After all, in most cases we are responsible for running the household, and the promise of online banking is that we'll be able to escape long lines, earn terrific interest rates, and avoid fees. Tasks like monitoring balances, paying bills and transferring funds will become hassle-free and cheap. Well, that's the promise. The reality is that online banking isn't quite there yet. Opening accounts is difficult.
Customer service is spotty.
Bill payment services aren't yet up to speed. So don't give up on it completely. First consider the following points, so you can determine whether online banking makes sense for you. With Chase, where we already had an account, going online was simply a matter of entering our account information, and waiting four days for activation. Citibank concedes opening accounts is better done at a branch than online.