How FDIC deposit insurance works, and the $250,000 limit

FDIC deposit insurance protects the money in deposit accounts at FDIC-insured banks if a bank fails. Since the FDIC was founded in 1933, no depositor has lost a penny of FDIC-insured funds. The coverage has a limit, and it covers deposits only, so check where your money sits.

What's covered

Deposits at an FDIC-insured bank are covered in these accounts:

• Checking accounts and NOW accounts
• Savings accounts and money market deposit accounts
• Time deposits, such as certificates of deposit
• Cashier's checks, money orders and other official items a bank issues

What isn't

Investment products aren't deposits, so they aren't covered, even when an FDIC-insured bank sells them. That includes stocks, bonds, mutual funds, annuities, life insurance policies, U.S. Treasury bills, bonds and notes, municipal securities and crypto assets. A safe deposit box and what's in it aren't covered either. Neither is the failure of a company that isn't an FDIC-insured bank.

How the $250,000 limit works

Coverage is $250,000 per depositor, per FDIC-insured bank, for each account ownership category. The categories include single accounts, joint accounts, certain retirement accounts such as IRAs, and trust accounts.

All of your deposits in the same category at the same bank are added together. Deposits in different categories, or at different banks, are insured separately.

Three examples

• A single account and a joint account at one bank. The single account is insured up to $250,000, and your share of the joint account is insured separately up to $250,000.
• A single account at each of two banks. Each one is insured up to $250,000.
• A checking account, a savings account and an IRA at one bank. The checking and savings are both single accounts, so their combined balance is insured up to $250,000. The IRA is insured separately up to $250,000.

An annotated example

What to do next

Look up each bank you use in the FDIC's BankFind Suite to confirm it's FDIC-insured. List each account with its balance and its ownership category. To work out how much of your money is covered, use the FDIC's Electronic Deposit Insurance Estimator, or call the FDIC at 877-275-3342.