[Expired] [YMMV] U.S. Bank $200 In-Branch Checking Bonus - Direct Deposit Not Required

Deal has now expired, view the best current checking bonuses here.

It seems like this is available at in branch locations inside of grocery stores. Unfortunately doesn’t seem like there is any way to just search for just grocery store locations. That being said when you do a search, it does say the grocery store name in the title. I’m reposting as some people will have given this deal a miss due not knowing if a particular branch is eligible. If you go to a grocery store location and they don’t have this deal then let us know.

Offer at a glance

Maximum bonus amount: $200
Availability: SelectIn branch locations only [Branch locations | Map]. They have branches in AR, AZ, CA, CO, FL, GA, IA, ID, IL, IN, KS, KY, MN, MO, MT, ND, NE, NM, NV, OH, OR, SD, TN, TX, UT, WA, WI, WY
Direct deposit required: Not required
Additional requirements: $50 in debit card transactions per month
Hard/soft pull: Soft
ChexSystems: Mixed data points
Credit card funding: None
Monthly fees: $10.95-$12.95, waivable
Early account termination fee: None
Household limit: None mentioned
Expiration date: September 10th, 2018

Contents

1 The Offer
2 The Fine Print
3 Avoiding Fees
- 3.1 Monthly Fees
- 3.2 Early Account Termination Fee
4 Our Verdict

The Offer

No direct link. Offer is available at some select U.S. Bank locations. Reader Jared found it in a grocery branch in Orange County.

Receive a bonus of $200 when you open a new U.S. Bank consumer checking account between August 24th and September 10th when you complete the following requirements:
- Receive $50 each month you spend $50 or more on your new Visa debit card (September, October, November & December)

The Fine Print

Offer is not valid if you have an existing U.S. Bank consumer checking account, had a U.S. bank checking account account in the last six months or received other U.S. Bank bonus offers within the past twelve months
Offer is not available to accounts opened through usbank.com or 24 hour banking
All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them

Avoiding Fees

Monthly Fees

U.S bank has three checking products which qualify for this promotion:

Silver Checking Account
Gold Checking Account
Platinum Checking account

Probably the easiest way to keep this fee free is to open the Gold Checking account: if you have a U.S Bank credit card then the monthly fees on this account are waived. Many of us have a U.S. Bank personal credit card like Altitude, Flexperks, or Cash+ which would work to keep the account fee-free. Having a personal loan gets the fee waived as well.

If you don’t have a U.S Bank credit card and aren’t planning on getting one, your best bet is to open the Silver checking account which has of $8.95 ($6.95 if you enroll in paperless statements). Fee is waived if you do these three things: 1) Go paperless, 2) Open a Package Money Market Savings account (no fee), 3) Do one of these two things: have combined direct deposits totaling $1,000 or more, OR maintain an average monthly balance of $1,500. Another option is to get the Gold account and get the fee waived if you have a good credit score and join the Because You’ve Earned It program.

Early Account Termination Fee

These accounts have no early account termination fee

Our Verdict

This is a great bonus, the problem is that it’s not available online and it’s not even available at most U.S. Bank locations. I suspect the vast majority won’t have this offer, as has been the case with other U.S. Bank in branch checking bonuses. I guess if you’re near a branch it’s worth a look. If you go to a branch, let us know if it did/didn’t have the offer. I won’t be adding this to the best checking bonuses until we know more about the availability of the offer.

Big thanks to reader, Jared who let us know. Learn how to find bonuses and contribute to the site here.

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