Reloadable pre-paid debit card

General Discussion
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I am looking for a pre-paid debit card that I can re-load as needed. Does this exist, without crazy monthly fees? And does anyone use them? If yes, how do you like it?

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If you don’t mind not being able to get cash back at the register, the Bluebird card is free. It’s from Walmart and is an Amex card. You can get money out at the ATM, but at the register it runs as a credit card, so you can’t get cash back. There is no monthly fee, lots of free ATMs and no other fees. You can direct deposit to it, or load it at Walmart. You can also get family account cards. I got my kids each their own card when they were younger so I could give them lunch money while they were in high school.

You also get some benefits from it, too. My car got a flat tire and I didn’t have a spare a few years back. I had roadside assistance thru the Bluebird card and it only cost me like $78 to tow my car across down to my Aunt’s house.

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Great, thank you @jeremym. I want to give it to my kids, so I’m glad to hear that it worked for you. I’ll check it out at WalMart this week.

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Hi Kelly - If having a bank account is no issue. I would suggest Chime Bank. You get a bank visa debit card. Then you can get a card for your children but here is why I am suggesting Chime. You can control your children’s spending because you are able to transfer money to the card your child has immediately. I have had Chime Visa Debit card for about 2 years and transfer money back & forth for certain projects and goals. I load the funds at Walmart and there is a fee around $3.75 for about $1000 to load on the card. You would only have to load your card not your kids because you can make the transfer. I also like it because it allows me to go about without a large sum of cash money on me sort of using it as an emergency cash back-up plan. To find out more info on Chime it’s https://chimebank.com. I also have the Bluebird Card @jeremym mentioned but I rarely use it and I did get it for all the reasons you stated above. I hope this has helped

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I use the Paypal card, you can add money at stores or deposit check via their app. There isn’t any fees.

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Cashapp is good. Downside is you reload it by using ur debit card or checking account. The only fee you have is if you transfer money back to your checking account. You can remove your card or bank info after you add money.

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Thanks everyone for your suggestions! I have a few to look into now.

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Check with your local credit union to see what they have to offer. I currently have a pre-paid Visa through my credit union for my daughter and it only cost $1.00 each time I add money to the card.

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I actually have the paypal debit card, bluebird, and chime. chime gets our regular deposits, paypal gets my side gig money, and bluebird use to be my main one but not everyone excepts amex so it’s just a back up now. also, there is credit karma, acorns, and stash (I also have acorns & stash, but not as debit card accounts, though that is available. i dont want regular access to these 2 so they can help me save through the year.)

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CLANG, I just got the PayPal Debit Card and would like to know how you load it at stores. Can you tell me about it? Which stores?

Thank you.

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There are several ways that you can add money to your PayPal Prepaid MasterCard:

  1. Direct Deposit: Direct deposit is the easy and free way to add all or part of your pay check or government payment to a PayPal Prepaid Card. You must enroll in direct deposit in order for your card account to receive these electronic deposits. LEARN MORE
  2. NetSpend Reload Network: Our reload network is nationwide. There are more than 100,000 convenient locations where you can add money to your card account. It’s easy to find the locations nearest to you:
    1. When you enroll in our real-time alerts service, just text your ZIP code to 22622 and we’ll instantaneously respond with the nearest location (text messages are subject to fees charged by your carrier).
    2. Visit www.PayPal.com/prepaid and use our RELOAD CENTER LOCATOR. There is no fee to use this online locator service.
  3. Bank Transfers: If your PayPal Prepaid Card account is linked to your PayPal Account, you can add money from virtually any U.S. bank account. If you have a checking or savings account, or a bank debit card, use it to add money to your PayPal Prepaid Card account. This service is an online service only.
  4. Tax Refunds: Tell the Internal Revenue Service, and your state and local tax authority to electronically deposit your refund to your PayPal Prepaid Card account. Shorten the waiting time even more by e-filing your tax returns. LEARN MORE
  5. Reload Packs: This method of value loading is convenient when you don’t have your card with you. Reload Packs are available at many retail locations. Visit www.PayPal.com/prepaid and use our RELOAD CENTER LOCATOR to find those locations. There is no fee to use this online locator service.
  6. You can have friends/ family send you money to your PayPal.

You can locate this information under the FAQ section on https://www.paypal-prepaid.com/. Hopefully this helps!