Netspend is an alternative to traditional bank accounts. It’s a company designed for people who may not have access to a traditional bank, either because they don’t qualify or if they’ve had a negative history with banks. Once you get your Netspend card, how do you put money on it?
There are seven ways for you to put money on your Netspend card:
- Direct deposit
- Cash deposits
- Transfers from an external account
- Transfers from Paypal
- Transfers from other Netspend accounts
- Check deposits
- Tax refunds
Netspend gives you plenty of ways of reloading a card. They have all the ways traditional bank customers get access too and even some more. Their features are much more akin to another fintech company than a traditional bank anyways.
There is no credit check required when getting a Netspend card. You can download the app for free, enter in your basic information, and Netspend will send you a card right away. They don’t require a minimum balance, nor do they charge an activation fee, making the whole process free at the beginning.
When you’re setting up your Netspend account, you can enroll in direct deposit right away. They can directly deposit your paycheck, tax refund, and even your government benefits. They can get you your paycheck and government benefits up to two days faster than a traditional bank.
You can also choose between four differently designed Netspend cards. They offer black, red, blue, and black and blue together.
Fun for anyone who wants their banking experience to feel a little more custom.
The Netspend card also comes with cash back rewards.
Netspend will provide you with different offers, usually a percentage or two off, at your favorite local stores.
Click on the offer to redeem it and get cashback whenever you make a purchase there.
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How to Add Money to Netspend through Direct Deposit
I love direct deposit.
I’ve been enrolled in some form of it for close to ten years now and I can’t see myself ever going back.
Netspend not only offers their customers direct deposit for free, but they can also get their paycheck up to two days early.
If you enroll in direct deposit through Netspend, they can send you your paycheck two days before you’d normally receive it.
They can do this by communicating with your payroll provider, finding out how much you’ll be getting, and sending it early.
Direct deposit is easy to set up through Netspend.
All you need is your Netspend routing number and account number. Hand that to your employer and they should be able to send your paychecks straight to your Netspend card.
If you get more than $500 in direct deposits through Netspend, you automatically qualify for their Netspend Premier account, cutting your monthly fees in half.
This can come from an employer, a government office that handles your benefits, or even a pension.
Once you set up your direct deposit with Netspend, you’ll never have to do it again.
The employer or governing body you gave your information to will always be able to use it to send you your paycheck.
Netspend will let you decide exactly how much of your check you’d like to deposit.
You can deposit a percentage of your check, a flat dollar amount, or the whole thing. You can change how much you’re directly depositing at any time.
With Netspend’s alert system, Anytime Alerts, you can go notified of when your paycheck has first been deposited and then when it has been cleared, ready for you to use.
Direct deposits with Netspend are easy, free, and quick to set up. Once it’s in place, it could take up to two pay periods for you to see your direct deposit moved over.
How to Add Cash to Netspend Card
As Netspend is kind of like an online bank, I wouldn’t fault you for thinking it was difficult or maybe impossible to deposit cash onto your Netspend card.
Well, you can and you actually have access to more deposit locations through Netspend than through most other fintech companies.
Netspend has partnered with a wide range of retail stores so that their customers can make cash deposits wherever they may be. These retail locations include 7-Eleven, CVS Pharmacies, and Walgreens.
To deposit cash at a retail location, let the cashier know that you would like to deposit into your Netspend account.
Hand them whatever cash you’d like to go into your Netspend account and they should be able to apply the credit to your account immediately.
There is a $3.95 fee to make a cash deposit at most locations.
In Netspend’s handy deposit location locator, you can actually see every store in your area that will accept Netspend deposits and how much they’ll charge for. I’d recommend finding the store with the lowest fee.
Netspend treats cash deposits like any other fintech company would.
If you have paper money and want to get it into your Netspend account, use their app or website to find a location that doesn’t charge too much near you.
How to Add Money to Netspend Card through Checks
While they aren’t as common as they once were, checks are still a viable method of payment.
If you’ve received a check, and don’t want to go to the writer’s bank to cash it and pay a fee, you can deposit it straight onto your Netspend card.
Taking a picture of the front and back of a check is one of the most useful banking inventions to come out of the last 20 or so years.
Now you can save yourself a trip to the bank whenever you get a check — just take a picture of it.
To take a picture of a check and deposit it into your Netspend account, first make sure that you have the latest version of the Netspend app downloaded. It won’t work with any other version.
Make sure the check is negotiable as well. You don’t want to mobily deposit a check that won’t go through.
Once you’ve made sure the check is negotiable and have signed the back, take a picture of the front and the back for the Netspend app.
Enter how much the check is manually, just in case the camera didn’t pick up the dollar amount correctly.
Once the check has been deposited, wait a couple days for it to process, clear, and eventually reach your account.
As an ex-banker, I would always recommend holding onto the check until the deposit has cleared.
All too often I would hear stories from customers about them initially depositing the check and throwing it away before they learn the images weren’t able to be read and they have to retake them.
How to Fund your Netspend Account through Bank Transfers
It’s ironic; the best way to load your non-traditional bank fintech account is almost always through a traditional bank account.
By linking the two accounts together, you can transfer money between them as often as you like.
If you have a regular bank account, you can link it to your Netspend account.
Once it’s linked, like a direct deposit it will always be linked until you choose to unlink it.
Transfers usually take about 1-3 business days as well, so be mindful of the transfer times before you decide to move money over.
Netspend can be linked to just about any bank account so long as you have the routing number and account number.
You can usually send money to your Netspend account from your bank’s online platform as well.
Enter your Netspend card as a normal card you transfer to, and you should be able to load it with as much funds as you like, so long as you’re beneath the limit.
How to Load Your Netspend Card with Money from Tax Refund
Tax season is some people’s favorite time of year because of the big tax refund they receive.
If you do get money back from the government and your taxes every year, you could receive the deposit directly on Netspend.
The IRS is more than capable of sending your refund straight to your Netspend account.
If you have a person prepare your tax documents for you, let them know you want your refund to go straight to your Netspend account. They should only need your account number and routing number.
If you do your own taxes, enter your Netspend routing number and account number yourself if your tax filing software asks where you want a return sent.
Once your Netspend account is decided as the destination for your refund, you can even get it up to two days early.
Netspend will communicate with the IRS to find out how much you’re getting and get it to you up to 48 hours early.
Netspend offers this service to all of their customers. If you’re receiving a refund this year and don’t know where to receive it, Netspend is an option.
How to Transfer Money from Paypal to Netspend
Paypal users have the unique benefit of loading their Netspend accounts from their Paypal account.
If you use Paypal a lot, this could be of great use to you, allowing you to not use a third party bank account as the middle man in the transaction.
To transfer money from Paypal to Netspend, start by opening the Paypal app and heading to the Send and Request section of the app.
Click Send to Bank Account and enter the amount you’re planning on transferring.
Paypal will then give you the option of depositing directly to your Netspend card through a button called Debit Card Deposit.
Enter the information Paypal requests: basic information like your card’s details, your birthday, and your address.
Paypal will then ask you where these funds are coming from. Y
ou can send money directly from your Paypal balance, another one of your Paypal accounts, a connected bank account, or even a connected credit card.
The transfer should take between 1-3 business days seeing as Paypal and Netspend are two different apps with two different servers.
Once the transfer has cleared you should be able to use your Netspend card wherever Visa is accepted.
How to Put Money on Netspend Card through Netspend Transfer
Could we really consider Netspend a fintech company if they didn’t have some way of allowing transfers between their own users?
It feels like a staple of online banks, and Netspend is no different.
If you have a Netspend account and are looking to receive some money from another Netspend user, or another one of your own Netspend accounts, you can.
Netspend has partnered with the FlashPay system to let their customers pay each other in a flash.
Log into your Netspend account, enter your FlashPay ID into their system, and you should be able to use the FlashPay transfer system to pay and get paid by other Netspend users.
You can also transfer money from another one of your own Netspend accounts. All you have to do is log into your online account to begin the transfer.
How Do I Transfer Money from My Netspend Card to My Bank Account?
Unfortunately, there is no way to send money from your Netspend account to your bank account, only vice versa.
As Netspend is an account for those of us who are needing to get back on our feet, they don’t offer a lot of the same services that a traditional bank would. Instead, they give you a lot of options when you’re trying to spend the money on your Netspend card.
The only way to send money from a Netspend account is through the FlashPay system.
The FlashPay system is a transfer network that exists outside of Netspend, allowing you to pay and get paid by your friends and family.
If this article was useful to you, check more written by me and our team:
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