Many people find that monitoring their checking account once or twice a week is a good cadence, but there’s no frequency that’s right or wrong. It’s a personal decision: Your checking account is likely to be the hub of your financial life, and so you may want to peek at your balance often or see what transactions have been conducted. At a minimum, it is recommended that individuals check their account monthly.
Here, learn more about this important financial topic, including:
• How often should you typically monitor your checking account?
• How often should you balance your checking account?
• What are the benefits of monitoring your bank accounts?
• How do you monitor your accounts?
How Often Should You Check Your Bank Statement and Bank Account?
There is no exact science when it comes to how often you should monitor your checking account. How often you should check your bank account is a very personal decision.
At the very bare minimum, it can be important to check it at least once per month to look for signs of fraud and fees that were charged to the account, as well as to see how your money is being spent. Doing so can be an important part of better money management.
However, for most people, once per month is not enough. One benchmark study found that 36% of Americans check their bank account every day, while 30% check it once a week.
Should You Check Your Bank Account Every Day?
There are many reasons why you might want to monitor your bank activity as often as once per day. Doing so can help you take control of your finances in such situations as:
• You have a tight budget and worry about your balance slipping too low when you pay bills.
• You are a freelancer and want to see if a paycheck you deposited has cleared.
• Your debit card is lost, and you’re worried it fell into the wrong hands and someone is swiping away with it.
• If there was a data breach of some kind? While usually the answer to “Are checking accounts safe?” can be yes, there can be issues. It may be a wise move to check your balance every day if you think you’ve been phished, scammed, or hacked. In this case, watching your account like a hawk in this situation can help you detect bank account fraud and report it.
However, for others, the answer to “How often should you check your bank account?” will be less frequent, perhaps weekly.
What Should You Monitor When You Have a Bank Account?
When you have a bank account, it’s wise to regularly check the following:
• Your balance. Is it getting lower than you’d like?
• Account alerts. Is anything flagged as needing your attention?
• Transaction history. Are there any unauthorized or erroneous charges?
• Fees and charges. Are you aware of what charges you may be incurring?
• Spending trends. Has your occasional sushi lunch has become an almost daily debit card expense?
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The Benefits: Why You Should Monitor Your Checking Account
Whether you decide that the right cadence for checking your bank account is daily, weekly, or another frequency, here are some of the rewards of keeping tabs on your checking.
Spot Hidden Fees
By regularly checking your bank account, you can keep an eye on fees you may be paying. Some financial institutions are notorious for charging hidden and/or excessive fees.
You might be surprised to see such charges as monthly account fees, ATM charges, overdraft and NSF fees, and more. You might want to dispute charges that you feel should not have been assessed.
Or, if you see that these fees are eating away at your cash, you might want to switch to a new bank.
Monitor for Fraud or Scams
Unfortunately, hackers and scams are part of life. Even with protective measures in place, it is possible for your account to be compromised. By checking your account regularly, you can keep an eye on any suspicious activity, such as an automatic withdrawal you don’t recognize or a debit card charge that isn’t yours.
The sooner you spot such issues, the faster you can deal with them. This can help you be liable for no or lower losses.
• You are only responsible for up to $50 if you notify your bank within two business days of unauthorized charges with your debit card.
• That figure rises to $500 if you notify your bank after two days but before 60 days after the bank statement showing the unauthorized transactions was issued.
• If you take longer than 60 days to notify your bank, you could be liable for the full amount drawn on your account.
Stay on Track with Your Budget
Here’s why tracking your expenses and balancing your checking account can be important: These actions can help you follow your budget. For instance, if you’ve created a line-item budget and have been successfully sticking to it, you may still encounter an unexpected expense, such as a big dental bill or pricey car repair.
By knowing where your bank balance stands, you can determine if you can afford to pay that bill from checking or whether this counts as a good reason for when to use your emergency fund.
How to Monitor Your Accounts
Thankfully, banks generally offer a variety of ways to keep tabs when managing your checking account.
• You can use your bank’s website or app to click your way to your account details.
• Another digital option is to use a third-party app or website, where account holders can connect all of their accounts and see a comprehensive display of their money.
• Some financial institutions will offer banking alerts for checking accounts. For instance, if your bank account is low or goes into overdraft or there’s suspected fraud, you might receive a text message, email, and/or push notification as an alert. This can help you keep in touch with where your account stands.
• You can often check your balance at an ATM.
• If you bank with a traditional vs. online bank, you can go into a branch in person. You could ask a teller for help viewing your balance.
• Banks may also offer services via phone, where customers can call in and request their balance.
When to Get in Touch With the Bank
When your monitor your bank account, you may encounter a few key times when it’s important to get in touch with your bank:
• If you see a fraudulent charge on your account, contact the bank as soon as possible. Many banks offer 24/7 customer assistance so customers can get in touch any time of day.
• If you are charged fees for an overdraft or a bounced check, contact your bank. You might be able to get those fees reversed. A bank may only do this in the first or second instance or take a part of the fee off, but it’s better than nothing.
• Another reason to call a bank is to see if there are any promotions available. Customers might be able to open a new high-yield checking account, receive a bonus, or lower their monthly fees. Banks may be willing to give customers perks so that they can retain their business.
Recommended: What Does a Pending Transaction Mean?
The Takeaway
Regularly checking your bank accounts is a vital part of keeping your finances on track. The exact frequency with which you look at your accounts is a personal decision, but what’s important is that you stay on top of your checking account.
Consider setting a calendar alert or reminder if you are having trouble remembering to review your accounts. Many people find that checking their account daily or once or twice a week is the right cadence.
Interested in opening an online bank account? When you sign up for a SoFi Checking and Savings account with direct deposit, you’ll get a competitive annual percentage yield (APY), pay zero account fees, and enjoy an array of rewards, such as access to the Allpoint Network of 55,000+ fee-free ATMs globally. Qualifying accounts can even access their paycheck up to two days early.
FAQ
Does it hurt to have too many checking accounts?
There may be times when you’d want to open up more than one checking account to keep, say, your income from your full-time job and your side hustle separate or to cover different kinds of expenses. However, you will likely need to keep an eye on all of your accounts and could potentially have to pay account fees and meet balance requirements for each.
What should you monitor when you have a checking account?
It can be important to monitor your checking account for a low balance or overdraft, for errors, for hidden fees, and for unauthorized transactions and other signs of fraudulent activity.
Do banks look at your checking account?
Banks may look at your accounts for a variety of reasons such as monitoring for fraud, gathering information on what services customers might need, and determining credit eligibility (say, if you have applied for a home loan).
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SoFi members with Qualifying Deposits can earn 4.60% APY on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances. Qualifying Deposits means one or more deposits that, in the aggregate, are equal to or greater than $5,000 to an account holder’s SoFi Checking and Savings account (“Qualifying Deposits”) during a 30-day Evaluation Period (as defined below). Qualifying Deposits only include those deposits from the following eligible sources: (i) ACH transfers, (ii) inbound wire transfers, (iii) peer-to-peer transfers (i.e., external transfers from PayPal, Venmo, etc. and internal peer-to-peer transfers from a SoFi account belonging to another account holder), (iv) check deposits, (v) instant funding to your SoFi Bank Debit Card, (vi) push payments to your SoFi Bank Debit Card, and (vii) cash deposits. Qualifying Deposits do not include: (i) transfers between an account holder’s Checking account, Savings account, and/or Vaults; (ii) interest payments; (iii) bonuses issued by SoFi Bank or its affiliates; or (iv) credits, reversals, and refunds from SoFi Bank, N.A. (“SoFi Bank”) or from a merchant.
SoFi Bank shall, in its sole discretion, assess each account holder’s Direct Deposit activity and Qualifying Deposits throughout each 30-Day Evaluation Period to determine the applicability of rates and may request additional documentation for verification of eligibility. The 30-Day Evaluation Period refers to the “Start Date” and “End Date” set forth on the APY Details page of your account, which comprises a period of 30 calendar days (the “30-Day Evaluation Period”). You can access the APY Details page at any time by logging into your SoFi account on the SoFi mobile app or SoFi website and selecting either (i) Banking > Savings > Current APY or (ii) Banking > Checking > Current APY. Upon receiving a Direct Deposit or $5,000 in Qualifying Deposits to your account, you will begin earning 4.60% APY on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% on checking balances on or before the following calendar day. You will continue to earn these APYs for (i) the remainder of the current 30-Day Evaluation Period and through the end of the subsequent 30-Day Evaluation Period and (ii) any following 30-day Evaluation Periods during which SoFi Bank determines you to have Direct Deposit activity or $5,000 in Qualifying Deposits without interruption.
SoFi Bank reserves the right to grant a grace period to account holders following a change in Direct Deposit activity or Qualifying Deposits activity before adjusting rates. If SoFi Bank grants you a grace period, the dates for such grace period will be reflected on the APY Details page of your account. If SoFi Bank determines that you did not have Direct Deposit activity or $5,000 in Qualifying Deposits during the current 30-day Evaluation Period and, if applicable, the grace period, then you will begin earning the rates earned by account holders without either Direct Deposit or Qualifying Deposits until you have Direct Deposit activity or $5,000 in Qualifying Deposits in a subsequent 30-Day Evaluation Period. For the avoidance of doubt, an account holder with both Direct Deposit activity and Qualifying Deposits will earn the rates earned by account holders with Direct Deposit.
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