Banking 101: Daily ATM Withdrawal Limits at Popular Banks – and How to Avoid Them

If you keep your money at one of the 20 largest banks in the country, your checking account likely will have a daily ATM withdrawal limit between $300 and $5,000. ATM withdrawal limits can differ from person to person, however, and they are often determined by a number of factors, including what type of account or product it is and the availability of funds. 

You aren’t necessarily beholden to these limits either – many banks and credit unions allow customers to adjust the amount they are able to withdraw from an ATM by contacting customer service. 

Breaking down ATM withdrawal limits

The table below hashes out the typical ATM withdrawal limits for the 20 largest banks in the nation.  All limits listed in this table are for checking accounts offered by the financial institutions. When checking accounts at the same financial institution have different withdrawal limits for ATMs, the lowest and highest limit will be represented as a range. 

Note that these are only general limits for each bank’s checking accounts – exact limits can vary depending on the specific type of checking account you have and other factors. 

How to avoid ATM withdrawal limits

If you need cash beyond the withdrawal limits set by your financial institution, you can ask the bank to raise the limit. Most financial institutions are willing to do so at least temporarily, while some allow those limits to be increased permanently. 

There are situations where you may need to withdraw large amounts of cash on a regular basis. For example, you might have a child with special needs who has expensive health care demands that needs to be paid in cash. Those expenses may merit a higher daily ATM withdrawal limit.

If you’re denied a limit increase, you still have other options. Any withdrawal you make inside your local branch, for instance, does not count toward your daily limit. Another option is to use your debit card to make a purchase rather than cash, as daily debit purchase limits are usually far higher than daily withdrawal limits for ATMs.

FAQ: ATM withdrawal limits

I have an ATM card through my savings account. Does that change my limit?

Your daily ATM withdrawal limit may be different on your savings account than it is on your checking account. In fact, these limits can vary from checking account to checking account, notwithstanding savings.

When you have a savings account, you need to be aware of the number of times you withdraw money from your account during a billing period. In many cases, financial institutions limit consumers to making no more than six withdrawals per month on all savings accounts. If you want to make more than six withdrawals in any given month, you can look at more “inconvenient” options, which may include visiting a teller inside the branch rather than taking money out at the ATM.

What’s the best way to find my daily ATM withdrawal limit?

If you’re considering opening an account based on its ATM withdrawal limit, you need to first find out what that limit is. While some financial institutions make this information easy to find on their websites, many do not. If you cannot find the information online, call your financial institution to find out what your daily withdrawal limit is and/or ask for an increase to your limit, allowing you to withdraw more cash.

Will my daily debit purchase limit be different from my ATM withdrawal limit?

Yes. Typically, your withdrawal limit will be lower than your debit purchase limit. For example, for those with checking accounts at Customers Bank, daily debit purchase limits are $1,500, but you can only withdraw $510 per day from an ATM if you don’t request a limit increase.

If I get cash back at a store, does that count toward my ATM withdrawal limit?

When you get cash back at a store, it will not count toward your daily withdrawal limit. It will, however, count toward your debit purchase limit. Theoretically, that means you could get more than your daily withdrawal limit in cash by making small purchases at stores and opting for cash back.

However, most stores have relatively low limits on cash back – you might only be able to take out $50 per transaction. By the time you make enough transactions to get the full amount of cash you need, you might as well have just called in or visited a branch to increase your withdrawal limit.