Regions Now Card Review
The Regions Now Card offers the standard features of a prepaid card with a monthly fee that you can qualify to waive. But, it has some surprising cash and check load fees that are unusual for prepaid cards from brick and mortar banks.
Regions Now® Card
Pros
- Waivable monthly fee
- Free ATM access (limited to Regions Bank)
Cons
- High check deposit fees
- Regional bank with limited service area
- Monthly fee not waivable with Regions checking
Regions Now Card Overview
With a prepaid card issued by a brick and mortar regional bank, you might expect to be able to walk into a branch and hand them a check or cash to put on your card. You’d probably even expect it to be free. But with the Regions Now Card, you’d be wrong.
The Regions Now Card charges $3 to load cash on the card in the branch. OK, that’s easy enough to avoid. It does offer free cash loads through Regions Bank ATMs.
But it also charges to load checks, through ATMs, at the branch, or even through its mobile app. And those fees aren’t cheap or uncomplicated. For checks added through the mobile app, the fees are 1 – 3%, depending on the type of check, with a $5 minimum. At the ATM, checks over $10 will cost you 1% with a $2 minimum, if the check is a Regions Bank account check. The fee goes up to 1.5% for payroll or government checks, with a $5 minimum. The fee is 4% for all other checks.
If it wasn’t for the check cashing fees, the Regions Now Card could be competitive. The monthly fee is $5–not bad. And you’ll pay no monthly fee if you add $500 during the month using direct deposit. Oddly though, the monthly fee isn’t waived if you have a Regions Bank checking account.
Regions Now® Card not what you are looking for? Check out other options in our Best Prepaid Debit Cards list.
Features
The Regions Now Card is issued through the Visa network and can be used anywhere Visa debit cards are accepted.
The Regions Now card offers the basics–like direct deposit. It also offers
Mobile App: You can access the transaction history and balance on your Regions Now Card through the Regions Bank mobile app. You can also deposit checks, but as noted above, it’ll cost you.
Limits
The maximum balance that you can have on the Regions Now Card is lower than the average prepaid card at $7,500. The ATM limit is higher at $808 versus the standard $500.
The maximum daily spending limit for the card is $3,000–pretty typical among prepaid cards.
Fees
The Regions Now Card charges a $4 activation fee and a $5 monthly fee. The monthly fee is waived if you use direct deposit to add $500 or more during the month.
The card doesn’t charge purchase transaction fees.
The only other fees of note are the check deposit fees (really check cashing fees) that run anywhere from 1 – 4% of the check amount depending on the type of check.
How to Load Money on the Regions Now Card
Direct Deposit: Paychecks and government benefits checks can be loaded on the card via direct deposit without a fee.
Checks: You can deposit checks on the card through the mobile app, at a Regions Bank branch, or through a Regions ATM. Check deposits will cost between 1 and 4% of the check amount, except for checks under $10, which are free.
Online Bank Transfer: If you have a bank account, you can transfer funds to the Regions Now Card online for free.
Cash Reload: Cash can be loaded on the card only at Regions ATMs or Regions Bank branches. The ATM loads are free. Adding cash a branch costs $3.
Getting Cash
You can use your Regions Now Card to get cash at ATMs. There is no fee when using Regions Bank operated ATMs. Using other ATMs cost $2.50 plus any charge by the ATM operator.
Like other prepaid cards, you can also get cash at many retailers when making a debit purchase using your PIN.
Where to Get the Regions Now Card
The Regions Now Card isn’t available in stores. You can get the card at Regions Bank branches or online. The activation fee for either is $4.
Summary
The Regions Now Card is only available in the Regions Bank 16-state service area. Although it has a reasonable monthly fee that can be waived with qualifying direct deposits, it’s a basic features card. More importantly, it carries an activation fee and check deposit fees that are out of line for comparable cards.
You can compare other prepaid cards here.
Best For: Prepaid card users in the Regions Bank area that don’t load checks
Not So Good For: Those outside the Regions Bank service area; those that load checks or want more convenient cash load options.