Companies › Checking or savings account
Who is complaining aboutCOMMUNITY FINANCIAL SYSTEM, INC.?
When looking at complaint volume about a company or product, consider company size and/or market share. For example, companies with more customers may have more complaints than companies with fewer customers.
The CFPB does not verify every allegation in a complaint before publishing it.Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Consumer Complaint Database. A complaint is a consumer's account of a problem; it is not a finding against the company.
Complaints, last 12 months
43
35 in the 12 months before · 225 since 2017 · under 0.1% of all complaints the CFPB received
For its size
2.46per $1bn in assets
Against $17 billion, the assets of its FDIC-insured bank as of 30 Jun 2026.
Median among the 65 peer companies (main category Checking or savings account) with the same size measure: 2.26.
The CFPB complaint database records 43 complaints about COMMUNITY FINANCIAL SYSTEM, INC. in the 12 months to 1 Oct 2026, up 23% on the 35 of the 12 months before, and 225 in all since 2017.
The FDIC-insured bank of COMMUNITY FINANCIAL SYSTEM, INC. reported $17 billion in assets as of 30 Jun 2026. Its 43 complaints in 12 months work out to 2.46 per $1 billion of those assets, close to the median of 2.26 among the 65 peer companies in the same main category that share this size measure. Assets measure the whole institution: one with a large card or consumer-lending business has many more customers per dollar of assets than a commercial or community bank, and its figure will sit higher for that reason alone.
69.8% of the complaints in that period fall under the CFPB product category “Checking or savings account”, followed by “Mortgage” at 16.3%. The issue selected most often was “Managing an account” (51.2%).
How the company's responses were recorded over the 12 months: 93% closed with an explanation, 0% closed with non-monetary relief, 0% closed with monetary relief, and 7% still in progress when the file was published. 100% of responses were marked timely; the median among the 102 companies whose complaints mainly concern “Checking or savings account” is 100%.
Among those 102 peer companies the median received 105 complaints in the same 12 months. A complaint is a consumer's account and is not a finding against the company; the CFPB does not verify every allegation in a complaint before publishing it.
Windows end on 1 Oct 2026, the last date in the CFPB file. The latest two to three weeks are incomplete because a complaint is published only after the company responds or 15 days pass.
Compared with peer companies
| Measure | This company | Peer median (102 companies) | All complaints nationally |
|---|---|---|---|
| Complaints, last 12 months | 43 | 105 | 6,945,592 |
| Change on the 12 months before | 23% | 31% | 44% |
| Complaints per $1bn in assets (median of the 65 peers with this measure) | 2.46 | 2.26 | — |
| Responses marked timely | 100% | 100% | 99.6% |
| Closed with monetary or non-monetary relief | 0% | 5.7% | 31.5% |
Peers are the 102 companies on this site whose largest complaint category is Checking or savings account and that received at least 20 complaints in the last 12 months. Peer companies differ widely in size; a per-size row appears only when at least five peers share this company's size measure, and its median is taken over those peers alone.
Complaints by month
What the complaints are about
Products and issues are the categories the consumer selects on the CFPB form, shown with the CFPB's wording, in the last 12 months.
- Checking or savings account30 · 69.8%
- Mortgage7 · 16.3%
- Vehicle loan or lease3 · 7%
- Credit reporting or other personal consumer reports2 · 4.7%
- Credit card1 · 2.3%
| Issue (CFPB label) | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Managing an account | 22 | 51.2% |
| Incorrect information on your report | 4 | 9.3% |
| Trouble during payment process | 3 | 7% |
| Problem caused by your funds being low | 3 | 7% |
| Problem with a lender or other company charging your account | 3 | 7% |
| Closing an account | 2 | 4.7% |
| Struggling to pay mortgage | 2 | 4.7% |
| Managing the loan or lease | 1 | 2.3% |
| Applying for a mortgage or refinancing an existing mortgage | 1 | 2.3% |
| Improper use of your report | 1 | 2.3% |
| Other CFPB issue categories | 1 | 2.3% |
Checking or savings account
30 complaints in the last 12 months (69.8% of this company's total); 19 in the 12 months before. That is under 0.1% of all complaints in the category nationally. 0% of closed complaints ended with relief; 100% of responses were timely.
Issues
| Issue | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Managing an account | 22 | 73.3% |
| Problem caused by your funds being low | 3 | 10% |
| Problem with a lender or other company charging your account | 3 | 10% |
| Closing an account | 2 | 6.7% |
Sub-products
| Sub-product | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Checking account | 26 | 86.7% |
| Savings account | 2 | 6.7% |
| CD (Certificate of Deposit) | 2 | 6.7% |
How the company responded
The CFPB records one closing category for each complaint, chosen by the company. Shares are of all complaints in the last 12 months.
- Closed with explanation40 · 93%
- In progress3 · 7%
The current CFPB export carries no consumer-disputed field, so no disputed rate is shown. The CFPB stopped collecting that field in April 2017.
Where the complaints come from
| State (as reported by the consumer) | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| New York | 18 | 41.9% |
| Pennsylvania | 14 | 32.6% |
| Vermont | 5 | 11.6% |
| New Jersey | 2 | 4.7% |
| Florida | 1 | 2.3% |
| Ohio | 1 | 2.3% |
| California | 1 | 2.3% |
| Georgia | 1 | 2.3% |
Top 8 of 8 states with at least one complaint in the last 12 months. State counts follow population and where the company does business.
Other companies in the same category
Companies whose complaints mainly concern Checking or savings account, nearest in complaint volume. Listed for navigation, in no order of merit.
Questions and answers
How many complaints has the CFPB received about COMMUNITY FINANCIAL SYSTEM, INC.?
43 in the 12 months to 1 Oct 2026 (35 in the 12 months before that) and 225 since 2017. 0 arrived in the last 30 days and 6 in the last 90 days; the most recent weeks are incomplete because a complaint is published only once the company responds or after 15 days.
How does that compare for its size?
The FDIC-insured bank of COMMUNITY FINANCIAL SYSTEM, INC. reported $17 billion in assets as of 30 Jun 2026. Its 43 complaints in 12 months work out to 2.46 per $1 billion of those assets, close to the median of 2.26 among the 65 peer companies in the same main category that share this size measure. Assets measure the whole institution: one with a large card or consumer-lending business has many more customers per dollar of assets than a commercial or community bank, and its figure will sit higher for that reason alone. The CFPB's own caution: “When looking at complaint volume about a company or product, consider company size and/or market share. For example, companies with more customers may have more complaints than companies with fewer customers.”
What are people complaining about?
69.8% of complaints in the last 12 months are filed under “Checking or savings account”. The issues selected most often were “Managing an account” (51.2%), “Incorrect information on your report” (9.3%), “Trouble during payment process” (7%). These are the categories the consumer picks on the CFPB form; the text of complaints is not used on this site.
How does COMMUNITY FINANCIAL SYSTEM, INC. respond to complaints?
93% were closed with an explanation, 0% with non-monetary relief and 0% with monetary relief; 100% of responses were timely (peer median 100%).
Does the CFPB verify complaints?
The CFPB does not verify every allegation in a complaint before publishing it. The Bureau publishes a complaint after the company responds, confirming a commercial relationship with the consumer, or after 15 days, whichever comes first. A complaint on file is not a finding that the company did anything wrong.
Where do these figures come from?
From the CFPB Consumer Complaint Database bulk file, counted through 1 Oct 2026, using only the coded fields (company, product, issue, state, dates, company response). Company size comes from FDIC, NCUA or HMDA public files where the company appears in one. Company names are shown as the CFPB publishes them.
Provenance
Source: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Consumer Complaint Database, bulk file downloaded 1 Oct 2026, complaints received through 1 Oct 2026. Only coded fields are used (company, product, sub-product, issue, state, dates, company response, timeliness); complaint narratives are never read, stored or shown. Complaints are published once the company responds or after 15 days, so the most recent two to three weeks are incomplete. The company name is shown as the CFPB publishes it. Size measure matched by name to: Community Bank, National Association. Companies can respond to the CFPB about any complaint; errors in this site's processing are fixed at the next daily build. Size measures: FDIC BankFind (report date 30 Jun 2026), NCUA call reports (30 Jun 2026), HMDA transmittal sheet (2025), Census Bureau population estimates (2025). All are US government works. See this company's complaints at the CFPB · Methodology · Report an error.