Varo Bank Review 2025

If you’ve never used an online-only bank, you might be worried about whether it’s truly as convenient as banking at the branch in your neighborhood. Varo offers plenty of capabilities for the on-the-go user that may convince you to take the online route.

If you’re looking to complete basic checking and saving transactions while going about your daily life, Varo makes it easy to bank via its mobile app and a broad ATM network. At all times, your online banking information is protected by military-grade encryption.

In 2020, Varo became the first U.S. consumer fintech company to receive a national bank charter, allowing it to offer FDIC insurance and expand its banking services.

Here’s what you should know about Varo’s account offerings. Account details and annual percentage yields (APYs) are accurate as of October 1, 2024.

Varo Checking Account

Varo’s online checking account—known as the Varo Bank Account—doesn’t charge monthly maintenance fees, and you don’t need to keep a minimum balance in your account. A government-issued ID and Social Security number are required for sign-up, but no minimum deposit is required to open your account. You must be 18 and have a device that can access Varo’s mobile app.

Varo promotes early access to direct deposit payments. It usually posts deposits on the same day they’re received, “which may be up to two days earlier than the payer’s scheduled payment date,” according to the Varo website. This means that—for most Friday paydays—the funds may be available on Wednesday.

Varo makes it fairly easy to get cash—at more than 40,000 Allpoint ATMs surcharge-free—but there’s a $3.50 cash withdrawal fee for out-of-network ATM transactions. Varo allows the option to deposit cash at more than 90,000 retail locations using Green Dot Reload.

You can send money to other Varo users without fees with the Varo Bank to Varo Bank instant transfer feature. At this time, you can’t use your Varo account to make wire transfers.

Read More: Best Checking Accounts Of 2025

Varo Savings Account

Once you open a Varo bank account, you have the option to open a Varo savings account. There’s no minimum deposit to get started and no minimum account balance you must maintain. If you have at least a penny in your savings account, you’re eligible to earn interest.

The account currently offers a 2.50% APY without charging a monthly fee and 5.00% APY by meeting specific requirements each month. To qualify for the higher rate, you must:

• Receive direct deposits of $1,000 or more within each qualifying period and
• Maintain a daily savings balance of $5,000 or less for the entire calendar month and
• Maintain balances above or equal to 1 cent in both savings and bank accounts for the entire calendar month.

Two automatic savings tools are available in conjunction with the Varo bank accounts:

• Save Your Pay lets you set up a recurring transfer from checking to savings each time you receive a direct deposit payment. You choose the percentage of your payment you want to move to savings.
• Save Your Change rounds up each checking transaction to the nearest dollar, and moves the extra amount to your savings account.

Read More: Best Savings Accounts Of 2025

Varo Advance is an optional borrowing program that gives you a small financial cushion to help you avoid overdrawing your account. The Varo Believe Secured Credit Card is designed to help Varo customers build their credit.

Varo Advance

To qualify for the Varo Advance program, customers must have an active Varo Bank Account that is at least 30 days old and must have had at least $800 in direct deposits to either the Bank Account, Savings Account or both combined within the past 31 days.

Once you qualify, Varo Advance provides instant access to up to $250, which must be paid back within 30 days. No interest is charged on this cash advance. Depending on the Advance amount, there is a fee of $0 to $15. Varo customers can have only one Advance outstanding at a time.

Varo Believe

The Varo Believe program seeks to help Varo Bank account holders build their credit. The Varo Believe Credit-Builder Card is a credit card with no minimum security deposit, no annual fee and no APR. Applying for the card does not affect your credit score.

To qualify for the Believe secured card, you must be actively using a Varo Bank Account—without any negative balances or an overdue Advance—and have received at least $200 in qualifying deposits in the past 31 days. Your credit limit equals the available balance in your Varo Believe Secured Account, up to $2,500 per day for purchases or $1,000 a day for cash advances, totaling no more than $10,000 total per billing cycle.

Varo will report your payment history to the three major credit bureaus. And you can track your credit score’s progress in the Varo mobile app.

Varo Impact

Varo also provides members of underserved communities with access to banking services and financial education via its Impact program. Varo Impact is a set of initiatives that promotes financial inclusion and empowerment to those with little or no credit history and those who may have been excluded from traditional banking systems.

Read More: Best Banks Of 2025

Varo bank accounts come with a Visa debit card. You can add it to your Apple Pay or Google Pay mobile wallet. The debit card spending limit starts at $2,500 per calendar day for purchases or cash back.

There’s a $1,000 daily cash withdrawal limit from ATMs. Varo customers have access to more than 40,000 Allpoint ATMs (located in major retailers like Target, CVS and Circle K, to name a few) for surcharge-free cash withdrawals, and you can get cash back at some store registers when you make debit purchases. If you use an ATM outside the Allpoint network, Varo charges $3.50 per withdrawal (the ATM operator may set their own fees on top of that).

If you want to deposit cash, you can do so when you check out at more than 90,000 Green Dot Reload@theRegister retail locations—a retail service fee of up to $4.95 applies. This fee is not charged by Varo. If you have direct deposit set up on your checking account, you can also deposit checks via the app.

The highly rated Varo app is available for iOS and Android. You can manage your accounts, activate savings tools and set up push notifications for deposits, withdrawals and debit purchases.

If you misplace your card, you can lock it from the Varo app so it can’t be used. Replacement cards sent by USPS are free.

The Varo customer service team is available for customers at [email protected] or 877-377-8276. The call center is open on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. MT and on weekends from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. MT (phone support is closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Day). Note that non-customers must submit a request through one of Varo’s dedicated support channels for people who don’t have accounts. You will not be able to access phone or chat support if you don’t bank with Varo.

Fees vary by bank and can put a dent in your account balance. Luckily, Varo’s fees are minimal. They include:

Monthly maintenance	$0
Foreign transactions	$0
Cash deposits via third-party money transfer services	Up to $5.95
In-network (Allpoint) ATMs	$0
Out-of-network (non-Allpoint) ATMs	$3.50 per transaction

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Varo Bank ATM Fees

Some banks charge a fee to withdraw cash or request a balance inquiry at an out-of-network ATM. There may be additional fees to use an international ATM, depending on your bank. Varo’s ATM fees include:

Varo Bank Overdraft Fees

Some banks charge overdraft fees when you spend more money than you have in your account. It can be challenging to break the cycle of overdrafts, so it’s best to avoid them whenever possible. Fortunately, Varo doesn’t charge overdraft fees.

Overdraft	$0
Typical overdraft fees at other banks	$30-$35

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Varo Bank Wire Transfer Fee

Varo does not offer wire transfers at this time.

The Varo Savings Account is one of the best high-yield savings accounts for people with smaller balances and those interested in automatic savings tools. The Varo Bank Account is also competitive with the best checking accounts and is especially well-suited for individuals who may need early direct deposits.

Varo is a convenient option for someone with fairly straightforward finances. If you plan to use it as your primary checking and savings account, you’ll enjoy the greatest benefits. But if you intend to use it as a secondary account and don’t plan for a steady stream of transaction and deposit activity, you’ll miss out on perks like a higher-yield savings rate and additional products and services such as CDs and money market accounts.

Varo vs. Chime

Chime®* has a checking account, savings account and a secured credit card—all within a highly rated mobile app. The checking account offers early direct deposit¹ and fee-free withdrawals at more than 60,000 ATMs², as well as overdraft protection of up to $200³, which is more generous than the protection offered by Varo Advance. Chime partners with Walgreens to offer free in-store cash deposits at more than 8,500 locations. And if you’re enrolled in direct deposit, you can use the mobile check deposit feature to deposit checks from anywhere⁴.

Chime’s savings account offers an APY similar to Varo’s, but without the chance to earn an elevated rate after meeting certain requirements. It has two features to help users boost their savings: Round Ups⁵, which rounds up purchases to the nearest dollar and saves the difference, and Save When I Get Paid⁶, which saves a portion of each paycheck. Chime also offers 24/7 customer support and has no fees for instant transfers to any bank. Like Varo, Chime has no monthly maintenance fees.

Varo vs. Ally

Ally offers savings accounts, interest-bearing checking accounts, money market accounts and CDs. Ally checking accounts include fee-free access to Allpoint ATMs and, unlike Varo, up to a $10 reimbursement per month for out-of-network domestic ATM withdrawals. There are also no overdraft fees—instead, Ally’s CoverDraft feature lends up to $250 to cover any overdrafts. Unlike similar banks that partner with third-party retailers, Ally does not accept any cash deposits.

Ally savings accounts offer up to 10 buckets to allocate your cash for different goals. You can also take advantage of Ally’s savings boosters—which round up purchases from your checking account, automate recurring transfers and transfer extra money from your checking account into your higher-interest savings account.

Varo vs. SoFi

SoFi’s bank account includes both checking and savings wrapped into a single account. You can’t open one without the other. Like its competitors, SoFi doesn’t charge monthly maintenance fees. Features include early direct deposit, fee-free withdrawals from Allpoint ATMs and an automated savings program. SoFi’s interest rates on the SoFi Checking and Savings Account are more impressive than Varo’s: 0.50% APY on checking and up to 3.80%¹ APY on savings if you set up direct deposit, by depositing $5,000 or more every 30 days or by signing up for SoFi+. Customers who don’t meet this criteria earn 1.00% APY on savings balances.

If you want to deposit cash, you’ll have to use a third-party retailer and pay a fee of up to $4.95. SoFi offers overdraft protection for those who receive at least $1,000 per month through direct deposit. It also offers overdraft coverage up to $50. And with the SoFi debit card, you can get up to 15% cash back at local retailers.

¹SoFi members who enroll in SoFi Plus with Direct Deposit or by paying the SoFi Plus Subscription Fee every 30 days or with $5,000 or more in Qualifying Deposits during the 30-Day Evaluation Period can earn 3.80% annual percentage yield (APY) on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances. There is no minimum Direct Deposit amount required to qualify for the stated interest rate. Members without either SoFi Plus or Qualifying Deposits, during the 30-Day Evaluation Period will earn 1.00% APY on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances. Only SoFi Plus members are eligible for other SoFi Plus benefits. Interest rates are variable and subject to change at any time. These rates are current as of 1/24/25. There is no minimum balance requirement. Additional information can be found at http://www.sofi.com/legal/banking-rate-sheet. See the SoFi Plus Terms and Conditions at https://www.sofi.com/terms-of-use/#plus.

Forbes Advisor rates banks based on various factors, including their fees, interest rates and ATM networks, among other characteristics. We assign separate ratings to financial institutions and their individual products, such as checking accounts, savings accounts and certificates of deposit (CDs). We rate banks based on a scale of one to five stars, with one star as the poorest rating and five stars as the best. To learn more about our rating and review methodology and editorial process, check out our guide on How Forbes Advisor Reviews Banks.