The Best Checking Account for U.S. Travelers

Sorry International readers, this post is specific to United States Citizens.

As a United States Citizen on the road you are at a unique advantage to avoid pesky foreign transaction and ATM fees. It’s much more simple than you could imagine as well.

Fortunately for us, there’s several ways to achieve this with different account and card combinations. Nerdwallet does a pretty great job of breaking down accounts and available to you. You can find more information on their website here.

Personally, I use a mixture of a Charles Schwab Investor Checking Account to avoid all annoying fees when it comes to checking accounts. With this account you can truly ensure you don’t spend any extra money on transactions around the world.

Mok Fa Waterfall on the way to Pai, Thailand

Having the right accounts for travel can make everything much more affordable. For instance, withdrawing cash can cost you anywhere from $5-15 depending on the local ATM fee in addition to your bank’s fees at home. That’s anywhere from $260-$780 per year if you’re a long term traveler.

Here’s how it works. Charles Schwab doesn’t actually have any of their own ATM’s - not even in the United States. Therefore, they don’t charge you any ATM fees for domestic or foreign transactions. Additionally, they refund you any ATM fees you are charged by banks and ATM’s worldwide. The refunds are unlimited. However, keep in mind you pay the ATM fees upfront - they’re refunded at the end of each month. This is important to make sure one does not overdraw their account on the road. There’s also no foreign transaction fees, no minimum balance, and no monthly fee associated with the checking account. The only drawback is the need to open a Brokerage Account with Charles Schwab - but again there’s no minimum balance required for the brokerage account.

I have been a Charles Schwab customer for several years at this point. They have a great set up for travelers. The app is easy to use and their customer service is top notch. I’ve called them to reset passwords from all over the world way too many times. You can also alert Charles Schwab via the app as to which countries you will be visiting to make sure they don’t put a hold on your card when using it abroad - even if you’ve already started your trip.

A note on the Charles Schwab customer service in particular. I had my debit card spoofed in Malaysia several years back - they flagged it immediately, disabled the card, refunded the balance, and called me all within 15 minutes. It was quite impressive. They also shipped out a new card to me all the way to Australia with priority service. You have to love a company that sticks by their customers.

Theth, Albania

Whether hiking in the Albanian Alps or using your local ATM at home, you won’t pay any fees with the Charles Schwab account.

In the end, I mostly use my debit card to grab cash when needed. For added security and garnering points, I tend to use my credit card as much as possible while traveling.

I’d like to note that I am in no way compensated by Charles Schwab for this post. I am simply a more than satisfied customer. 

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