How to Switch to a Bank You’ll Love
A Quick Guide to Switching Your Checking Account to Bell Bank
This quick guide makes it easy for “do-it-yourselfers” to switch to a bank you’ll love – Bell Bank! If you have questions or would like someone to walk you through the process, simply:
- Visit a Bell location
- Call us at 1-800-450-8949 and talk to a real person (not a machine) weekdays from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. C.T. and weekends from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. C.T.
Setting up an account at a Bell branch typically takes about an hour. We will provide the form for your employer, Social Security or other agencies to switch direct deposit of your paycheck, Social Security check or other pension/investment funds to your new Bell account. We’ll also help you sign up for online and mobile banking, switch your automatic payments, and order you any checks or debit cards you need.
5 Steps for Switching Bank Accounts
1. Gather your documents
Here's a quick checklist of what to bring with you to Bell Bank, or have on hand when you're ready to open your account online:
- Photo ID (driver's license, passport, state ID or military ID)
- Social Security number
- Current bank statement (for account numbers, routing number and bill pay information)
- For smoother switching of your automatic payments, bring statements from businesses where you have them (such as mortgage or rent, phone, utilities and streaming services)
- Funds for the required minimum deposit to open your account (you can use a credit card, or a checking or savings account)
2. Open your account
Choose from 3 convenient ways to open your America's Best Checking account:
3. Enroll in mobile and online banking
Download the free Bell Bank app and follow the prompts or enroll in online banking here.
4. Set up direct deposits, bill pay and automatic payments
When you open your account online, you'll be able to access the form for your employer, Social Security or other agencies to switch direct deposit of your paycheck, Social Security check or other retirement or investment funds to your new Bell account. You can also order checks and debit cards.
Once you sign up for and log in to mobile or online banking, select “Bill Pay” in the menu to add your automatic payments.
5. Close your old account
To close your old account, just contact your previous bank by phone, or send them this form, authorizing the transfer. We recommend keeping your old account open for 6 to 8 weeks to make sure all of your automatic payments have switched over to your new Bell account.
Not Quite Ready to Switch?
If you’re not quite ready to switch banks – or maybe need a bit more convincing – find out how your bank’s frees, fees and features stack up against the competition at comparebankfees.com.
Bank Where You Matter
At Bell, we put you first, offering many features for free (instead of charging sneaky fees).
Banking Basics
Find out which checking account makes the most sense for you, in our banking basics article.
Compare Bank Fees
Fees can really add up – especially the sneaky fees you don’t expect. See how your bank’s fees compare.