I researched credit unions a little over a year ago and found I wasn’t eligible to join any. I was excited to learn recently that my brother’s employment makes him eligible for one, which in turn means I can finally join one.
But there are good reasons to choose a bank over credit unions. First and foremost, the days of credit unions having the best rates on savings are gone; most of the time, big national banks and online banks will give you a better percentage on a savings accounts and CDs. I haven’t researched loans though, so it could be that credit unions have better rates for those. Also, it’s easier to access your money through certain banks. In my research for a credit union, I found lots of them didn’t have many locations and charged fees if you didn’t use certain ATM’s, which were sparse in my area (and I’m in NYC!). Meanwhile, there’s a Chase or Citibank on nearly every corner, so you’re just about never in danger of having to pay an ATM fee. Finally, many banks have dropped their monthly fees for regular checking accounts, something that made credit union accounts more desirable.
I’m not speaking for all credit unions, of course, but I checked out many of the ones from my area, and I had a hard time finding good reasons to switch away from a bank (not counting moral reasons, I guess).