The FDIC covers up to $250,000 per depositor, per bank, per account category

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation insures $250,000 per person at each bank. That means if you have $250,000 in a savings account at Bank A and it fails, you get all of it back. If you have $300,000 at Bank A, you lose the extra $50,000 — FDIC does not cover it.

The $250,000 limit applies to each separate account category you hold at the same bank. A savings account, a checking account, and a money market account are three different categories, so you get $250,000 protection in each one. A second savings account at the same bank counts as the same category and shares the $250,000 limit with your first savings account.

The limit resets at each different bank. If you have $250,000 in savings at Bank A and $250,000 in savings at Bank B, both are fully covered because they are at different banks. The bank's name is what matters — not the branch, not the account number, just whether it is a separate FDIC-insured institution.

Key Takeaways

  • FDIC insurance covers $250,000 per person, per bank, per account category — so a $300,000 savings account at one bank leaves $50,000 uninsured.
  • Savings accounts, checking accounts, and money market accounts are separate categories, each with its own $250,000 limit at the same bank.
  • The limit resets at each different bank, so spreading money across multiple banks can protect more than $250,000 total.
  • Joint accounts get their own $250,000 limit separate from individual accounts at the same bank.
  • FDIC insurance only covers bank failure, not theft, fraud, or account errors — those are handled through the bank's dispute process.

How account ownership type changes the coverage limit

The account category depends on who owns the money, not just what type of account it is. An individual savings account, a joint savings account, and a savings account held in trust are three separate categories at the same bank, each with $250,000 coverage.

A joint account — where two people both own the money — gets $250,000 per person. If you and your spouse have a joint savings account with $500,000, the FDIC covers $250,000 for you and $250,000 for your spouse, so the full amount is protected. If you and a business partner have a joint account, the same rule applies: $250,000 per person.

A revocable trust account (the most common type) gets $250,000 per beneficiary, up to a maximum of $250,000 total per trust. If you set up a trust naming your two children as beneficiaries and fund it with $500,000, only $250,000 is covered. An irrevable trust is treated as a separate depositor and gets its own $250,000 limit.

Accounts held in the name of a business, a nonprofit, or a government entity are separate categories. A sole proprietorship uses your personal coverage limit, but an LLC or corporation gets its own $250,000 limit at each bank.

What happens when you exceed the $250,000 limit

If your account balance goes over $250,000 at a single bank, only $250,000 is protected when the bank fails. The bank itself does not tell you that you are over the limit — you have to track it. The FDIC publishes a tool called the FDIC Coverage Calculator on its website where you can enter your accounts and see exactly how much is covered.

The uninsured portion does not disappear immediately. When a bank fails, the FDIC takes over and tries to sell the bank's assets or merge it with another bank. If the bank is sold to another bank, your account moves to the new bank and you keep access to all your money — insured and uninsured. You only lose the uninsured portion if the bank's assets are not enough to cover all deposits after the sale.

Bank failures are rare. The FDIC has insured deposits since 1933, and most banks that fail are resolved in a way that protects all deposits, even those over the limit. But the $250,000 limit exists because it is the legal maximum the FDIC guarantees.

Spreading money across multiple banks to stay protected

If you have more than $250,000 to keep in savings, opening accounts at different FDIC-insured banks is the standard way to stay fully covered. Each bank's $250,000 limit is separate, so $250,000 at Bank A and $250,000 at Bank B means $500,000 total protection.

Online banks, credit unions, and brick-and-mortar banks all count as separate institutions for FDIC purposes. A savings account at Chase and a savings account at Ally are two different banks, so both get full $250,000 coverage. A savings account and a money market account at the same bank are different categories, but they share the $250,000 limit.

Some people use joint accounts or trust accounts to increase coverage at a single bank. If you and your spouse each have individual accounts plus a joint account at the same bank, you get $250,000 for you, $250,000 for your spouse, and $250,000 for the joint account — $750,000 total at one bank. This works, but it requires setting up multiple accounts and keeping track of which category each one falls into.

FDIC insurance does not cover everything

FDIC insurance only covers deposits when the bank itself fails. It does not cover losses from theft, fraud, account errors, or investment losses. If someone steals your debit card and drains your account, that is a fraud case handled through the bank's dispute process, not FDIC insurance.

If the bank makes an error and credits your account with money that is not yours, and then later corrects it, FDIC insurance does not protect you from the correction. If you lose money in a stock or bond held at the bank, that is an investment loss, not a bank failure, and FDIC does not cover it.

Cryptocurrency, commodities, and stocks held in a bank account are not covered by FDIC insurance. Only cash deposits and certain types of bonds held for safekeeping are covered. If you want to know whether a specific type of deposit is covered, the FDIC website has a detailed list of what counts and what does not.

How to check if your bank is FDIC-insured

Not all banks are FDIC-insured. Most traditional banks and credit unions are, but some online banks and investment firms are not. You can search the FDIC's Bank Find tool on its website by entering the bank's name or location. If the bank appears in the search results, it is FDIC-insured. If it does not appear, it is not.

The FDIC logo usually appears on the bank's website and in its physical branches, but the logo alone is not proof — always check the Bank Find tool. Some banks claim to be "FDIC-insured" when they are actually insured by a different agency or not insured at all.

Credit unions are typically insured by the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), not the FDIC, but the coverage limit is the same: $250,000 per person, per credit union, per account category. The rules work identically to FDIC insurance, just through a different agency.

Frequently Asked Questions

If I have $300,000 in a savings account, how much does FDIC cover?

FDIC covers $250,000. The remaining $50,000 is uninsured. If the bank fails and cannot pay back all deposits, you would lose that $50,000. To protect the full $300,000, you would need to split it between two different FDIC-insured banks.

Does FDIC cover money in a joint account differently?

Yes. A joint account gets $250,000 per owner, not $250,000 total. If you and your spouse have a joint savings account with $500,000, the FDIC covers $250,000 for you and $250,000 for your spouse, protecting the full amount. Each person's share is insured separately.

If I move money between banks, does FDIC coverage follow it?

Coverage depends on where the money is at the time of bank failure, not where it was before. If you transfer $250,000 from Bank A to Bank B, it is covered at Bank B once it arrives. During the transfer itself, the money is in transit and not covered by either bank's FDIC insurance, but transfers typically complete within one business day.

Are savings accounts at online banks covered the same way as brick-and-mortar banks?

Yes, if the online bank is FDIC-insured. Online banks like Ally, Marcus, and Discover are FDIC-insured and follow the same $250,000 per person, per bank, per category rules as traditional banks. Always check the Bank Find tool to confirm the bank is FDIC-insured before opening an account.

What if my bank fails while I am waiting for a transfer to clear?

Coverage is based on the bank's records at the time it fails, not on pending transfers. If you initiated a transfer out of a failing bank but it had not cleared yet, the money is still counted as a deposit at the failing bank and covered up to $250,000. The FDIC uses the bank's internal records to determine what you owned.