1. Home
  2. More
  3. Bank Fees Are Rising — Here’s How to Escape Them
  • Sign up
  • Sign in
Money Talks News
  • Popular
  • Latest
    • Coronavirus
    • Ask Stacy
    • Make
    • Save
    • Borrow
    • Grow
    • Live
    • More
  • Deals
    • Automotive
    • Clothing & Accessories
    • Computers
    • Electronics
    • Everything Else
    • Financial Services
    • Gaming & Toys
    • Health & Beauty
    • Home & Garden
    • Movies, Music & Books
    • Office & Supplies
    • Special Occasion
    • Sports & Fitness
    • Store Events
    • Travel & Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Solutions
  • Academy
  • Subscribe to our newsletter
  • Follow us on Facebook
  • Follow us on Twitter
  • Search our site
10 Secret Ways Americans Build Wealth10 Secret Ways Americans Build Wealth
Happy female driver17 Products to Keep Your Car Clean and Organized
unhappy shocked older couple10 Things That Can Ding Your Social Security Payments
Excited man holding money119 Strangers to Inherit $11 Million From Chicago Man

Bank Fees Are Rising — Here’s How to Escape Them

Still paying banking fees? A survey shows that you are not alone. Find out how to to lower fees quickly.

Advertising Disclosure: When you buy something by clicking links on our site, we may earn a small commission, but it never affects the products or services we recommend.

Karla Bowsher • March 17, 2015

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share by Email Printable version available to members PDF version available to members
Image Not Available

Banking fees are not only getting steeper, they are getting harder to avoid.

The only type of fee that decreased recently, overdraft fees, dropped by a whopping 1 cent. They now average $32.47 per overdraft occurrence.

Those are some of the findings of the latest MoneyRates.com Bank Fees Survey. Fortunately, the findings also suggest it is still possible to avoid checking account and ATM fees, even if the options for doing so are fewer.

But first, the depressing details of the survey, which MoneyRates conducts semiannually. The latest results are for the second half of 2014 and include:

  • Maintenance fees increased: The average of $12.87 per month is up by 18 cents compared to the first half of 2014. That’s $155.44 per year.
  • Maintenance fees were more common: Now, 74 percent of checking accounts are charged maintenance fees, which is up by 2 percent compared to the prior six months.
  • Minimum account balances increased: For a checking account to qualify for a maintenance fee waiver, the required minimum account balance now averages $5,708.76 — which is up by $268.76.
  • ATM fees increased: For customers who use an out-of-network ATM, the fee averages $1.61, up by 9 cents. For non-customers using an ATM, it’s $2.65, up by 14 cents.

So what is a customer to do?

Switch to an online bank

This could eliminate bank fees, as the study found that 63 percent of online checking accounts have no monthly fees, versus 24 percent of traditional accounts.

Even if online banking doesn’t eliminate bank fees for you, the fees typically are less than those of a traditional bank.

The study found that online banks generally have lower overdraft fees (averaging $30.18 versus $32.73 for traditional banks) and lower ATM fees (averaging 22 cents versus $1.75 for customers who use out-of-network ATMs, and $2 versus $2.67 for non-customers who use ATMs).

To learn more, check out Can An Online Only Bank Meet All of Your Banking Needs? and 5 Reasons To Move To A Web-Only Bank — And 3 Reasons You Might Not Want To.

If you decide against an online bank, consider switching to a credit union instead. Here are 9 Reasons To Love Credit Unions (And Not Big Banks).

Speaking of which…

Avoid big banks

Online banks can afford to offer lower fees — not to mention higher interest rates — because of their low overhead. Big banks are essentially the opposite.

“In general, the banks that have attracted the most deposits have the most expensive checking accounts,” MoneyRates states. “Large banks are much less likely to offer free checking than small- and medium-sized banks, and among those that do charge monthly maintenance fees, these fees are significantly more expensive at large banks.”

According to the National Information Center, the largest banks by assets are:

  1. JPMorgan Chase
  2. Bank of America
  3. CitiGroup
  4. Wells Fargo
  5. Goldman Sachs
  6. Morgan Stanley
  7. General Electric Capital Corp.
  8. U.S. Bankcorp
  9. Bank of New York Mellon
  10. PNC Financial Services Group

Don’t stop there

Money Talks News offers additional advice that can help you save.

For more tips, check out How To Get Credit Card And Bank Fees Reversed and the following video from Banking Fees Are Killing You. Here Are 14 Ways To Dodge Them .

Then tell us what kind of bank you use and what kind of fees you pay — or hopefully don’t pay — by leaving a comment below or on our Facebook page.

  Like Article   Add a Comment

Sign up for our free newsletter!

Simple ways to make, save, and grow your money daily:

  happy subscribers    
MTN Podcasts

Every week our podcasts bring you lively money discussions that will give you a few laughs along with advice that will make you richer.

Money with Stacy Johnson

Listen/Subscribe

Read Next

Some of our favorite stories for you to read next.

Frustrated woman with credit card on laptop
7 Credit Card Debt Mistakes to Avoid
Sign up for our free newsletter!

Join our many free newsletter subscribers building wealth and destroying debt:

Popular Topics
  • Retirement Investment
  • Surveys for Money
  • How to Make Money Online
  • Emergency Stockpile
  • Free Movie Streaming
  • Senior Discounts
Connect
  • Support & FAQs
  • Memberships
  • About
  • Contact
  • Careers
  • Accessibility Statement
Media
  • Television
  • Where We Air
  • Scripts
  • Sitemap
Legal
  • Terms
  • Privacy
  • Cookies
Editorial
  • Fact-Checking Policy
  • Ethics Policy
  • Corrections Policy
  • Ownership & Funding Info

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

© 2023 Money Talks News. All Rights Reserved.
‭1 (833) 669-8557 | 1732 1st Ave #26661, New York, NY 10128

Advertising Disclosure: This site may be compensated in exchange for featured placement of certain sponsored products and services, or your clicking on links posted on this website.

Add a Comment

Our Policy: We welcome relevant and respectful comments in order to foster healthy and informative discussions. All other comments may be removed. Comments with links are automatically held for moderation.

Cookie Notice

Our website uses cookies to ensure you get the best browsing experience. By using our website, you agree to our use of cookies. Visit our Cookie Policy and Privacy Policy to learn more.

Sign up for our free newsletter!

Join our happy subscribers and sign up for our free newsletter! You'll get:

  • Tips and advice from our expert money reporters. (Our average experience is 18 years!)
  • Unexpected ways to make more and spend less, delivered to you daily.
  • The best deals and coupons to save on everything you buy.