ATM Fees

By Tamsen Butler

November 30th, 2008

Posted in Saving Money Tips, Personal Finance

Do you pay attention to the fees your financial institution charges you for using an ATM? It doesn’t matter if you’re pulling cash out of your account, checking your balance, or making a deposit with an envelope…some banks and credit unions will try to get some money out of you for the transaction. If you rarely use an ATM then fees probably aren’t a big deal to you, but if you stop to get cash every couple of days then the fees can really add up.

Do you want to use your money to buy the things you need and to pad your account, or do you want to hand a portion of your money over to your financial institution for the privilege of using an ATM?

Not all financial institutions charge fees for using an ATM. Most banks and credit unions charge no fees for using ATMs that belong to them. For example, if you have a checking account with Wells Fargo and you use a Wells Fargo ATM at the mall to get money, you probably won’t encounter a fee for the transaction. The fees start piling up when you use foreign ATMs. These are automated teller machines that aren’t owned by - or affiliated with - your bank or credit union. Suddenly you’re hit with two different fees: a fee from the owner of the ATM and a fee from your financial institution for using someone else’s ATM.

You might think these fees don’t really add up to much, but if you frequently utilize foreign ATMs then there is a good chance you’re paying quite a bit of money in fees. Even if your bank only charges you a $1 fee every time you use a foreign ATM and the owner of the ATM only charges you $2, that’s already $3 just to access your own money. If you stop at the ATM a few times a week, that’s $9 a week which translates into over $35 a month.

In other words, you’re losing out on a dinner out every month because of the fees you’re charged for using the ATM.

So how can you avoid paying these fees? If you can stick to ATMs owed by your financial institution then you might wind up not paying any ATM fees at all. If you have no choice in the matter - and really don’t want to switch financial institutions - then try to plan out your ATM visits to minimize how many times you stop to pull out cash. If you know you’ll need $120 in cash to get through to the end of the week, don’t stop for $60 today and then another $60 in a few days; pull it all out at once and save on the costly fees.

You might also consider shopping around for a bank or credit union that not only doesn’t charge fees for using foreign ATMs, but also reimburses you for fees charged by the owner of the ATM. Don’t waste your money paying fees just to access your funds.

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