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The "name" of Wells Fargo is sortuva legendary as part of the "Old West" but it has ALWAYS been primarily a consumer / business oriented bank that was founded in 1852 by two guys (named Henry Wells & William Fargo). https://www.wellsfargo.com/about/history/faqs
The history of Bank of America also starts in San Francisco in about 1904, but recent mergers have moved their "center of gravity" much more toward the Southeast and Wall Street.
Most analysis of the two banks would say that neither is particularly consumer friendly, though Wells is definitely healthier and able to operate with out as much fear of being too nice.
Many people suggest that for routine banking consumer banking needs a Credit Union or smaller bank may make more sense, of course the relative location of things like ATMs and ease of online banking, together with costs / incentives for having checking /savings accounts are really the important bottom line for most consumer needs.
Wells Fargo and Bank of America are two different corporations. You'll notice that I said corporation instead of bank. Because they are corporations - as is Citibank - they will rip you off in every possible way they can.
Never mistakenly think that a bank is your friend.
That said... The right bank for you will depend partly on your needs. The bank I'm with provides free checking, a free debit card, free ATM transactions, and actually pays interest on my balance. But part of that "package" is the requirement that I have at least a $2,000 balance there (I have the $2,000 in CDs).
My advice would be to check around with several banks. See what they have to offer. Also, check with several Credit Unions.
Good luck!
Last edited by Omaha Rocks; 12-04-2009 at 01:34 PM..
As mentioned above they are both the same and different all at the same time as all of the Big 4 are...bloodthirsty, thieving, stingy, unethical and morally reprehensible as well as liable to make you a lot of money if you can chose wisely.
Other than that, they're different in that Wells Fargo is a diversified company. Wells Fargo BANK is where you can enroll in checking accounts and the like. Bank of America as well is extremely diversified, however their banking division which is under the same name is also where you would make deposits into your personal cash accounts.
If you must choose between Bank of America and Wells Fargo, go with Wells Fargo.
Bank of America is one of the worst banks that you could possibly bank with. B of A has fees for things that you could never imagine having fees for.
B of A is basically on a mission to buy every bank possible so that they control the banking industry. In the past decade they have bought up so many smaller banks, Fleet Bank (Boston), LaSalle (Chicago), Merrill Lynch Investment Bank (New York), and they even bought up the Mortgage company, Countrywide Home Loans (California). This is just to name the bigger ones they recently have bought.
Though no big bank is perfect, Wells Fargo is your better bigger bank.
I have dealt with both banks and Wells Fargo is the better of the two. Wells doesn't charge for printing new checks, BofA does. At Wells, I pay no fees as long as my balance is above a certain point. I once opened an account at BofA and they didn't spell my name right on the new checks or the ATM card. Seeing the light, I closed out the account and went elsewhere.
The "name" of Wells Fargo is sortuva legendary as part of the "Old West" but it has ALWAYS been primarily a consumer / business oriented bank that was founded in 1852 by two guys (named Henry Wells & William Fargo). https://www.wellsfargo.com/about/history/faqs
The history of Bank of America also starts in San Francisco in about 1904, but recent mergers have moved their "center of gravity" much more toward the Southeast and Wall Street
This is a bit incorrect.
Today's Bank of America = North Carolina National Bank (NCNB)
NCNB purchases largest S&L in Texas and becomes Nations Bank
Nations Bank "acquires" BankAmerica in SF. They decide to use an old trademark and rename NationsBank, Bank of America.
It's still HQ'd in the old NCNB location in Charlotte, NC
Effectively it is NCNB, not the historic BofA which no longer exists.
Today's Wells Fargo = Norwest Bank in Minneapolis
Norwest acquires SF based Wells Fargo, that bank ceases to exist.
Minneapolis bank decides to change name to Wells Fargo
The move a co-HQ into old Wells HQ.
Major operations remain in Minneapolis.
Effectively it is Norwest, not the historic Wells Fargo
I recommend to the OP to avoid them both. Go with a community bank or a credit union.
They are two different banks that provide the same sorts of services. I think both have free student checking accounts. Personally I prefer Bank of America because at least in California there are more branches and far more ATMs.
I would not bother with a credit union or small bank, they typical have insecure websites and otherwise insecure infrastructure.
I agree with everyone above that Wells Fargo is a better bank than B of A. B of A is a total scam outfit. I had multiple problems with them. Since switching to Wells Fargo about 5 years ago, I have not had any problems.
I agree with everyone above that Wells Fargo is a better bank than B of A. B of A is a total scam outfit. I had multiple problems with them. Since switching to Wells Fargo about 5 years ago, I have not had any problems.
Yeah, which would explain how they are the largest bank.
All the large banks have the same sorts of policies, you should pick which ever is most convenient.
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