Best Places To Cash Coins for Free

You can cash coins in for free at Coinstar kiosks, banks, credit unions and more. Read on for more on how and where you can deposit coins and get cash for free.

People have used clay pots, metal boxes, piggy banks and more to stash their cash and coins for years. Whether it’s found between couch cushions, stuffed in jeans pockets or gathered at the bottom of a purse, change adds up over time. In fact, saving it may be the easiest part. Finding a place to change loose coins for cash can be a bit trickier.

Best Places To Cash Coins for Free

You can cash coins in for free at Coinstar kiosks, banks, credit unions and more. Read on for more on how and where you can deposit coins and get cash for free.

Some banks and credit unions offer free coin-counting services. Most limit this service to customers, and you’ll find some variations in how the services work. Some have self-service coin counters on site. Others restrict the amount of change you can convert in a single visit.

The following list includes a sample of some of the places where you can cash in your coins for free:

PNC Bank accepts rolled coins for deposit into your PNC account. Just visit a branch and make your deposit with a teller. Tellers can also provide coin wrappers.

Bank of America, Member FDIC, accepts U.S. coins, but they must be presented in full rolls at any of the bank’s local financial centers. Find your nearest one by entering your address in Bank of America’s branch locator.

If you have a Chase account, you can deposit your coins there. In fact, Chase has recommended that customers deposit coins to help alleviate the coin shortage. Not all branches accept them, however. To see if yours does, use the branch locator on the Chase website to search your local branches. Branches that don’t accept coins have a “No coin transactions” notation in their listing.

Citizens Bank accepts loose change in amounts below $20 and rolled coins amounting to $20 or more. Some branch locations provide wrappers. Citizens gives you a choice between depositing the coins and exchanging them for cash, but you’ll need to have a valid photo ID and your account information handy when you go.

JBT offers self-serve coin-counting machines at each of its branches. Customers can count change for free. Noncustomers pay a fee, which JBT donates to charity through its Make Change Count program.

New Jersey’s Manasquan Bank has coin machines at many, if not all, branches. Bank clients can bring their coins in for free. Non-clients pay a 15% redemption fee. Check the bank’s location finder to see if your branch offers this service.

Republic Bank’s branches feature Magic Money coin-counting machines for customers only. You can even win a prize for using one.

Coin counters are available for bank customers only at least at some U.S. Bank branches.

State Employees’ Credit Union accepts coins and has a Coinstar coin counter to do the work for you. However, the service is for members only. You can deposit the coins into your primary SECU checking or CPG account and access it immediately using your SECU debit card. Or take the voucher to a teller to receive cash, deposit the money or make a loan or credit card payment.

Members of Penn East Federal Credit Union have access to complimentary coin-counting services. Nonmembers pay a 2% fee. The service is available at every branch, and you can either deposit the proceeds or keep the cash.

Suncoast Credit Union has self-service coin-counting machines in each branch lobby, but while they’re cheaper than machines in retail stores, they’re not free. Members pay a 5% fee on the coin total. Nonmembers pay 10%. Note that coins must be loose — Suncoast doesn’t accept rolled coins.

Coin collecting kiosks from Coinstar are located in over 24,000 banks, Walmart stores, supermarkets, gas stations and many other retailers. Pour your loose change into the receiver and let the machine do the work of sorting and counting the coins.

Coinstar offers a few ways to cash out, some of which are free:

Cash: You’ll get a voucher to take to the cashier to exchange for cash.

E-gift card: You receive a code instead of a physical card. The code works like cash when you make a purchase at the store or restaurant.

Charitable donation: You’ll receive a receipt for tax purposes.

Coinstar’s fees, which may vary by location, include a service fee of up to 12.5% and a 50-cent transaction fee if you want to receive your money as cash. However, the e-gift card option is free. Choose an e-gift card from a Coinstar partner merchant, including Apple, Outback Steakhouse, Nike and Southwest Airlines, and you won’t pay a penny to convert your change.

Charitable donations are also free, but