Banks vs. credit unions, by the numbers.
Credit unions are growing faster.
5-year annual growth rate, banks vs. credit unions
BanksCredit unions
Assets
Banks
3.2%
Credit unions
4.9%
Deposits
Banks
4.1%
Credit unions
4.6%
Loans
Banks
4.7%
Credit unions
8.2%
U.S. charters, Q1 2026
- Banks
- 4,334
- Credit unions
- 4,336
Q1 2026 Bank Charters
4,334
Q1 2026 Credit Union Charters
4,336
Series start in Q2 2002, when credit unions began filing quarterly rather than twice a year. Earlier quarters are not comparable.
View as table
| Quarter | Bank charters | Credit union charters |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2002 | 9,579 | 9,934 |
| Q3 2002 | 9,527 | 9,873 |
| Q4 2002 | 9,464 | 9,809 |
| Q1 2003 | 9,425 | 9,719 |
| Q2 2003 | 9,379 | 9,646 |
| Q3 2003 | 9,348 | 9,575 |
| Q4 2003 | 9,296 | 9,488 |
| Q1 2004 | 9,229 | 9,403 |
| Q2 2004 | 9,190 | 9,324 |
| Q3 2004 | 9,134 | 9,227 |
| Q4 2004 | 9,084 | 9,128 |
| Q1 2005 | 9,040 | 9,058 |
| Q2 2005 | 8,973 | 8,983 |
| Q3 2005 | 8,964 | 8,903 |
| Q4 2005 | 8,938 | 8,801 |
| Q1 2006 | 8,894 | 8,723 |
| Q2 2006 | 8,883 | 8,720 |
| Q3 2006 | 8,849 | 8,638 |
| Q4 2006 | 8,784 | 8,536 |
| Q1 2007 | 8,751 | 8,478 |
| Q2 2007 | 8,716 | 8,410 |
| Q3 2007 | 8,659 | 8,332 |
| Q4 2007 | 8,632 | 8,268 |
| Q1 2008 | 8,588 | 8,215 |
| Q2 2008 | 8,545 | 8,135 |
| Q3 2008 | 8,476 | 8,065 |
| Q4 2008 | 8,395 | 7,968 |
| Q1 2009 | 8,337 | 7,909 |
| Q2 2009 | 8,286 | 7,847 |
| Q3 2009 | 8,191 | 7,793 |
| Q4 2009 | 8,104 | 7,710 |
| Q1 2010 | 8,024 | 7,651 |
| Q3 2010 | 7,853 | 7,555 |
| Q1 2011 | 7,665 | 7,442 |
| Q2 2011 | 7,602 | 7,386 |
| Q3 2011 | 7,524 | 7,325 |
| Q4 2011 | 7,445 | 7,240 |
| Q1 2012 | 7,378 | 7,165 |
| Q2 2012 | 7,315 | 7,105 |
| Q3 2012 | 7,250 | 7,031 |
| Q4 2012 | 7,151 | 6,960 |
| Q1 2013 | 7,086 | 6,895 |
| Q2 2013 | 7,006 | 6,818 |
| Q3 2013 | 6,956 | 6,753 |
| Q4 2013 | 6,878 | 6,687 |
| Q1 2014 | 6,795 | 6,623 |
| Q2 2014 | 6,723 | 6,560 |
| Q3 2014 | 6,652 | 6,479 |
| Q4 2014 | 6,571 | 6,402 |
| Q1 2015 | 6,481 | 6,334 |
| Q2 2015 | 6,409 | 6,284 |
| Q3 2015 | 6,329 | 6,216 |
| Q4 2015 | 6,239 | 6,147 |
| Q1 2016 | 6,177 | 6,080 |
| Q2 2016 | 6,113 | 6,011 |
| Q3 2016 | 6,035 | 5,967 |
| Q4 2016 | 5,967 | 5,909 |
| Q1 2017 | 5,909 | 5,859 |
| Q2 2017 | 5,840 | 5,815 |
| Q3 2017 | 5,790 | 5,761 |
| Q4 2017 | 5,722 | 5,689 |
| Q1 2018 | 5,658 | 5,646 |
| Q2 2018 | 5,594 | 5,596 |
| Q3 2018 | 5,528 | 5,551 |
| Q4 2018 | 5,457 | 5,492 |
| Q1 2019 | 5,412 | 5,451 |
| Q2 2019 | 5,353 | 5,425 |
| Q3 2019 | 5,309 | 5,396 |
| Q4 2019 | 5,228 | 5,349 |
| Q1 2020 | 5,166 | 5,307 |
| Q2 2020 | 5,115 | 5,275 |
| Q3 2020 | 5,083 | 5,244 |
| Q4 2020 | 5,051 | 5,207 |
| Q1 2021 | 5,028 | 5,175 |
| Q2 2021 | 4,999 | 5,136 |
| Q3 2021 | 4,963 | 5,097 |
| Q4 2021 | 4,888 | 5,048 |
| Q1 2022 | 4,845 | 5,007 |
| Q2 2022 | 4,822 | 4,957 |
| Q3 2022 | 4,797 | 4,917 |
| Q4 2022 | 4,757 | 4,863 |
| Q1 2023 | 4,725 | 4,814 |
| Q2 2023 | 4,698 | 4,787 |
| Q3 2023 | 4,670 | 4,745 |
| Q4 2023 | 4,642 | 4,702 |
| Q1 2024 | 4,624 | 4,670 |
| Q2 2024 | 4,595 | 4,631 |
| Q3 2024 | 4,573 | 4,596 |
| Q4 2024 | 4,544 | 4,550 |
| Q1 2025 | 4,520 | 4,505 |
| Q2 2025 | 4,478 | 4,460 |
| Q3 2025 | 4,436 | 4,419 |
| Q4 2025 | 4,394 | 4,374 |
| Q1 2026 | 4,334 | 4,336 |