Paying bills is rarely fun or easy. However you can use free bill pay services to make life a little easier and avoid mistakes. Let’s cover a few of the best free bill pay options and how you can use them.
Your Bank
The best option for free bill pay is probably your bank. If you have a checking account, it’s likely your bank offers online bill pay. You can set up a list of payees and have your bank send checks (or electronic payments) to service providers. If you’re looking for free bill pay, start at your bank.
If you use this option, you’ll most likely have to manually enter or approve each payment. This helps you keep tabs on your bills so you know where your money goes.
ACH Payments
If you want a system that doesn’t require any action on your part, you can set one up. Most service providers offer free bill pay by pulling money from your bank account each time a payment is due. To set this up, you provide bank information and give them permission to take the money.
This route takes less work each month, but you give service providers access to your bank account. They may accidentally take too much, or they may pull funds at a bad time - when your account is temporarily empty - resulting in overdraft charges. Make sure you have overdraft protection if you use this option.
Free Bill Pay Services
Several personal finance software providers offer free bill pay, but they usually aren't "free". You may need a premium subscription, or you may only get free bill pay for a limited time.
MyCheckFree is a truly free bill pay service allowing you to pay eBills to selected service providers.
0 comments:
Post a Comment