Banking

If you still have the old Chime Credit Builder card, you can keep it. The real decision is whether separate balances are worth more to you than Chime Card’s simpler setup and newer perks. If you already have Chime Credit Builder like me, you do not need to panic or...

Yes. A U.S. ABA routing number is always exactly nine digits. If you are looking at an 8-digit, 10-digit, 12-digit, or alphanumeric code, you are either missing a digit or looking at something else, such as an account number, SWIFT/BIC code, IBAN, or another banking identifier. The part that actually...

After nearly 30 years of helping clients set up their financial lives, I've seen how a simple 9 digit number can cause major headaches. A wrong routing number can mean a delayed paycheck, a missed bill payment, or a rejected tax refund. Let's clear up all the confusion about...

Here’s the deal: knowing how to write a check is still a crucial life skill in 2026. In my near 3 decades as a financial planner, I’ve noticed a funny thing: the more digital our money gets, the more intimidating the old-school tools become. I’ve had brilliant young clients. Tech...

There are few financial anxieties as sharp as expecting a direct deposit that never arrives. It's like a pizza delivery that's an hour late. You refresh your bank app every 10 minutes. Your stomach tightens. You're calculating which bills you can delay if this doesn't hit by 5 PM. You...

Closing a joint bank account sounds like a paperwork problem. Sometimes it is. Sometimes it is the moment you discover that the bank's rules and the relationship's rules are two very different things. I once worked through a joint-account breakup where the other owner kept creating overdrafts after the relationship...

Yes, Earnin can work together with Chime. But there are critical catches. If you're reading this, you're probably stressed. Maybe your transmission just blew and you need $800 by Tuesday. Or rent's due Friday and you're $200 short. Or you got slammed with an unexpected ER copay three days...

To close your Chime account, open the Chime app and go to Profile > Personal info > Close Account, then follow the prompts. But I would not start there. The clean way to leave Chime is to move your money, reroute deposits and recurring payments, save your records, check...

You deposited a check, opened your banking app, and now the question is simple: when can you actually use the money? For most ordinary U.S. check deposits in 2026, the answer is one to two business days. Under current Regulation CC funds-availability rules, the first $275 of a standard check...

You're signing up for a new budgeting app like one of the best Rocket Money alternatives, and right when it's time to link your bank, a screen pops up. It's from a company called Plaid, and it's asking for your bank username and password. Your first thought is likely, "Absolutely...