Last year, US consumers spent more than $34B (that’s billion!) dollars on overdraft protection and insufficient funds fees. Many people coming to FindABetterBank are shopping for new banks because they don’t like all the fees they pay – and overdraft-related fees are top of the list. Some banks are responding by offering checking accounts that you cannot overdraw – they will return the check or reject the transaction if it will bring your balance to below zero ($0).

These No Overdraft Checking Accounts tend to be bare-bones compared to other checking accounts. Our research finds that on average, these accounts offer only 35% of the popular features we track on FindABetterBank: They all provide features like mobile banking and online billpay, but none offer features like ATM Fee Rebates, unlimited check writing or discounts on printed checks.

That may be fine for consumers that don’t need these features. But before you open one of these accounts we recommend you consider:

• Protecting automatic payments. We hear from FindABetterBank visitors horror stories of paying overdraft fees when making small retail purchases — these accounts will prevent that from happening. But it’ll also prevent other payments to be made, like rent or mortgage payments, which could impact your credit rating.
• Getting cash from non-affiliated ATMs. There are other low-cost checking accounts that offer access to large networks of surcharge-free ATMs. If you’re the type of person who isn’t great at planning when to withdraw cash, these particular accounts might end up costing you more money in ATM fees than you expect.

Below is a list of banks and no-overdraft checking accounts. We recommend going through the FindABetterBank comparison tool (enter your zip code on the right to get started) to determine if one of these accounts is right for you.