Increasing Consumer Engagement: Data and Statistics

Maintaining a loyal and engaged customer base while driving business growth is more critical — and more challenging — than ever. MX’s research found that more than half of consumers have either opened a new bank account (23%) or considered switching to a new bank (28%) in the past 6 months. At the same time, today’s average consumer has at least 5 to 7 financial accounts with different providers. This makes it nearly impossible to use primacy — how many consumers consider an institution their primary financial provider — as a measure of success. 

Below is a compilation of statistics and data related to consumer engagement from MX’s collection of research reports, whitepapers, and case studies.

In this post, you’ll find stats and figures related to: 

• Consumer Engagement with Financial Providers Today
• How Consumers Think About Primacy
• Factors That Affect Consumer Engagement
• What Consumers Expect From Financial Providers
• Financial Providers Leveraging MX to Increase Engagement

Not everybody wants to do a budget. That’s a lot of work. Most people just want you to tell them quickly — Where am I? What’s happening? You can bring things to their attention that they may have overlooked, and it feels easy. —Shelby Chapman, Vice President of Strategic Partners at Emprise Bank

Consumer Engagement with Financial Providers Today

• More than half of respondents have either opened a new bank account (23%) or considered switching to a new bank (28%) in the past 6 months. (What Influences Where Consumers Choose to Bank, 2023)

• In the past 6 months, 33% of Gen X respondents opened a new bank account, followed by Millennials (27%) and Gen Z (21%). When asked which statements best describe their experience with banks in the past six months, respondents shared (What Influences Where Consumers Choose to Bank, 2023): 

• 72% of all respondents prefer to manage all their finances online or through a mobile app. Among different age groups, Millennials most prefer online and mobile at 85%, followed by Gen Z at 79%. (Consumer Research on Digital and Mobile Banking, 2022)

• 45% of consumers are performing finance-related tasks on a mobile app at least once per day. (What is Financial Wellness?, 2023) 

• 48% of consumers have 3 or more finance-related mobile apps currently downloaded to their mobile phone. Check out how this looks across generations (What is Financial Wellness?, 2023): 
• Millennials are most active on mobile devices when it comes to managing finances: 
• 58% of Millennial respondents report performing finance-related tasks on a mobile app at least once a day. At least weekly? This jumps to 85% of Millennials. 
• 63% of Millennials have 3 or more finance-related mobile apps on their phones while 15% of Millennials have 6 or more mobile apps related to finance. 
• Nearly 1 in 4 Baby Boomers (23%) say they never perform finance-related tasks using a mobile app, compared to 9% of overall respondents. And, one-third say they have no finance-related mobile apps on their phones. 
• 43% of Gen X are performing finance-related tasks using a mobile app at least once a day, with 49% that have 3 or more finance-related mobile apps.
• Only 48% of Gen Z respondents perform finance-related tasks on a mobile app at least once a day, compared to 58% of their Millennial counterparts. Most Gen Z respondents (47%) have 1-2 finance-related mobile apps on their phones, while 39% have 3-5 or 6 or more (10%). 

• The finance-related mobile apps that respondents find themselves using most often include: Banking (37%) and Payments, such as Venmo, Paypal, etc. (32%). Among Gen Z and Millennials, payment apps top the list. For Gen X and Baby Boomers, banking apps are the most used. (What is Financial Wellness?, 2023)

• Credit Card apps were the third most used finance-related mobile apps (with a huge drop between second and third place), as well as the third least used finance-related mobile apps.  (What is Financial Wellness?, 2023):

• The least used finance-related mobile app was Crypto — 28% of respondents said this was the type of finance-related mobile app used least often (What is Financial Wellness?, 2023):

How Consumers Think About Primacy 

• The average consumer has at least 5 to 7 financial accounts with different providers. (How to Keep Consumers From Breaking Up with Banks, 2024)
• 83% of consumers still say they have a financial provider they consider the primary one. (How to Keep Consumers From Breaking Up with Banks, 2024)

• Only 38% of consumers define a primary financial relationship as where their direct deposit for their paycheck goes. (How to Keep Consumers From Breaking Up with Banks, 2024)

• 20% of U.S. consumers define a primary financial relationship as where they conduct most of their day-to-day transactions. (How to Keep Consumers From Breaking Up with Banks, 2024)

• 10% of respondents define a primary financial relationship as where they have connected other financial accounts to see their finances in one place. (How to Keep Consumers From Breaking Up with Banks, 2024)

• Among Gen Z, 11% define a primary financial relationship as where they log into most frequently online or through a mobile app. (How to Keep Consumers From Breaking Up with Banks, 2024)

• Very few respondents defined a primary financial relationship as where they deposit most of their money (5%) or the account they’ve had the longest (8%). (How to Keep Consumers From Breaking Up with Banks, 2024)

• When asked how long they’ve had their oldest financial account, 22% of all respondents have had an account for more than 15 years. (How to Keep Consumers From Breaking Up with Banks, 2024) 

• Nearly 50% of Baby Boomers have had a financial account for more than 15 years. (How to Keep Consumers From Breaking Up with Banks, 2024)

• Women are more likely to keep accounts longer — 26% of women have had their oldest account for more than 15 years, compared to 18% of men. (How to Keep Consumers From Breaking Up with Banks, 2024)

• Respondents who classify their ethnicity as White are also more likely to have longer relationships than non-White respondents. 25% of White respondents have had their oldest account for more than 15 years, compared to 19% of non-White respondents. (How to Keep Consumers From Breaking Up with Banks, 2024)

• For younger generations, the average time period for their longest-held accounts falls between 1-6 years. 42% of Gen Z respondents say their oldest account is 1-3 years old, while 24% of Millennials report the same. (How to Keep Consumers From Breaking Up with Banks, 2024)

Factors That Affect Consumer Engagement

• When asked which factors are important when it comes to their experience with financial providers, consumers continue to rank security as No. 1 most often (30%), followed closely by trust (25%). (How to Keep Consumers From Breaking Up with Banks, 2024)
• More than half (58%) of consumers ranked the level of trust they feel as one of the most important factors in selecting a provider, followed by how securely they protect their personal financial data (53%). (What Influences Where Consumers Choose to Bank, 2023)

• 35% of respondents say the top factor in determining where they choose to deposit their money is if a provider is trusted to keep their information and money safe. (What Influences Where Consumers Choose to Bank, 2023)

• When asked if they would seek a new financial provider if their current provider couldn’t deliver on their most wanted features, 54% said it was likely they would do so. And, 60% of Gen Z and 63% of Millennials said they would do so. (What Consumers Want from Financial Providers, 2023)

• When asked what they would do if their preferred bank or credit union did not support connecting to their favorite fintech apps, 72% said they would seek out a different bank or credit union that could connect. This was even higher for Millennials and Gen X respondents at 75%. (Consumer Research on Digital and Mobile Banking, 2022)

• When asked about the primary reason they’ve closed an account, U.S. consumers say (How to Keep Consumers From Breaking Up with Banks, 2024): 
• Received bad customer service (21%)
• No convenience locations (18%)
• Found a better rate (17%)
• Found lower fees (13%)
• Experience was not personalized to them (11%)

What Consumers Expect From Financial Providers

• 57% of consumers want their financial provider to help them better manage their finances and 54% believe financial providers have a responsibility to teach them to be financially strong. (What Influences Where Consumers Choose to Bank, 2023)
• 44% of respondents trust their financial providers MORE than they did 6 months ago. (What Influences Where Consumers Choose to Bank, 2023)

• 61% of consumers believe financial providers have their best interest at heart — this is a significant increase from August 2022 when just 44% agreed with this statement. (What Influences Where Consumers Choose to Bank, 2023)

• When asked which organization they would trust MOST to securely manage their financial data, national banks (50%) are the most trusted, followed by credit unions (19%) and local or regional banks (10%). The majority (78%) of consumers trust their primary financial service provider with their financial data. (What Influences Where Consumers Choose to Bank, 2023)

• Men are on average more trusting of financial providers than women (What Influences Where Consumers Choose to Bank, 2023):

• 74% of consumers trust their financial providers to help protect them from fraud and other security risks. (What Influences Where Consumers Choose to Bank, 2023)

• 84% of consumers expect their financial provider to proactively alert them when something looks suspicious. (What Influences Where Consumers Choose to Bank, 2023)

• 51% of consumers agree financial providers do enough to protect consumers from fraud and other security risks. (What Influences Where Consumers Choose to Bank, 2023)

• Half of consumers expect financial providers to deliver personalized offers for tools, products, and services to help them reach their financial goals. Other top expectations for personalization include (What Influences Where Consumers Choose to Bank, 2023): 
• Discounts or offers for brands that I use (44%)
• Customized insights in the online or app experience to help me understand my spending (43%) 
• Proactive notifications and recommendations to help me better manage money (42%)
• Ability to personalize a card, such as choose my displayed name, etc. (36%)
• Automated budgeting and analysis of my spending (31%)

• While 42% of consumers expect proactive notifications and recommendations, the majority demand proactive alerts when it comes to issues they need to know about: 79% of respondents expect their financial provider to proactively alert them to issues related to their finances (such as upcoming payments due, low account balances, etc.). (What Influences Where Consumers Choose to Bank, 2023)

• When asked what question is most important to be able to answer when it comes to managing finances, consumers say (How to Keep Consumers From Breaking Up with Banks, 2024): 
• Am I spending more than I should? (22%)
• How can I cut expenses? (20%)
• How much can I put towards debt or savings? (19%)
• Am I saving enough for retirement (15%)
• How am I tracking against my budget? (13%)

• 84% of consumers expect their financial provider to proactively alert them when something looks suspicious. (What Influences Where Consumers Choose to Bank, 2023)

• 47% of respondents believe their financial provider should do more to be innovative. (What Influences Where Consumers Choose to Bank, 2023)

• 78% of consumers expect to be able to see all of their financial data in one place. (What Influences Where Consumers Choose to Bank, 2023)

• 55% of consumers see their financial provider as a partner in helping them reach their financial goals. Millennials and Gen X feel even stronger here — 62% of Millennials and 60% of Gen X agree compared to 41% of Gen Z and 55% of Baby Boomers. (What Influences Where Consumers Choose to Bank, 2023)

• The top features each generation wants most when it comes to the security and control of their financial accounts are (What Consumers Want from Financial Providers, 2023):
• Gen Z
• 40% Ability to download your financial data
• 40% Required multi-factor authentication
• 36% Ability to restrict transactions above a specific amount
• 35% Ability to see and control who has access to your financial data
• 33% Ability to get emails on transactions made

• Millennials
• 39% Ability to download your financial data
• 33% Ability to get emails on transactions made
• 29% Ability to set up card specific alerts
• 28% Ability to restrict transactions at specific vendors or locations
• 24% Biometric login options

• Gen X
• 40% Biometric login options
• 36% Ability to download your financial data
• 31% Required multi-factor authentication
• 29% Ability to restrict transactions above a certain amount
• 28% Ability to restrict transactions at specific vendors or locations

• Baby Boomers
• 48% Biometric login options
• 30% Ability to download your financial data
• 28% Required multi-factor authentication
• 27% Ability to restrict transactions at specific vendors or locations
• 26% Ability to restrict transactions above a certain amount

How Financial Providers Leverage MX to Increase Engagement

• MX looked closely at the behavior of more than 10 million consumers over 12 months and found that engagement with financial wellness tools is key to growing and retaining deposits. (The Cure for Lost Deposits, 2023)
• Consumers who interact with MX’s PFM tools at least one day during their first month are 176% more likely to be digitally engaged after one year than those who don’t. (The Cure for Lost Deposits, 2023)

• Consumers who establish direct deposit during the first 30 days of their banking relationship are 76% more likely to be digitally engaged a year later than those without direct deposit. (The Cure for Lost Deposits, 2023)

• Consumers who connect at least one or more external financial accounts are 48% more likely to be digitally active a year later than those who don’t. (The Cure for Lost Deposits, 2023)

• Consumers who make at least one mobile transfer during their first month are
  195% more likely to be digitally engaged a year later than those who don’t. (The Cure for Lost Deposits, 2023)

• Consumers who log in at least once during their first month are 26% more likely to be digitally engaged after a year. (The Cure for Lost Deposits, 2023)

• For those who log in on at least four separate days during their first month, they are 550% more likely to still be active a year later. (The Cure for Lost Deposits, 2023)
• Consumers who regularly engaged with MX’s personal financial management (PFM) budgeting features on mobile banking experiences had the highest deposit levels and grew those balances during the year, even as deposit balances fell for those who didn’t engage as often. Change in deposit balances (The Cure for Lost Deposits, 2023):

• Engaged users leveraging MX’s PFM features also managed their credit card debt more effectively than others, even during a period of high inflation and increasing consumer debt levels. Change in credit card balances (The Cure for Lost Deposits, 2023):

• Credit card balances for engaged users are 45% lower. (The Cure for Lost Deposits, 2023)

• To drive more consistent app engagement, Voya integrated MX Insights — a financial wellness tool that serves up personalized, real-time financial information and advice. The results Voya has seen since its launch (Voya + MX):
• 13% of employees that have used this experience have increased their retirement savings
• On average, they saved $1,200 more for healthcare savings, and employers save $800 per employee when those employees optimize their benefits decisions
• Affinity Federal Credit Union increased engagement and deepened the pool of available user and account data for future insights by integrating responsive and visible MX financial tools (Affinity Federal Credit Union + MX):
• 33% increase in active users in just three months
• 26% increase in total external accounts
• 23% increase in users aggregating external accounts
• 22% increase in total users
• 14% increase in the total number of external accounts
• 12% increase in the number of users with external accounts

• Emprise partnered with Tyfone and MX to increase consumer engagement with money management tools. With the new streamlined experience, Emprise has enabled money management tools for 100% of their now roughly 45,000 digital banking customers — a 5x increase. The more customers view their personalized financial insights, the more often they log in. Currently 56% of active users regularly engage with the financial tools. (Emprise + MX)

• “We saw a significant lift in customer engagement when we focused on improving the digital experience. Before, most users logged into the MX tools just one day per month on average. After implementation, we saw this jump to an average 8 days per month.” (Emprise + MX)