A lot of people just dive into opening a checking account without taking note of some of the fees that is associated with the account. Most people forget one crucial part of the account which is the debit card. The debit card is a financial tool that is linked to the account which you can use to carry out different transactions on the ATM, POS, or even pay online for goods and services.

With the debit card, you can carry out different activities such as a contactless payment that is enhanced by advanced high technology.

With all of this said most users of debit cards do not realize that their debit card has some amazing perks that will help them save.

In this detailed guide, I will be revealing some of the perks that can help you save properly and improve your financial well-being.

However, before I dive straight into these perks, there are some major key things I would like you to take note of so you can make an informed financial decision while making use of your debit card to save properly.

The debit card is known to have several varieties of perks when utilized properly, will help you make some informed financial decisions and save properly. Aside from that, these will also protect your account and money in case of compromise. Some of these are round-ups, temporary card freezing, as well as earning cashback from the card.

For you to maximize the potential of a debit card, one of the best ways is to transact through online banking. This is because they come with lots of benefits and lower fees when compared with traditional brick-and-mortar banks.

While you’re using your account, make sure you take note of the minimum balance requirement or the monthly deposit conditions of the account to access the perks of your debit card.

Now that you have some ideas of some of these perks and the important key things you need to note, let us now dive into the 6 different perks of a debit card.

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Six (6) Unknown Perks Of Debit Cards That Can Help You Save And Protect Your Card In 2024

• Debit card round-ups
• Temporary card freezing
• Tap-to-pay
• Advanced virtual card numbers
• Amazing Cashback Offers
• An Overdraft buffers

Debit card round-ups

The debit card round-ups are some of the amazing ways you can cleverly and effortlessly save some money while you spend every day on shopping and payments online. What this means is that, when you are making a payment or purchase, the system automatically rounds up the money to the nearest dollar for you. This means that an excess amount will be charged and automatically transferred to any savings account that is linked. Some of the traditional banks and online banks in the U.S offer such
in the likes of Bank of America (BOA) and Ally Bank.

Let me give you an example that better explains how this works. Let’s say you want to purchase some candy or ice cream that costs around $5.75, when you try to make that purchase, instead of paying $5.75, an extra cent will be added to round it up to $6 and stashed away. At first, you might not see that as much, but as time passes by and you perform several transactions, that 25 cents if saved every day will result in over 80$-$90 in a year.

 

Temporary card freezing

The temporary freezing feature on the debit card is one hell of a lifesaver technology. This technological feature of the card is put in place to protect you from any unfavorable situations that may result in losing your hard-earned money.

Let’s say, for example, you go out for a weekend chill to ease all the stress of working the whole week only for you to misplace your wallet with vital information and your card. To help you save your card from potential financial fallout as a result of a lost card, you can make use of the temporary card freezing feature.

With a temporary card freezing feature, you can easily freeze your card instantly. This means that anyone with the card cannot make use of the card because it is frozen. This means that all transactions being carried out will always be “declined”

To make use of this feature, you’ll need to have your bank mobile app to make it work and follow the steps below. These steps might be different based on the mobile app you’re using because all banks have different UI designs and instructions on their app. On a general note, the steps highlighted below should work for all apps.

Steps To Freeze a Stolen Or Missing Debit Card

• Log in to your mobile bank app using your smartphone, tab, or even a pc
• Locate the section of the mobile app that says “Manage Cards”
• Navigate to the part that says “Freeze Card/Card Lock”
• Confirm the locking or freezing of the card.

Once you follow this procedure, the card will be frozen automatically. This action will buy you time to find your missing wallet or card. If you’re lucky to find the card, you can still follow the same procedure to unfreeze your card and start using it again or order a replacement if you cannot find it. With this layer of security added to the card as a result of a stolen card or missing card, you can easily prevent the unauthorized use of your card by anyone. This will help you reduce the risk of any form of financial loss that may happen as a result of your card being missing.

Tap-to-pay

The tap-to-pay is an innovative technology that is introduced to how transactions are being carried out using a card. This is more like a contactless payment. There are a lot of people out there who are unaware of how this tech works. Let me explain it so you can have a better understanding just in case it is your first time knowing about it.

The contactless payment comes with some extra security layers and features that help protect your finances. What this feature does is eliminate physical contact with a communal cash reader, reducing the risk of what is known as card skimming. When a transaction is made using the tap-to-pay, there is a unique key that protects some important card information from being stolen. With this unique, when this transaction takes place, a code is being processed and ensures that the code can not be used to perform another transaction. Meaning it is only valid per purchase.

If you’re looking for a way to pay with your card with maximum security, then using a tap-to-pay is the best way to go about it. This has become the favorite of many Americans paying for their goods at a shopping mall. according to a statistic from Raydiant, 35.5 percent of Americans preferred contactless payment.

 

Advanced virtual card numbers

The internet has become a place where everyone performs their daily activity. In recent times, the internet has been crawling with lots of scammers and fraudsters who are looking for card information to steal. To combat these card fraud cases, financial institutions introduced the virtual card option that allows customers to shop conveniently without risking their accounts to online fraudsters.

Let me explain how this virtual card works.

Let’s say you have $25,000 in your account and you want to make an online purchase on a website you don’t trust with your card, what you need to do is to generate a virtual card of $1000 to perform that transaction. This card will remain a temporary card with just that balance and you can use it to complete the transaction.

This one-time card number serves as a decoy to the main card, keeping your real card details concealed from any potential scammer or hacker. If peradventure the hacker gets the virtual card, the card becomes useless to the hacker as every transaction will fail.

To go about the generation of a virtual card, you will need a bank mobile app, visit the bank website, or even use a browser extension. Let’s say you’re using a bank like Capital One, you can obtain a virtual through the Eno browser extension. During checkout at an online merchant website, the extension will help you securely log into your bank account, then the Capital One virtual assistant will help you create a virtual card number.

 

Amazing Cashback Offers

Most traditional banks offer cashback on credit cards. However, that is not limited to just the credit card. The debit card can also earn some cashback depending on the debit card you’re using. Some of the cards will allow you to earn this cash back when you make a purchase and earn some money from that. With this feature put in place, you won’t have to rely so much on credit cards all the time. With research, we came to realize that a lot of Americans go for a credit card as a result of the cashback they earn from the card. But with a cashback debit card, you can do away with the temptation that resort to credit card spending which in the long run comes with the risk of accumulating high-interest debts.

To get some of these cashback cards, you’ll need an online bank such as Discover Bank. The bank is known to offer you 1 percent cashback of up to $3000 per month.

Aspiration is also another great fintech company that offers amazing cashback on their cards. They have this feature known as spend & Save. When you make use of their card, you earn up to 5 percent cash back on purchases made at any selected environmentally conscious business helping you save while you help the environment.

An Overdraft buffers

being in an awkward situation where you’re on a checkout line only to realize that your bank balance is slightly lower than what you intend to spend. This situation can be embarrassing. However, thanks to the overdraft buffer feature. With this amazing feature, you can overdraft your account by a small amount without having to pay a fee. This means you can save the day as well as worry less about overdraft fees. This is a win-win situation that saves the day from card decline embarrassment.

With the buffer feature, you can spare yourself from overdraft fees and also enjoy long-term savings. This buffer isn’t much but can be used in situations where you go out for grocery shopping that exceeds your balance as well as even completing the payment of your utility bills when you’re in tight financial situations.

This buffer may vary depending on the bank you’re using. When you make use of a bank such as Citizens Bank, for example, you can get an overdraft buffer of $5. In the case of other banks such as Truist, when you use a Truist One Checking account, you can overdraft up to $100 without any penalty.

 

How To Find The Best Debit Card

This process is not easy and requires some basic research to make sure that the card you’re going for aligns with your financial needs. This is why when you’re doing your research on the best card, you need to make sure that it has enhanced security options that make it stand out. This is one perk you must consider, and aside from that you need to make sure that it gives a saving advantage without extra annoying fees. Checking for the minimum balance requirement is also crucial together with the monthly deposit conditions to open an account and have access to the card perks. Once you observe the following above, you will surely find a card that perfectly suits your financial needs.

Conclusion

The debit card is a powerful financial tool, when utilized properly you can reap the benefits that come with having one. As a valuable financial asset, it also comes with some amazing saving options. This will even make you avoid a credit card if you maximize the potential and become financially accountable.

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