America is home to some of the largest banks in the world. While the absolute biggest banks in the world are in China, the US has plenty of big banks.
This article will cover how a bank’s size is measured, list the biggest banks in America, and give a quick look at what they each offer.
We’ve put together this list by looking at the total assets of American banks as compiled by the Federal Reserve, which was most recently updated in June of 2024.
15 Biggest Banks in the U.S. by Total Assets
Below is a summary of the top 15 largest banks in America by total Assets. Click on any of the bank names to learn more about that institution:
Bank | Headquarters | Total Assets | Previous Rank | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. | JPMorgan Chase | New York City, NY | $3.511 Trillion | 1 | |
2. | Bank of America | Charlotte, NC | $2.551 Trillion | 2 | |
3. | Wells Fargo | San Francisco, CA | $1.720 Trillion | 3 | |
4. | CitiGroup | New York City, NY | $1.679 Trillion | 4 | |
5. | U.S. Bancorp | Minneapolis, MN | $664.92 Billion | 5 | |
6. | PNC Financial Services | Pittsburgh, PA | $552.53 Billion | 6 | |
7. | Goldman Sachs | New York City, NY | $543.89 Billion | 7 | |
8. | Truist Financial | Charlotte, NC | $511.93 Billion | 8 | |
9. | Capital One | McLean, VA | $477.30 Billion | 9 | |
10. | TD Group | Wilmington, DE | $370.33 Billion | 10 | |
11. | Bank of New York Mellon | New York City, NY | $351.81 Billion | 11 | |
12. | State Street Corporation | Boston, MA | $321.47 Billion | 12 | |
13. | BMO Harris Bank | Chicago, IL | $262.00 Billion | 13 | |
14. | First Citizens Bank | Raleigh, NC | $219.69 Billion | 15 | |
15. | Citizens Financial | Providence, RI | $219.63 Billion | 14 |
The Big Four
The Big Four is a term used worldwide to refer to the biggest banks in the country according to recent banking statistics from the FED. Some countries have fewer such banks and may only include two or three. In this case, they refer to them as The Big Two or The Big Three.
The largest four banks that form The Big Four in America are as follows:
1. JPMorgan Chase & Co.
- Total Assets: $3.511 Trillion
- Headquarters: New York City, New York
JP Morgan Chase is the biggest bank in America by assets under management (and it became even larger recently when it bought most of the assets of the failed bank First Republic). It’s an investment bank in its own right and a holding company for several subsidiaries, including Chase Bank (the consumer banking arm).
Chase has more than 4,900 branches in the U.S. and operates in over 60 countries.
If you’re shopping for a big brand bank, Chase is one of our top picks. Plus, the bank is constantly trying to attract new customers with sign-up bonuses and promotional offers.
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2. Bank of America Corp.
- Total Assets: $2.551 Trillion
- Headquarters: Charlotte, North Carolina
Bank of America is an American multinational bank (and a national bank in the US) with several divisions that include Merill, Bank of America Securities, and Bank of America Private Bank.
The retail banking division is its largest, offering a wide range of products and services from its approximately 3,750 retail locations and 15,000 ATMs.
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3. Wells Fargo & Co
- Total Assets: $1.720 Trillion
- Headquarters: San Francisco, California
Wells Fargo and Company was initially founded in 1929 by Henry Wells and William Fargo, hence the name.
The bank, unfortunately, has been the center of many controversies in recent years.
Plus, where they were once the leader in terms of physical branches, they’ve been closing doors – hundreds each year, in fact.
Despite that, Wells Fargo still has a comprehensive breadth of banking products and services, offering everything from bank accounts, credit cards, loans, retirement planning, and wealth management services.
And it’s one of the largest banks by number of branches, with nearly 4,300 locations nationwide.
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4. CitiGroup Inc.
- Total Assets: $1.679 Trillion
- Headquarters: New York City, New York
CitiGroup, also known as Citi for short, is an investment bank and financial services company. It owns Citicorp, which is a holding company that owns Citibank.
Citibank is the consumer division of the group. It has more than 650 branches in the USA, and the bank does business in nearly 160 countries. It’s U.S. branches are primarily located in Florida, California, New York, and Washington, D.C.
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Other Big Banks In The US
Aside from the big four banks, there are other big banks in the US. The banks that make up the so-called big four can change as banks increase the assets they manage or shed some of them.
Since assets measure the bank size, their relative size changes – practically every day as money is withdrawn and deposited; however, it is reported yearly.
5. US Bancorp
- Total Assets: $664.92 Billion
- Headquarters: Minneapolis, Minnesota
Bancorp is the parent company of US Bank, with locations mostly centered around the midwest. The bank has more than 2,200 branches and thousands of ATMs, offering personal and business banking.
US Bank also offers wealth management, corporate and commercial banking, and institutional banking.
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6. PNC Financial Services Group
- Total Assets: $552.53 Billion
- Headquarters: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
PNC Financial Services is the holding company of PNC Bank, which has over 2,350 branches and close to 60,000 ATMs.
What’s more, in June 2021, PNC closed on a $11.5B acquisition of BBVA, extending its reach and total assets even further.
Interestingly, the name came about when two banks merged, both of which had names that could be abbreviated as PNC – Pittsburgh National Corporation and Provident National Corporation.
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7. Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.
- Total Assets: $543.89 Billion
- Headquarters: New York City, New York
Goldman Sachs is one of the world’s biggest investment banks and is considered a market maker.
In 2016, Goldman Sachs introduced Marcus by Goldman Sachs, which offers several consumer financial products and services, including savings accounts, credit cards, certificates of deposit, and loans.
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8. Truist Financial Corporation
- Total Assets: $511.93 Billion
- Headquarters: Charlotte, North Carolina
Truist is a relatively new bank, having formed in December of 2019 when BB&T and Suntrust merged.
These were two of the largest banks in the nation, putting Truist in the top ten largest banks when they merged.
Truist has more than 1,900 branches and around 3200 ATMs across fifteen states.
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9. Capital One Financial
- Total Assets: $477.30 Billion
- Headquarters: McLean, Virginia
Capital One Financial is a holding company with its consumer bank division represented by Capital One. Because of its tech advancements, Capital One is considered one of the most technology-focused banks in the US.
Capital One has hundreds of branches and more than 70,000 ATMs. It also has cafes across major cities in several states, where you can grab a coffee or a meal, work, or meet with a Capital One ambassador.
Keep an eye on Capital One’s placement in the top largest banks list as they have recently announced they’re buying Discover Bank. Once that merger takes place, we expect to see Capital One move up our list.
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10. TD Group US Holdings
- Total Assets: $370.33 Billion
- Headquarters: Wilmington, Delaware
TD Group US Holdings is a subsidiary of Toronto-Dominion Bank – a Canadian multinational bank. In the US, their consumer division is represented through TD Bank.
The bank’s 1,100+ locations are mainly spread throughout the East Coast and offer consumers a wide variety of accounts and other products and services.
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11. Bank of New York Mellon
- Total Assets: $351.81 Billion
- Headquarters: New York City, New York
Bank of New York Mellon, abbreviated as BNY Mellon, results from a merger between Mellon Financial Corporation and The Bank of New York.
The bank mainly offers investment banking services, and its customers include asset managers, banks, insurance companies, and corporations, among others.
BNY Mellon has dozens of branches across 18 states in the US, with additional locations in Canada, Latin America, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
12. State Street Corporation
- Total Assets: $321.47 Billion
- Headquarters: Boston, Massachusetts
State Street Corporation is a holding company and financial services firm offering services to asset managers and owners, insurance companies, and official institutions.
The bank was founded in 1792, which makes it the second oldest bank in the country.
13. BMO
- Total Assets: $262.00 Billion
- Headquarters: Chicago, Illinois
BMO is the American subsidiary of the Bank of Montreal. Headquartered in Chicago, the bank’s roots go back to 1882.
It’s one of the largest banks in North America, with 12,000 employees and more than 13 million customers.
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14. First Citizens Bank
- Total Assets: $219.69 Billion
- Headquarters: Raleigh, North Carolina
Since its founding in 1898, First Citizens Bank has grown steadily through consistent mergers and acquisitions. Most recently, First Citizens merged with the online-only CIT Bank, further expanding its ever-growing network.
First Citizens’ primary footprint is in North Carolina and South Carolina, but the bank operates more than 600 locations across 22 states.
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15. Citizens Financial Group
- Total Assets: $219.63 Billion
- Headquarters: Providence, Rhode Island
Citizens Financial Group, Inc. owns Citizens Bank, the retail banking you’re likely more familiar with.
The firm has been around since 1828 and offers deposit accounts, credit cards, personal loans, student loans, refinancing, and other financial services.
The financial institution operates mainly in the Northeast and Midwest, with physical branches in each of the New England states (except for Maine), plus Delaware, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, and New Jersey.
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How Is Bank Size Measured?
One agreed-upon metric to measure the size of a bank is by looking at total assets under management – how much money the bank manages.
Using this metric, we can measure the actual size of the bank, irrespective of how many employees, branches, or ATMs it has.
This list gives us several bank holding companies – the companies that own the actual banks. In turn. The banks can include anything from commercial banks and retail banks to investment banks.
Largest Banks In The US FAQs
Who are the big six banks?
The six biggest banks in the US, ranked by the total value of assets under management is as follows:
- JPMorgan Chase
- Bank of America
- Wells Fargo
- Citigroup
- U.S. Bancorp
- PNC
What makes big banks different from small banks?
Bigger banks tend to serve customers in larger areas of the country than regional and local banks. They may also have more technologically advanced apps, better mobile banking features, and a wider selection of banking products.
Is money safer in national banks than in local or regional banks?
As long as you bank with an FDIC-insured bank or NCUA-insured credit union, you can trust that your funds are protected for up to $250,000 per depositor and per account.
What are the drawbacks of big banks?
Large banks have more operating costs than online banks and some smaller local banks. As such, they tend to charge more account fees and offer less competitive interest rates on their savings, checking, and CD accounts.
Which is the Best Largest Bank in The US For You?
There is certainly no lack of options when it comes to your banking needs.
The above list is 15 of the largest banks in the U.S. and doesn’t even consider other options like neobanks or credit unions.
While it’s true that the larger banks often offer more products and services, have more branches to serve you, and are of course very unlikely to fail, total assets alone is simply a poor metric to use to choose your next bank.
Instead, the above data points are fun and interesting to monitor but should be considered in combination with current rates, welcome bonuses, ethical business practices and values, tech features, fees, and other services that are important to you.
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