Banks Ranked by Nonperforming Loan Ratio

The nonperforming loan (NPL) ratio is the share of a bank's loan book that is in default or close to it — specifically, loans 90 or more days past due plus those on nonaccrual status. It is the cleanest forward-looking signal of credit stress: rising NPLs precede loan-loss provisions, which directly hit earnings and capital. Healthy U.S. banks typically run sub-1% NPL ratios. Above 3% is a stress signal; above 5% suggests material balance-sheet trouble. The number is reported in field NCLNLSR on the FFIEC Call Report.

How to read this number: under 0.5% is excellent, 0.5–1.5% is healthy, 1.5–3% warrants attention, and above 3% is a meaningful stress signal. Concentration matters too — a 2% NPL ratio driven by a single large credit is more recoverable than the same number driven by deteriorating quality across the book. Look at the loan-category breakdown on the bank's Call Report Schedule RC-N for context.

Among the top 50 banks on this list, the average nonperforming loan ratio is 0.00% and the average composite Bank Health Score is 100/100. Top performers tend to be conservatively run, well-capitalized, and concentrated in less volatile loan categories. Lower values on this metric usually correlate with stronger overall scores, but the correlation is imperfect — a bank can lead on one metric while lagging on another.

No single metric tells the full story of bank safety. Tier 1 capital, NPL ratio, liquidity, and return on assets each measure different aspects of resilience. The composite Bank Health Score combines all four, weighted by how predictive each has historically been. Use this ranking to compare specific dimensions, but consult the full bank profile and the methodology page before drawing conclusions. And remember: FDIC insurance — not the bank's ranking — protects deposits up to $250,000 per depositor, per insured bank, per ownership category.

Every value is pulled from the FDIC BankFind API, which sources directly from quarterly Call Reports filed with the FFIEC. Specific Call Report field codes used: RBCT1J (Tier 1 capital), NCLNLSR (NPL ratio), LIQR (liquidity), ROAPTX (return on assets). All FDIC and FFIEC data is U.S. government public domain.