office. 2 weeks later I checked to see if they received everything and the form with all of our ss numbers was missing. Really you got everything but the one even though they were all stapled together. Never again will I do business with an online company.
I am writing this review with no other option than getting myself heard on the internet in the hopes that someone from the bank will reach out to me if they really care about their customers. I am in need of a bank letter stating a balance on my account and date the account was opened, etc for immigration purpose. I tried reaching the bank over the phone but that's when I realized the horrible customer service they have. Like the previous review mentions, you will wait for at least 15 minutes or even longer. Then in my case the automated voice said, "sorry the bank is closed at this time." I mean really, then why make people wait? then I tried calling them during the normal business hours 2-3 times. Again wait for 20 minutes. A representative came online and couldn't resolve my issue so she took my information and said she will ask someone from other department call me. That someone has never called me back and I am still waiting. I tried contacting them via their online email message system 3 TIMES, still haven't heard from anyone yet. Simple solution I see is close the account and transfer my money to other bank which has similar interest rates. I am afraid I might need to withdraw my money someday and they will not respond to that either? who knows!
Transferred Regular IRA and Roth last year. The transition went very well. The people were very helpful. Excellent rates at the time.
It's a great bank for reserve cash because my local checking account cheap % interest even with $10,000 deposit .01%.
Not worth the extra interest. Terrible on line service who ever set it up must have been on another planet. You can only call for help about one third of the time and it takes up to 40 minutes if your are lucky to get a live person.
I have only had my account with them for less than six months, but I have grown to trust them like they have been looking out for me for years. I needed a bank account that also offered a Visa or Master card. I looked around online and found them. I started talking to them online and they told me all about the perks they offered to their customers. I opened up my account. Two weeks into having the card I had no problem using the card anywhere. I got a text message from the bank. I called them and they told me one of the places that I used my card at had reported to them their credit information had been compromised. So they were going to need to reissue a new card to me. They kept my card available for me for a few days while they sent me a new card. That way I would still be able to get to my money. They were kind and understanding and gave me a lot of confidence in them.
I attempted to open an account online about six weeks ago. Synchrony asked for a lot of info including drivers license number. At the very end of the process, they rejected the last four digits of my wife's SS number even though it was correct. I was then informed that the website was down.
I later completed an account application with a rep on the phone and had to supply most of the info again. He indicated that the online app had been approved but he had deleted that account. He gave me a new account number and informed me that paperwork would be coming and that deposit(s) to my bank account would be made and that I would need to confirm those before electronic transfers could be made. I did receive the paperwork, returned it with a small initial deposit and that was confirmed by mail from them. However, no trial transactions had been made with my bank so I called them to complain. The rep said the account had never been set up for bank transfers. At that point, I ranted for a bit and asked that the account be closed and my deposit returned. Between wait times, online app typing, and actual phone conversations with reps, I estimate that more than an hour of my time was wasted.
In the midst of all this, I received an offer from Capital One that had a lower interest rate but with a bonus for sizeable deposits. I opened an account with them in a fraction of the time that I'd spent on the phone with Synchrony and the electronic transfer was set up in less than a week.
I have been using Synchrony for many years now, and I am generally pleased. Synchrony has given me a high yield saving account. I get 1.05% APY, and I never get a fee. It is easy to use the website to make transactions, check history, etc. I can easily access my savings account when I need it. Also, my saving account interest rate is high, and it is not dependent on how much money I have in my account. I opened a Money Market account for no charge, and it has worked well. I get .85% APY and am limited to 6 withdrawals. This keeps me from spending my money too much. When I need to use the money, I can easily use checks or the ATM. CD's from Synchrony are ok, but they have a fairly high minimum for the higher APY. Most of the stuff I need to do is not person-to-person, but person-to-technology, which I love. If you every have any hard questions, it is easy to call customer service. The worst part of this bank is that they have no checking account. Otherwise, I'm really enjoying this bank, and I would recommend them to anyone.
At the end of the year my wife and I needed to get RMD for our IRAs. We wanted to open a joint account where to park the monies temporarily. There was no long waiting time and no any kind of impoliteness. The problem was a very low level of professionalism, so we needed 5-6 calls instead of two to correct their errors. First, they promised to open the joint account but instead opened the account on my wife's name alone with me as her POA. Then they wrote me that they cannot transfer my money to that account because it does not belong to me, and they informed me by regular mail, just 4 days before the new year - I could be in violation of the RMD requirement because of their error and needed to pay 50% tax fine. When I called, they suggested to open another account on my name alone, and I agreed for the sake of rapid resolution. After that there was another error in transferring funds. So you should be very careful to check every execution of your request.
these people are IMPOSSIBLE to contact., as many other reviewers have mentioned. i had a bank error in my bill pay and can't reach anyone to correct it. unbelievable. i marvel at companies like american express that make it so easy to speak to someone, as large as they are, they manage to offer customer service. i will never deal with synchronicity again.
We opened a high yield saving account about a month ago. The account needed to be titled as a trust so had to talk with a customer rep vs. paper work completely on-line. Wonderful guy, all good, took about 15 minutes. Logged on immediately to check the info. He almost got it right... Minor issue with registration phrasing. Sent a secure email requesting correction. Updated next day. The only oddity - secure email requires a second login and password. Okay... we're still good. Next step involved registering external accounts. Process a little mysterious, no apparent activity for about 4 days, but presto, all went smooth. Then transferred a little from all external accounts. They claim 1-3 business days (apparently for us that really means 3...). Money in smooth. After the fact I discovered various review sites complaining that transferring money out was impossible, so... initiated a small transfer out. 3 days later, money appeared in external account. Registration, customer service, account setup, money transfer in AND out all work great. As far as I can tell, we've exercised all the important moving parts and they all function as advertised. Overall I'm quite pleased with Synchrony. If you have issues with this bank, it's more than likely self-inflicted. And if/when you do screw the pooch, they'll do their absolute best to help you clean it up.
This is a great bank that is very easy to use. I've had my Synchrony account for two years and have had no issues. I love the high interest my savings account earns (much higher than the measly .04% my local bank was giving me). They don't have any ATMs, but I've had no issues with ATM fees being refunded. Their app isn't the best, but at least it does show my account balance as well as perform some other basic functions. I expect some things to be skimped on to get such a high interest rate.
My cd matured today tried calling the toll free number All I'm getting is busy signal for last five hours read reviews of this bank in meantime now wondering if I made right decision to use this bank What was I thinking. DOH!
I have used many other banks in my time, such as TCF or US Bank, but no other has compared to the service I have with Synchrony Bank. I have been with them for over 5 years now, and I have had an issue only once with a direct deposit not posting until 2 days later, but after I called them, she handled the issue and explained the delay for me, even giving me options on how to avoid issues next time. A very quick and efficient bank. I love their customer service because they make you feel important as a client and truly address your needs, questions, or concerns. I can't see myself doing my online banking anywhere else anytime soon.
They will not allow a POA on an account that is titled to a revocable trust. They are the only financial organization I know of that won't. Schwab, Vanguard and the major banks allow it. It makes it virtually impossible to work with accounts for elderly parents. Finally had to open account in just individual's name. Took a year to do this. Synchrony kept sending wrong forms and telling me wrong information. Finally got it switched and a POA sent to them. It took over a year to do it. When I called today they still could not help. They never associated the two. The can see all the phone conversations, the retitled account and the POA, etc. But they are only a call center and can't connect them. URGGG!!!.
Synchrony Bank is a good bank to grow your savings and future. They offer great rates and make it very easy to access the money if ever needed. The best part of investing with this bank is the rates that they offer. The local banks do not compare. It is also easy to get a hold of representatives for assistance or even log-in online to access your account and make changes. I am very pleased with how competitive they are. I do wish that they would improve the website a little. It is decent, but should definitely be worked on to be as helpful as many other banks that I have seen. All pros and cons considered, Synchrony Bank is an excellent company to work with.
They're fast when you open a new account, but it would be a lot harder when you contact them for any other reason!!! They put you on hold for average time of 20 minutes not counting how many times their phones might be dropped! And try to change your Password or anything in your profile to see how much problematic that tou get into! Good luck! Terrible Services!!!!Will never open another account with them
I recently applied for a new CD with Synchrony Bank. I just received a letter that the application was denied due to them not being able to verify my identity. Wow, what a joke. I have several online CD accounts with other banks and have used every local bank in my home town plus some in other towns. I had given them my drivers license information and and social security number. Answered their history questions and all information they asked for. After which I wrote them a letter adding even more information as I wanted for the account. Never had any bad credit issues. No background check issues. Never had this happen with any bank or other service or institution. Also received the denial notice at my residence address after telling them for sure to send it to my PO box. Talking about incompetence.
I had searched around for CD rates recently and online banks usually take the cake. I had heard briefly of Synchrony Bank in the past, but after doing some research (before I transferred them all my money), I was able to feel confident letting them hold my money for five years, the CD length I chose. Their website is up to date and I loved that I didn't have to go in there and sign papers etc. I checked out their FDIC status and they are insured for up to 250,000 per depositor which I don't come close to. My only complaint is that as an online bank I feel like it should have automatically set me up for e-statements. Instead I get a monthly paper statement about a five year CD.
I have been an account holder of Synchrony for the past year after looking for a better yielding savings account and CD for my cash reserves. I refuse to use brick and mortar banks because those banks offer horrendous rates. Synchrony's rates are some of the highest in the country even among peer internet-only banks. For example, their online savings account is 1.05% APY and is .3% higher than Capital One 360 and slightly higher than Discover/GoldmanSachs/Ally Bank. The benefit of Synchrony, though, is there is no minimum, so anyone with any amount can take advantage of these attractive rates. You can easily access the money by linking your standard checking account and transferring money only takes a few days, so it is extremely convenient. If you need help rolling over a CD or cashing out a CD, the online chat feature is quick and much easier than calling a customer service line (though you can call if you prefer). Either way, it is better than waiting in a line at a physical bank.
I ended up getting a bank account with Synchrony because I was in the market for another bank, having just left Chase where I was unhappy with their service and their fees. Synchrony's fees are understandable and are not implemented in every single place they can think of to try and get more money out of you. The savings account that I have even has a little bit better interest than the other banks that I have had in my past. This is big for me because I am trying to save for my future and, while it is not an ideal place to invest, am beginning here in my own bank until I get the handle of stock investing. All of my interactions so far have been pretty good. The initial woman I spoke to wasn't the greatest, but after I more clearly stated what I wanted, she was able to help me better. Everyone else has been great. I would definitely, and have, recommend this bank to other people.
Synchrony Bank had wonderful CD rates for 2 year CD, which lured me to their site. However, I was unable to get my money transferred from my external account to them, even though I made 6 phone calls. Their website is NOT user friendly. I spoke to a customer service rep, who assured me that my money would be transferred, I even received a confirmation number and NO money was transferred. I was fearful I would never be able to withdraw my money.
STAY AWAY from Synchrony, they are bad news.
I have both a money market and CD account with Synchrony bank. At the time I was looking to open both accounts, they had the best APYs. The APY of a CD was what was most important to me. They also had plenty of options for the time frame or duration of the cd from short to long. It was easy to open my account. I love how I can check everything I need to online, and they are a member of FDIC. I did have questions, so I called customer service. They were very helpful, answered all the questions I had, were courteous and polite. I have recommended them to my family and friends. If I want to open and IRA, I will more than likely check them out first.
I have a high yield savings account with Synchrony bank that was opened late last summer. I chose to use Synchrony bank because of the higher interest rate than I could find elsewhere. I went through the process to open the account online, which was reasonably user-friendly and not too tedious, and tried to schedule an initial transfer to the account from my local bank. Everything looked fine when I logged out, but as I watched my accounts over the next week, I saw the transfer (and the necessary account verification) had not taken place. The two small deposits required for verification of my external account finally came through about a week after I filled out the online forms to open the account, but when I logged back into the Synchrony account, it would not allow me to input those numbers, and eventually said the external account was verified, but would not transfer my initial deposit. Finally, about two weeks after opening the account, I called customer service, and after the brief initial hold time, I was transferred to a representative who got it straightened out, although she did have to put me on hold to go talk to her manager, and apparently there was a problem with my address, so I was locked out of the online system. I haven't had any problems transferring money in or out of the account since, so it appeared to be an isolated start-up problem, and they did handle it professionally.
On or around 15 months ago my Mom gave all her daughter's a fair amount of money as a gift of around $2500. I wanted to put it in a CD. I shopped online and used a comparison tool to find out the BEST CD rate for $2500 or less. Synchrony Bank Optimizer +Plus was called GE. At that time the percentage rate was 2 percent. The highest available to me as a civilian. The only other financial institution that had a higher rate was in Washington D.C. and had to be in the military to be a member.
During the time that GE became Synchrony Bank Optimizer +Plus I was a bit worried but the online experience was NO problem whatsoever! I was almost shocked at the ease of transition. At one point I do remember calling the phone support and this time I WAS SHOCKED because I am so used to be put on terminal hold and pressing buttons all the time it was WEIRD to have a human right off the bat without even having to press '1' for English. I would recommend this bank for CD since that is the only experience I have with them.
I'm a new Synchrony customer (savings). Their systems and processes are from the dark ages. I'd give them 0 stars if that was possible. They pull customer contact information (phone numbers, etc.) from credit reporting bureaus (whose information is often outdated and inaccurate), instead of using the information that customers load into their profile. Consequently, was unable to complete a simple external bank account verification without endless calls to Synchrony's understaffed and poorly trained customer support department (endless waits on hold). They also prevent you from moving funds from one Synchrony account to another Synchrony account during the first 45 days. I've never encountered such an antiquated, outdated company. If my experience is any indication of how they run their business, I don't think they'll be around for long. If you invest with them, be absolutely certain that your accounts are covered by FDIC insurance.
I will never bank with them again, on principle. I transferred funds from an external account (that I had registered with them) into my Synchrony savings acct with the intention of opening a CD. I called them to open the CD. They did but said they'd have to hold the funds transferred in via ACH for 24-48 hours; then they'd fund the CD when the funds were available. OK. I understand that. Then when the funds were available they did not fund the CD immediately but said that the process of transferring the funds to the CD would take another 24-48 hours. CSR and supervisor ignored all my protests that this is not kosher, that all other banks I work with transfer funds from one acct to another, when they're available, immediately. In this instance not much money was at stake, but I had to show funds in certain accts by the end of the quarter. Supervisor refused to budge. "This is the bank's policy." Upshot is: they'll hold funds for 4 days after they've arrived in your savings acct via ACH, 2 days AFTER the funds are available. So plan accordingly. My response is just not to do business with them again.
I am happy to say that doing business with Synchrony Bank has been a pleasurable experience, and I rate them better than most other financial institutions that I have worked with in the past. Having excellent customer service is the most important factor when sizing up a potential bank with which to do business, and that is where Synchrony shines. The problems that I have experienced have been few and far between, but when an issue arises, their customer service reps actually seem to care about me and have always worked diligently to correct whatever the issue is and to make sure that I'm completely satisfied. This is a huge positive for me since there is such a wide choice of banks to do business with, and actually getting someone who cares about helping me is paramount. Many of the services they offer are better, or at least equal to, the product and service offerings you will find at other financial institutions. Overall I'm extremely happy to be doing business with them and have no intentions of looking elsewhere.
I recently found myself banking with Synchrony Bank, and I could not be happier with the service I have received thus far. In the past year with Synchrony I have been very pleased with how quickly my deposits have been reflected in my account. For example, typically when I initiate a deposit, I will receive a message stating it will be about 5 business days until that is reflected in my available balance. However, this has not been the case even once throughout my time with this bank. I can happily say that my deposits are usually reflected the next day and at most two days after the initial motion has been made on my end. I am also very pleased with the customer service I have received while banking with Synchrony. If I have a question about my balance or a withdraw I did not make note of, I can simply call and always receive cheerful and helpful service from someone who can clear up any questions I have quickly. In summation, I will say that banking with Synchrony has been a pleasant experience and I am thankful to be working with them.
Absolutely horrible. I get that they need to have higher APR, but it can be ridiculous. I recently called in to ask questions about my account, and both representatives that I spoke to were completely rude! They gave me very snarky tones and didn't listen to what my concerns were. When I asked a question, they would basically just read from a script, not give me a legitimate answer. When I expressed that I was frustrated with the experience and frustrated they weren't acknowledging that I was upset, they would just repeat the answer that frustrated me in the first place. I work with a call center, so I get that calls can go bad, but I know it is never ok to throw such a rude attitude and talk down to callers.
Then once I called back to try to get somebody else and to actually close the account, I expressed that I was treated completely rudely and the representative only said "I'm sorry you want to close your account, are you sure about this?"
Once I pay this off, I am done. I closed my account and I will never be using it again. I will be telling everybody I know to never use it, because it is horrible. I suggest to anybody who is interested from purchasing something large from G.E. Capitol to finance elsewhere.
I decided to open a Synchrony Saving account, I have always used brick and motor type banks and decided to do all my saving banking online with Synchrony. Almost everything was done online except for a few things that I had to sign and send back. The application process was very easy and did not take much time at all. I was rather impressed with the saving account interest rate, it was the best I could find among any company. My interest rate is at 1.05% which is not great, but compared to the competition is pretty good. I will say that the online site could use some updating. It is not hard to use, but it could be better. My biggest complaint is that there is no mobile application. This is a huge disadvantage to me since I enjoy doing almost all of my banking via smartphone. I hope that this changes very soon. In addition, there is no capability to have person to person transfer. I know from some of my friends that there online banks have built in features like pop money. These are a few of the complaints but everything else has been great. I even had to call customer service one time, and the representative was friendly and handled my concern. The wait time was a little slow but nothing crazy.
During the end of the year when great deals are offered through the banks I looked up online for the best rate available at the time which for me was 1% for a 15 month CD with a deposit of $2,000. That is the best anywhere found for an civilian. If I was military the only higher interest rate would be the Pentagon Credit Union.
At first I felt skittish about an online bank, not because I never did it before. They sent me a hard-copy mailing regarding the name change to 'Synchrony Bank' but other than that, nothing changed except that there were 5 security questions instead of 3 in regard to password recovery. The five answers all have to be different from each other. I only wish I was able to make up my own questions instead of canned questions that I have no answer to.
I was looking for a savings account where I could incur higher interest. I tried online banking previously, but the interest rates were really low. I was able to link my existing checking account, and set up automatic transfer pretty easily. There's also an option of choosing if you want your transfers to be daily, weekly, bi weekly, or monthly. It's definitely helped me save for my individual taxes, whereas the savings account through my main bank takes out a monthly fee. Although minimal, it was frustrating to lose even the smallest amount of money that I planned on saving. Synchrony has the highest interest rates I've found so far. I have yet to have issues with the website and will plan to continue to use it in the future.
Before the financial crisis that sent interest rates for savers plummeting I had put part of my IRA into a five year CD at MetLife Bank. I had found them at Bankrate.com, offering this long term CD at a rate just under 5%. Those were the days! The customer service staff at that time was quite helpful, guiding me through the process of transferring an expiring IRA CD at my local bank and rolling it over into a CD at MetLife Bank. Everything went smoothly and my IRA enjoyed this high return until it expired last year. By that time MetLife Bank had become GE Capital Retail Bank. I had a few occasions to call them before my CD was to roll over again and the staff seemed to be the same as it was back when they were MetLife. The new rates were in line with the high end of what was available at that time, early last year. I decided to temporarily leave my IRA parked with them in a savings account earning just under 1%. During the last year the company has undergone another name change, now becoming Synchrony Bank, and their consumer account products marketed under the name of "optimizer+plus". From what i can tell from the account information regularly sent to me, the customer support department is still the same operation it was back when it was MetLife Bank, so I would have nothing negative to report on that end, as I always found the staff there to be knowledgeable and helpful. Lately I have seen advertising aggressively marketing their consumer accounts under the new moniker and their rates seem to parallel the high end of what is presently available in their niche. If you are seeking safety with a relatively high return and good customer service, a Synchrony Bank "optimizer+plus" account might just work for you.
Synchrony Bank offers no branch banking as far as I know, at least in my area, but the bank's website (www.myoptimizerplus.com/banking/index.htm) is very user friendly with all necessary information readily available. I would recommend, however, utilizing the very efficient customer service department (1-866-226-5638) if you are thinking of opening an account with them, as they will be able to answer all your questions and guide you through the process.
I moved my Savings into this bank because of higher savings rates. I am totally disappointed. I have been trying to reach them by phone for 3 days to report a lost ATM card while in Boise. Their phone just constantly rings busy. I am unable to find another phone number for them. They advertise high rates but, it is not worth the aggravation of not being able to get anyone over the phone. I emailed them two days ago, so far no response. I will move my money back to my local credit union. The joke is, that on all the negative reviews on this website they respond back to call the phone number. Good luck with that one. You will constantly get a busy signal. Don't waste your time with this place.
I have been a customer of Synchrony Bank for about four years now. I initially opened a savings account there because they paid about 1% compared to my local bank, which paid essentially no interest. Later I also had a CD account. When I retired from my job, I transferred my 401K to an IRA at Synchrony. I have a link between my local bank and Synchrony, so I can easily transfer money back and forth. I have had a couple of minor issues with the bank. The bank forgot to credit my account with $50 promotion for opening a CD account. I had to call them to remind them. When I wanted to take a distribution from my IRA, they send me the wrong forms to fill out. To their credit, they caught the mistake and contacted me to fix the problem. Their website is easy to navigate and I now know that I can download any form that I need. When I called them, I never had to wait long before I could talk to a customer service representative. Overall, I am a satisfied customer of Synchrony Bank.
I was skeptical of opening an account with an online bank, but once I saw the investment return rates, I decided to go ahead and give Synchrony a try. The CD rates were definitely the reason I opened my account and I have not found another bank that matches that. It's a great option for easy, short term investing. Let me also say that I love the online user interface. It's really easy to use. The website has made monitoring my accounts and getting customer service when I need it a snap. The customer service agents are quick to answer and very knowledgeable. A better experience than traditional banks, even. I have had such a good experience, I'm planning on growing my portfolio with Synchrony to include a money market account. I would definitely recommend Synchrony to a friend if they were looking at investing or an alternative to traditional banking. My experience has been great!
The allure of Synchrony Bank was their high interest savings account. That's what got me going. I wanted to earn a little extra for having my emergency money in my savings account so I decided to switch my savings from a big name bank to synchrony. After a little over a year, I am happy that I decided to make the switch. It's been very nice to see my account growing. The only problem that I have faced was the sign up and registration for my account. The online and over-the-phone customer service was average at best. They seemed to not be able to answer simple questions. Things linking accounts, withdrawing funds, and adding funds were a puzzle to them. Questions that should have been answered in a couple of minutes dragged out to over an hour! They were kind of unorganized. However, since setting up my account, I have not had any problems. The easiest way to deal with average customer service is not to deal with them! Synchrony has great rates, a great savings account, and should be used by everyone!
I love banking with Synchrony Bank because they are friendly and easy to work with. They have competitive rates for CDs and savings accounts. Overall, a great place to bank!
Been trying to ladder CD's on a parent's account, I am POA. Takes an average of 2 hours to transact a CD purchase over the phone. It can't be done online if you want to link the accounts (mine and parents). They seem to be very confused on how to do it. It gets funded from a money market account held by Synchrony but you need to keep checking to make sure this actually takes place. Just because you tell them to take it out of the corresponding account does not mean it will actually happen. Some time they send a tax withholding form for signature other times they don't. I've asked why and they don't seem to know. Last month when I purchased my 2 CD's they sent a w/h form to sign for one and not the other. For the previous 8 CDs i didn't receive any. They seem very confused. If it wasn't for the very competitive rates I would probably not be wasting so much time dealing with them.
I've been with Synchrony Bank for over five years now and would highly recommend them. I have a savings and money market account with them. I have had no issues with Synchrony at all and LOVE them. Their customer service is always ready and willing to help and address any questions or concerns I have had. I love their online banking - I do almost all my banking online, so this service (provided free of charge), makes me extremely happy! Their website is highly resourceful and user-friendly. The fact that I've been with them for over five years without any problems or hiccups, should definitely speak to the character and integrity of the bank. I have and will continue to recommend Synchrony Bank to all of my family and friends. You will not go wrong by choosing them for all your banking needs. They sit far above many other banks, and I have no doubt they will continue to rise in the ranks.
I was looking for a new bank after having a bad experience with a previous bank. I was mostly looking for a high yield savings account. I used BankRate.com and found out that Synchrony Bank had almost the best yield available for a savings account. They were also highly ranked. I went to the website and looked to see what was required for an account. It was very simple, just your personal information and an opening deposit. I could even put a secondary owner on my account, which I like to do. I opened up the account online. The only thing they didn't do online was a signature form. They mailed me the form and I signed it and sent it back in the postage paid envelope. They transferred my opening deposit electronically and I added a couple of my other bank accounts to allow electronic transfers. Up to this point everything was really simple and straightforward. The only downside is that their requirements for your online password are so strict I can't seem to remember the password and I keep locking myself out. When you are locked out you have to call in and have an actual person reset your account. I tried to do the online reset but it claimed I didn't have the right information. The rep confirmed my information and reset the account. The only thing I don't like about this bank is the password stuff. Everything else has been super smooth and I am getting a great rate.
When I opened my High Yield account with Synchrony Bank, I was very excited. The interest rate was 1%, one of the highest of all savings accounts. I started my account off with $250. When I first opened the account, I had many questions so I called customer service, and they were very pleasant. They informed me about the account and told me how long my ATM card will take to come in the mail. The application process for the high yield savings was quick and easy. They even assisted me in setting up my pin number for my ATM card. I was very satisfied as a customer.
In addition to this, the online banking is extremely user-friendly. You sign on and it tells you everything about your account. It tells you how much interest you have earned. I enjoy the fact that I can access my money by the ATM, although it makes it harder to save. I would recommend this account to anyone.
Synchrony had the best rates when I was searching for a MM Savings account. Opened the account online, waited for them to vet me, setup the online transfer and now each month deposit into the account.
Had to call them once because of a small glitch and the rep was very helpful.
The only thing I wish they had was a confirmation number when making a transfer.
I had a 15 month CD that during it time was bought out by Synchrony Bank Optimizer +Plus. I was a little freaked out at first but the pleasant surprise was that the phone support was actually good. Not used to that at all.
No long wait during the call, no computerized press this button and then several more buttons before a real person. I got a real person right away without the wait. Something I wish more companies would do.
Finished my 15 month CD, and I was given a email notice and a hard-copy notice via snail mail to remind me what do do next.
I have no problems. I would recommend Synchrony Bank Optimizer +Plus online banking. I know it a bit scary to put money in a company that does not have a brick and mortar branch in your hometown but for CD's I found it to work great.
BTW: best rate for a person with 2000 dollars to put in a CD
I don't know of any physical locations for Synchrony bank in my area, this abscense of brick and mortar locations means one very welcome thing; higher rates. Synchrony is constantly at the top of if not leading the list of rates among banks including both savings and CD accounts. The absence of human interaction may be a drawback for some, but if you're looking for the best rates, but the rates may very well be worth the compromise.
Very easy to renew IRA CD. Representative very helpful and informed.
I have been using Synchrony Bank online for my savings accounts. I opened one up about three months ago, I was a little worried because their was not a physical place to go to, but it has the best interest rates around for saving accounts. The opening of the account was very user friendly and I received my verification by email quickly. I get statements in the mail like clockwork every month and have not have any problems transferring money. I like them so well that I have recently opened a second account with them, with the same ease as the first.
This bank is a great online based bank. I was looking for a bank to open a high yield savings account with, and I found Synchrony. Per a banking site, they had the highest interest rate for a savings account available at the time. Opening the account was pretty simple. One notable thing is that they do mail you paperwork to complete and mail back (at their expense) rather than fully complete the account opening process online. Once opened, it was easy to connect other bank accounts and transfer money between counts. I really like that I am currently earning a 1.05% interest rate where my former bank is at 0.80%. Customer service is easy to access by phone during regular customer service hours. When I called customer service because I got locked out of my account they were very friendly and made it easy to unlock my account by verifying my information. Their website is rather clunky and leaves something to be desired. You will get used to it, but I don't like the interface. I also feel that their fees are very reasonable and presented well. I have not paid a single fee during the year I have had my account open.
Opening the savings account on line was a simple process. The test payments to link my external account went through the next day, and the funding transfer went through quickly. Additional transfers are easily set up on the website.
I find the website very easy to navigate. Everything I do is in an obvious location and not 3 menus deep like some other banks.
I can't comment on customer service. In the year I have had the account, I have never had to use them, but that is how I want my online banking to be, just login a few quick clicks and I am done.
I have a savings account with Synchrony Bank Optimizer +Plus. I absolutely LOVE their customer service team. The service and rates make this very competitive but the Customer Service is what keeps me coming back. I once had an emergency which forced me to pull my entire savings out and because of this it caused my account balance to fall under the minimum balance requirement. I could not bring the balance above that amount for a couple months, but I was able to contact the customer service and they immediately removed the additional fees for me. I have had to contact them for something as simple as a balance to more complicated items. Anytime I contact this company they are polite and prompt with helping me with all my concerns! Synchrony Bank and this savings account are fantastic. They have consistently met and exceeded all of my expectations! I strongly recommend this product!
I began banking with Synchrony Bank Optimizer +Plus after having issues with a different banking institution. The process to open an account was mostly straightforward. The only thing I didn't like about opening an account was that they mailed some paperwork to fill out and send back. Since they are billed as an online bank, I expected the entire process to be online. As far as fees go, they are very low or just not there. I have a high yield savings account and there's no regular fees at all. The interest paid is exceptionally good. They have a very high interest rate for the high yield savings account that I have been enjoying taking advantage of. Their customer service is very good. When I have been forced to call in with a problem, usually getting locked out of my online account, the banking rep on the other end of the phone has been very friendly. They've taking care of my issues quickly and made suggestions to prevent it happening again. The only thing I don't like about the bank is the website. It is clunky and doesn't flow well. It does give you the information you need, but not where you expect it to be. The log in process also just doesn't work well. I have locked myself out of my account more than once. Overall, I am very happy that I switched to this bank and I am happy with the savings account I have there.