The U.S. map, in lights

Branch count trends among credit unions are warped by the fact there are so many tiny, one-office credit unions – not as many as in the past, but still a lot.

The latest NCUA data shows 4,500 credit unions, including 1,740, or 39%, with only one location in March. That’s down from 3,075, or 49%, of the 6,329 credit unions in March 2015.

NCUA branch data describes locations as “branch offices” or “corporate offices” with the further identification of “main offices.”

The gain in total locations from 2015 to 2025 was just 116, or 0.5%.

But the gain was better when the loss of single-location credit unions was removed. The data shows a loss of 1,137 main corporate offices (-20) over the past 10 years. However, there were gains of 1,192 (+8%) branches plus 61 (+10%) corporate offices like call centers that were not main offices.

A similar pattern emerges when comparing credit unions with offices in a single state with those with offices in multiple states. NCUA data shows:

  • Credit unions with offices in one state lost 1,876 branches over the past 10 years (-11%).
  • Credit unions with offices in two states gained 1,041 branches over the past 10 years (+39%).
  • Credit unions with offices in three or more states added 901 branches over the past 10 years (+42%).

Of course, membership has been growing at a rate of 4% per year while branches have been growing at a yearly rate of a hair above zero.

Back in 2015, each branch served 4,617 members. This year, each branch serves 6,574 members.

When arranged over 10 years in a column chart, there appears to be almost no change in the count of locations.

But the NCUA also has data that allows counts of automatic teller machines (ATMs). It shows there were 17,454 in 2025, or 20% more than 10 years earlier.

The ATM growth was fastest from 2015 to 2020. It has since been slowing, and last year the count fell by 10 ATMs (-0.1%).

There were 67 ATMs for every branch and corporate office in March 2015 and 80 for every office in March this year.

ATM reliance differs only slightly overall, but there is a significant low for Mid-Atlantic states. Connecticut, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania each had less 72 ATMs for each office in March.

At the extremes, New Jersey and Hawaii had less than 60.

Michigan, Florida, Oregon and Alaska each had more than 90 ATMs for every office.

The fastest growth for branches over the past 10 years occurred in the West (+5.3%) and the South (+2.5%).

States with growth rates at or above 11% were: Michigan (+10.9%), Florida (+11%), Nevada (+11.7%), Colorado (+11.8%), Guam (+12.5%), Washington (+14.4%), Rhode Island (+14.9%), Alabama (+15.3%), Montana (+15.9%), Puerto Rico (+16.7%), Oregon (+17.9%), Idaho (+23.4%) and New Mexico (+26.3%).

Branch counts fell in the Northeast and Midwest.

States with drops at or exceeding 11% were: The District of Columbia (-32.3%), New Jersey (-20.2%), Ohio (-13%), Alaska (-12.3%), Connecticut (-11.6%) and Illinois (-11%).

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