7 debit cards to avoid debt and save money
Prepaid debit cards are smarter alternatives to conventional credit cards. They come with the convenience of credit cards, but without the added risk of debt and responsibility of repayments. This is because debit cards use the money you have directly deposited in the account. Thus, there are no hassles involved in later payments. You can use debit cards the same way you use credit cards. You can make purchases, buy gas, book tickets, and so on.
Some of the best debit cards are offered by banks along with their checking accounts while some even offer debit cards without a bank account.
These cards offer the same advantages as a checking account. With these cards, you can pay bills online, check deposits through your mobile, and even carry out a direct deposit. All of this is possible without any overdraft fees and some of these cards even offer cash back, rewards, and bonuses.
- American Express Serve® Free Reloads : This debit card has very low upkeep costs and limited fees. The monthly fee is extremely low, but even that is waived if you deposit $500 or more beforehand. Otherwise, the monthly fee is around $4.95. There are no additional charges for cash reloads.
This can be quite a money saver if you require multiple cash reloads in a month. The AMEX reload network has more than 45,000 locations including Rite Aid, CVS Pharmacy, Dollar General, Family Dollar, and 7-Eleven. There is no fee required if you want to add money from another bank account, but there is a foreign transaction fee of 2.7% applicable on international purchases. Also, there is no cash back offered. You do get free ATM withdrawals at MoneyPass® ATMs. $2.50 may be charged on withdrawals from non-MoneyPass® ATMs. American Express Serve® Cash Back : This is one of few best debit cards with a rewards program. With this card, you will get unlimited 1% cash back on every dollar spent on purchases made online or even at retail stores. There is no annual cap on the cash back that you can earn. The cash back is directly added to the Serve account, so you are able to spend the rewards whenever you want. You have to spend about $595 every month for the rewards to kick in which is easily achieved if you make your monthly purchases and pay all your bills with it. The card has a monthly fee of around $7.95 except in the states of Texas, New York, and Vermont. If you are making international purchases, the card will charge a foreign transaction fee of around 2.7% of the total transaction, after the total amount has been converted to U.S. dollars. Chase Liquid® Card : If you want free access to ATMs and free cash loads at Chase branches, this is one of the best debit cards for you. There is zero ATM fee if you are withdrawing money from a Chase ATM. For out-of-network ATMs, a fee of $2.50 is applicable. Although the card has a monthly fee of $4.95, there is no activation fee or cash reload fee. If you are an existing Chase customer, the monthly fee will be waived off. Thus, you save considerably on fees and cash reloads. Additionally, the card offers all the benefits of having a Chase checking account. You can use Zelle, the money transfer app to deposit checks as well as pay bills and transfer money. Western Union® NetSpend® Prepaid MasterCard® : If you want your card to directly accept Western Union money transfers without any charges, this is one of the best debit cards for you. With this card, you receive money two days earlier when you conduct a direct deposit and get an alert when the money is available in your account. This card also enables you to load money to your account with mobile check deposits. Reloading the card is quite convenient with more than 130,000 centers for cash reloads. Moreover, you get cash back on purchases too. You can earn a bonus if a friend signs up for NetSpend with your reference code. Plus, the card has a unique security feature that is rarely seen in most of the best debit cards. If you want to use the card for an online transaction, you can generate a temporary card number. This will keep your real card number safe from being hacked and data breaches. You will also be able to keep your money safe from fraudulent activities. The card comes with three plans. The default plan is a pay-as-you-go or no fee plan. There are no monthly fees; you only pay $1 for a signature transaction and $2 for a PIN transaction. There is a Fee Advantage Plan that charges a $9.95 monthly fee and has free unlimited transactions. The third plan is the NetSpend Premier FeeAdvantage Plan with free unlimited transactions and a $5 monthly fee. Capital One® 360 Checking® Account : Looking for one of the best debit cards with no ATM transaction fee at all? Create a Capital One® 360 Checking® Account and you are good to go. The card charges no fees for in-network ATM transactions as well as for out-of-network ATM transactions. What’s more, is that there are no foreign ATM fees involved as well. Also, there is no foreign transaction fee on international purchases made through the debit card. With nearly 39000 ATMs in the network, having a debit card with 360 Checking® Account from Capital One® can be really convenient. Aside from this, you get all the benefits of the checking account. Moreover, you do not have to pay a monthly fee for the checking account and you do not even have to maintain a minimum balance to avoid the monthly fee. The account has a regular APY of 0.2%. 24k Prepaid Visa® RushCard : This prepaid debit card has one of the simplest application processes. There is no minimum balance requirement and needs no credit checks. Only a valid ID proof is required. Managing the card and the account is simple as well. You will get real-time alerts for every account activity. You will also get notifications if the funds in your account are running low. In case your debit card is stolen or lost, your funds will be protected with Visa Zero Liability policy. You can also take advantage of the card’s easy online bill payment option. The card has two plans for customers. One is the unlimited plan with free transactions and a monthly fee of around $5.95 with direct deposit. Without the direct deposit, the monthly fee is around $7.95. The other is a Pay as You Go plan that charges $1 for each purchase, but there are no monthly fees. Additionally, you get a $30 bonus when you refer a friend to RushCard. AccountNow® Gold Visa® Prepaid Card : This is another one of the best debit cards with a simple approval and application process. There are no credit checks or ChexSystems check. Also, you don’t need to have an existing bank account. You only have to verify your ID and you are set to go. There are no activation fee or overdraft fee involved. Also, you do not have to worry about maintaining any minimum balance. The card comes with easy mobile account access and text alerts. So, you get all the transaction details and account balance details directly in your phone.
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