My Profile
Ten Easy Ways To Make Instant Same Day Payday Loans Online Faster
Gift Card vs. Prepaid Debit Card: Which is the Better Gift?
Advertiser disclosure You're our first priority. Each time. We believe that every person should be able make financial decisions with confidence. While our website does not include every company or financial product available in the marketplace however, we're confident that the advice we provide as well as the advice we provide and the tools we create are impartial, independent simple, and free. How do we earn money? Our partners pay us. This may influence which products we review and write about (and the way they appear on our website) However, it doesn't affect our recommendations or advice which are based on hundreds of hours of study. Our partners cannot promise us favorable reviews of their products or services. .
Gift Card Vs. Prepaid Debit Card: Which is the Better Gift?
Gift cards are the clear winner in a simple cash gift. Prepaid debit cards are more similar to bank accounts.
By Spencer Tierney Senior Writer | Certificates of deposit, ethical banking, banking deposits Spencer Tierney is a consumer banker at NerdWallet. He has covered personal finance since 2013, with a focus on certificates of deposit and other banking-related issues. The work he has written for him was highlighted on The Washington Post, USA Today, The Associated Press and the Los Angeles Times, among others. The location of his work is Berkeley, California.
Updated Dec 22 2022
(image: https://www.paydaysunny.com/images/fast-payday-loans.jpg)Written by Sara Clarke Assistant Assigning Editor | Banking Sara Clarke is a Banking editor at NerdWallet. She was an reporter and editor in various newsrooms for two years, including most recently at U.S. News & World Report. She managed projects such as U.S. News's U.S. News education rankings as well as The Best States rankings. Sara has been featured as a guest on SiriusXM Business Radio and iHeartMedia's WHO Newsradio and has been mentioned in The Salt Lake Tribune, The St. Paul (Minnesota) Pioneer Press and other publications. Sara is located near Washington, D.C.
A majority of the items featured on this page come from our partners who compensate us. This influences which products we feature as well as the place and way the product appears on a page. However, this does not influence our evaluations. Our opinions are our own. Here is a list of and .
Cash is a great gift option, but what shape it will take is a different issue.
The idea of putting bills into an envelope might work, but it's not ideal: There's no way to recover cash if it gets lost or stolen. Additionally, it's easy to forget that cash was a gift once it's in the wallet.
The storage of cash in plastic cards is more secure, provided you choose wisely in between gift card and debit cards. Here's what to be aware of.
Gift cards vs. prepaid debit cards
Let's begin by describing how they're similar They're both credit cards that are prepaid, meaning you pay for the card ahead of time for shopping at both physical and online stores. They also offer protections against losses if you have them registered under your own name. You may see both kinds of cards in the same section of a retailer, like Walgreens So make certain to know which you're buying.
The major difference between a giftcard and a prepaid debit cards is that it is a one-time spending card, and a prepaid debit card can be reloaded as a payment option that has most features and charges that checking accounts and linked debit cards have.
The purpose of gift cards is they are used to purchase goods from a specific store brand or at any store that accepts payment networks such as Visa, Mastercard or American Express. They don't allow cash withdrawals and are not reloadable.
Prepaid debit cards can be used for a variety of jobs: make purchases; withdraw cash at ATMs, banks, or retail stores; and utilize web features such as bill pay. They're also reloadable.
Because of their flexibility Due to their flexibility, prepaid debit cards could be used as budgeting tools, or even replacements of checking accounts. They've historically been used to reduce spending too much, but in recent years there have been increased (a common cost when excessive spending) and also to aid in tracking expenditure.
>> MORE:
Winner: Gift cards
Gift cards are as true as their title: gifts. Their simple nature is part of the reason they are a better choice to give. But there's another reason: Prepaid debit cards usually have monthly fees like checking accounts and these fees, typically between $5 and $10, could add up to $120 annually. There could be other fees as well the transaction fees or inactivity charges.
The gift cards can be the better choice, but they're not all equal bargains.
Gift cards for general use like those offered by Visa and Mastercard are typically charged one upfront charge, commonly called a purchase or activation fee. This is the amount that the gift recipient is required to have to pay. The fee might be $2.95 to $5.95 dependent on the amount added on the card as determined by an assortment of gift card websites. But there aren't usually other charges after the purchase.
There are exceptions. A bank may offer general-use gift cards, which have renewal fees or inactivity fees. These can be charged on a monthly basis after an entire year of card use.
It is possible to avoid most or all costs by purchasing a store brand gift card. In general, understand the terms and conditions of gift cards before you purchase it to ensure that the gift you give your loved ones brings happiness without any fees.
About the author: Spencer Tierney is a writer, and NerdWallet's expert on deposit certificates. He has had his work highlighted by USA Today and the Los Angeles Times.
On a similar note...
Find a better checking account
Check out NerdWallet's top picks for the top checking accounts.
Dive even deeper in Banking
Get more smart money moves delivered straight to your inbox
Sign up and we'll send you Nerdy content on the topics in finance which matter to you the most as well as other strategies to help you get more value from your money.
If you adored this article so you would like to obtain more info with regards to payday loans online same day mn (worldssireum.org) please visit our web page.