41 reasons why you shouldn't be paying bank account fees in 2019

Bank account fees have traditionally been the bane of Aussie banking customers, but new figures have revealed that Australians don’t necessarily have be paying them. According to an analysis of 107 bank accounts in the Mozo database, 41 accounts have a $0 monthly fee with no strings attached. As well as this, there are 36 accounts that waive their monthly fees for account holders who are able to make regular deposits.

“The new figures show what money savvy banking customers know already - that Australians simply don’t have to be paying fees if they don’t want to. Whether they want to bank exclusively online, or with a large or smaller provider, there are loads of fee-free options they can consider by comparing and making the switch,” said Mozo Director, Kirsty Lamont.

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So just how much will paying those extra fees add up in the long term? Let’s say Tom is currently paying $6 in bank account fees every month. This adds up to $72 a year that is being spent on unnecessary fees and $360 over five years. Tom could better spend this money on a return flight from Sydney to Melbourne rather than unwarranted bank fees.

“But Australians shouldn’t stop there and settle for second best with their bank accounts. There are plenty of other fees to be avoided - whether it’s atm fees, foreign exchange fees or foreign transaction fees, there are plenty of other ways to be saving,” Lamont said.

Not all bank accounts charge the same fees, with some of the most common ones aside from monthly account keeping fees being ATM withdrawal fees and foreign exchange fees. Given the decision by Australia's four major banks (ANZ, Commonwealth Bank, NAB and Westpac) in February 2017 to drop ATM fees for non-customers, it has never been easier for Aussies to avoid ATM account fees.

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However, some banks such as ING and ME Bank have gone one step further, offering their customers ATM fee rebates as long as certain conditions are met. Their requirements include using the ME and ING credit or debit card at least five times a month and ING has an additional deposit minimum monthly requisite of $1,000.

The same goes for Australians wanting to use their debit card overseas, in which there are a variety of travel money cards that offer no foreign ATM withdrawal and exchange fees. In fact, according to the Mozo database there are currently ten travel-friendly bank accounts which don’t charge either of these fees.

How does your bank account measure up? A great place to start is comparing bank account winners in the 2018 Mozo Experts Choice Awards. For more fee free options check out the range of fee free transaction accounts below.