Chime Review: Is It a Real Bank and Worth It?
- Simple online banking
- Automated savings
- Building credit
Digital-first services are more than the wave of the future. The convenience of a smooth online experience is becoming the standard — including with our money management and banking.
One of the earliest players and a leading company in the branchless banking game is Chime®, a financial technology company that was founded in 2013.
Although it’s not a bank, Chime offers many of the most important features of a traditional deposit account with a much leaner fee schedule — and even has a savings account option that bears a higher interest rate than a typical savings account.
Is Chime a Real Bank? FDIC Coverage & Banking Partners
Chime is a financial technology company (sometimes called fintech) so it is not a bank. It does, however, offer banking services like checking and savings accounts through partners Bancorp Bank and Stride Bank. Chime itself is not FDIC insured, but its partner banks are.
What Accounts and Features Does Chime Offer?
Chime doesn’t have a crazy amount of banking products, but it does have checking and savings accounts. The checking account comes with a Chime Visa Debit Card, and the optional savings account has an APY of 1.25%. You can also apply for a Chime Credit Builder Visa® Credit Card if you have a checking account with them.
You automatically get access to the benefits of Chime+ with a qualifying direct deposit of $200 or more. These benefits include MyPay, which allows you to get $500 of your paycheck before payday, and SpotMe, which lets you overdraft by $200 without fees. All Chime accounts come with access to 50,000+ free-free ATMs and the ability to bank online with no monthly fees.
Chime also offers early paycheck access. As long as you’re signed up for direct deposit, you can get your money up to two days earlier than with traditional banks.
How Chime Works: Checking, Savings & Credit Builder
Getting started with Chime means getting a checking account with them, which is free. You can apply in a few minutes, download the app then make online purchases with your virtual debit card while you wait for the physical one in the mail.
Once you have the checking account, then you can get the optional savings account (or sign up for both at the same time when you enroll).
A couple features are designed to get you on the fast track to meeting your savings goals. You can automatically transfer a percentage of your paycheck to your savings account. You can also opt into Round Ups, which rounds up the purchases from your debit card to the nearest dollar, and the difference will go to your high-yield savings account.
If you want to focus on building credit, the Chime Credit Builder Visa® Credit Card can help you do so safely because it has no annual fee or interest and it doesn’t require a credit check. You move money from your checking account to the card, and that’s the amount you can spend with that card. Then the Safer Credit Building feature allows you to automatically pay your balance on time. That gets reported to major credit bureaus and can potentially boost your credit score.
What Are the Pros of Using Chime?
Here are some reasons why you might consider Chime for your banking needs.
- Fee-free banking (no monthly or overdraft fees).
- Early payday access.
- User-friendly mobile app.
- Free ATM network and SpotMe overdraft feature, which allows you to overdraft by $200 without fees.
What Are the Cons of Using Chime?
These are some potential drawbacks of banking with Chime:
- No physical branch locations.
- Reports of account closures with minimal notice.
- Digital first means limited customer service options.
- Restrictions on cash deposits.
Is Chime Safe, and How Secure Is Your Money?
FDIC coverage is a big deal when it comes to the safety of your money. Even though Chime is not covered, its partner banks are covered. So your money is safe in that regard.
Chime also says customers can feel safe using its app because it uses, “128-bit AES encryption, access control and security processes.” That all simply means it protects sensitive information and data from unauthorized access. And if you do see an unauthorized charge, you can disable transactions quickly through the app until you get it sorted out.
It is important to note past complaints about Chime. In 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau took action against them after customers complained Chime closed their accounts and did not refund their money in a timely manner. Chime said most of the delays were because of a “configuration error,” but it had to pay a total of $4.55 million in compensation and penalties.
Chime Fees & Limits: What You Should Know
One of the biggest selling points of Chime is you won’t get bombarded with fees. There are no monthly, transfer, foreign transaction or overdraft fees. However, there are fees for using an out-of-network ATM, doing an over-the-counter withdrawal and or getting instant funds through MyPay. There are more than 50,000 ATMs in its network, so it shouldn’t be too tough to find one. But if you can’t you will pay a fee.
There also are limits with cash deposits. You can make up to three deposits every 24 hours totaling no more than $1,000, and there’s a cap of up to $10,000 a month.
How Chime Compares to Other Banks
Comparison at a Glance
| Company | Key Features | Fees | App Rating on Apple & Google Play |
|---|---|---|---|
Chime |
Checking, savings, secured credit card |
ATM out-of-network fee |
4.8, 4.7 |
SoFi |
Checking, savings, investment products |
Transaction fee |
4.8,4.5 |
Varo |
Checking, savings, credit builder card |
ATM out-of-network fee |
4.9,4.7 |
Current |
Checking, savings, credit builder card, crypto |
ATM out-of-network fee, foreign transaction fee |
4.8,4.5 |
Final Verdict: Who Should Use Chime?
If your needs are a little more complex or you need to be able to have a joint account, you’ll want to look elsewhere. However, if you’re just looking for the basics, Chime could be a good choice for you. It’s also ideal for users who prefer the digital-first experience and won’t mind the fact that there’s no physical locations. It’s especially helpful for people trying to escape typical bank fees. If you’re interested, sign up here.
FAQs About Chime
Chime does not charge: monthly, transfer, foreign transaction or overdraft fees. If you don’t have enough funds in your checking account or you reached the limit for SpotMe, your card will simply be declined.
There is, however, a $2.50 fee for an over-the-counter withdrawal or for using an out-of-network ATM. There’s also a $2 fee to get instant funds through MyPay.
While Chime itself is not, its partner banks Bancorp Bank and Stride Bank are FDIC insured up to $250,000 per depositor.
It can. It typically would do so because of something like suspicious activity, inactivity or a violation of terms.
There have been reports of Chime closing accounts, and it even faced legal action from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau because it did not give people their money back in a timely manner.
The best way to prevent this is to watch your accounts closely and have alternative banking options.
No, there are no physical branches for Chime. It’s an online-only financial technology company.
You can deposit cash at retailers such as Walmart, Walgreens, CVS, Dollar General and more. Depending on where you deposit the cash, you could face associated fees and limits on deposits (both amount and frequency).
Yes, its Chime Credit Builder Visa® Credit Card is designed to make positive impacts on your credit. It has no annual fee or interest, no minimum security deposit and there’s no credit check required to open one. You move money from your checking account to the card, and that’s the amount you can spend with that card. Then the Safer Credit Building will automatically pay your balance on time. That gets reported to major credit bureaus and can potentially boost your credit score.
Dana Miranda’s reporting contributed to this post.
