The Cities With The Highest ATM Fees (PHOTOS)

Note to those low on cash: Stay away from Denver.

At $2.75, the mile-high city has the highest average ATM fee of any place in the country, 35 cents above the national average, according to Bankrate.com's 2011 Checking Account Survey. Capping ATM fees has been a call to arms for consumer advocates and the bane of existence for some banks, who say that curbing the fees would mean fewer private cash machines at convenience stores, restaurants and the like as well as a reduction in bank-owned ATMs.

Senator Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) said earlier this year that the average ATM transaction costs 37 cents, according to The Huffington Post. Harkin couldn’t get his proposed amendment to cap ATM fees at 50 cents to the floor in May.

JPMorgan Chase charged out-of-network customers $4 and $5 to take money out of their ATMs in Texas and Illinois as part of a pilot program in those two states earlier this year, according to CNN Money. The banking giant went back to charging $3 after too few customers were willing to pay the higher fees and opted for their own banks instead, CNN reported.

Luckily, even in the cities with the highest ATM fees, the average is lower than $3, according to Bankrate.com. Still, all five cities have a fee that’s higher than $2 or 10 percent of a $20 transaction.

And opting for a debit card instead of cash may not save you the fees. The Federal Reserve nearly doubled the limit banks can charge retailers and consumers for debit transactions, according to The Huffington Post.

If you’re looking to get cash on the cheap, then head to the Midwest, four out of five of the cities with lowest ATM fees are in the country’s heartland, according to Bankrate.com.

Here are the cities with the highest ATM fees, according to Bankrate.com:

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Comments

[trailerguy]

12:12 AM on 09/29/2011

Seattle has high Atm fees because we hope it discougage peopl moving here

[QuantProgrammer]

01:53 PM on 10/05/2011

Beats $3000/mo rents for studios in New York. I think I am moving to Seattle. :D

[J T K]

04:46 PM on 09/28/2011

This is why credit unions and small banks don't work. If you're traveling around the country you get charged at both ends for using an outside the network ATM, even if you get reimbursed that's usually capped and there are fewer ATMs to go to forcing you to hunt them down. BofA and Chase on the other hand don't reimburse for fees but they have ATMs everywhere making them a lot more convenient.

[LeeCalif]

05:06 PM on 09/28/2011

A small inconvenience when banking with credit unions.

Credit Unions b eat banks in every other way.

[J T K]

01:54 AM on 09/29/2011

In general yes but that doesn't matter if you can't get your money when you need it and where you need it.

[Jay from Ottawa]

06:13 PM on 09/28/2011

Credit unions are part of the exchange network (up here in Canada) which includes HSBC, ING Direct and the National Bank of Canada. Therefore a credit union customer in Canada can find free ABM machines anywhere in Canada via those other banks, it's a fantastic idea.

Furthermore, ING Direct (Canada) has a chequings account which allows you to make point of sale purchases (as many as you want) for free.

Believe it or not, the banking cartel is having their hegemony challenged in Canada.

[J T K]

01:55 AM on 09/29/2011

You Canadians are spoiled, short of some twist that you're not telling me like sacrificing your first born child it sounds like a great system. I can't imagine why there'd be challenges to that type of system and how they'd be successful unless a willful effort was made to allow them.

[Lillie Donner]

04:27 PM on 09/28/2011

you forgot las vegas...$35 fees

[nnightthawk]

03:38 PM on 09/28/2011

I'm paying $3.00 fee when I use my card in St. Johns AZ.

[Charlie Elsner]

03:38 PM on 09/28/2011

you dont need to use an ATM, just be smart enough to have cash,, or a credit card, unless your dumb enough to have yours maxed out,,

[Ron Russo]

02:46 PM on 09/28/2011

What about Atlantic City New Jersey you better make damn sure you don't need a atm there 4 to 7 dollars a crack.

[Kev n]

02:38 PM on 09/28/2011

Please block style these comments. They are too hard to read. Thank you very much.

[jsh125]

02:35 PM on 09/28/2011

how is Las Vegas NOT on this list? 6 bucks at the casinos? Also, BANKS make up the fees not the cities, blame shifting doesnt help to inform your reader

[simzillyjp]

02:57 PM on 09/28/2011

Any casino will over charge you for everything. CASH RULES.

[QuantProgrammer]

01:55 PM on 10/05/2011

$10 at NY Hotels.

[jsh125]

04:47 PM on 10/07/2011

wow...50% on a minimum withdraw....thats crazy!!!!

[setanta54]

01:40 PM on 09/28/2011

mymymy....just what did folKKs ever do prior to the ATM ? nothing...nothing at all and survived without them---get rid of that atm card.

[mcwhomper]

01:20 PM on 09/28/2011

we bail out the banks so they can stick it up our ashes

[Mark Twainer]

01:16 PM on 09/28/2011

It's not just the ATM fees. Huff should post another article on how using "plastics" transaction fees are hurting small businesses. If you don't believe me go to any small business that accepts cards and ask them why they have minimum balances for using them.

[Mark Twainer]

01:07 PM on 09/28/2011

Look at these places cost of living and it shouldn't take a rocket scientist to figure this out. (Although it might not hurt since a lot of ours are out of work) Like mentioned by an earlier blogger it's the ATM owners and Banks who set the prices, not the cities. This article is intentionally misleading in shifting blame.

[billy112140]

01:04 PM on 09/28/2011

I stopped using banks years ago when they kept raising the min. balance you had to have in order not to pay their fees. When i could no longer keep up with them and they were charging me more per year on my savings than i was putting in, i`d had enough. I pulled my little money out and joined my credit union and have been satisfied ever since. The only expense i have is checks and postage, but if stamps keep going up, i`ll have to learn how to do online banking. I`m a dummy on my pc, so i`m nervous about online banking or having my accounts out there for some crook.

[frankiedoo]

12:51 PM on 09/28/2011

I have Wels fargo if i use another atm i get charged by the atm i am using for 200 thanwels charges me 250 aint i stupid/

[Roy m]

12:46 PM on 09/28/2011

.25 cents over average was not what I was talking about, 3.50,4.00,5.00 is what I'm talking about this is non-fair pricing when the avg. is 2.40. Convenience pricing is just another way of saying I'm going to screw you.Now the owner of the space may be the one doing the screwing to you in stead of the bank it is just easier to blame the bank they done so much harm lately people don't really care for banks any more i have see many people who don't use banks anymore.