Chime is a digital platform designed to make your daily financial life easier. The creators of Chime aim to make money management more straightforward for their users by offering a variety of well-designed features and options.
The following article is a Chime review that provides a comprehensive rundown of what Chime has to offer. We’ll also be answering the internet’s most frequently asked questions about Chime.
Table of Contents
Chime Review – What Does Chime Offer?
Chime’s two primary types of accounts are the Chime Spending Account and the Chime Savings Account.
Chime Spending Account
The Chime Spending Account doesn’t charge any fees or have a minimum balance requirement — which are two very welcome omissions for Chime users. In addition, Chime has a program that makes direct deposit access faster, enabling you to access your funds up to two days early.
Another potentially useful feature offered with the Chime Spending Account is known as SpotMe. By signing up for this service, eligible Chime users can overdraw their account by as much as $20 initially and eventually up to $100, depending on account history and meeting certain direct deposit conditions.
This is all without the fear of getting hit with multiple overdraft fees. SpotMe limits can be checked via the Chime app.
Chime Savings Account
The other main account offered by Chime is their savings account, which offers users a 0.5% APY on their money. Once again, there are no monthly fees associated with the account, and no minimum balance is required to use it.
Annual interest with Chime’s Savings Account isn’t capped and will be paid out as long as there are funds in the account. There isn’t a minimum deposit fee either — all you need is a Chime Spending Account, and you can easily open up a Chime Savings Account.
Chime’s Other Features
Along with their two primary accounts, Chime has a Credit Builder credit card that does not require a credit check to get, which makes it great for someone who’s never had a credit card before, like a college student or someone who’s looking to repair their credit score.
You’ll have to transfer funds from your Chime Spending Account to the card before you can use it, as that’s what sets your spending limit. Even so, it’s a great way to build up your credit score and establish a credit history so that you can apply for other cards later on. And this Chime card comes with a 0% APR!
Chime’s Pay Friends feature allows users to make free payments each month. These payments can be made using a mobile phone and carry a limit of $2,000 per month, which resets at the start of the next month.
Saving Money With Chime
Chime helps you save money with two helpful programs: Save When You Spend and Save When I Get Paid.
Save When You Spend
This Chime feature allows users to make a small contribution to their savings account each time they purchase with their Chime debit card.
The cost of a purchase is rounded to the nearest dollar with the excess deposited in your Chime account. These small savings can quickly add up and are a great incentive to use the Chime debit card and pair it with the Chime Savings Account.
Save When I Get Paid
This Chime feature can make adding to your savings even easier by transferring a set percentage of your paycheck directly into your Savings Account. This takes the effort out of manually moving your money over and keeps your savings growing automatically.
The best part is it comes out of your paycheck before it hits your Chime checking account, which means you’ll never feel like you’re missing money!
Where Is Chime Available?
Chime is available to residents in the United States. However, you can use your Chime Cards in other countries. The Chime Visa Debit Card can be used in any country that accepts Visa.
The Chime will not charge you a fee for international transactions, which can greatly benefit you when traveling in other countries.
To use your Chime card in other countries, you first need to have International Transactions turned on. You can find this option in settings on the website or in the Chime app.
It is important to note that Chimes fee-free ATM network only covers ATMs within the United States. If you use any international ATMs, your card will be charged an ATM fee.
Does Chime Charge Fees?
Unlike many other online banks, Chime does not charge monthly fees or overdraft fees. There is also no requirement to have a minimum balance in your account. However, there may be some transactions that will incur a fee, such as:
- Cash Withdrawals – If you withdraw money over the counter (OTC), you will be charged $2.50 per transaction.
- ATM Withdrawals – Any withdrawals made at an ATM that isn’t owned by Chime, or a fee-free network, can incur a fee even for a balance inquiry. The transaction fee is assessed by the third-party operator rather than by Chime.
- Money Transfers – If you transfer money into your Chime Spending Account from a third-party money transfer service, then the service company may impose its own fees.
- International Transactions – Chime does not charge any fee for international transactions. ATMs that use the Visa network are free for Chime cardholders. However, transactions that are not part of the Visa network may incur a transaction fee.
Chime Review Conclusion
The Chime review is in — anyone looking for a free-to-use checking account and debit card should highly consider what Chime has to offer. Using Chime is a terrific alternative to traditional checking and savings accounts due to their helpful features like Save When You Spend and SpotMe, as well as their excellent, user-friendly Chime app.
There are plenty of other useful Chime features and tools to take advantage of when using Chime, and few other personal finance platforms can rival its quality and ease of use.
FAQ About Chime
Here are some of the most frequently asked questions regarding Chime.
Can You Trust Chime?
Chime is a reliable personal finance platform that you can trust to manage your money, as millions of users do daily. With the Chime app, you can enable push notifications to let you know your daily account balance and transaction alerts every time you spend using Chime.
Transactions can also be disabled directly from the Chime app should you need to do so, like if you suspect there may be fraudulent activity on your account.
Chime has positive reviews on review aggregator sites like Trustpilot, the Google Play Store, and the Apple Store. Among other things, Chime’s customer service, functional layout, painless transactions, and reliability have all been commended in various user reviews across the internet.
Is Chime A Legit Bank?
Chime’s debit cards work reliably anywhere a Visa card is accepted, so there’s no need to stress about its legitimacy. It can also be linked with Apple Pay or Google Pay for ease of use.
Countless personal reviews verify Chime’s legitimacy, with many of them expressing their happiness with the app over several years of use.
Chime is associated with reputable financial bodies and must pass strict regulations to operate alongside these bodies. While Chime is not a bank, it does have banking services offered through its partners: Stride Bank and The Bancorp Bank. Both of these banks allow all Chime accounts to be FDIC insured.
Can You Get Scammed On Chime?
If anyone steals your Chime debit card and begins making any unauthorized purchases, you’ll be covered by Visa’s Zero Liability Policy. This means you wouldn’t be liable for any fraudulent spending, and your money with Chime will be returned to your account once the charges have been reviewed.
The biggest risk of getting scammed when using any financial app is due to user error such as choosing weak passwords or unknowingly sharing your account or card details. Always make sure to read up on the best safety practices to protect yourself and your money online.
Is Chime Safe?
Chime takes its customers’ safety seriously — as is clear by the numerous security measures they’ve put in place. You will need to be older than eighteen and a U.S. resident/citizen to open a Chime account.
You would also need to provide your social security number and potentially other personal information necessary to verify your identity.
Any personal details or financial data provided to Chime are encrypted to keep your information safe. This means that third parties and potential hackers would not be able to access your information for whatever reason they would want to — be it to sell your data to other companies, to steal your Chime account information, or as a way to commit identity theft.
Is Chime FDIC Insured?
Yes, every Chime account is FDIC insured through their two partner banks. This insurance covers up to $250,000 per user in the event of Chime’s failure and protects your funds should something go wrong that falls outside of your control. Chime users can have peace of mind in the knowledge that a reputable and trustworthy financial body has got their back.
Which Are Chime Alternatives?
For best Chime alternatives, I suggest you check Wise review, Revolut review, and Payoneer review.
| AUTHOR BIO:
Pat is a digital content specialist. Pat loves to write about banking, budgeting, and tips for saving money. |
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