Salem Five did not check on suspicious check resubmittal activities. It was fining me after the first overdraft fine. If I wasn't paying attention, I would have erroneously been fined for over $350, and would not have been able to pay other bills. I was short $5.00 My bank since the 80s. Nice people. They did stop the fines after blaming me. Be on top and be assertive. Communicate. $5. Salem Five since 1855. $5 $5 $5 sheesh. Drill Sargent forgave me with a voice as hard as a rock. Thanx Ms. read more

I been waiting since Monday june 2026 and today is june 4 for a new debit card was comprised I have been to several branches and told they cannot print debit card right now there machine is down i reached out to salem five phone number and told me they can issue me one in ten day through the mail I told them I need the physical card Now they are telling me they didn't hear about any issue .this is ridiculous . I wish I never put my money in this bank they have no time line when this will be fixed ridiculous read more

I have two accounts with Salem Five. A checking account and it gives me no interest. The second account is a savings account. The second one is called an Esavings account. I went to the Danvers branch and wanted to withdraw x amount for Christmas and was told I would have to pay a penalty for withdrawing x from my account. So x + x to get my money. I'm 80 years old and a veteran of the Vietnam war why do the banks do this to us. Protest about the bank. read more

I've never in all my years dealt with such a unreliable online banking. Locked out of your account at the drop of a hat forced to make new passwords that don't work once created. Sometimes the app does not let you log in and if you try too many times on the app you're kicked out and then have to call and wait for service and create a whole new password again. read more

I opened a salem 5 account a couple years ago for the good interest rate. I recently tried to take the money out and have gotten nothing but a complete run around. Linked accounts electronically and still cant do a transfer. 20 minutes on hold at noon today, finally hung up, tried again around 4pm and was on hold 39 minutes tonight just to get to customer service rep who was less than no help and could not address the issue or get me to anyone else that could. I would not recommend them. Would love for them to see this and reach out to help me. read more

Quite possibly the worst banking experience in the state of Massachusetts. I have encountered a consistent and frustrating pattern of failure that proves this institution is not fit for modern business: Incompetent Support: Staff lacks the basic skills or authority to resolve even the most trivial account issues. Outdated Technology: They are significantly behind the curve. They lack proper integration with common platforms like Google Pay and their chip card technology feels years behind industry standards. Arbitrary Fraud Flags: Online banking is a constant struggle, and they frequently flag legitimate transactions as fraud. When you call to resolve it, no one can explain why it happened. Zero Accountability: It is impossible to escalate issues to a manager or VP. They hide behind a wall of front-line staff who are trained to hit dead ends. Performative Responses: Don't be fooled by a quick "we're sorry" reply to this review. A fast response on social media does not translate to actually fixing systemic internal failures. I have officially filed a formal complaint with the Massachusetts Division of Banks. They should be barred from doing business in the state until they bring their technology and service into the 21st century. Save yourself the headache and take your money elsewhere. read more

SalemFive rolled out a new online bill pay system a week ago and the day after the roll out it stopped working for me. I've called several times and and all they tell me is that it's not working and cannot give a time when it will be working. Their IT people need to learn how to TEST use case scenarios before rolling out a new system! read more

Was great at mortgages 15 yrs ago but have fallen apart. Now the most unorganized and incompetent mortgage bank ever. I had to dump them when underwriting was almost complete. Don't wast your time with Ken. read more

I've had them for years, for the love of god do not pick this company, it will save your sanity, I am 25 years old and struggle with contacting a person, I repeat do not choose this bank read more

in a nutshell: my heat went out during 15 degree stretch of winter weather, I need to pay the plumber who's coming to replace my boiler. but Salem Five first makes up some runaround to prevent me from logging into my account, then follows that with not allowing me to transfer funds from my Salem Five my other bank's checking account becuase 'there aren't enough eligible accounts to make this transfer'. What? So they have no problem letting you transfer money FROM other banks to them, but when you need to send your money TO other banks they literally just dont let you! Called customer service, was on hold for 15 minutes, had to finally hang up and return to my job. this is what happens when our elected officials let the banking and insurance lobby dismantle the CFPB. scuzzball banking companies like Salem Five take your money and hold it hostage with no legal repercussions anymmore. AVOID THIS BANK LIKE THE PLAGUE! READ REVIEWS BEFORE OPENING AN ACCOUNT, ESPECIALLY ON REDDIT read more

Please don't get this bank. The customer service usually sucks. They do go around your problem and then argue with you over simple math. A $35 overdraft fee on each purchase is outrageous when the purchases are far below $35 each. He tried to say it's a "courtesy warning", or a "loan" like no you guys are scalpers. I am a broke and homeless college student who spent the entire previous day working and my funds were just hours behind on the transfer, now I have an extra $100 to pay not my many bills but SALEM FIVE. I refuse-- 1. because I financially can't and two because I've had horrible experiences with this bank and I've been with it since I was like 15. The app is shotty at best, it always logs me out and has a weird disconnect with the login info for the website where I have to go through a bunch of hoops just to look at my account balance. Absurd. This bank gives not a single benefit besides 5 cents on a purchase and in all my time with this bank I couldn't have accrued more than $50 total across multiple accounts (including my mother's). This is ridiculous. For the customer service member to argue with me that the overdraft fees are helpful to me when I am an extra $100 negative in my account as a result (and no, I would have been about $30 negative on my own until my funds deposited (which should have been yesterday) but now I am an addition $100 behind because of Salem Five and I'm shutting this account down. I have bills I actually need to pay and this is egregious. Thank you read more

I typically do not leave reviews But the outrageous customer service received by one of your members was horrible His name is Klevis Vasa and has no idea of what he is doing he is rude and very unprofessional he swears at customers thinking they cannot hear him Terrible customer service awful bank read more

Overdraft fees are ridiculous. I've been a deposit and loan customer for over 30 years. Recently retired a couple of years ago, and even though they know I have direct deposit and rental income going in monthly, they return mortgage payments unpaid and charge $35 NSF. It's happened a few times over the years, but loyalty doesn't matter. I have a lot of auto payments both in and out to change, but I've reached the point where I'm leaving. Sad. A few years back, I used Salem five for a family buyout mortgage and the closing was messy and delayed with their vendors regarding stamp tax. Ended up paying thousands extra for no reason according to my attorney. But starting over at another bank would have been worse. read more

At the drop of a hat you will be locked out of your accounts from 1 wrong try. Requiring you to wait for customer service on the phone and troubleshoot on the computer. Not worth the time! And they don't correct the complaints customers have when it comes to oversensitive lockouts. read more

HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO KEEP GETTING NEW CARDS BECAUSE THEY KEEP LOCKING YOUR DEBIT CARD FOR NO REASON. There is something genuinely wrong with how their debit card system works. Especially when it comes to "fraud detection" it has NEVER HELPED BUT ONLY CAUSED INCONVENIENCES AT THE WORST TIMES. AND WHEN ACTUAL FRAUD DOES HAPPEN, NOTHING HAPPENS. This occurs way too much, at least once every other month I have to get a new card. This is unacceptable. I'm in constant fear of my card getting locked at the worst time because "fraud" Needless to say, I'll be switching banks. I can't wait to never deal with this again. And I'm glad that other people are having these issues are also speaking up. read more

i wish I could share a positive experience, but working with these folks has been awful. first, i got slammed with several "excess debit fees" for paying more than six bills in a month. i spoke to an agent that submitted a request to reverse them, and i was promised a follow-up within 24 hours. that didn't happen. then i got slammed with MORE "excess debit fees" for having the audacity to use my money. i will be promptly moving my money to an actual institution that has integrity. awful service. awful fee structure. read more

Rolling over a $68,000 12 month CD at 0.25% for a customer who is 93 years old with dementia and then saying there's no recourse other than paying a penalty to withdraw the funds is pure thievery. We're pulling everyything and will never have to think about this bank again. read more

Salem Five Sucks ! I had 3 separate issues involving 2 accounts and they acted like they didn't know what was going on, I have every right to come and see about my funds rather I'm mad or calm , don't give you the right to close my accounts. Ridiculous I like Boston St branch but the on on State street in lynn sucks , I see why that branch is closing . They Suck! I give them a star before I had to in order to post this. But they deserve a negative 10 star. read more

Okay, I have been writing checks out for 70 years. I have NEVER bounced a check... NEVER. All of a sudden my checks started bouncing.... everywhere. So I was upset, as would be expected and went to a local branch for a printout to see what was happening. Someone else was using my checking count and nobody knows who. Who the hell was this bank to cash checks under my name and the check numbers are nothing like I was using? I just spent over $200.00 from Wounded Warriors and extra printed deposit slips. I BOUGHT THEM AND PAID FOR THEM. Because this reckless bank was cashing the checks of other people, they said they would destroy them (my new Wounded Warrior ones) and replace them. In the meantime I was given some checks from the bank to use.... temporary ones. They printed my name on them. Only 12 checks and I use more than that in a month. So I receive 2 shitty books of checks in the mail after 5 - 6 weeks. NOT DUPLICATE. NOT WOUNDED WARRIOR. NO EXTRA DEPOSIT SLIPS. NO CHECK REGISTER. Just two little check books. Total junk. First this bank was reckless and was cashing checks against my account. THAT IS A HUGE NO NO. Now, they are hemming and hawing against replacing them, even though Salem 5 cent Savings Bank WAS AT FAULT. Now my credit is ruined. I have to pay late charges on invoices because Salem 5 was sloppy, and I don't think this bank is as great as it once was. They never offered to pay all of my late fees. I just spoke with a man "James" and he was as rude as hell. He would not do anything FOR me to replace my checks, he had the attitude... "tough shit". He said his hands were tied. Then why was I transferred to him? He said he couldn't do anything. Why is he there? Who pays him for NOT doing his job? He refused to give me the secretary for the CEO. That is one position that can be eliminated. Talk about unprofessional... he is the perfect example. Also, Candace Doucette should have called me back. Nothing yet. Another lost cause from another fake employee. This bank knows they are guilty as hell. I have spoken to 2 TV stations and yes, they are interested in a press conference outside of the main branch in Salem, Massachusetts. I do NOT want anyone else to go through this aggravation like I was. They talk a good game but do NOT count on anyone here being nice or honest with you. I am trying to reach Pin Ying Chai and I guess he gets the paycheck but does NOT want to be bothered by people.... especially those who were just scammed from (my) own bank. They refuse to put me through to his secretary or is that another paid FAKE POSITION???? BEWARE !!!! CHECKING ACCOUNTS CAN BE HACKED. PLEASE, STAY AWAY FROM SALEM 5 CENT SAVINGS BANK AS THEY STEAL MONEY AND DO NOTHING TO MAKE UP FOR IT... THESE SCAMMERS LIE LIE LIE. They should be ashamed of themselves. A copy of this is going to the banking commission. Looking at the amount of complaints below, this bank is in trouble with ignorant employees. Maybe the CEO should come out of his office instead of hiding and work on some professionalism there. The answers from the bank (down below) are unethical to the comments from many other unhappy customers. They just say something nice to keep you happy for the moment. Then you find out the numbers are disconnected. Worst experience ever. So the CEO has no secretary or a phone. WTF is that all about. This used to be a nice bank. TWICE so far at 2 banks of Salem 5 I was given TOO MUCH MONEY from the teller. One time it was an extra $400.00 and the other time was a helluva lot more. I BROUGHT IT BACK IMMEDIATELY AS IT WAS THE ONLY RIGHT THING TO DO. Too bad when the bank steals from a customer they aren't as honest as I was. Oh by the way, those 2 banks were in different cities from one another. I and my neighbors over here are all disgusted at the shoddy treatment given to me. WATCH YOUR MONEY HERE OR YOU TOO WILL GET A ROYAL SCREWING. It will cost YOU money because they are dishonorable. WHEN SALEM 5 CENT SAVINGS BANK SCREWS UP, DO NOT EXPECT THEM TO BE NICE OR HONEST WITH YOU. My other friends who have had problems with this bank over the past couple of years will be writing on here also. TIME TO RIGHT THE WRONGS. Time for a press conference. I NEVER want anyone to go through this aggravation like I have for two months now. It ruins your day, week, month, etc... read more

Salem Five is the best bank I've ever used. I don't even live in MA anymore but still use my Salem Five checking account for direct deposit and to pay bills. Salem Five reimburses my ATM fees and does not charge any minimum balance, monthly, or annual account fees! Literally unheard of! I have never had an issue with my accounts and receive friendly service if I ever have to call, which is very rare. Thank you for being the best bank in the world, Salem Five! read more

Really liked having this bank for a few years...until problems started to arise. They seem to like to lock your checking account and debit card for no reason. Nothing like trying to make a purchase and not being able to use your card because they decide that they're seeing "suspicious activity" when it's just me trying to pay my bills. To add to that, twice in less than three months my debit has been flagged because there, once again, was "suspicious activity" on my account (there wasn't) when this happens be prepared to not have access to a debit card for 2+ weeks while they drag their ass sending you a new physical card and then send you a digital one that won't work with Google wallet or Samsung pay unless you call them first. About to just cut my losses and switch to chime. The inconveniences outweigh the ATM fee reimbursement. read more

Extremely disappointed at the mortgage service. We were encouraged to finance a home renovation with them by one of their officers. The officer offered a construction loan with very specific terms. We were weary of the final cost of the loan. The officer pushed us hard, saying it was "the best financial decision" to meet our goal. We trusted him thinking he must know the ins and outs of home lending better than us. Just before closing, we were told by a third party (not related to Salem Five) that the product we agreed to had changed. We were now being sold a cash-out refinance. The change was financially significant and was never disclosed to us by anyone at Salem Five. At it's core, Salem Five pulled a bait and switch. When asked about the covert change in product, the officer claimed he had "no idea" and "just found out". He continued to push us to sign and close on the new terms despite putting us over our budget. He said "It is what it is" and "You won't worry about this when you're sitting in your brand new kitchen." We cancelled the application and made a much more financially sound decision with another bank. Overall, be careful when approaching this bank. They appear to be pushing customers hard into products that are a poor fit in order to increase their portfolio. read more

Based on some recent articles noting Salem 5's 1.85% interest rates on savings accounts, I decided last week to open two accounts, and had also planned to open a checking account. Boy, wish I had read these Yelp reviews before going down this path. I've been trying the past several days to have a Salem 5 Bank person provide me with my new account number. Instead, I'm continually told to check for messages in the Application Status Center. In a week's time, I've received 5 emails, 1 welcome email, 1 application in progress email and 3 that tell me to login to the Application Status Center where I discover there are no important messages other than "your application is complete." After one week and multiple phone calls to the bank: - I have received no correspondence that contains my account number so that I can register my user name and password, as well as set up the 2nd savings account. - I have received such poor email and Application Status Center information with no clear phone, nor email address with which to get help. - When you reach someone by phone, you are told to check the Application Status Center, which of course, has no useful information. Can you tell I've been going around in circles? What a waste of time and energy!! TIP: Don't be tempted to open a new account! Telephone support is unhelpful at solving your problems. I will report back once I am able to close this new account that I've just opened. read more

Salem Five Bank - Banks & Credit Unions Near Me - Salem, Massachusetts

Most banks charge a penalty when you break a CD early--3 months interest is typical. Salem 5 wants to charge me 4% of my principal for making an early withdrawal! I've looked at dozens of other banks, and they are the only ones who do this. Criminal. read more

Fees are insane and customer service is not very helpful. Lost my job and overdrew my account by 9 dollars; was charged a 35 dollar fee. Deposited money to get back in the positive, but was not able to get the fee reversed or even reduced. When I went to close my account, I was told I needed something notarized; which I cannot even afford until I start my new job. Just lacking compassion plus high fees. Stay away. Edit: 1 day after posting this, a transaction went through on my LOCKED card. Put me back into the negative. Have spent an hour on the phone with various unhelpful people. The debit card and the branches are somehow not connected. Will be reporting to the BBB at this point. read more

Salem Five doesn't even get a star. THEY SUCK..customer service is run by trained monkeys, they have exuberant fees, they fraud detection is a major inconvenience, they don't even spot you off another banks, bank check. And all you get is "Im sorry."​ read more

Getting customer service response is not timely at all. Fortunately, I opened the eOne Savings account with only $10.00 just to try it out. When I could not get a customer service response, I decided to close the account. It took NINE DAYS for the $10 balance to be placed back in my checking account (external to Salem Five) by ACH transfer. read more

Absolute trash. We've held a mortgage with these people for 19 years. In February, their system wasn't working when my mom went to pay online, and my mother was forced to pay by check instead. Well, wouldn't you know, the check got lost in the mail. Since I hold the mortgage with her jointly, my credit got dinged 80 points when the mortgage came in late (our first late payment in two decades). She immediately canceled the check and paid by phone, and I disputed the ding with all three credit bureaus. But when I spoke to Salem Five, I was told it was my fault, since we paid late. They can't be responsible for the MAIL, you see, and have patently refused to remove the rating on my credit, which was formerly 815. These people are criminals. read more

Bank is crap treat loyal customers like crap closing my account and taking business elsewhere with so many banking options literally any where would be better ! read more

Salem Five banking service is the worst I ever have. Even the account manager is not knowledgeable and can not give you the correct answer. Easy to get misled and cause fees. They don't treat customer seriously. Never, never, never do businesses with Salem Five Bank!!! read more

I wanted to like this bank because its a regional bank. But after banking with them for about 6 years, I'm switching to Citizens. They are incompetent. Every time I've spoken w/customer service, they were wrong. I was in the midwest a while back and needed to buy a computer as mine had died. I went to bestbuy and tried to use my debit card and was declined even though I had enough $$ in my account to pay for it. THEY DECLINED MY CARD FIVE TIMES. Finally, I had to go back to the place I was staying and get my checkbook. They charge exhorbitant overdraft fees and don't even pay the overdraft. They have been snide and condescending to me. I don't overdraft much, but occasionally and each time its close to $40. They are 20 years behind on technology. Inter-bank transfers take close to a week!!!! They hardly have any ATMs. Basically, they suck. My advice is to go elsewhere. read more

WARNING TO SALEM C.D. CUSTOMERS -- Salem Five charges 5% of a customer's account when they are cashing in a C.D. before maturity. I closed out a $6,000 C.D. and they deducted an early withdrawal penalty of over $300...which they took from my account. They did not call me to warn me of this outrageous penalty. They are no better than the Mafia Mob who are loan sharks. BEWARE OF SALEM FIVE...THEY ARE CROOKS! read more

Run, don't walk from Salem Five. The worst bank I've ever dealt with, from their primitive website to their hidden fees to their limited hours of availability. I'm usually all for supporting local businesses but you'd probably be better off with any other bank - national, regional or ultra local - than these clowns. read more

They provide a pitiful customer experience. 25 minutes wasted opening a CD in person. I've done it in 2 minutes online at other banks. The floor worker at the branch was consumed with trying to get me to meet with a financial services person, even though I said multiple times I wasn't interested. ( I have a real one elsewhere ). I reached out to them online for something and was told to resubmit my question through the online portal. Waste of time. Can't wait to sever relations with them. read more

This review concerns online banking. Stay away. This bank has lost two deposits of mine. I had to go to my source funding bank and file a dispute in order to get my money back. After my bank recovered the two deposits, I foolishly decided to give them another chance as they are going thru growing pains. They have fouled up again. I sent them a Secure Message thru their website for instructions on how to get my money out of their bank. I have never heard of a bank misplacing funds before, but SalemFive has managed to do it. Stay away from them. read more

This bank changed policies on my account 8 years after opening it and never notified me about it. When they charged me based on those new policies, they would not refund their charges. read more

Love the high interest rate. But their new-account and external-account-linking processes are extremely convoluted and extremely slow (I'm now in week three of getting all this done). I agree with previous comments about the low transfer limits, too. If I knew all this before I signed up, I would have chosen another bank, even one with a lower interest rate. read more

Salem Direct Savings: Signing up was extremely cumbersome. Salem does not increase my APY (4.1%) when they increase their published rate however will automatically decrease my rate if they so choose. I initially deposited $100 when applying and then $4900. (application sign-in ID & Password are totally different than account sign in (ludicrous!). I was planning to transfer a much greater amount but, I fortunately read some reviews and realized there were limitations on transfer out. There is a daily limit of $5K daily withdrawals and $20K monthly, only 6 transfers per per cycle or a $10 fee. Nowhere in the application process or on the website was this noted. No way I can transfer the money amounts that I want when they limit withdrawals like that. I will not place any more money in this bank as there is no transparency as to the rules and limitations. Very deceptive practices! read more

My worst banking experience--I only wanted to put money in an account and withdraw it months later and they can't even perform this simple transaction. I signed up for an eSalem Five account online for their relatively high interest rate to park some money I've been saving. Now I need the cash only to discover they limit electronic withdrawals to $5000 a day--no exceptions--and offer no option to get the money in a non-electronic manor for this account. So I have now sent them three requests to close my account and issue me a bank check for the balance which will take 2 weeks! They won't even respond to my messages and when I call they say all eSalem account holders must communicate by account messaging. Will be filing a complaint with the Mass Division of Banks. read more

Today after three years with SalemFive, they decided to close my business account and personal account without reason/notice. When I called to speak to legal or Retail administration department, they said " We can't allow you to speak to them" and wouldnt give me feedback or reasons in why the accounts were closed. I'm so disappointed in this bank. Clients should always have the right to know what's going on with their account and the bank should be open to discuss rather than hide and not provide feedback. read more