PNC Virtual Wallet review
PNC Virtual Wallet with Performance Select isn't available on Finder right now.
- Fee
- $25 per month
- APY
- 0.01%
- Minimum deposit to open
- $0
Our verdict
Checking and savings in one, but watch out for monthly fees and low APYs.
PNC Virtual Wallet® has four accounts that offer the combined features of checking and savings by organizing your assets into Spend, Reserve and Growth categories. All four offer interest and ATM reimbursements, but most come with monthly fees. Your interest rate also varies depending on your location and account type, with its average rate earning 0.03% APY, which is well below the national average currently at 0.38% APY.(1)
Best for: Those who prefer digital, all-in-one accounts.
Pros
-
Expense tracker and money management tools
-
Free overdraft protection
-
New customer bonuses often available
Cons
-
Monthly fees (can be waived)
-
Limited state availability
-
Low APYs that vary
-
High $36 overdraft fee
Who is PNC Virtual Wallet best for
PNC Virtual Wallet accounts are best for those who want the convenience and flexibility of checking and savings features in one account. There are five types of Virtual Wallets to choose from, and they each come with free ATM access and mobile banking.
But the products and APYs offered vary significantly by location, so not all customers will enjoy a competitive interest rate. When we spoke to PNC, they told us that the Virtual Wallet accounts are only available in these 22 locations:
- Alabama
- Arizona
- California
- Colorado
- D.C.
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Kentucky
- Maryland
- Michigan
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- North Carolina
- Ohio
- Pennsylvania
- South Carolina
- Texas
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
So not all customers will enjoy a competitive interest rate. Plus, most accounts come with a monthly fee, so the Virtual Wallet makes the most sense if you also qualify to waive the fee, which varies depending on which account you choose.
How it works
There are five types of Virtual Wallet accounts to choose from. Each one bears interest and comes with an ATM card. Fees and perks vary by product, so you can hone in on the checking and savings account combo that best fits your needs.
| Account name | Best for | Monthly fee | How to avoid | Features |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Virtual Wallet | Those who want a no-frills checking account and keep a balance of at least $500 | $25 | Meet one of the following:
|
|
Virtual Wallet with Performance Spend | Those who periodically use out-of-network ATMs | $15 | Meet one of the following:
| Virtual Wallet features, plus:
|
Virtual Wallet with Performance Select | Those who regularly use out-of-network ATMs | $25 | Meet one of the following:
| Virtual Wallet features, plus:
|
Virtual Wallet Checking Pro | Those who don’t want a monthly fee | $0 | Not applicable | Virtual Wallet features, plus:
|
Virtual Wallet Student | Students | $0 for the first six years, then $7 when it converts to a regular Virtual Wallet account | After six years, you’ll need to meet one of the following:
| Virtual Wallet features, plus:
|
What makes PNC Virtual Wallet shine
The PNC Virtual Wallet breaks the mold of traditional banking by letting you enjoy the best of both worlds with short- and long-term savings along with a checking account. While you can choose to open any Virtual Wallet as a checking account only, you’d be missing out on higher interest rates for your unused cash by not utilizing its Reserve and Growth cash buckets.
You’ll get access to over 9,000 in-network PNC-brand ATMs across the country. While this isn’t as much as some online banks, like Ally Bank, that partner with ATM networks like AllPoint to provide customers access to over 55,000 ATMs, most Virtual Wallet accounts come with ATM reimbursements of up to $20 a month to cover fees for using out-of-network ATMs.
PNC Bank also has useful digital spending tools for managing money. For example, its Money Bar shows you what funds are needed for upcoming bills and what’s free to spend. Its budgeting tools monitor your spending and send you alerts to help you stack on track. And PNC’s new Low Cash Mode has several features that give you more control in handling overdrafts:
- Alerts. Notifications for when your account is near or below zero.
- Extra Time. Deposit money to your account within 24 hours to cover any overdrafts to avoid the overdraft fee.
- Payment Control. Choose whether you want to pay or return checks and ACH transfers when your balance is in the red.
Plus, PNC frequently offers cash rewards of $100, $200 or $400 for new customers that complete specific tasks for the account option you select.
Where PNC Bank Virtual Wallet falls short
The biggest drawback is its product availability. Depending on where you live, you may not be eligible for a specific type of Virtual Wallet tier, or your interest rates may be nearly nonexistent.
Here’s a snapshot of the range of interest rates we’ve found for each Virtual Wallet account across its Spend, Reserve and Growth categories.
| Account | APY range |
|---|---|
Virtual Wallet | 0.01% to 2.55% APY |
Virtual Wallet with Performance Spend | 0.01% to 3.6% APY |
Virtual Wallet with Performance Select | 0.01% to 3.6% APY |
Virtual Wallet Checking Pro | 4% APY |
Virtual Wallet Student | 0.01% to 0.03% APY |
For example, PNC Bank doesn’t offer the Virtual Wallet Checking Pro account to New York residents, which means you could be missing out on 4% APY on balances of $1 or more. On the other hand, while New York and California residents both qualify for the PNC Virtual Wallet account, New Yorkers can only earn up to 0.03% APY — that’s lower than the national average of 0.38%, whereas Californians stand to earn up to 2.55% APY.
In other words, if you deposited $100 into your Virtual Wallet account, you’d only earn $0.03 after a year if you lived in New York. But if you lived in California, you’d earn $2.55 — 85 times more than your East Coast counterpart.
Plus, your monthly fee can quickly eat away at your savings — unless you qualify to waive it.
Compare PNC Virtual Wallet with other accounts
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How we picked theseWhat is the Finder Score?
The Finder Score crunches over 300 checking accounts from hundreds of financial institutions. It takes into account the product's monthly fees, overdraft fees, opening deposit, customer support options, ATM network and features — this gives you a simple score out of 10.
To provide a Score, Finder’s banking experts analyze hundreds of checking accounts against what we consider is the best option: no monthly fees, no overdraft fees, a large ATM network of 50,000 or more, additional features outside of typical banking services, and the optional perk of earning interest. Accounts that are nearly free to maintain and use are scored the highest, while accounts with costly fees and few features are scored the lowest.
Customer experience
PNC Bank reviews are mixed on the Better Business Bureau, Trustpilot and Reddit. Some customers call out unpleasant experiences with their local customer service agents, while others have nothing but good things to say. The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) has given most of PNC Bank’s branch locations an Outstanding or Satisfactory rating.
Customers complaining about PNC Virtual Wallet contend it has low interest rates and high fees. But we also found a few Reddit users that highly recommend the product for its ease of use. And a few customers rave about its budgeting tools, citing the Virtual Wallet as a great way to keep their weekly spending in check and reach long-term savings goals.
Checking account ratings
★★★★★ — Excellent
★★★★★ — Good
★★★★★ — Average
★★★★★ — Subpar
★★★★★ — Poor
We analyze top checking accounts and rate them one to five stars based on factors that are most important to you. These factors include: monthly fees, the ease at which monthly fees can be waived, the breadth of ATM access, ATM and overdraft fees, and customer service.
PNC Virtual Wallet with Performance Select is not currently available on Finder
Have you considered SoFi Checking and Savings?
Earn up to 3.80% APY on savings by meeting deposit requirements or by paying the SoFi Plus subscription fee every 30 days, and 0.50% APY on checking balances. Members without deposit requirements will earn 0.50% APY on both savings and checking balances. Turn on automatic savings or use the Roundups feature to help you reach your savings goals faster. Get up to $2M of additional FDIC insurance through a network of participating banks.
- 0.50% APY on checking balance
- Up to 3.80% APY on savings
- $0 account or overdraft fees
- Get up to a $300 bonus with direct deposits of $5,000 or more
All user-submitted reviews must meet our review guidelines. These set out our standards and expectations, including that the review is from by a genuine user of the relevant product or service and that it is honest, authentic and respectful. We explicitly prohibit fake or otherwise misleading reviews and we check all submissions, but we make no guarantee as to the authenticity of any published review or reviewer. Some reviews may be submitted (regardless of sentiment) in exchange for entry into any competition(s) for which we are the promoter.
Via customer survey commissioned by Finder
I have had no problems with PNC.
Via customer survey commissioned by Finder
PNC charges me $7 a month if I dont have enough money in my checking account which sucks. Then I get charged $30 overdrafts if I overdraft. I've heard there are better places to bank. I need to move.
Via customer survey commissioned by Finder
I used them for many years never had problems.
Via customer survey commissioned by Finder
I've had nothing but good experiences with PNC
Via customer survey commissioned by Finder
Just, like most banks. Nothing over the top special. Suffices.
Via customer survey commissioned by Finder
The virtual Wallet was charging me 7.00 each month for no reason at all. They said I didn’t have enough money in one of the attached accounts but I had more than enough in the other accounts. All of these accounts are tied together so it shouldn’t have been charging me. This has been resolved
Via customer survey commissioned by Finder
They are nice and efficient but have limited interaction with them
Via customer survey commissioned by Finder
The low fees and lots of banking options
Via customer survey commissioned by Finder
Typically everything is simple to use and the customer services is great. I scored 4/5 because on a few occasions, pending charges did not subtract from my balance, causing it to show an incorrect 'available balance' in my account. That is more of a nuisance than anything though.
Via customer survey commissioned by Finder
They are the same as any other
Kimberly Finder
Writer
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