Free Prepaid Credit Cards With No Fees

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It is estimated that about 40 million Americans do not have a bank account. The reasons for this vary. For many, they are unable to qualify for a bank account because of past bounced checks. Bounce too many checks, and you’ll find yourself in the Chexsystems, which many banks use to evaluate potential new banking customers. For others it’s simply a distrust of the banking system or frustration with limited hours or the hoops one has to jump through to get service.

Best Prepaid Cards

Walmart MoneyCard	No issuance fee online No credit check or bank account required No overdraft fees No minimum balance required Free Direct Deposit $10 bonus with qualifying Direct Deposit (for a limited time only) Use everywhere MasterCard debit is accepted, including shop online, pay bills, get cash at ATMs	Editor’s Choice
American Express Prepaid Card	No Monthly, Annual or Purchase Fees No Overdraft, Inactivity or Foreign Exchange Fees Purchase Protection*, Fraud Protection, Roadside Assistance* No Credit Check
UPside Prepaid Visa Most Popular	Get the UPside Visa for FREE Earn cash back points $0.99 monthly fee if you load $500 or more each month (Reg. $4.95) PIN and signature transactions are FREE Write personal checks online

Whatever the reason, the unbanked often turned to expensive check cashing stores to cash their weekly paychecks. Time Magazine wrote about this phenomenon, which costs consumers $10 billion a year in fees charged by check cashing stores, payday loan providers, and others. It’s not at all uncommon for consumers to spend 3% or more to get a paycheck cashed.

In addition to high cost, check cashing stores present several other problems to consumers. First, there is the question of security. Taking your paycheck to a check cashing store and walking out with hundreds of dollars in cash is like wearing a bulls eye on your back. Second, there is simply the question of inconvenience. The weekly trip to a check cashing store takes time and gas.

For those that can’t get a checking account or simply don’t want one, there is a no cost, convenient, and safe alternative to check cashing stores–a free prepaid credit card with no fees or low fees.

List of Free Prepaid Cards

The key to finding the right prepaid credit card is to find one that charges no fees or very small fees. All prepaid cards charge various fees, but some of them waive some or all of the fees if you sign up for direct deposit. So here are the top free prepaid cards and low fee prepaid cards to consider.

Walmart Prepaid MasterCard - Editor’s Choice

Walmart MoneyCardSM MasterCard® Prepaid Card
	No issuance fee online No credit check or bank account required No overdraft fees No minimum balance required Free Direct Deposit $10 bonus with qualifying Direct Deposit (for a limited time only) Use everywhere MasterCard debit is accepted, including shop online, pay bills, get cash at ATMs
Intro APR Intro APR Period Regular APR Annual Fee Balance Transfer Credit Needed N/A* N/A* N/A* $0.00* N/A* No Credit Check*

READYdebit

READYdebit® Visa Prepaid Card
	Instant Account Number Free Credit Score Free Direct Deposit – paycheck, benefits, tax refunds Free Unlimited Purchase Transactions. Free Online Bill Payment & Check Writing No Overdraft Fees or Balance Minimums 100% Guaranteed Approval* – No Credit Checks Choose Your Card Color – Blue or Pink
Intro APR Intro APR Period Regular APR Annual Fee Balance Transfer Credit Needed N/A* N/A* N/A* $0.00* Yes No Credit Check*

UPside Prepaid Visa

UPside Visa® Prepaid Card
	Similar to a checking account with a Visa prepaid card Save up to $220 compared with other cards, the first year alone 100% approval with no credit check and no activation fee $0.99 monthly fee if $500 is loaded each month. (Only $4.95 otherwise) Free Direct Deposit from employers or deposit cash at 50,000 retailers Write personal checks online: easy to pay rent or other bills Earn 1,500 cash back reward points for you first direct deposit load Optional companion card available, as if you had a joint checking
Intro APR Intro APR Period Regular APR Annual Fee Balance Transfer Credit Needed N/A* N/A* N/A* $0.00* N/A* No Credit Check*

American Express Prepaid Card

American Express® Prepaid Card
	The benefits of Cardmembership start here! No Monthly, Annual or Purchase Fees No Overdraft, Inactivity or Foreign Exchange Fees Purchase Protection* Fraud Protection Roadside Assistance* No Credit Check
Intro APR Intro APR Period Regular APR Annual Fee Balance Transfer Credit Needed N/A* N/A* N/A* $0.00* Yes No Credit Check*

Ace Visa Prepaid Debit Card

ACE EliteTM Visa® Prepaid Card
	A card with benefits that matter to you No credit check, No application fee, No obligation No-Fee Cash Withdrawals at ACE locations* Free Direct Deposit – Get paid up to 2 days faster, don’t stand in line or pay check cashing fees* Free Anytime AlertsTM – Get your balance and transactions via text or email* Free Savings Account – Receive 5.00% APY* Secure: Card funds are FDIC insured, backed by Visa Zero Liability*
Intro APR Intro APR Period Regular APR Annual Fee Balance Transfer Credit Needed N/A* N/A* N/A* $0.00* Yes No Credit Check*

Green Dot Prepaid MasterCard

Green Dot® PrePaid MasterCard®
	$0 Activation Online – with no credit check Access over 18,000 MoneyPass® ATMs Get a $4.95 credit on your first MoneyPak cash load (see site for restrictions) No Monthly fee for any month with at least 30 purchases No Transaction fees on US purchases No Overdraft fees No Minimum balance required
Intro APR Intro APR Period Regular APR Annual Fee Balance Transfer Credit Needed N/A* N/A* N/A* $0.00* Yes No Credit Check*

PerkStreet Cash Back Debit Visa

PerkStreet Financial(SM) MasterCard® Debit Card
	PerkStreet Financial offers up to 2% cash back on debit card purchases – one of the best debit card rewards programs! Earn 2% when your Account balance is $5k+, or earn 1% when your Account balance is less than $5k The average American will earn $600 every year in cash back No monthly maintenance fees Free online bill pay Easy electronic transfers 24/7 customer support
Intro APR Intro APR Period Regular APR Annual Fee Balance Transfer Credit Needed N/A* N/A* N/A* $0.00* Yes No Credit Check*

PayPower

PayPower
	PayPower is a Visa prepaid debit card that customers load and reload with cash and use for everyday purchases. PayPower cards can be purchased in thousands of grocery and convenience stores across the U.S. Purchase the card for $3.95 plus the load amount (cash only), then transfer the funds to the card by calling the toll free number on the back of the card, or by visiting www.paypower.com. Use PayPower anywhere Visa debit cards are accepted to shop online, pay bills and get cash at ATMs. PayPower has no additional fees for Customer Service, Direct Deposit or Alerts via email or text messages about daily balance and bill payment activity. Easily add funds to your PayPower card account by purchasing a “Reloadit Pack” available where PayPower cards are sold.
Intro APR Intro APR Period Regular APR Annual Fee Balance Transfer Credit Needed * * * See Terms* * None

Vision Premier Prepaid Visa Card

Vision Premier® Visa® Prepaid Card – Simple &amp
	New – Free Roadside Assistance New – Free Savings Account with 5.65% APY 1% Cash Back on Gas Purchases Free Direct Deposit so you can get paid faster Free Bill Pay online or over the phone Free Transactions and Customer Service No Overdraft Fees, No Interest Fees, and No Hidden Fees No Credit Check – 100% Approval
Intro APR Intro APR Period Regular APR Annual Fee Balance Transfer Credit Needed N/A* N/A* N/A* $0.00* Yes No Credit Check*

The Vision Premier Prepaid Visa Card is completely free if you sign up for direct deposit and either deposit at least $500 a month or use the card 15 times each month. For most folks, these requirements will be easy to meet. And even if you don’t, so long as you sign up for direct deposit, the weekly fee is just $0.95.

The Vision Premier card comes with basically all of the benefits you would expect from a bank:

• $0 WEEKLY FEE – with Direct Deposit!
• $0 ACTIVATION FEE – with Direct Deposit*
• Guaranteed approval† with no credit check
• FREE unlimited purchase transactions
• FREE Direct Deposit – no more check cashing fees
• FREE Account Alerts – email and/or SMS text messages
• Pay any bill: rent, cellular phone, insurance, utilities, etc.
• Load cash at over 100,000 participating retail locations
• Take Control – no late fees, no interest, no NSF fees

You can get more information about the Vision Premier Card at www.VisionPremier.com.

Vision Silver Prepaid MasterCard

While the Vision Silver prepaid card is not completely free, with direct deposit the cost is just $3.95 per month. This makes the Vision Silver card one of the least expensive prepaid cards available. And it comes with all of the features you could want:

• FREE Direct Deposit.
• No more check cashing fees!
• No credit check.
• 100% Approval.†
• Use everywhere Debit MasterCard is accepted!
• FREE unlimited purchase transactions.
• FREE account alerts – email and SMS text messages.
• Pay any bill: rent, insurance, phone, utilities.
• Load cash at more than 100,000 retail locations.
• Take control – no overdraft fees or interest charges.
• Withdraw cash at millions of ATMs.
• Low monthly fee – $3.95.

You can get more information about the card and apply online at www.VisionSilver.com

How a Prepaid Card Works

A prepaid credit card works very similar to a bank debit or ATM card. You can add money to the prepaid card and use it anywhere Visa or MasterCard debit cards are accepted. Money can be added to most prepaid cards in one of several ways:

• Direct Deposit: Most prepaid cards allow you to have your paycheck, government check, or benefits check deposited directly onto the card. As described below, the direct deposit feature is extremely convenient and allows you to obtain a prepaid card for free or for a small monthly fee.
• Cash Networks: Cash can be added to most prepaid cards through one of several cash networks, including Green Dot, MoneyGram, Western Union, or Visa Money Link. These cash networks are located at many nearby stores, such as CVS, Walmart, Kroger, and UPS.
• Money Share: Prepaid cards also permit you to transfer funds from one card account to another. This is a convenient way to transfer money to friends and family, and is why many college students carry prepaid cards.

Prepaid cards are part of either the Visa or MasterCard debit card network. As a result, prepaid cards can be used anywhere that Visa debit or MasterCard debit cards are accepted (which is just about everywhere). You can also use prepaid cards at ATM machines to withdraw cash.

Benefits of a Free Prepaid Credit Card

Prepaid credit cards offer several benefits beyond a simple ATM card. Perhaps the key benefit is direct deposit of paychecks, government checks, and benefit checks. There are several prepaid cards that will waive all fees if you have your paycheck direct deposited to the card. With direct deposit, your paycheck will be added to your card on payday. You don’t have to go to the trouble and expense of driving to a check cashing store to cash your paycheck. And the money is available immediately. If you receive a government or benefits check, you can also have it deposited directly onto prepaid cards for no fee.

There is one other important benefit to these cards–online bill pay. The top prepaid cards can be used to pay bills online. Just like a bank account, you can have funds transferred from a prepaid credit card to pay car loans, the mortgage, utilities, or just about any other monthly expense. Because of this, a no fee prepaid credit card is about as close to a bank account as you can get, without getting a bank account.

Here are some other benefits of no fee prepaid cards:

• Guaranteed Approval: Unlike a bank or traditional credit card, prepaid cards won’t check Chexsystems or your FICO credit score before approving your application. Approval is guaranteed.
• No Credit Check: Because prepaid cards do not extend credit, there is no credit check run when you apply.
• No Bounced Checks: Because the prepaid card acts as a debit card, there is no risk of overdrawing your account. With no bounced checks, there is no risk of paying a bounced check fee.
• No Over Limit Fees: Credit cards charge a hefty fee when cardholders exceed their credit limit. With prepaid cards, you can only spend what you’ve added to the card, so there is no risk of exceeding a card limit.
• Free Direct Deposit: For the prepaid cards listed below, they all offer free direct deposit of paychecks, government checks, and other benefits checks. In fact, by using direct deposit, you can get the prepaid card for no fees at all.
• No Interest Charges: Since you’re not borrowing money on a prepaid card, you never pay interest. Prepaid cards keep you from spending more than you have.
• No Fees or Low Fees: For the cards listed below, they either charge no fees if you use direct deposit, or their fees are very low (and a lot lower than using check cashing stores).
• Online Bill Pay: This is a big advantage of prepaid cards. You can use your account to transfer payments to creditors or even other cardholders. It makes paying bills easy and safe, and reduces the risk you’ll miss a payment by mistake.

We will add additional free and low cost prepaid cards as they become available. And if you know of other prepaid card offers that you think should be added to the list, please leave a comment.

Published or updated February 9, 2012.