Best free checking accounts for May 2025

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Updated as of May 6, 2025.

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Monthly checking account fees can add up to a big expense, which is why it pays to find a free checking account for everyday banking needs. The best free checking accounts also come with fee-free ATMs, and don’t charge overdraft or non-sufficient fund (NSF) fees. They may also come with other perks, such as interest, out-of-network ATM reimbursement and/or free checks.

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Bankrate’s picks for the top free checking accounts

Note: Annual percentage yields (APYs) shown are as of May 6. Bankrate's editorial team validates this information regularly. APYs may have changed since they were last updated and may vary by region for some products. Bankrate includes only FDIC banks or NCUA credit unions in its listings.

Best for 24/7 customer service

Overview

Ally Bank’s Spending Account doesn’t have a monthly maintenance fee or a minimum opening deposit. It doesn’t charge a fee for overdraft items (but does let you overdraft). The account also offers other freebies, such as free standard checks, free incoming wires and fee-free access to 75,000 Allpoint and MoneyPass ATMs. If you end up using an out-of-network ATM, you can get reimbursed up to $10 per statement cycle. In case you’re wondering what fees you might pay, Ally provides an easy-to-find list of those fees on its website.

You also earn a little bit of interest with this account: 0.10 percent APY on balances less than $15,000 and 0.25 percent APY with a minimum daily balance of $15,000, with no requirements to earn the rate other than the balance.

0.10%-0.25% APY

$0 minimum opening deposit

- Branches: None; Ally is an online-only bank.
- Early direct deposit available? Yes.
- Cash deposits: Not available.

Best for free ATMs

4.9

Overview

The Axos Essential Checking account is great for people looking to avoid fees. It doesn’t have overdraft fees, non-sufficient fees or a monthly service fee and it doesn’t have a minimum deposit requirement to open the account. You also receive unlimited domestic ATM fee reimbursements.

Note that Axos Bank and UFB Direct are under the same Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) certificate. So if you’re banking at both, your deposits at these two banks are added together toward the FDIC’s limits.

$0 minimum opening deposit

- Branches: None; Axos Bank is an online-only bank.
- Early direct deposit available? Yes.
- Cash deposits: Available for a fee of up to $4.95 through the bank’s partnership with the Green Dot Network, which allows you to deposit cash at participating retailers like CVS, Walgreens and Dollar General.

Best for online perks with branch access

Overview

The Capital One 360 Checking account earns a little bit of interest on all balances. There is no minimum deposit to open the account nor any monthly fees to pay. It also gives you fee-free access to more than 70,000 Capital One, MoneyPass and Allpoint ATMs. And you won’t pay overdraft fees with this account. Plus, if you need to write a check, you’re in luck: your first order of checks is free with the account.

With Capital One, you also get the perks of an online bank (such as low fees) with the potential to bank in person. You can access a bank branch in nine states, mostly on the East Coast and in the South. Capital One also runs what they call “cafes” in Arizona, California, Colorado and Washington D.C., where you can get food and coffee, work on your laptop and access banking services.

You can open a 360 checking account either online or at a Capital One location.

0.10% APY

$0 minimum opening deposit

- Branches: Yes; more than 260 branches.
- Early direct deposit available? Yes.
- Cash deposits: Available for free at Walgreens or CVS, but you have to have the Capital One mobile app.

Best for cash back

Overview

The Cashback Debit account from Discover Bank not only doesn’t charge a monthly maintenance fee or an overdraft fee, but also gives you the ability to earn 1 percent cash back on eligible debit card purchases of up to $3,000 each month. The account also doesn’t require any minimum deposit amount to open. If you write a lot of checks, this could be a good account for you as Discover offers no-fee check reordering.

Customers get fee-free access to 60,000 ATMs in the U.S. through the MoneyPass and Allpoint networks.

$0 minimum opening deposit

- Branches: Yes; one full-service branch in Delaware.
- Early direct deposit available? Yes.
- Cash deposits: Not available.

Best for easy-to-earn APY

4.9

Overview

NBKC Bank’s Everything Account pays a really decent 1.75 percent APY on all balances, with no requirements to meet to earn the rate. There is no minimum opening deposit required and there are no monthly fees to maintain the account. You also won’t pay for an overdraft.

With this account, you’ll get access to more than 90,000 ATMs globally and you’re eligible to get a reimbursement of up to $12 a month for out-of-network ATM fees. This account also gives you the option to allocate some of your funds into “savings goals,” which will also earn the same APY of 1.75 percent — a great rate for a checking account but you can find better yields for your savings at high-yield savings accounts.

1.75% APY

$0 minimum opening deposit

- Branches: Yes; four branches in Kansas and Missouri.
- Early direct deposit available? Yes.
- Cash deposits: Yes, at one of the branches or at cash deposit-enabled MoneyPass or Allpoint ATMs.

Best for checking/savings combo

4.9

Overview

As a SoFi checking customer, you won’t pay monthly service fees. You also won’t pay overdraft fees, but only if you receive at least $1,000 in direct deposits a month. And your whole balance will earn a decent (for a checking account) 0.50 percent APY, with no requirements to earn the rate. There’s no minimum required to open the account, either. If and when you need cash, you’ll have fee-free access to more than 55,000 fee-free ATMs.

This account automatically comes with a SoFi savings account, which also earns a strong APY, though it’s not the absolute highest around. Still, this account makes it convenient to keep your checking and savings separate yet together for easy transfers, and gives you good returns on all your money.

0.50% APY

$0 minimum opening deposit

- Branches: None.
- Early direct deposit available? Yes.
- Cash deposits: Yes, for a fee of up to $4.95 through the bank’s partnership with the Green Dot network which allows cash deposits at certain partner retailers such as 7-Eleven.

What is a free checking account?

Free checking accounts allow you to do your banking without charging you a monthly maintenance fee to use the account. There are checking accounts that don’t charge a monthly fee at all and others that charge a monthly fee but give you ways to waive it, like signing up to receive electronic statements or direct deposits.

Many free checking accounts also offer fee-free ATM use and reimbursements, free checks and free overdrafts. Some fees — even on free accounts — are unavoidable, so be sure to read the fine print when you open an account.

Avoid onerous balance requirements that force you to tie up extra cash in your checking account, and make sure that you can seamlessly get money into and out of your account in ways that fit your banking lifestyle.
Greg McBride, CFA, Bankrate chief financial analyst

Pros and cons of free checking

Before opening a free checking account, weigh the pros and cons to see if it’s the right product for you.

Pros

No monthly service fees
Direct deposit (which can help you avoid late fees on bills)
Fee-free ATMs
Potential perks such as earning interest, cash back on debit card purchases or free checks

Cons

Might not have branch access
Might not be free if you don’t meet requirements to waive a monthly fee

How to open a checking account

At an online bank, you’re almost always able to open an account online, or you may be able to apply for an account over the phone. Many brick-and-mortar banks also let you open up accounts online.

Generally, it should take under half an hour to open an account. There are some circumstances where it might take longer.

The account opening process may take longer if you have a credit freeze on your credit file, and the bank’s policy is to contact at least one credit bureau during the account-opening process. If there is a freeze on your credit in place, check with the bank before applying to see whether you need to lift the credit freeze at only one credit bureau or whether you need to do this at multiple bureaus.

What do I need to open a new checking account?

Requirements for opening an account vary from bank to bank. Here is a list of items you might need to provide or be aware of when opening a new checking account:

Your legal name
Social Security number or tax identification number
Date of birth
Occupation
Email address
Phone number
Address
Scan of your government-issued photo ID
Initial deposit (If you’re making it electronically from an existing account, you may need the routing number and account number for the account.)

Checking account fees

Many free accounts can end up costing you checking account fees if you don’t meet the bank’s requirements. Make sure you know what these rules are before opening an account.

Some fees to watch for:

Monthly service fee: Also known as a maintenance fee, you’ll usually get charged this fee if you go below a certain balance in a monthly statement period.
Overdraft fee: Transactions that cause a negative balance (i.e., withdrawing more than is deposited in the account) can trigger this fee.
Sustained overdraft fee: A fee charged after a certain period of time if your account remains negative.
ATM fees: Know what it will cost you to withdraw your money from an out-of-network ATM (and confirm what counts as in and out of network). Some banks will reimburse some or all of these fees. According to Bankrate’s 2024 checking account and ATM fee study, using an out-of-network ATM costs an average of $4.77. A customer’s bank charges an average of $1.58 and surcharges from the ATM cost customers an (additional) average of $3.19.
Paper statement fees: Many banks charge a fee to receive a paper statement in the mail.

Earning interest in a free checking account

There are free checking accounts that offer a competitive APY, but some of these accounts have requirements you need to meet to earn the rate. The requirement could be simple, like setting up a direct deposit, or it could mean more work, like making a certain number of debit card purchases a month (and tracking them to make sure you meet the minimum).

Before you get seduced by a high checking account APY, make sure the requirements needed to earn it make sense with how you bank. If you don’t use a debit card often, a 3 percent APY for making 15 debit card purchases a month doesn’t mean much.

Plus, unlike most savings accounts, a high APY at a checking account might be capped at a certain balance amount. When this is the case (or even before), make sure that any money not earning a high APY is instead working for you in a top-yielding online savings account or one of the best money market accounts.

Free checking account FAQs

Meet our Bankrate experts

Written by: Matthew Goldberg, Senior Consumer Banking Reporter

Matthew is a senior consumer banking reporter with more than two decades of journalism and financial services expertise, helping readers make informed decisions about their personal finance needs. His banking career includes being a banker in New York City and a bank officer at one of the nation's largest banks. Matthew is currently a member of the Board of Governors at the Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing (SABEW), chairing its training member engagement committee and is co-chair of its Finance Committee.

Research methodology

Bankrate researches over 100 banks, including some of the largest financial institutions, online-only banks, regional banks and credit unions with both open and restrictive membership policies.

To find the best free checking accounts, we rated these institutions on their checking account fees, minimum deposit requirements, ATM network, overdraft policies, APY offerings and more.

The checking accounts on this page are selected based on their monthly maintenance fees, fee-free ATM access, overdraft fees and Bankrate score. Only banks and credit unions with broadly available checking accounts made the list. Learn more about how we choose the best banking products and our methodology for reviewing banks.

Best free checking accounts for May 2025