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The bottom line: The First Bank is a great choice if you want to bank with a mission-driven bank and live in the Southeast United States. It offers a The First Bank The First Bank First Freedom Checking Account with no minimum opening deposit and a second chance checking account, which may be ideal if you have a bad bank account history. If you don't live in the Southeast, you may find another good fit in our guide to the best second chance bank accounts.
The First Bank Review: Overall Bank Rating
| Feature | Insider rating (out of 5) |
| Savings | 3.25 |
| Checking | 3.75 |
| Money market account | 3.25 |
| CD | 3.75 |
| Trustworthiness | 5 |
| Total | 4 |
The First Bank Pros and Cons
| Pros | Cons |
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About The First Bank
The First Bank is a regional bank and community development financial institution with over 65 branches and ATMs in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, and Louisiana.
To contact the bank's Customer Care Center, call from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. CT on weekdays or 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. CT on weekends.
The First Bank's mobile app has 4.8 out of 5 stars in the Google Play Store and Apple store.
The bank is also FDIC insured. Up to $250,000 is secure in an individual bank account.
The Role of CDFIs
Community development financial institutions, or CDFIs, serve low-income and disadvantaged communities. Banks and credit unions have to undergo certification by the US Department of Treasury's Community Development Financial Institutions Fund and meet specific requirements to address banking barriers.
The First Bank has a Bank On certified checking account, which you may be able to open even if you have a bad bank account history.
The bank has also participated in the American Banking Association's 'Teach Children to Save Day,' a national initiative to help teach children how to save, and partners locally with universities and schools districts to host financial education events as well.
Is The First Bank Trustworthy?
The Better Business Bureau rates businesses according to how they respond to customer issues.
The First Bank received an A+ rating from the BBB. A good BBB rating isn't necessarily the be-all and end-all. Talk to current customers or read online customer reviews to see if a bank might be a good match.
The First Bank also hasn't been involved in any recent public scandals.
The First Bank Account Reviews
The First Bank First Savings Account
$2 monthly service fee
0.10%
$100
- Possible to waive the monthly maintenance fee
- Low interest rate
- $100 minimum opening deposit
- $2 monthly maintenance fee
- Must keep at least $100 in account daily to earn interest
- Interest compounded quarterly
- Over 65 branches and ATMs in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Florida, and Louisiana
- To waive the monthly maintenance fee, keep at least $100 in your account daily
- Monthly maintenance fee waived for anyone age 65 or older
- Must keep at least $100 in your account daily to earn interest
- Interest compounded and deposited quarterly
- FDIC insured
You might like The First Bank First Savings Account if you regularly keep at least $100 in your account, so you don't have to pay a monthly maintenance fee.
The bank pays a pretty low rate on savings accounts, though. If you're looking for more competitive interest rates, read our guide to the best high-yield savings accounts guide for more options.
The First Bank First Freedom Checking Account
no monthly service fee
None
$0
- No minimum opening deposit
- No monthly maintenance fee
- Overdraft protection available
- $36 overdraft fee
- $6 overdraft protection transfer fee
- $2 out-of-network ATM fee
- Over 65 branches and ATMs in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Florida, and Louisiana
- Overdraft protection that lets you transfer money from another bank account or apply for a line of credit
- FDIC insured
The First Bank First Freedom Checking Account is a great standard checking account for avoiding monthly maintenance fees because it doesn't have any minimum balance requirements.
If you have a bad bank account history, The First Bank also provides banking options. You may open a Bank On certified checking account without checks and upgrade to The First Bank First Freedom Checking Account or another checking account after six months of opening.
The First Bank CDs
0.25% to 4.50%
$1,000
- Good interest rates for long term CDs, especially compared to brick-and-mortar banks
- Standard early withdrawal penalties
- $1,000 minimum opening deposit
- Online banks may offer a higher interest rate
- Over 65 branches and ATMs in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Florida, and Louisiana
- Terms range from 6 months to 5 years
- Early withdrawal penalties depend on the term and amount deposited; need to contact local branch for more information
- Interest compounded and deposited quarterly
- FDIC insured
The First Bank The First Bank CD pay low interest rates overall, with the exception of a CD special paying 4.50% APY.
You'll need a minimum of $1,000 to open a standard CD. If you don't have much money to deposit, review our best CD rates for banks that have lower minimum opening requirements.
The First Bank Personal Money Market Account
$8.50 monthly service fee
up to 0.40%
$1,000
- Possible to waive the monthly maintenance fee
- Check writing included
- No debit card included
- Low interest rate
- $1,000 minimum opening deposit
- $8.50 monthly maintenance fee
- Must keep at least $1,500 in account daily to earn interst
- Over 65 branches and ATMs in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Florida, and Louisiana
- To waive the $8.50 monthly maintenance fee, keep at least $1,500 in account daily
- Must keep at least $1,500 in account daily to earn interest
- Interest compounded and deposited monthly
- FDIC insured
The First Bank Personal Money Market Account comes with check writing abilities but might be more difficult to manage than the bank's savings account. You'll need to keep and maintain at least $1,500 in your account daily to earn interest and waive the $8.50 monthly service fee.
How The First Bank Compares
We compared The First Bank to two other brick-and-mortar banks available in the same states: Regions Bank and First Horizon Bank.
If you prefer a bank with a large branch and ATM network, it'll likely come down to Regions Bank or First Horizon Bank. Regions Bank has over 1,300 branches and 2,000 ATMs. First Horizon Bank has 400 branches in 12 states and 675 free ATMs.
The First Bank might appeal to you more if you are looking for second chance bank accounts. It has a Bank On certified checking account, which may be worth exploring if you struggle to open a checking account at financial institutions.
Your decision between these three banks could also depend on which bank account you want to open.
First Horizon and The First Bank have free checking accounts, but the savings account might require monthly service fees if you don't meet certain requirements. Meanwhile, at Regions Bank, there's a free savings account, but the checking accounts might entail common bank fees depending on how you manage your account.
Why You Should Trust Us: How We Reviewed The First Bank
We rate bank accounts on a scale from one to five stars. For the First Bank's checking, savings, and money market accounts, we used Personal Finance Insider's bank account ratings methodology. The exact factors we evaluate vary depending on the type of account — for example, we look at overdraft fees for checking accounts and interest rates for savings and money market accounts.
For the First Bank's CDs, we used our CD rating methodology which looks at interest rates, minimum opening deposits, early withdrawal penalties, CD variety, customer support availability, mobile app ratings, miscellaneous features, and the security and ethics of the company.
We use a weighted average to get our star rating, which means we weigh certain features, like interest rates and fees, at a higher weight percentage than others. We understand that these areas can more heavily impact a person's overall banking experience.
Editorial Note: Any opinions, analyses, reviews, or recommendations expressed in this article are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any card issuer. Read our editorial standards.
Please note: While the offers mentioned above are accurate at the time of publication, they're subject to change at any time and may have changed, or may no longer be available.
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