Mobile Banking Among Most-Used Phone Apps, Study Finds

Mobile-banking apps are now one of the three most-used types of apps on consumers’ smartphones, new data has revealed.

According to Citi’s 2018 Mobile Banking Study, which surveyed 2,000 U.S. adults in February, 31% of consumers said they used their mobile banking app the most — only social media apps and weather apps, at 55% and 33%, respectively, got more use.

Almost half of consumers (46%) — including 62% of millennials — said they’ve upped their mobile banking use in the last year. The vast majority of people (81%) now use mobile banking nine days per month on average, and 31% use it 10 or more times each month, the study said.

“Mobile banking usage is skyrocketing as more consumers experience the benefits of greater convenience, speed and financial insights driven by new app features and upgrades,” Citi’s U.S. Consumer Bank Chief Digital Client Experience Officer Alice Milligan said. “Over the past year we’ve witnessed this increase in engagement first-hand, with mobile usage in North America increasing by almost 25%, and we don’t see this trend slowing down any time soon.”

The survey also revealed that 91% of mobile banking users would rather use their apps than go to a physical branch. One reason may be time: on average, the respondents said mobile banking saves them 45 minutes a month.

The survey also revealed where consumers are using mobile banking. Three-quarters said they log in from the couch, 47% use it in bed and 36% use it at work.

Millennials appear especially comfortable with mobile banking — 19% have used it while on a date, and 68% believe their phones will eventually replace their physical wallets, the study said.

Citi also reported that mobile banking users may know more about their finances. Nearly all (95%) of mobile banking customers said they knew the exact balances of their bank accounts right now; that compared to 85% of non-mobile banking users. About two-thirds (62%) said they are more aware of their financial situations, 41% said they had fewer concerns about managing their money and 38% said they had a better understanding of what services their financial institutions offered.

Mobile banking might in turn also boost confidence, the study results suggested. Citi found that 82% of mobile banking users felt confident that a financial institution could help better their finances; only 62% of non-mobile users said the same.

Mobile-banking users don’t appear to be overlooking security, however.

“When it relates to personal information on their phones, 45% of consumers would feel most uncomfortable about others seeing their banking information, far ahead of their photos (24%) and texts (21%), illustrating the importance of rigorous security protocols to help keep this information private,” City noted.