Transact by 7-Eleven–Prepaid with Convenience Rewards
The Transact by 7-Eleven prepaid card offers a couple of good perks–free ATMs and rewards points.
Overview
If you’re regularly hitting the 7-Eleven for Slurpees, the Transact by 7-Eleven prepaid card might be your card of choice. It ties its prepaid card to 7-Eleven’s 7Rewards loyalty program and provides loyalty points for use of the card.
There is one other standout–free ATM withdrawals in a world where that’s becoming rare. In this article, I’ll cover all the details of the Transact by 7-Eleven card.
Transact by 7-Eleven not what you are looking for? Check out other options in our Best Prepaid Debit Cards list.
Features of 7-Eleven’s Transact Card
The Transact prepaid card is a Mastercard debit card. So it, like other Mastercard debit cards (prepaid or not), can be used for purchases in-store and online just about anywhere in the U.S.
Other features include the following:
Convenient Reload Locations: Although the Transact card is unique to 7-Eleven, it’s managed by Netspend, so it has some of the conveniences of a Netspend Prepaid Card, like the Netspend Reload Network, with 13,000 locations.
Free ATMs: Transact offers free ATM withdrawals through the Allpoint network, with over 55,000 ATMs nationwide, including ATMs in 7-Eleven stores.
Loyalty Rewards at 7-Eleven: 7-Eleven offers loyalty discounts for in-store purchases if you register for its 7Rewards program. The Transact card offers additional 7Rewards points for using your card. For instance, you get 100 points every month for using your card, 2,000 points for setting up direct deposit.
Mobile App: You can access transaction history, find free ATMs, and check your card balance instantly using Transact’s mobile application, for Apple or Android devices.
Text Alerts: You can set up text alerts to get instant notification of low balance alerts or even an alert for every transaction made on your card, for a little extra security.
Mobile Check Deposit: You can use your phone to deposit checks to your 7-Eleven Transact card. There’s no fee for the standard deposit time of 7-10 days. Expedited availability comes with a fee, charged by Ingo Money that provides the service.
Fees Charged by Transact by 7-Eleven
The Transact prepaid card has reasonable fees. For the monthly plan, Transact charges $5 per month. But it offers free ATM withdrawals at Allpoint, and even waives every fourth monthly fee and every fourth reload fee. That puts it among the less expensive prepaid cards for everyday use.
Transact also offers a transaction-based plan with no monthly fee. But that plan charges $1 for signature purchases and $2 for PIN-based debit purchases. If you’re looking to use the card for more than a few purchases per month, the monthly plan is the cheaper way to go.
Like most prepaid cards, Transact doesn’t charge for direct deposit or ACH transfers from your bank account. It doesn’t charge for cash reloads either, but the agency that provides the Netspend reload service typically does. There are a few around that don’t charge fees for reloads, but most charge around $3.95.
Other fees include a $.50 fee to check your balance at an ATM–totally avoidable by using the app–and an inactivity fee if you leave the card dormant for 90 days. It’s $5.95 per month, so it’s best to close the account if you don’t plan to continue to use it.
Transact Card Limits
Like all prepaid cards, the Transact prepaid card has limits on total balance and spending, but they’re on the high side. The maximum card balance is $15,000.
Spending limits are also on the high side among prepaid cards. You can spend up to $5,000 on a single transaction. ATM limits are $325 per transaction and $940 per day.
The Bottom Line
The Transact by 7-Eleven card is a better-than-average card for everyday use. If you’re someone who takes advantage of loyalty program discounts, the tie-in to the 7Rewards program may provide a little extra benefit. But even if you’re not, it still checks most of the boxes. The monthly fee is reasonable and its free ATMs add up if you’re a regular cash user.
Best For: 7-Eleven aficionados who regularly hit the ATM.
Not So Good For: Those not near a 7-Eleven (or who don’t regularly stop at one) or who are looking for savings or waivable fee options.