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Branch access has been reduced and management has been dispersed, but overall small business banking customer satisfaction has climbed to a record high this year according to the J.D. Power 2020 U.S. Small Business Banking Satisfaction Study.

Small businesses banking satisfaction nationally is 822 on a 1,000 point scale, up two from last year’s report. Small business banking satisfaction in the Northeast region remains high at is is 819, though that number is down eight points from last year.

However, smaller businesses in the study having significantly lower satisfaction scores than their larger small business counterparts.

“The pandemic has created a moment of truth for small business banking customers and, by and large, their banks delivered, generating significantly improved satisfaction for problem resolution, products and fees, reputation and reliability,” said Paul McAdam, senior director of banking and payments intelligence at J.D. Power in a prepared statement.

“Overall, these banks have delivered when their customers needed them most. But the performance is not balanced across all small business segments. While customer satisfaction among larger small businesses has improved, the smaller businesses in our study—those with annual sales volume below $2.5 million—have seen significant declines in satisfaction,” McAdam said. “That’s a sign that many banks still need to refine their small business formulas to address this highly diverse market.”

Capital One ranks highest in the Northeast region with a score of 857. Chase (829) ranks second and Bank of America (828) ranks third.  PNC and Wells Fargo are next (825), then Citibank (819), Citizens Bank (803) and TD Bank (793).

Not all small businesses are created equal, and small businesses with annual sales of $2.5-$20 million have a nine-point increase in customer satisfaction in 2020 from 2019. Smaller businesses with annual sales of less than $2.5 million have a five-point decrease in satisfaction from a year ago, however, and indicate more negative economic and business outlooks, with 19% of such businesses saying they are still temporarily closed.

The Paycheck Protection Program, put forth by the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, plays a big role in small business customer satisfaction, the survey found. Overall, 36% of small business banking customers applied for PPP through their primary bank. National customer satisfaction is significantly higher (838) when the PPP application was approved than when it was declined or still pending approval (796).

Trust, advocacy and retention are significantly higher when customers are satisfied with their bank’s support related to PPP, the report found.

The report also indicated that small business banking customer satisfaction is significantly higher when a dedicated account manager is assigned to the business. These account managers play a key role in driving satisfaction with PPP loans and overall pandemic response by helping customers both resolve problems and address concerns.

J.D. Power surveyed 7,507 small business owners or financial decision-makers at small businesses that use business banking services between June and August for the report, released Tuesday.