Essential CU vs ABT Mobile Banking
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Essential CU
Manage your credit union accounts conveniently from your mobile device. Access account information, transfer funds, pay bills, and deposit checks on the go. Easily locate ATMs and branches with this secure and user-friendly application.
- Check account balances
- View transaction history
- Transfer funds
- Pay bills
- Send money to contacts
- Deposit checks
- Find ATMs and branches
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The Essential Credit Union Mobile App allows you the power to access your account information on your mobile device at any time and from anywhere! Once you download the Essential mobile app, you simply login using the same credentials you have for Online Banking. The Essential app gives you the ability to: • Check balances • View your transaction history • Transfer funds • Pay bills • Pay or transfer money to friends and family in your device contacts • Deposit checks • Find ATMs and branches quickly and easily Download the convenient Essential Mobile App today!
ABT Mobile Banking
Manage your finances conveniently from your mobile device. Check account balances, transfer funds between accounts, pay bills, and deposit checks with ease. This app is designed for Anthem Bank & Trust consumer online banking customers.
- Check account balances
- Search recent transactions
- Transfer funds between accounts
- Schedule one-time bill payments
- Deposit checks on the go
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Start banking wherever you are with ABT Mobile! Available to all Anthem Bank & Trust consumer online banking customers, ABT Mobile allows you to check balances, make transfers, pay bills, and make deposits. Available features include: Accounts - Check your latest account balance and search recent transactions by date, amount, or check number. Transfers - Easily transfer cash between your accounts. Bill Pay -Schedule one time payments Check Deposit - Deposit checks while on the go.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Essential CU at 82% against ABT Mobile Banking's 33%. Essential CU also leads on ratings volume (4.5K vs 62) and rating (4.8 vs 4.6). ABT Mobile Banking's advantage is monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases) and update cadence (monthly vs every 3 months). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Essential CU holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Essential CU has 4.5K ratings behind it against 62, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 82% of Essential CU's written reviews are positive against 33% of ABT Mobile Banking's.
Essential CU ships an update every 3 months, ABT Mobile Banking monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 21, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Essential CU | ABT Mobile Banking |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (4.5K ratings) — better | 4.6 (62 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 81.7% of reviews — better | 33.3% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 4.5K — better | 62 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Monthly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 15.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 114 MB | 113 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Essential Credit Union | Anthem Bank & Trust |
Customer experience
Essential CU
ABT Mobile Banking
Bugs and requests
Essential CU
Reported bugs
4 issues- Login screen freezes
- Account information not displaying correctly
- Deposit issues and delays
- Compatibility problems with newer devices
Requested features
4 requests- Ability to lock debit card
- Faster credit card payment updates
- More account management features
- Apple Pay integration
ABT Mobile Banking
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Essential CU
No in-app purchases
ABT Mobile Banking
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Essential CU free?
Is ABT Mobile Banking free?
Which has better reviews, Essential CU or ABT Mobile Banking?
Do Essential CU or ABT Mobile Banking have ads?
Which is updated more often, Essential CU or ABT Mobile Banking?
Other comparisons
