Banking / Banks
8 min Read
Written by Karen Doyle
Edited by Melanie Grafil
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Sometimes you need to cash a check when your bank is closed. Or, you may not have a physical bank location and you don’t want to wait for mobile deposit to make your funds available.
Check cashing services will cash your check, depending on what type of check it is and how much it is for. And since many of these types of locations are open 24/7, you can cash that tax refund or veteran’s benefit check at 2 a.m. on a Sunday morning if you want.
Where can you cash a check? Here’s where to find a place to a check near you — and what you need to know before you go.
Places To Cash Checks After Hours
Here are some places you can go if you need to cash a check after hours.
- Community Financial Service Center
- Walmart
- Kroger
- Payomatic
- PLS 24/7
- Speedy Cash
The easiest way to find check cashing near you is to search Google Maps — it will give you hours, directions and a link to the service’s website in case you need more information.
Community Financial Service Center
Community Financial Service Center has about 200 locations nationwide that offer check cashing, money transfers, electronic bill payments, prepaid debit cards, foreign currency exchange, ATMs and more. Many locations are open 24/7.
CFSC will cash payroll checks, government checks — including tax refunds, settlement checks, checks made out to your business and some other types of checks. The fee it charges depends on the type of check and the state you are in.
Walmart
Check cashing services are available in most Walmart stores. If the store is open 24/7, then the check cashing service is also available 24/7. Walmart cashes pre-printed checks, payroll and government checks, cashier’s checks, two-party personal checks and more.
Walmart charges a maximum fee of $4 to cash checks of up to $1,000 and a maximum fee of $8 for checks over $1,000.
You can also deposit money to your bank debit card at a Walmart location — either at a register, the MoneyCenter or customer service center. You can deposit funds if your debit card is issued by one of over 15,000 financial institutions in the U.S. There is a fee of $3.74 to deposit up to $1,000.
Walmart also offers prepaid debit cards, MoneyGram, Western Union and Walmart2Walmart money transfers and more.
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Kroger
Kroger Money Services offers check cashing in over 2,000 stores, as well as bill paying, debit card cashing, money orders, prepaid cards and more.
Fees to cash checks at Kroger vary by the store location and the amount of the check, but at most stores, you can cash a $100 check for $4.00 if you have a Kroger loyalty card. If you don’t, it will cost you $4.50. A $2,500 check can be cashed for $7.00 with a Kroger card or $7.50 without. There’s a $5,000 limit on checks.
Payomatic
Payomatic is a chain of check-cashing stores in New York City. There are stores throughout all five boroughs, but only some of them are open 24 hours a day.
When you bring a valid ID to a Payomatic location, you can cash a payroll check, government check — including tax refunds, insurance settlement checks, union checks, money orders and more. Payomatic does not cash personal checks.
Payomatic charges 2.20% of the amount of the check. So, a $100 check would cost $2.20 to cash. If you have a $2,000 tax refund, you’ll pay $44 to cash it.
PLS 24/7
PLS has locations in 12 states: Arizona, California, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas and Wisconsin. Many, but not all, locations are open 24 hours. PLS will cash paychecks, government checks, business checks and more — even if they are out of state. It will also cash personal checks.
The fee to cash a payroll check, government benefit check or money order for less than $1,000 is 1% of the check amount plus $1. So, a $100 check would cost you $2 to cash. For checks over $1,000, or for other kinds of checks like personal checks, the amount will vary based on the type and amount of the check.
PLS also offers free money orders, a bill paying service for utility and other bills, Western Union money transfers and direct deposit. For direct deposit, your employer pays PLS and you can go there and get your funds in cash.
Speedy Cash
Speedy Cash will cash benefit checks, cashier’s checks, bank drafts, payroll checks, student loan checks, unemployment checks, personal checks and more. Some checks require a hold before it will give you the cash, so you may have to wait for your money if it’s not a government or payroll check.
Speedy Cash has locations in 14 states: Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, Tennessee and Texas. Some of its locations are open 24 hours a day, but not all of them.
At Speedy Cash, you’ll pay 2% to 2.50% of the amount of the check to cash a payroll or government check, with a minimum charge of $2. Other types of checks may incur higher fees.
In addition to check cashing services, Speedy Cash locations may offer payday loans, installments loans, title loans, personal lines of credit, money orders and MoneyGram money transfers.
Check Cashing Requirements
In general, you need to bring with you some form of identification, such as a driver’s license, passport, resident alien ID, military ID, tribal national or reservation ID or state-issued ID. You also need to bring the check and your Social Security or taxpayer identification number.
Most locations will only cash certain types of checks that they can immediately verify, like government checks, bank or cashier’s checks or money orders. Some locations will cash personal checks, but they may hold the funds for several days before they pay them out to you, just to make sure the check clears.
Make sure you know how much you’ll be paying in fees. In some cases, the amount of the check is what determines the fee; in others, it’s the type of check. That $1,200 tax refund check may even cost less to cash than a $100 personal check, simply because there’s less risk it will bounce. So, if you’re shopping around for price, make sure you’re looking at pricing for the exact check you want to cash.
After Hour Check Cashing FAQ
- How can I get cash with a check?
- The easiest way to cash a check is to take it to your bank, but if you can't get there during its opening hours or don't have a bank account, there are many check cashing services and stores that will cash a check, like Walmart or Kroger.
- Not every place will cash every kind of check, at least not instantly. If you have a personal check that's made out to you, you may have to shop around a bit to find who will cash it. And once they do, you may pay more than you would for a government check.
- Can I cash a check through an ATM?
- When you deposit a check at an ATM, the bank will typically "hold" the funds for a few days before you can access the money. They do this to be sure that the check won't bounce. So if you need money right away, you'll need to have at least the amount of the check in your account to be able to cash it at an ATM.
- What you are actually doing is depositing the check and withdrawing cash from the funds that were already in the account.
- Where can I cash a check without a bank account?
- You can cash a check without a bank account at check-cashing businesses, like Payomatic, PLS 24/7, Speedy Cash, CSFC or at stores like Walmart or Kroger. You may also be able to cash a check at the bank it is drawn on, even if you don't have an account there.
- Where is the easiest place to cash a check?
- Check-cashing services generally have the same requirements. The easiest place to cash a check is the check-cashing service that's near you and has convenient hours.
- Can you cash a check at Walmart?
- Yes, check cashing services are available at the MoneyCenter in Walmart stores.
- Can you cash a check at Walgreens?
- No, Walgreens does not offer check-cashing services. It does, however, offer Western Union services.
- How can I cash a check immediately?
- You can cash a check immediately by downloading a check-cashing app or by using your bank's app to cash the check.
- What is the cheapest option to cash a check?
- The cheapest option to cash a check is at the bank where you have an account. Next, a check-cashing service will likely have cheaper fees than a retailer like Walmart or Kroger.
Information is accurate as of Jan. 11, 2024.
