An overdraft fee is often one of the most expensive fees from a bank, but not all charge the same amount. And some banks don’t even have an overdraft fee.
When a transaction drops your checking account balance below zero, a bank or credit union will choose to reject or cover the transaction. You may be charged fees in either case. The charge for a rejected transaction or check is known as a nonsufficient funds fee, while the charge for an approved transaction is called an overdraft fee. Some banks charge multiple nonsufficient funds or overdraft fees per day if you make many transactions with a negative balance, meaning you could owe hundreds of dollars in penalties.
You can read our explainer on how to avoid overdraft fees. As a rule of thumb, it’s best not to opt in to overdraft coverage for ATM or one-time debit card transactions if you think you will have issues with overdrafts. When you opt out, the negative debit or ATM transaction will be declined and you won’t be charged a fee.
Banks with low or no overdraft fees
| Simple
Simple has no overdraft program, no overdraft fees and no insufficient funds charges. The fee-free bank is mobile-optimized and helps curb overspending with its Safe-to-Spend balance, which excludes scheduled bills and savings goals from your available balance.
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| Chime
Chime, another nontraditional bank, doesn’t let you overdraw your account; it has no overdraft or nonsufficient funds fees. Instead, any payments or withdrawals that would result in a negative balance are rejected. It also has an early direct deposit program, so you can get your paycheck up to two days early.
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Capital One 360
Capital One 360 lets you opt into an overdraft line of credit with a variable rate and no annual or sign-up fee. You only pay interest on the overdrawn amount, no fixed fee. There are other options too: free overdraft protection transfers from a linked Capital One 360 savings account, and more conventional overdraft coverage at $35 per charge, which has a one business day grace period. If you don’t opt into these services, your transactions will be declined by the bank, free of charge except a $9 fee for any returned checks.
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| Discover Bank
With Discover, you can link a qualifying savings or money market account for free transfers if you don’t have enough cash in your checking account. Otherwise, the bank charges a $30 fee for insufficient funds a maximum of once per day, a lower limit than many banks.
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| TIAA Bank
The online financial institution TIAA has a free overdraft protection transfer service from a linked account. Outside of this, you’d pay a $30 nonsufficient funds fee for each declined transaction, up to two per day, except for one-time debit card and ATM transactions.
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Charles Schwab
This investment brokerage’s Schwab checking account doesn’t have fees for overdraft protection services. When you overdraft with your debit card, Schwab automatically pulls money from your linked Schwab One brokerage account or your Schwab savings account for free. If funds are not available, each transaction will trigger a $25 nonsufficient funds fee, up to $100 a day.
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Overdraft fees by bank
| Financial institution | Overdraft coverage fee (per item) | Max fees per day | Total possible cost in a day (excludes extended overdraft fees) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alliant Credit Union | $28 | Unlimited | No limit |
| Ally Bank | $25 | 1 | $25 |
| Associated Bank | $35 | 4 | $140 |
| Bank of America | $35 | 4 | $140 |
BB&T | $36 | 6 | $216 |
| BBVA Compass | $38 ($32 in Calif.) | 6 | $228 ($192) |
BMO Harris Bank | $36 | 4 | $144 |
| Boeing Employees Credit Union | $25 | Generally 5, may be higher with transactions involving BECU loan payments | Generally, $125, may be higher with transactions involving BECU loan payments |
| Chase | $34 | 3 | $102 |
| Citibank | $34 | 4 | $136 |
| Citizens Bank | $35 | 7 | $245 |
Comerica | Up to $38 | 5 | Up to $190 |
| Connexus Credit Union | $29.95 | No maximum number; up to $300 negative balance | No limit |
| Consumers Credit Union | $30 | No maximum number | No limit |
| Fifth Third Bank | $37 | 5 | $185 |
| HSBC Bank | $35 | 3 | $105 |
| KeyBank | $39 | 5 | $195 |
| M&T Bank | $38.50 | 5 | $192.50 |
| Navy Federal Credit Union | $20 | 3 | $60 |
| PNC Bank | $36 | 4 | $144 |
| Regions Bank | $36 | 6 | $216 |
| Santander Bank | $35 | 6 | $210 |
SunTrust | $36 | 6 | $216 |
| TD Bank | $35 | 5 | $175 |
| Union Bank | $33 | 5 | $165 |
| USAA | $25 | 2 | $50 |
| U.S. Bank | $36 | 4 | $144 |
| Wells Fargo | $35 | 3 | $105 |
Some banks don’t charge overdraft fees if an account is overdrawn by $5 or less at the end of the business day. So if you buy a $6 sandwich with $2 in your account, you would be exempt from a fee.
Overdraft protection
Outside of the banks without any overdraft coverage fees, you can generally find a cheaper option with overdraft protection transfers.
These are opt-in programs that link a second account to your checking account. An overdraft would trigger a transfer from the second account to cover the transaction. The linked account can be a savings account, credit card, line of credit or even another checking account, depending on the bank’s policy. The cost of this transfer is around $10 or $12, though it can be cheaper. Sometimes the service is even free.
» Looking for a savings account with low fees and good rates? Read NerdWallet’s list of best savings accounts.
How to get overdraft fees waived
Some banks and credit unions that charge overdraft fees will waive the first penalty. Other institutions have once-a-year fee forgiveness programs for customers in good standing. If you received an overdraft fee, but don’t have a history of negative transactions, contact your bank’s customer service department and ask if they will waive it.
Overdraft fees, especially from overdraft coverage, are some of the steepest fees that banks charge. Knowing these fees might help you consider opting out of the programs or find cheaper overdraft alternatives that your bank offers.
» Want to learn more? Read NerdWallet’s explainer on overdraft fees for more on overdraft programs.
