8 Free Checking Accounts With No Minimum Deposit

Most people need a checking account, and nobody likes fees or minimum deposits. GOBankingRates identified banks with free checking and no minimum-deposit requirements so you can find the best checking account for your needs. What’s more, all these accounts have no minimum balance requirements.

If you want a free checking account with no deposit, here are some of the best banks to consider.

Best Free Checking Accounts With No Minimum Deposit at a Glance

In the past, free checking accounts were often restricted to no-frills accounts, but that’s changed. Now it’s possible to find completely free checking accounts — and several that you can open with no deposit.

Best Free Checking Accounts of 2022 — Individual Reviews

As you might guess, many banks with free checking are online banks, which have lower costs than traditional brick-and-mortar banks. Totally free checking accounts are fairly standard in terms of the amenities offered, but a few offer some surprising features.

Ally Bank Interest Checking

Ally Bank’s Interest Checking is one of the few on this list that also pays interest, and while the annual percentage yield maxes out at 0.25%, even the lowest rate is better than many savings accounts pay. The account also includes complimentary standard checks, a debit Mastercard and online bill pay. Customers can use Allpoint ATMs free of charge. What’s more, Ally no longer charges overdraft fees.

Why Consumers Like It: Accounts are easy to set up and use, plus customer service earns high marks.

Benefits:

• Plenty of options for sending and receiving money

• Online bill pay

Drawbacks:

• No cash deposits

Fees:

• Returned deposits: $7.50

• Outgoing domestic wire transfer: $20

Minimum Deposit: $0

APY: 0.25%

How To Open an Account: Open an Ally Bank Interest Checking account.

Axos Bank Essential Checking

Axos Bank offers a free checking account with great perks. Direct Deposit Express means customers receive their paychecks up to two days early. This account also comes with unlimited domestic ATM fee reimbursements, no overdraft or non-sufficient funds fees and a suite of personal finance tools that can help you manage all your accounts. You can also make peer-to-peer payments from your Axos Essential account using just the recipient’s email address or mobile number. If your family or friends open an account and meet Axos’ welcome bonus requirements, you’ll each get $20.

Why Consumers Like It: Direct deposits are available up to two days early.

Benefits:

• Unlimited ATM fee reimbursement

• No overdraft fees

• Peer-to-peer payments

• Free bill pay

• Referral bonus

Drawbacks:

• Doesn’t pay interest

Fees:

• Rush delivery for a replacement debit card: $50

• Stop payments: $10 for unassisted online requests

• Outgoing domestic wire transfer: $35

Minimum Deposit: $0

APY: None

Capital One 360 Checking

The Capital One 360 Checking account charges no fees, has no minimum balance requirement and pays interest — the trifecta of bargain checking accounts. It also offers a free debit card, and you can avoid ATM fees by using one of more than 70,000 fee-free ATMs. This account also offers online and mobile banking, including mobile check deposit, and you can deposit cash into your account at CVS stores. Granted, the annual percentage yield for account balances is just 0.10%, but it’s better than nothing — and more than basic savings accounts typically offer.

Why Consumers Like It: Capital One’s award-winning mobile app makes it easy to track balances and pay bills.

Benefits:

• Online and mobile banking

• Can choose one $0 overdraft option: auto-decline, free transfer from savings or money market account or no-fee overdraft

• No minimum balance

• Physical locations

• Peer-to-peer payments with Zelle

Drawbacks:

• APY isn’t as high as for other online accounts

Fees:

• Cashier’s check: $20 online, $10 at physical branch

• Stop payment: $25

• Outgoing domestic wire transfer: $30

Minimum Deposit: $0

APY: 0.10%

How To Open an Account: Open a Capital One 360 Checking account.

Charles Schwab High Yield Investor Checking

The High Yield Investor Checking account from Charles Schwab comes with something that none of the others offer: a brokerage investment account. You won’t pay a fee or need to deposit a minimum amount to open the accounts. You get 0.03% APY on your balance, and you can transfer money from your checking account to your brokerage account and vice versa. You also get a free debit card and online and mobile banking and bill pay. Although Charles Schwab does charge overdraft fees, there’s no charge for overdraft transfers from a linked Schwab account.

Why Consumers Like It: A single login makes it easier to manage multiple accounts, and there is no charge to transfer money between accounts.

Benefits:

• No foreign transaction fees

• Unlimited ATM rebate

Drawbacks:

• Customers must have a brokerage account.

Fees:

• Overdrafts: $25 each, up to $100 per day

• Returned deposits: $5

• Rush delivery of debit card: $15 or more

• Cashier’s checks: $10

• Outgoing domestic wire transfer: $25

Minimum Deposit: $0

APY: 0.03%

Discover Checking

Discover Checking has an interesting twist. It pays you up to $3,000 a month to do the things you do with your checking account anyway. You get 1% cash back for purchases you make with your debit card. The mobile app gives you control over your account with the ability to freeze your debit card and deposit checks without going to the bank.

Why Consumers Like It: Earn cash back just for using a debit card for everyday purchases.

Benefits:

• 24-hour customer service

• 60,000 fee-free ATMs

• Peer-to-peer payments with Zelle

• Personal finance resources

• Free checks

• Free expedited delivery for replacement debit cards

Drawbacks:

• You may not own or co-own more than two cash-back checking accounts.

Fees:

• Outgoing domestic wire transfer: $30

Minimum Deposit: $0

APY: None

How To Open an Account: Open a Discover Checking account.

Chase College Checking

Chase College Checking is available to college students ages 17 to 24, offering free checking for five years or until after your expected graduation date. In addition to benefits like free access to 16,000 ATMs and 4,700 bank branches, the account comes with free help finding affordable online courses, identifying scholarship opportunities and completing and filing your Free Application for Federal Student Aid.

Why Consumers Like It: Chase College Checking offers access to online banking and local branches plus a good selection of financial products.

Benefits:

• Service fee waived on Chase Savings account linked to checking for overdraft protection

• Can also avoid month service fee by making eligible direct deposit or maintaining $5,000 balance

• Peer-to-peer payments with Zelle

• Next-day availability of deposited checks with QuickDeposit

• Free education finance planning from Frank

• Occasional bonus incentives

Drawbacks:

• Doesn’t pay interest

Fees:

• Overdraft: $34

• Non-chase ATM: $2.50-$5

• Counter checks: $2 per three-check page printed at a branch

• Outgoing domestic wire transfer: $25

Minimum Deposit: $0

APY: None

How To Open an Account: Open a Chase College Checking account.

Nbkc Everything Account

The Everything Account from nbkc bank combines the checking and savings features you use most into a no-fee account that pays interest on your balance. You get 24/7 mobile banking with free bill pay and free transactions at over 37,000 MoneyPass ATMs plus $12 in non-network ATM reimbursements each month. The Everything Account also lets your create savings goals and transfer money in and out of savings whenever you want.

Why Consumers Like It: The Everything Account has features similar to a basic savings account without the six-transaction limit.

Benefits:

• Savings account features without the limitations

• No overdraft or return-item fees

• $12-per-month reimbursment for out-of-network ATM fees

Drawbacks:

• Low APR

Fees:

• Outgoing domestic wire transfer: $5

Minimum Deposit: $0

APY: 0.00%

How To Open an Account: Open an nbkc bank Everything Account.

Huntington Bank Asterisk-Free Checking

Asterisk-Free Checking from Huntington Bank is free of maintenance fees, has no minimum balance requirement and comes with features like the $50 Safety Zone and 24-Hour Grace to help you avoid overdraft fees. Eligible customers can qualify for a credit line of up to $1,000 in credit. Asterisk-Free Checking customers who open a Premier Savings account have the $4 monthly savings account fee and $300 minimum balance requirement waived as long as they maintain their Asterisk-Free account.

Why Consumers Like It: The bank gives a 24-hour grace period for customers to deposit money if they overdraw the account, and it credits deposits made at ATMs and through the mobile app before midnight the same day.

Benefits:

• Extended hours for making deposits

• Several ways to avoid overdrafts

• Email and text alerts

• Credit line for qualfied customers

• Fees waived on Premier Savings

Drawbacks:

• $3 fee for using another bank’s ATM

• Doesn’t pay interest

Fees:

• Non-Huntington ATM: $3.00

• International transactions: 3% of transaction amount

• Overdrafts: $36, only charged if account is overdrawn by more than $50

Minimum Deposit: $0

APY: None

How To Open an Account: Open the Huntington Bank Asterisk-Free Checking account.

Tips for Choosing the Best Checking Account

The best checking account is the one that suits your lifestyle and helps you meet your financial goals. The following tips can help you narrow your choices and guide you toward the best checking account for you.

1. Determine what kind of bank best meets your needs. Online banks are convenient and often have better rates than brick-and-mortar banks with higher overhead costs. But an online bank might not be the right choice for you if you like the convenience of walking into a local branch or don’t feel comfortable using technology.

2. Find out how the bank will help you manage your account. Online and mobile banking apps make it easy to keep track of your balances and spending habits, but some banks also offer features such as budgeting tools.

3. Read the fine print, and review the fee schedule. Even a free checking account might charge fees activities such as requesting a cashier’s check or using an out-of-network ATM.

There’s no reason to pay a bank to hold your money between payday and the due dates for your bills. By choosing the right free checking account for your needs, you could save money and even receive some extra perks.

Daria Uhlig contributed to the reporting for this article.

Data is accurate as of Feb. 4, 2022, and subject to change.

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 8 Free Checking Accounts With No Minimum Deposit