Closing a bank account does not directly affect your credit score
Closing a checking or savings account has no impact on your credit report or credit score. Banks do not report account closures to the three major credit bureaus—Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion—because deposit accounts are not credit products. Your credit score measures how you borrow and repay money. A bank account is simply where you store it.
That said, closing an account can create indirect problems if you are not careful about what happens to automatic payments, recurring charges, or outstanding checks. Those complications can damage your credit if they lead to missed payments on loans or credit cards.
Key Takeaways
- Closing a bank account itself does not appear on your credit report or change your credit score.
- Problems arise only if automatic bill payments, subscription charges, or checks bounce because the account is closed.
- Bounced payments on credit cards or loans can trigger late fees and credit reporting if the underlying debt goes unpaid.
- Before closing an account, redirect all automatic payments and verify no pending checks or transfers are still in flight.
- Banks may report closed accounts to ChexSystems (a banking history database), which affects your ability to open new accounts but not your credit score.
When account closure creates credit damage
The risk emerges when you close an account without moving your automatic payments first. If a credit card payment, loan installment, or utility bill is set to debit from that account, and the account is closed, the payment will fail. The merchant or lender then reports the missed payment to the credit bureaus, which lowers your score.
A single missed payment can drop your score by 50 to 100 points, depending on your current score and payment history. The damage is worse if the missed payment is on a credit product—a credit card, auto loan, or mortgage—rather than a utility bill, because credit bureaus weight credit payments more heavily.
Bounced checks create a separate problem. If you close an account and a check you wrote is still in circulation, it will bounce. The recipient may charge you a returned-check fee and report the bounced check to ChexSystems, a banking history database. While ChexSystems does not feed into your credit score, it can prevent you from opening a new bank account for several years.
Steps to close an account without credit risk
Before you close the account, log in and review every automatic payment and recurring charge tied to it. Look for subscriptions, insurance premiums, loan payments, credit card payments, utility bills, and payroll direct deposits. Write down each one with its payment date.
Contact each biller or subscription service and update the payment method to your new account or a different payment method. Do this at least two weeks before you plan to close the account, so the change has time to process. For loan and credit card payments, call the lender directly rather than relying on an online form; speaking to a person ensures the change is recorded.
Check your account for pending checks or transfers. Ask yourself: did I write any checks in the last week that have not cleared yet? Did I set up any one-time transfers that are scheduled but not yet complete? If yes, wait until those clear before closing. You can also request a stop payment on any check you are unsure about, though most banks charge a fee (typically $25 to $35 per check).
Once all automatic payments are moved and pending transactions have cleared, contact your bank and request account closure. Some banks allow you to close online; others require a phone call or in-person visit. Ask the bank to confirm the closure in writing and to provide a final statement showing a zero balance.
The difference between credit bureaus and banking databases
Credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, TransUnion) track credit behavior: loans, credit cards, payment history, and debt. They do not track deposit accounts. Banks do not report to them when you open or close a checking or savings account.
ChexSystems is a separate database used by banks to check your history with deposit accounts. It records account closures, bounced checks, overdrafts, and fraud. If you close an account in good standing (no overdrafts, no bounced checks, no fraud), ChexSystems will note the closure but it will not prevent you from opening a new account elsewhere. If you close an account with negative marks—repeated overdrafts or a bounced check—ChexSystems may flag you as high-risk, and some banks will deny your application for a new account.
ChexSystems records do not affect your credit score. They are separate from credit reporting entirely.
What happens if a payment fails after closure
If you close an account and a payment fails because it was still set to debit from that account, the merchant or lender will attempt to collect the debt. For credit products like credit cards or loans, the lender will report the missed payment to the credit bureaus after 30 days of non-payment. This appears on your credit report as a late payment and damages your score.
For non-credit debts like utilities or subscriptions, the company may send you a bill or collection notice, but they typically do not report to credit bureaus unless the debt is sold to a collection agency. Once it reaches collections, it will appear on your credit report.
If you realize a payment failed after you closed the account, contact the lender or merchant immediately and make the payment. Paying within 30 days of the due date prevents a late payment from being reported to the credit bureaus. If it has already been reported, paying the debt does not remove the late payment from your report, but it does stop further damage and shows future lenders that you resolved the issue.
Closing multiple accounts and your credit mix
Closing a bank account does not affect your credit mix—the variety of credit types you hold (credit cards, installment loans, mortgages). Credit mix is based on credit products only, not deposit accounts. So closing a checking account will not change this part of your score.
However, if you close a credit card account, that does affect your credit mix and your available credit, which can lower your score slightly. But that is a credit card issue, not a bank account issue. Deposit accounts and credit accounts are tracked separately.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will closing a bank account show up on my credit report?
No. Bank account closures do not appear on your credit report because deposit accounts are not credit products. The closure will be recorded in ChexSystems (a banking database), but ChexSystems does not feed into your credit score.
Can a closed bank account cause a late payment on my credit card?
Yes, if your credit card payment was set to auto-debit from the closed account. The payment will fail, and if you do not make it by the due date, the card issuer will report a late payment to the credit bureaus. Always move automatic payments before closing an account.
What if I close an account and a check bounces?
A bounced check will be reported to ChexSystems and may prevent you from opening a new bank account for several years. It does not affect your credit score directly, but it can make banking difficult. Contact the recipient and pay them immediately to minimize damage.
Does closing a savings account hurt my credit differently than closing a checking account?
No. Neither checking nor savings accounts affect your credit score when closed. The only risk is if you had automatic payments set up on either account that fail after closure.
If I close an account with a negative balance, will it hurt my credit?
A negative balance (overdraft) will not directly damage your credit score, but it will be reported to ChexSystems and may prevent you from opening a new account. Pay the overdraft before closing the account to avoid this problem.