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California Credit Union Performance
How the 242 credit unions based in California are performing — size, membership, earnings, capital, growth and loan quality — measured against every U.S. credit union, straight from the public NCUA Call Report.
NCUA data through Q1 2026.
California's 242 credit unions serve 15,654,415 members and hold $321.68B in combined assets. The median California credit union earned a 0.50% return on average assets over the past year, compared with 0.66% for the median U.S. credit union. Median one-year membership growth among California credit unions was 0.00%, compared with -0.55% nationally. Median one-year asset growth was 1.77%, compared with 2.78% nationally. So far this year, 2 California credit unions have completed a merger. Figures are from the Q1 2026 NCUA Call Report.
California at a glance
California vs. the United States
System totals are the sum of every credit union based in California. The share column is California's portion of the national figure.
| Measure | California | United States | California share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Credit unions | 242 | 4,335 | 5.6% |
| Members | 15,654,415 | 147,031,529 | 10.6% |
| Residents (population) | 39,431,263 | 340,110,988 | 11.6% |
| Total assets | $321.68B | $2,507.50B | 12.8% |
| Total loans | $218.24B | $1,744.86B | 12.5% |
| Total shares & deposits | $274.73B | $2,143.21B | 12.8% |
| Total net worth | $35.78B | $282.23B | 12.7% |
| Mergers year-to-date | 2 | 27 | — |
Membership reach. California credit unions report about 40 memberships for every 100 residents, vs 43 nationally — a rough measure of how deeply credit unions reach the population. (This counts memberships, not unique people: one person can belong to more than one credit union, and large California credit unions serve members in other states, so it overstates true in-state penetration.)
The median California credit union
Ratios and growth describe the typical (median) credit union in each place — a robust, outlier-resistant figure — not a single giant institution. Each is computed with the same disclosed equations used across CUNinjas.
| Metric | Median California CU | Median U.S. CU |
|---|---|---|
| Return on assets | 0.50% | 0.66% |
| Net worth ratio | 11.11% | 12.44% |
| Loan-to-share ratio | 69.77% | 67.86% |
| Delinquency ratio | 0.45% | 0.63% |
| Net charge-off ratio | 0.38% | 0.33% |
| Cost of funds | 1.07% | 1.05% |
| Member growth (1 yr) | 0.00% | -0.55% |
| Asset growth (1 yr) | 1.77% | 2.78% |
| Loan growth (1 yr) | 1.05% | 0.63% |
| Share growth (1 yr) | 1.30% | 2.36% |
| Net worth growth (1 yr) | 4.33% | 5.57% |
Trends over time
The median California credit union (solid) vs. the median U.S. credit union (dashed), by year.
Return on assets 0.56% · 0.72%
— California ‑‑ U.S.
Net worth ratio 11.22% · 12.46%
— California ‑‑ U.S.
Loan-to-share ratio 70.55% · 69.70%
— California ‑‑ U.S.
Delinquency ratio 0.52% · 0.72%
— California ‑‑ U.S.
Asset growth (1 yr) 2.41% · 3.26%
— California ‑‑ U.S.
Member growth (1 yr) -0.02% · -0.52%
— California ‑‑ U.S.
California leaderboards
Largest by assets
- 1 SchoolsFirst Credit Union $36.74B
- 2 Digital Credit Union $28.58B
- 3 The Golden 1 Credit Union $21.74B
- 4 Redwood Credit Union $9.95B
- 5 Logix Credit Union $9.72B
- 6 Patelco Credit Union $9.62B
- 7 Star One Credit Union $9.58B
- 8 San Diego County Credit Union $9.38B
- 9 Mission Credit Union $7.23B
- 10 Wescom Central Credit Union $6.47B
Highest return on assets
- 1 Smw 104 Credit Union 2.69%
- 2 Families and Schools Together Credit Union 2.60%
- 3 Safe 1 Credit Union 1.84%
- 4 Educational Employees Credit Union 1.84%
- 5 Christian Community Credit Union 1.82%
- 6 Huntington Beach Cty Employees Credit Union 1.64%
- 7 First California Credit Union 1.60%
- 8 Sonoma Credit Union 1.59%
- 9 Santa Ana Credit Union 1.57%
- 10 Sacramento Credit Union 1.54%
Fastest-growing (organic)
- 1 Christian Community Credit Union 64.08%
- 2 American First Credit Union 32.59%
- 3 Modesto's First Credit Union 22.99%
- 4 Frontwave Credit Union 19.77%
- 5 San Francisco Credit Union 19.33%
- 6 America's Christian Credit Union 14.57%
- 7 Mendo Lake Credit Union 14.48%
- 8 Olive View Employees Credit Union 12.52%
- 9 Eagle Community Credit Union 12.28%
- 10 Tulare County Teachers Credit Union 12.23%
Leaderboards rank credit unions above $50M in assets on positive measures only (return on assets and organic asset growth, excluding merger-driven jumps); the largest board has no size floor.
Method. Compiled from public NCUA 5300 Call Report data (Q1 2026), covering federally insured credit unions headquartered in California that filed for the quarter. System totals are exact sums; ratios and growth are the median credit union in each place, computed through the same disclosed equations used across CUNinjas (a credit union that branches across state lines is counted only in its home state). Cells for a group of fewer than three credit unions are withheld. Population figures are U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2024 estimates. Not affiliated with the NCUA.