US Banks’ Total Experience Is Improving, But Most Still Have Work To Do

2026-06-15 · Source: Featured Blogs - Forrester · Field: Finance & Economics — Banking & Financial Services, Marketing, Branding & Advertising, Corporate Strategy & Leadership · Depth: Intermediate, short

Summary

Forrester's 2026 US Banking Total Experience Score Rankings indicate an overall improvement in US banks' Total Experience Scores compared to 2025, driven by better customer and brand perceptions. Despite this progress, no bank achieved an "excellent" score across customer experience (CX), customer brand experience (BX), or noncustomer BX, with most experiences remaining mediocre. The improvement stems from a focus on fundamental practices like clear communication, quality advice, faster issue resolution, and competitive pricing. USAA leads the rankings, being the only brand to earn "good" scores across all three experience categories, while direct banks dominate the top five. Notably, four of the five largest US banks ranked in the bottom half, highlighting challenges with size and complexity. The report also introduces Forrester's Employee Experience Index (EX Index™), revealing that about half of banks show a negative EX impact, suggesting employee experience can hinder sustained CX and BX progress.

Key takeaway

For banking executives aiming to sustain and accelerate Total Experience growth, build on recent gains by prioritizing clear communication and quality advice. Critically, balance your customer experience focus with employee enablement, as your Employee Experience Index data can signal future CX and BX progress or slowdowns. Prioritize addressing internal complexities to ensure consistent, fair customer relationships.

Key insights

US banks' Total Experience Scores are improving due to fundamental focus, but most experiences remain mediocre, with employee experience often hindering progress.

Principles

• Fundamental practices drive Total Experience improvement.
• Employee experience directly impacts customer and brand experience.
• Size and complexity often challenge consistent experience delivery.

In practice

• Prioritize clear communication, quality advice, and fair pricing.
• Integrate Employee Experience Index data as an early signal.
• Balance CX focus with employee enablement initiatives.

Topics

• Total Experience
• US Banking Industry
• Customer Experience
• Employee Experience
• Direct Banks
• Customer Communication

Best for: Executive, Product Manager, Consultant

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Editorial summary, takeaway, and curation by AIssential. Original article published by Featured Blogs - Forrester.