Yes, Synchrony Bank is FDIC insured. Deposits are protected up to $250,000 per depositor, per ownership category, and the bank has carried that insurance continuously since August 1, 1988 under FDIC Certificate Number 27314.1FDIC. BankFind Suite – Synchrony Bank Synchrony operates mostly online and is headquartered in Draper, Utah, but the coverage is identical to what you would get at any branch-based bank. Online banks and brick-and-mortar banks sit under the same federal rules.
Which Synchrony Accounts Are Covered
Synchrony’s deposit lineup is built around a high-yield savings account and certificates of deposit in a range of terms. Both are fully covered by FDIC insurance.2Synchrony Bank. Online Banking, High Yield Savings, and CDs Coverage is automatic the moment you open an eligible account. You never apply for it and never pay a separate fee.3Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Deposit Insurance
One detail that catches people off guard: coverage includes your principal plus any interest that has accrued through the date the bank would close. Interest counts against the insurance cap just like principal does.4Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. When a Bank Fails – Facts for Depositors, Creditors, and Borrowers
How the $250,000 Limit Works
The $250,000 figure is not a per-account limit. It applies to the combined total of everything you hold in a single ownership category at the same bank. If you keep a $150,000 savings account and a $120,000 CD at Synchrony, both in your name alone, the FDIC adds them together as a $270,000 balance. In that scenario, $20,000 sits outside coverage.5Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Understanding Deposit Insurance
The same arithmetic trips up CD holders who park exactly $250,000 of principal in a single account. Once interest builds up, part of that interest can fall outside the limit.
How to Cover More Than $250,000 at Synchrony
The $250,000 cap applies separately to each ownership category, which means you can increase total coverage at a single bank by holding deposits in different categories. The main ones:
- Single accounts, owned by one person with no beneficiaries, all combined and insured up to $250,000.
- Joint accounts, where each co-owner gets $250,000 of coverage. A two-person joint account is insured up to $500,000.
- Retirement accounts, including IRAs and certain self-directed retirement accounts, which form their own category with a separate $250,000 limit.
- Trust accounts, insured up to $250,000 per eligible beneficiary, with a maximum of $1,250,000 per owner when five or more beneficiaries are named.
Employee benefit plans, business accounts, and government accounts are also treated as separate categories.5Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Understanding Deposit Insurance
Trusts give you the most room at a single institution. The $250,000-per-beneficiary coverage applies no matter how the trust actually divides the money. Name five beneficiaries and you can insure up to $1,250,000 at Synchrony, even if one person is slated to receive the bulk of it.6FDIC.gov. Trust Accounts
If Synchrony Were to Fail or Merge
Bank failures are rare, and the FDIC’s goal is to make insurance payments within two business days of a closure. The usual outcome is a purchase and assumption transaction, in which a healthy bank takes over the failed bank’s insured deposits. Your accounts transfer to the acquiring bank and you keep access to your insured funds almost immediately. If no acquirer steps in, the FDIC pays depositors directly by check, typically within a few days.7Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Payment to Depositors
A merger raises a different concern. If Synchrony were acquired by another FDIC-insured bank where you already held deposits, your combined balances could temporarily exceed the limit. The FDIC provides a six-month grace period during which deposits at both the acquired and acquiring banks remain separately insured. CDs that mature after that six-month window stay separately insured until their maturity date, giving you time to restructure without losing coverage.8Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Merger of IDIs
How to Verify Synchrony’s Coverage Yourself
You can confirm Synchrony’s status in under a minute through the FDIC’s BankFind Suite tool at banks.data.fdic.gov. Searching by name pulls up the certificate number, insurance start date, regulator, and headquarters address. Synchrony’s entry shows Certificate #27314 and continuous insurance since 1988.1FDIC. BankFind Suite – Synchrony Bank Federal rules also require insured banks to display the “Member FDIC” statement in advertising and on digital platforms, which Synchrony does across its site and account documents.9eCFR. 12 CFR Part 328 – FDIC Official Signs, Advertisement of Membership If you ever have trouble confirming a bank’s status, the FDIC takes direct inquiries at 1-877-275-3342.