Are you considering a Green Dot prepaid card? Here’s everything you should know about prepaid debit card kits – their costs, pros and cons – available from the company that invented them.
If taking control of your finances is one of your goals this year, a prepaid card can help you get it off your to-do list as quickly as possible.
Prepaid cards — which work like traditional debit cards but aren’t tied to a bank account — can be an important money-management tool for anyone who needs help sticking to a budget or wants to avoid credit card debt. They may also be especially valuable to the millions of unbanked and unbanked individuals who do not have access to mainstream financial institutions
Prepaid cards existed in some form long before the short-lived Kardashians made waves in 2010. Gift certificates, the precursor to gift cards, have been around since the 1930s, and upscale retailer Neiman Marcus began selling them to some customers in 1994. But it wasn’t until a few years later that Green Dot first introduced a rechargeable, all-purpose prepaid debit card to the general public.
What is a green dot?
Founded in 1999, Green Dot is one of the largest providers of prepaid debit cards in the United States. The fintech has since expanded to provide payment processing and other services for global brands such as Apple, Walmart, Intuit, Uber Technologies and Amazon. Green Dot recently launched GO2bank, the second iteration of its consumer mobile banking service.
How do prepaid cards with green dots work?
As mentioned above, the Green Dot Card works like a debit card, without the need for an existing bank account. In other words, you can use your Green Dot prepaid card to pay bills, shop online, withdraw money from ATMs, cash checks, and more.
Green Dot’s mobile app also lets you enjoy some of the same benefits as regular bank cards, including direct deposit, money transfer, lock/unlock protection, customizable account notifications, tap to pay (if offered), and mobile wallet compatibility.
Since you won’t withdraw money from your bank account or use your Green Dot card to get a line of credit, your spending limit is limited to the amount you’ve deposited. Once used up, you will not be able to make any further purchases until you top up your balance. This built-in spending control is one of the greatest advantages of prepaid cards, as it essentially prevents you from incurring overdraft fees or accumulating credit card debt.
According to the April 2019 Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, once registered, your Green Dot card will include federal deposit insurance from the issuing bank (in this case Green Dot Bank) and protection against loss, theft and fraud protection of.
Fees and Restrictions
Because the Green Dot prepaid debit card doesn’t require a bank account or credit check, there are few ownership restrictions: Most people over 18 can qualify.
However, after purchasing a GreenDot card (from any of the more than 90,000 partner merchants nationwide), you’ll need to provide your name, address, date of birth, social security number, phone number, and anything else Green Dot needs to get you information to verify identity. (This may include uploading a copy of your government-issued ID, such as a driver’s license.)
Otherwise, you won’t be able to fully access the card’s functionality, or you won’t be able to reload, which means that once your first deposit is fully spent, the card itself won’t work.
Despite the increasing popularity of prepaid cards, they also have some disadvantages, such as: B. Fees can be high. Green Dot fees vary by card, but in addition to upfront fees, you may also be charged a monthly maintenance fee, as well as cash deposits, ATM withdrawals and balance inquiries, account inactivity, and card replacement fees.
Add money to the green dot card
There are six ways to top up your GreenDot Card. You must make an initial deposit (between $20 and $500) at the time of purchase, after which you can set up free direct deposit with your employer, transfer money from external bank accounts, deposit cash at participating retailers, and Deposit cash checks via the mobile app.
A major benefit of the GreenDot card is that when you sign up for direct deposit, you can get paid two days faster than with a paper check. (This benefit is common to prepaid cards, including those issued by Netspend.) Also, certain government benefits, such as Common.
In other cases, the availability of funds depends on the type of deposit and when it was received. For example, cash deposits at participating retailers are typically available within 10 minutes of a Green Dot report, while you may have to wait up to five business days for withdrawals from mobile check deposits.
Advantage and Disadvantage of Green Dot Prepaid Cards
Advantage
- Deposit, pay bills and shop like a traditional bank account
- Certain monthly fees do not apply to direct deposit
- Receive direct deposit two days or more in advance
- Available overdraft protection up to $200
Disadvantage
- The cost of purchasing some maps
- Inactivity fees may apply if you do not use the card
- Direct deposit required to waive fees
- ATM fees up to $3
Green Dot Graph Overview
Green Dot’s in-store prepaid debit card options include Visa® Debit Card, Cash Back Visa® Debit Card, and Pay-As-You-Go Visa® Debit Card. Here’s what everyone has to offer and what you can expect to pay.
Visa debit card with green dot
The prepaid Green Dot Visa® debit card may have more in common with traditional debit cards than the company’s other products. In addition to all of the above features, Visa debit cards provide access to Green Dot’s Money Vault, which allows you to set aside cash for things like special purchases, dream vacations, or an emergency savings fund (or any other purpose). Once transferred to the vault, funds cannot be used for purchases or ATM withdrawals until you transfer them back to your card.
As a Green Dot Visa debit card customer, you don’t have to pay wire transfer fees (though other banks may charge you) and save $7.95 in monthly maintenance fees if you’ve made a direct deposit of $500 or more in the last month . Unfortunately, these are the costs you can’t escape:
- ATM withdrawals: $3 per transaction
- Withdrawals over the counter: $3 per transaction
- ATM balance inquiry: $0.50
- Replacement card: $5
- Paper checks: $5.95 per pack of 12
Green Dot Cash Back Visa Debit Card
The Green Dot Cash Back Visa® Debit Card is similar to a regular Visa debit card with some key differences: As a prepaid cash back debit card, you can earn 2% cash back on mobile and online purchases, with no cap, and Free Savings account credit line up to $10,000 with current 2% APR. Cardholders can also make free withdrawals from ATMs on the web and receive free cash deposits at participating retailers.
However, you cannot use this card to access Green Dot’s Money Vault service. There’s also no way to waive the monthly maintenance fee — that’s a whopping $9.95, or two dollars more than what you’d pay for a Visa debit card. Other fees associated with the Green Dot Cash Back Visa Debit Card include:
- Off-net ATM withdrawals: $3 per transaction
- Off-net ATM balance inquiry: $0.50
- Withdrawals over the counter: $3 per transaction
- Replacement card: $5
- Paper checks: $5.95 per pack of 12
Green Dot Pay-As-You-Go Visa Debit Card
If you don’t want to incur ongoing monthly fees, the flexibility of Green Dot’s Pay-As-You-Go Visa® Debit Card may be attractive. Pay As You Go cardholders pay $1.50 per transaction instead of a monthly maintenance fee. While this type of fee structure can add up quickly, the trade-off may be worthwhile for someone who wants to use a prepaid card to pay for their spending in certain shopping categories, such as shopping. B. Food should be controlled. This map retains many of the same features as other Green Dot maps, such as: B. Free bank transfers, free direct deposit and the option to use the currency safe.
Other pay-as-you-go Visa debit card fees include:
- ATM withdrawals: $3 per transaction
- Withdrawals over the counter: $3 per transaction
- ATM balance inquiry: $0.50
- Replacement card: $5
- Paper checks: $5.95 per pack of 12
- Inactivity fee: $9.95
Should You Get a Green Dot Prepaid Card?
Prepaid debit cards are not for everyone. For example, if building credit is one of your financial goals, then a prepaid card won’t help. Depending on which Green Dot card you want, the fees may end up outweighing any benefits it offers, including helping you stay on a budget or avoid debt.
But if you’re having trouble accessing affordable financial services, are concerned about your privacy or the security of a traditional debit card, or are concerned that the temptation to use a credit card might be overwhelming, then a prepaid debit card might be what you need. And what could be better than that of the company that invented it?
Bottom line
Green Dot offers four different prepaid debit cards to meet the needs of the unbanked. Its cards offer many of the benefits you get from a traditional bank account, such as: B. Mobile check deposits, online bill payment, and more.
You can choose from cards with no monthly fees (or fees that can easily be waived), cash back bonuses, and free ATM withdrawals across the network. Before choosing the Green Dot debit card that’s right for you, compare the features and fees of each card.
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