Building societies have outperformed high street banks in customer satisfaction, according to a recent Which? mortgage lender survey conducted in August and September 2026. Nationwide Building Society and Principality Building Society received the joint-highest customer scores for satisfaction and likelihood to recommend.
Despite building societies leading in customer satisfaction, high street banks typically offered better mortgage deals. First Direct was identified as the cheapest lender on average, with Barclays, HSBC, and Lloyds ranking joint-second. Among building societies, Nationwide and Coventry offered the cheapest deals on average, both ranking joint-fifth overall.
For online access, high street banks generally scored better than building societies in the survey. NatWest achieved five stars, while Barclays, HSBC, and Lloyds received four stars. Nationwide Building Society was an exception among building societies, also achieving five stars for online access.
Barclays, First Direct, NatWest, and Nationwide Building Society have been named Which? Recommended Providers (WRPs) for mortgages, meeting criteria for both competitive deals and customer satisfaction.