Compare legal limits, fees and the true cost of small loans in your state before you talk to any lender. Compare legal limits, fees and the true cost of small loans in your state.
Credit Unions vs Payday Loans in Connecticut
64 credit unions are headquartered in Connecticut, with 906,086 members in total. 39 are federal credit unions and 25 are state-chartered; all are federally insured by the NCUA.
- Credit unions
- 64
- Members
- 906,086
- Federal
- 39
- State-chartered
- 25
- Members per 100 people
- 25
- CUs per 100k people
- 1.8
Credit unions vs payday loan stores in Connecticut
Connecticut has 64 credit unions headquartered here and 4 payday, installment and title loan stores. Local credit unions count 906,086 members — roughly 25 memberships per 100 residents.
Credit unions
64
1.8 per 100k residents
906,086 members
Payday & loan stores
4
0.1 per 100k residents
1 store chain
Biggest loan store chains in Connecticut: loanDepot (4).
Borrowing $500 for 6 months in Connecticut
| Option | Payment | Total cost of borrowing |
|---|---|---|
| Installment loan at the Connecticut rate cap (12% APR) | $86.27/mo | $17.65 |
| Credit union PAL (28% APR) | $90.27/mo | $41.62 |
| Payday loan renewed every 2 weeks (typical $15 per $100, not available in Connecticut) | $75.00 every 2 weeks | $975.00 |
- Monthly payment at the Connecticut rate cap vs median monthly household income
- 1.0%
Example calculation with fixed monthly payments; the payday row shows typical out-of-state pricing for comparison. Actual rates and terms vary by lender.
What it means for a household in Connecticut
- Median household income
- $104,433
- A $400 emergency equals
- 1.4 days of income
- Households earning under $25,000
- 13.1%
- Residents below the poverty line
- 10.2%
Income and poverty: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, by ZIP code; figures for Connecticut are population-weighted and approximate. Hours of work are based on the median individual income.
Payday loans vs credit union PALs: the rules in Connecticut
| Payday loan in CT | Credit union PAL | |
|---|---|---|
| Legal status | Not allowed — storefront payday loans are banned | Offered by many federal credit unions |
| Rate cap | Capped at 12% APR (Usury limit) | Up to 28% |
| Term | Usually 2–4 weeks, due in one payment | 1 to 12 months, in installments |
| Credit check | Usually none; a bank account and income are required | Membership required; payments can be reported to credit bureaus |
Payday rules: Connecticut law as summarized on our Connecticut payday page. PAL rules: National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) rules for federal credit unions (PAL I and PAL II); state-chartered credit unions may offer similar small loans.
Credit unions by city in Connecticut
Credit unions are headquartered in 31 cities and towns across Connecticut. Pick a city for addresses and websites, or scroll down for the smaller towns.
All credit unions in Connecticut
| Credit union | Headquarters | Members | Website |
|---|---|---|---|
| American Eagle Financial Credit UnionState-chartered | East Hartford | 167,531 | americaneagle.org |
| Charter Oak Federal Credit UnionFederal | Waterford | 86,156 | charteroak.org |
| Connecticut State Employees Credit UnionState-chartered | Hartford | 69,685 | csecu.org |
| Connex Credit UnionState-chartered | North Haven | 68,675 | connexcu.org |
| Sikorsky Financial Credit UnionState-chartered | Stratford | 67,020 | sikorskycu.org |
| Nutmeg State Financial Credit UnionState-chartered | Rocky Hill | 66,654 | nutmegstatefcu.org |
| Coreplus Federal Credit UnionFederal | Norwich | 50,669 | coreplus.org |
| Mutual Security Credit UnionState-chartered | Shelton | 26,354 | mscu.net |
| Dutch Point Credit UnionState-chartered | Wethersfield | 24,456 | dutchpoint.org |
| Waterbury Connecticut Teachers Federal Credit UnionFederal | Waterbury | 22,061 | wctfcu.com |
| General Electric Employees Federal Credit UnionFederal | Milford | 21,317 | gecreditunion.com |
| 360 Federal Credit UnionFederal | Windsor Locks | 18,826 | 360fcu.org |
| Hartford Federal Credit UnionFederal | Hartford | 16,205 | hartfordfcu.com |
| Finex Credit UnionState-chartered | East Hartford | 16,083 | finexcu.org |
| Achieve Financial Credit UnionState-chartered | Berlin | 15,998 | achievefinancialcu.com |
| Fd Community Federal Credit UnionFederal | Waterbury | 13,506 | fdcommunityfcu.org |
| United Business & Industry Federal Credit UnionFederal | Plainville | 11,241 | ubifcu.com |
| Torrington Municipal and Teachers Federal Credit UnionFederal | Torrington | 10,858 | tmtfcu.com |
| Ellafi Federal Credit UnionFederal | Middletown | 9,893 | ellafifcu.org |
| America's First Network Credit UnionState-chartered | East Hartford | 9,480 | afncu.com |
| Franklin Trust Federal Credit UnionFederal | Hartford | 8,916 | franklintrust.org |
| Sound Federal Credit UnionFederal | Norwalk | 8,361 | mysoundcu.org |
| Unity Financial Credit UnionState-chartered | New Haven | 8,186 | unityfincu.org |
| Membersfirst Ct Federal Credit UnionFederal | Meriden | 6,096 | membersfirstctfcu.com |
| Albright Credit UnionState-chartered | Bethel | 5,590 | albrightcu.com |
| Cornerstone Federal Credit UnionFederal | Fairfield | 4,421 | — |
| Riverbank Federal Credit UnionFederal | Windsor Locks | 4,268 | riverbankfcu.com |
| Skyline Financial Federal Credit UnionFederal | Waterbury | 4,157 | skylinefinancialfcu.com |
| Members Credit UnionState-chartered | Stamford | 4,056 | memberscu.coop |
| Northwest Hills Credit UnionState-chartered | Torrington | 3,675 | nwhcu.com |
| Enfield Community Federal Credit UnionFederal | Enfield | 3,486 | enfieldcommunityfcu.org |
| Pitney Bowes Employees Federal Credit UnionFederal | Shelton | 3,352 | pbefcu.com |
| New Haven County Credit UnionState-chartered | North Haven | 3,250 | nhccu.com |
| Tobacco Valley Teachers Federal Credit UnionFederal | Enfield | 3,194 | tvtfcu.org |
| Lawrence Memorial Hospital Employee Federal Credit UnionFederal | New London | 2,922 | lmhospcu.com |
| Police Credit Union of ConnecticutFederal | Hartford | 2,921 | pcuct.org |
| State Police Credit Union Inc.State-chartered | Meriden | 2,818 | cspcu.org |
| Community Healthcare Credit UnionState-chartered | Manchester | 2,386 | chcu.org |
| Gha Federal Credit UnionFederal | Greenwich | 2,385 | ghafcu.org |
| Manchester Municipal Federal Credit UnionFederal | Manchester | 2,224 | mmfcu.net |
| Bridgeport Police Federal Credit UnionFederal | Bridgeport | 2,181 | mybpfcu.org |
| Stamford Healthcare Credit UnionState-chartered | Stamford | 2,172 | shccu.org |
| Ct Firefighters Federal Credit UnionFederal | Hartford | 2,161 | ctffcu.org |
| Greenwich Municipal Employees Federal Credit UnionFederal | Greenwich | 2,089 | gmefcu.com |
| Norwalk Hospital Credit UnionState-chartered | Norwalk | 2,087 | nuvancehealth.org |
| Community Credit Union of New Milford, Inc.State-chartered | New Milford | 1,911 | ccunm.org |
| Metropolitan District Employees Credit UnionState-chartered | Hartford | 1,849 | mdecu.org |
| St. Vincent's Medical Center Federal Credit UnionFederal | Bridgeport | 1,633 | stvincents.org |
| Connecticut Postal Federal Credit UnionFederal | New Britain | 1,370 | — |
| Connecticut Labor Dept Federal Credit UnionFederal | Wethersfield | 1,205 | ctlabordepfcu.org |
| Asa Federal Credit UnionFederal | Bloomfield | 1,069 | asafcu.org |
| New Haven Teachers Federal Credit UnionFederal | New Haven | 1,047 | — |
| Greater Waterbury Healthcare Federal Credit UnionFederal | Waterbury | 999 | gwhfcu.com |
| Waterbury Postal Employees Federal Credit UnionFederal | Waterbury | 889 | afncu.com |
| The New Haven Police and Municipal Federal Credit UnionFederal | New Haven | 856 | nhpdfcu.com |
| New Haven Firefighters Credit UnionState-chartered | New Haven | 706 | — |
| Science Park Federal Credit UnionFederal | New Haven | 591 | scienceparkfcu.com |
| Bridgeport Post Office Federal Credit UnionFederal | Bridgeport | 484 | bptpofcu.org |
| Regional Water Authority Employees Credit UnionState-chartered | New Haven | 466 | — |
| Trumbull Credit UnionState-chartered | Trumbull | 422 | — |
| First Baptist Church (Stratford) Federal Credit UnionFederal | Stratford | 214 | fbcstratford.org |
| East End Baptist Tabernacle Federal Credit UnionFederal | Bridgeport | 197 | — |
| Kief Protective Mutual Benefit Ass. Credit UnionState-chartered | Bloomfield | 105 | — |
| Meriden Postal Employees Federal Credit UnionFederal | Meriden | 51 | — |
Credit unions in smaller towns of Connecticut
Other cities and towns in Connecticut where credit unions are headquartered, and how many there are in each.
- Berlin 1
- Bethel 1
- Bloomfield 2
- Enfield 2
- Greenwich 2
- Middletown 1
- New London 1
- New Milford 1
- North Haven 2
- Norwich 1
- Plainville 1
- Rocky Hill 1
- Shelton 2
- Torrington 2
- Trumbull 1
- Waterford 1
- Wethersfield 2
- Windsor Locks 2
Credit unions are listed in the city of their headquarters; many have branches in other cities and accept members from across the state or the country, so members per 100 people is an approximation.