Members drive asset growth and character when it comes to credit unions' size and shape, but the equation differs from one to the next. One size does not fit all.

High-earning members can often drive growth more effectively, but there also is strength in numbers. It stands to reason, then, that credit unions with large memberships are also at the upper end of the asset range, but it is not always a direct match.

According to the NCUA, credit union industry assets totaled $1.1 trillion for all federally chartered and federally insured credit unions as of June 30. Those institutions served an aggregate 98 million members for the same period. Following are the top 20 credit unions, first by assets and then by members.

Top 20 Credit Unions by Assets

1. Navy Federal Credit Union, Vienna, Va.

$60.5 billion

2. State Employees' Credit Union, Raleigh, N.C.

$28.6 billion

3. Pentagon Federal Credit Union, Alexandria, Va.

$18.3 billion

4. Boeing Employees Credit Union (BECU), Tukwila, Wash.

$12.5 billion

5. SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union, Santa Ana, Calif.

$10.4 billion

6. The Golden 1 Credit Union, Sacramento, Calif.

$8.5 billion

7. Alliant Credit Union, Chicago

$8.1 billion

8. Security Service Federal Credit Union, San Antonio

$8 billion

9. First Technology Federal Credit Union, Mountain View, Calif.

$6.8 billion

10. Star One Credit Union, Sunnyvale, Calif.

$6.7 billion

11. San Diego County Credit Union, San Diego

$6.5 billion

12. America First Federal Credit Union, Riverdale, Utah

$6.3 billion

13. Randolph-Brooks Federal Credit Union, Live Oak, Texas

$6 billion

14. Suncoast Credit Union, Tampa, Fla.

$5.8 billion

15. Bethpage Federal Credit Union, Bethpage, N.Y.

$5.69 billion

16. Digital Federal Credit Union, Marlborough, Mass.

$5.67 billion

17. American Airlines Federal Credit Union, Ft. Worth, Texas

$5.66 billion

18. Alaska USA Federal Credit Union, Anchorage

$5.6 billion

19. VyStar Credit Union, Jacksonville, Fla.

$5.2 billion

20. Citizens Equity First Credit Union (CEFCU), Peoria, Ill.

$5 billion

The top 20 credit unions held aggregate assets of $216.5 billion, which represented 19.7% of all industry assets on June 30 according to the NCUA. The top 20 also represented just .3% of the industry's 6,429 credit unions.

Read more: Credit unions, assets and members …

In terms of membership, more is definitely better, but it's often the nature of the credit union's field of membership that makes a difference, according to Brian Turner, executive director of the consulting firm Median Alliance, LLC, based in Plano, Texas.

“If you're talking about growth you're talking about a credit union's ability to attract shares and deposits, “ Turner said. “But not all members are created equal.”

Credit unions with broad fields of membership, such as Navy FCU, succeed simply due to sheer numbers, Turner said. But credit unions that attract members with higher salaries and more discretionary income, such as BECU and First Technology FCU, will also realize greater asset growth because members have more to deposit to their share accounts.

“Share and deposit growth can directly correlate to members' disposable income,” Turner said. “Generally, the higher the level of disposable income, the greater the potential for share growth.”

The top 20 credit unions by membership serve an aggregate 15.5 million members, or roughly 16% of the 98 million credit union memberships nationwide.

Following is a list of Top 20 credit unions by membership.

TOP 20 CREDIT UNIONS BY MEMBERSHIP (Assets ranking in parentheses)

1. Navy Federal Credit Union, Vienna, Va. (1)

5.1 million

2. State Employees' Credit Union, Raleigh, N.C. (2)

1.9 million

3. Pentagon Federal Credit Union, Alexandria, Va. (3)

1.3 million

4. Security Service Federal Credit Union, San Antonio (8)

990,172

5. Boeing Employees Credit Union (BECU), Tukwila, Wash. (4)

869,718

SchoolsFirst FCU 6. The Golden 1 Credit Union, Sacramento, Calif. (6)

675,245

7. America First Federal Credit Union, Riverdale, Utah (12)

659,395

8. SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union, Santa Ana, Calif. (5)

602,406

9. Suncoast Credit Union, Tampa, Fla. (14)

588,818

10. Alaska USA Federal Credit Union, Anchorage (18)

505,013

Randolph Brooks Federal Credit Union 11. Randolph-Brooks Federal Credit Union, Live Oak, Texas (13)

479,897

12. Mountain America Credit Union, West Jordan, Utah (32)

474,076

13. VyStar Credit Union, Jacksonville, Fla. (19)

461,295

14. Digital Federal Credit Union, Marlborough, Mass. (16)

446,822

15. Pennsylvania State Employees Credit Union, Harrisburg, Pa. (25)

420,211

Redstone Federal Credit Union 16. First Technology Federal Credit Union, Mountain View, Calif. (9)

373,629

17. Redstone Federal Credit Union, Huntsville, Ala. (37)

372,197

18. ESL Federal Credit Union, Rochester, N.Y. (22)

326,858

19. State Employees Federal Credit Union, Albany, N.Y. (46)

308,912

20. Desert Schools Federal Credit Union, Phoenix (34)

308,321

Instant Insights /

Top 20 Credit Unions

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