Navy Federal Credit Union
reviews and complaints

The NFCU mobile application had been evolving into a very simple to use, easy to read, easy to navigate, successful application. Helpful, more complete information was presented for each one of my accounts. The site interfaces all worked and were clear & easy to follow.

This most recent update appears convoluted, almost as though someone was trying to cram too much into a limited space. Instead of making things easier to find complete information on my accounts, there is less being presented less clearly.

I can appreciate “refreshing” the appearance on an application but not at the cost of losing clarity, ease of navigation and ease if use. Change, just for the sake of change, isn’t progress. Perhaps presenting such things before an inexperienced focus group before implementing such an overhaul would help.

Update: For over a year, this mobile app continues to have problems when trying to edit transfers, in particular the internal ones from your savings or checking account to pay on credit cards. Whenever I try, The app alert states “a condition exists that prevents this action. Call ...”. I have contacted NFCU customer service a multitude of times to try and figure out why it hasn’t been corrected but all I get is to be told to delete the account abd reenter it or to use the nfcu.org website. Well, if I need to do that then what good is the mobile app?

The latest update includes an enhancement to the "Photo Deposit" feature where the app centers the check image and automatically takes the picture. Great in theory, but often unworkable in real use. The app doesn't allow the camera time to properly auto-focus on the check image and the front side with the amounts and ACH routing data is frequently out of focus. Even with the camera flash enabled, it doesn't use the preliminary illumination focus feature to ensure proper legibility, so without good focus the check gets a blurred image and the deposit is rejected either right away by the app, or later by the processor as illegible. It also doesn't alway auto-crop the image taken, so you end up with a partial cut-off picture. Yes, you can disable the option to go back to manual mode but that has its own flaws. Most of my deposits are laser printed checks, so it's not like it has to decipher hand-writing. In manual mode, I usually get a good image 90% of the time for submission. The new auto-pic feature, not so much. I had to re-take a picture of a recent check 9 times using auto-pic before it finally got one good enough to use. Other features of the app are well thought out and useable. One enhancement suggestion for future development: when the Bill-Pay notification comes up that a new bill has arrived, it would be nice to see the actually PDF of the bill for review instead of just the balance, due date, and minimum payment due.

Horrible update to the app. Now when trying to make a deposit the app controls when the camera takes the picture, and it's always blurry because the app doesn't give the camera enough time to focus. I have been a member since the 90's, but will have to close my account and go elsewhere because I don't have a branch local to me to make deposits. This is absolutely terrible, and the inconvenience I now face is great. I am going to have to open an account at a local place, change all my bill pay information for the new account, update direct deposit, wait on debit cards to arrive, and link other accounts to the new account at the new financial institution. Whoever came up with the idea for the app to control the camera needs to lose their job and go into a different industry as they clearly have no concept of developing a platform with functionality and the user in mind. Whoever beta tested this and gave approval for quality assurance also needs to be fired, as they clearly either weren't sober when they approved it or never tested this feature. I expect much better from you NFCU. Will probably go over to USAA or Marine Federal.

Update 05/05: Deposit feature still does not work, still takes pic on its own time which makes it hard to get a clear pic that will pass
their impossible validation. Can't deposit checks and they don't have a location in Wilmington NC. Total garbage, both the app and not having a branch in Wilmington with the number of veterans living here.

Before i could copy it.

Terrible.

You cannot set up Apple Pay.

You cannot get service for any issue whatsoever

because all their phone numbers are routed go the same place, and answered only by a hateful computer witch who will waste an hour of your time.

You can no longer get any kind of human being on the line no matter what because as I said, you will be hung up on in every case eventually.

If you put in your password even if it is right three times,

they lock you out if your account.

And like catch 22--You have to call to clear that up, but you can't call, see.

You know what navy federal? I have been telling you for years on your customers service surveys that your phone tree is horrendous. I guess you found that encouraging.

I'm looking for a new credit union.

Btw, this is absolutely the only place--the app review-- I could even begin to hope that this might to reach someone who cares. You ha e no other phones, email, or chat. Like I am really going to write a letter with a stamp to Richmond.

If it is a computer glitch, which it probably is, I would empathize. But it just turned into a major customer-zero-service issue when you don't provide any method to let you know you have a serious problem.

I want a different bank.

I want another bank, even though we are entitled to excellent service through the navy credit union. You should be ashamed, nfcu.

Maybe you could try to reach out to all the clients who called on October 8 in the afternoon. Just a thought.

Disgusting, money hungry company. Have been banking with them for years, and will not any longer. They took 6 THOUSAND dollars from my account. I left my husband due to DV and our joint loan defaulted. I’m a single mom and clearly didn’t want to leave Navy Federal, continued to let them take money out of my account to go towards this loan. I received my tax return this morning and it was immediately confiscated out of my account. Every last dime. The lady had no compassion for me at all, didn’t care that this was going to severely financially affect me, and kept repeating herself about the rules and that “if you would have called before this happened, we would’ve been able to help you”. I even asked her if I could put some money towards the loan and set up payment plans if they could return some of it back to me. She refused everything, refused to help me at all. I didn’t even know the account defaulted and was under the assumption my ex-husband was going to pay for the loan. “Well you’re equally responsible” is what she said. Absolutely horrific to hear these responses in regards to my situation. I know the right to offset gives them access to do this, but have some empathy, let’s not leave people in a position to be homeless? The amount of hardship my baby and I have been through and let’s add on this. They drained my ENTIRE account. If this is how they treat servicemen and their family members during hard times, by all means, look elsewhere. No wonder they have class action lawsuits against them.

After going through a ridiculously complicated (and suggested but mandatory) process to add more security to my account (what’s with the billion questions about marriage btw Navy) it took forever to try and deposit two checks. The app kept freezing. It said it wasn’t endorsed (when it was) so I double endorsed it (never had to do that before). Then when it finally went through there was nothing on the app that showed deposits were pending. I had to check through other means to ensure it went through. THEN if that wasn’t enough, I got two emails later telling me the checks weren’t deposited bc I didn’t add the sentence “For eDeposit Only at NFCU.” Just like that. Random capped letters and all. I’ve been depositing checks for decades and never had to write an essay prior to depositing. Perhaps I missed that instruction but after the billion steps just to get to that point, I was already over it and exhausted. Was planning to use this as my main account, but until they work on these issues, forget it. Mobile deposit is meant to be convenient, not a test of wills. What’s laughable is I immediately deposited the checks into my other bank in under a minute- BOTH checks. Then received a text, email, and app note that they were received. It took less time to use another bank’s app and write this review than attempting to simply log on to this app and access my account info. Do better NFCU. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel. Just copy from the other apps that had all these kinks worked out eons before you.

I woke up on payday and immediately went to check my balance. As I went on my phone I saw nfcu had sent me a message asking if I had made a purchase for a large amount of money. I was confused and opened the app. I had a 0 balance and money from my savings was gone. Replied to the message with a No and called the number right away. I was really stressed because my whole paycheck and most of my savings was spent on fraudulent charges. I also had a job interview that morning so I knew I couldn’t make it into a branch right away. Over the phone they cancelled my card and reported the multiple charges as fraud. They told me I could stop by a branch at any time to pick up my new card and that I needed to change my password. They said since the amount of money was pretty large (a few thousand dollars) it would take a few business days to see all my money back. After my interview I went straight to a branch. I immediately was given a new card and sure enough about three days later all my money was back into my account and the fraud charges were declined.
I want to thank nfcu for having real people on the phone and for taking care of the issue so quickly. Their customer service is the best I’ve ever seen from a financial institution.
Also as a young adult I was ready to start building my credit. I got their secured nRewards card which was such an easy process. About 6 months later I had graduated to an unsecured card with a decent credit score. Nfcu truly cares about its members and they do a great job showing it.

I've been enjoying this banking app since joining NFCU. My last bank was a great bank but it's technology was not up to par and I do everything on my computer and/or mobile devices. There have been some bumps which I had initially attributed to NFCU but turned out to be apps which don't allow for NFCU MFA. I'd rather have the extra security and if an app (digit.co) can't work with a bank that has MFA, I'll pass on doing business with the company. I have 2FA on every account and business which allows for 2FA. Clearly, MFA is very important to me. There are large banks (2 in particular) that might have better technology in place, but I won't trust a bank that makes a customer pay $4 to talk to a bank teller if they don't keep $10,000 ADB in an account that pays .03% in interest. The NFCU app does everything I need and it does more than most banks. Yes, the technology might be better with the top four banks, but technology isn't worth it if I don't trust the bank father than I could throw it. There are still banks that don't offer a dedicated app that works, let alone an app which allows touch ID access.
Overall, I've had no problems with the app. I check my accounts several times a day, so being able to access my account in 4 seconds is one huge plus and remote deposit is another huge plus. There are other banks, available to me which offer remote deposit and better technology, but I'd bury my money in my back yard before I'd do business with these specific banks. I don't want my money in the hands of criminals.

First let me say that the login page looks great! Big buttons and textfields and it has a clear and simple layout. Login security is very important especially with a financial app or website. That's why it baffles me that an organization makes it difficult to use their app with secure passwords and easy with weak ones.

It may sound a bit looney but I use long passwords typically more than 20 characters with upper and lowercase letters, numbers, punctuation and symbols. They are also completely random and computer generated. Oh did I mention that i change my password often-daily, weekly resets are usual occurrences that I do for my own benefit. I couldn't tell you one if I wanted to without looking it up. I've found a way to manage the literally hundreds of passwords in my life quickly and securely and life is good.

That's why when I get to the password field on the login page it I can't paste in my password which is copied to my clipboard. Oh, I get the option to paste when I tap the empty field but good luck actually entering the password when clicking the paste button. Writing my password down on a piece of paper is out of the question. So I'll just switch back and forth between apps and enter my password 1 or 2 letters (etc) at a time. Think again, all the fields reset to blank when you do.

So here's my dilemma: use a simple and memorable password and type it in from memory and therefore never change it or use a secure password and don't use the app.

I'll go with skipping the app and use the less pretty website.

First I never leave reviews! But I felt I needed to. I have banked with several banks and this year I signed up for Navy federal. This has been the best banking experience I have ever had with ANY banks! In fact, Navy Federal goes far beyond any other company I have ever had to call.
The fact that they offer 24-7 call center is amazing! Personally I have never had to call in the middle of the night but so many people work different shifts all around the world plus we all travel out of state, some of us even out of the country but not ever having to worry about what time it is back in your home town is top notch! Not to mention if you are trying to make a very large purchase and your credit card is declining for security against fraud, being able to call and conform your identity right the and there is amazing!
I could go on and on about the experience I have had with Navy Federal but why don’t you just give them a call! Just call and talk to them about their products and that phone Call alone will have you signing up right away! I spent 45 min on the phone the day I called, not because it took them so long, because they keep asking me if I would like them to go on with the benefits they offer, of course I said yes please. They stated they was aware how busy we were but if I had the time they would keep going. During our conversation I was floored at everything I learned about this amazing company!
Thank you Navy Federal for accepting me and always being there! You are an AMAZING company that truly cares about your clients and making everything so user friendly!
You are awesome!

As a software engineer the application was probably the best mobile application I have ever used. Well optimized, snappy, and most of all, unbelievably well designed...that was until this last update. A lot of changes were made that seem to serve no real positive feedback for the consumer. The bottom menu is convoluted, there is less useful information on the account pages (like the sudden disappearance of the running balance next to transactions), the information that is there has been cluttered into the top left now. The previous design, from a human computer interaction stand point, was very near perfect. It was simple, intuitive, and easy to use, which is exactly what you want. Everything had a purpose and seemed to be deliberately placed with ease of use in mind. This app is great and the designers and developers did an amazing job, but my rating will stay until you guys either roll back to the previous design or take you new design back to the drawing board and ask yourselves why you made each of these changes against the previous design. Keep in mind, for most of us, this is our main means of interaction with this bank. Making changes as drastic as this is jarring and can be pretty detrimental to your customers.

Update:
You guys took a lot of feedback and made updates to your new design based on that feedback. And they’ve all been positive changes. Reintroducing things that made the previous design good into the new design was a good call as now you’re getting best of both worlds. The devs are doing a great job with this and it gets better with each update. Changed rating to 5 stars. Keep up the awesome work!

I have been with Navy Federal for years and never any issues to make a complaint against them until now.
I went to sign in on my IPhone app and then it was automatically sent to a “New” secondary security sign in.
1. Navy Federal never asked if I want to do such a thing because trust me I all ready have enough security in place to begin with and am a adult that should have some say over my own account.
2. They force you to select from a gazillion questions and many of the questions they selected for me to provide answers are irrelevant to me so I had to pick which poisons to take.
3. Once I spent a great amount of time to select from their own irrelevant questions to answer it doesn’t stop there.
4. Then you are bounced to another page to select what country you are in, what device are you using and to type in a phone number that they all ready have in their file.
5. Then once you do all that down below is buttons to either click “Continue” or “Cancel” however; the continue button is inoperable? Your only option is to click “Cancel” which immediately bounces you back to the gazillion questions? It completely erases the questions and answers! ?
6. Then like every one else I call Navy Federal and am transferred from one clerk to another until finally I get someone that actually tries her best to help resolve this situation with No success on her end! She spent 41 minutes trying every trick in the book and no success.
7. So I waited a whole day the next day to try and crack open the safe to my own bank account and what happens is a repeat. ?
Grrrrrrr UGH Frustrating... So I have absolutely No access to my own account!
Whomever thought of this not so brilliant security idea should be fired. Not even the best hacker could crack this silliness!

This app just seems like a replica if mobile/text access. When I want an app that is my main bank that I love, I would appreciate something more user friendly and professional looking.

First I would like to address a login issue. About 80% of the time I try to login I usually get a glimmer of hope of my account but then it shuts me right out. On top of that, I don't get to redeem myself by going back to the login page instead I get a white screen that teases me :(

Once I do get in, I only have account access to the ones I selected in my "mobile" section of my navy fed account this becomes very inconvenient when I would like to check a certain account but can't until I go to the full page.

After that going into one of my accounts I see nothing but big letters that gives me a vague/partial description in big bulky letters. In order for me to fully see it I have to dive into the link itself. Just inconvenient.

When all is said and done i begin the log out process but are unable to due to the fact that the sign off button is small and right above the help button. This causes me to fat finger and press the help button repeatedly over a five minute time span just to sign off correctly.

All in all this app showed hope and potential but brings me sadness and despair every time. I find it easier and more convenient to go through the website on my phone than to use the app. If security is am issue on the app why not add the pin as an extra precaution?

I have several banks that all flow good as an app but don't use them because I have a better history, customer service, and just all around better everything with navy federal. So please mark up some vast improvements on the app because I want to see you all do even better than you already are :)

Normally I find the app very intuitive. It is user friendly and helpful with tracking transactions, however I’ve identified an area that could use some improvement.

The last year or so, the economy has effected my ability to maintain normal on time payments to my Auto loan. Because I like using the app, I attempt to set up later payments so that I don’t go into the negative. For the last three months, I needed to speak to an associate to have one of two payments credited back into my checking account due to double payment.

This is reflective of the app. It is withdrawing from both my savings and checking on the last day of the month and again on the first of the month. This occurred three months consecutively. It has also become an inconvenience because the app is not meeting my needs in this regard.

Each associate I spoke with was understanding and assisted with returning the funds immediately, however the fourth occurrence requires back office approval which could take up to four business days and I will be without those needed funds until then.

Unfortunately my fixed income has been impacted by the current economic climate, however my efforts to try to pay my bills on time should not be inconvenient due to a serious glitch in your app.

I am a disabled veteran and up until now I’ve been able to manage my accounts but this has become more of a problem than I expected.

Please test your application. I should only have one payment submitted when I use this app to arrange payments. Why is it withdrawing from my savings if I set it up to withdraw from checking? Why doesn’t it take the payment using the options that I select? Why doesn’t the system recognize or reflect the initial payment before withdrawing the second payment?

Troubleshoot your app. I am willing to consult with your application team if needed.

This issue needs attention.

This is the second time I’ve had to call in and get my password changed because the app has locked me out.

This time I had just viewed my balance a few hours ago. I go to open my app again to recheck my balance to see if the bill had gone through, the app then tells me it’s been a while since I’ve logged in. This is obviously not the case because I use it on a daily basis. I had just used a few hours previously.

I go to login and it tells me my password is wrong and I’ve reached the max attempts. I had only tried to enter my password once, before it locked me out and said I had to call customer service. The customer service representative tells me that the max tries is six before it locks you out.

It is extremely inconvenient to have to call and spend 15 to 20 minutes on the phone giving out your information to have to reset a password when it’s the app that has locked me out.

It’s also extremely inconvenient to have to try and remember what the last password you set because you’ve had to reset it several times. All because the app keeps locking you out for no reason.

If your developers can’t do their job correctly maybe you should hire new ones.

- update - after writing this review I had to delete the app and re-download it to be able to enter my new password that I just reset because the app locked me out.

I go through the whole process of logging back in and getting through the whole process on my phone and facial recognition login. Seems fine. Good... NOPE!

I go to open it back up after I’ve done all this and yet again it asked me for my password. Ok fine! I enter it and guess what it tells me?! It does not match what they have in their system. Are you kidding me!

I literally just went through this whole process after I had to uninstall and re-download your app! After I reinstalled it and logged in it was fine. I close the app out and re-open it and all of a sudden your systems can’t verify my password anymore? I just logged in with the same password I just reset. This is incredibly frustrating!

At this moment I have exactly 94 apps on my phone, including more than a few banking and finance apps (such as USAA, Schwab, Fidelity, Turbotax, Quicken etc.) and I rarely encounter problems signing in and using them. When I do have an issue signing in, I can usually resolve it in seconds within the app.

However, I ALWAYS encounter a problem signing in to this app and it can NEVER be resolved without having to spend less than an hour on it. I have to keep my USAA banking accounts because it is too difficult to e bank with Navy Fed as compared to USAA.

I have a tip on how to improve this app; just copy USAA or Schwab. Problems eliminated and customers happy.

Why is it easier to bank with an insurance company (USAA) or an investment firm (Schwab) who's core competencies/services are NOT banking?

I give up. I had to delete this app. I can waste no more time on it.

Not too sure what’s been going on lately (as of today 05/06), but for the past two or three weeks I haven’t been able to use the app. When I log in the app will require me to change my password every time, and when I go through this process I have to do it on my PC or laptop. After updating this password, the app will let me in once, and then after that no more. I’ll be forced to keep changing my password. Maybe with all the craziness going on lately this is why, it’d just be nice to have a note or something stating the mobile app is unstable or some known issues being worked or something.

I’ve done everything I could on my end and strongly believe it isn’t my phone, password, or whatever else it could be. It’s annoying to log in from a browser on my phone when I have the app and am just unable to use it - crazy for me to think that and complain about something like that. #firstworldproblems

P.S. When the app worked for me it was great.