Despite the popularity of online bill payment and the ease of making purchases with a credit card, using paper personal checks to access money from your bank account still comes in handy. In fact, according to the non-profit Check Payment Systems Association, 68 percent of consumers in the U.S. pay their bills by mailing a check.
Don’t pay through the nose for paper checks through your local bank, however, where check prices may run nearly double the cost of the cheapest checks available through other retailers.
Here are some safe options for cheap checks for a new or existing checking account. All of these companies print checks with the Check Payment Systems Association’s enhanced check security features, illustrated by the tiny padlock icon next to the word “Dollars” on the front of each check.
Wal-Mart checks
The giant retailer rarely leaves a lucrative market untapped, so no wonder Wal-Mart got into the check-printing business. The Wal-Mart Financial Services Web site displays the 14 personal check styles, which include a variety of Disney checks featuring Pirates of the Caribbean, Cars, Mickey Mouse, Winnie the Pooh, Princesses and a Disney movie selection pack. The Disney checks and other special designs—such as Spongebob Squarepants and Anne Geddes butterflies, start at $6.96 for a box of single 240 checks. Duplicate checks come in boxes of 175 checks and start at $7.96 a box.
Wal-Mart’s standard designs, which include mountain views or pictures of the American flag, start at $5.96 for a box of single checks and $6.96 for a box of duplicates. Standard shipping depends on the number of checks ordered and varies from $2.50 to $10 a shipment.
Checks Unlimited
For a dizzying selection of check designs, try Checks Unlimited, a subsidiary of Deluxe Checks—the largest provider of checks in the country and the likely source of checks for your local bank. Save the most money with Checks Unlimited checks by ordering four boxes at a time to get the best price. Special edition designs, including Harley-Davidson and Nascar checks, cost $51.80 for four boxes of 150 one-part checks. Standard designs, such as Thomas Kincade paintings or Bible scripture passages, cost $36.80 for a four-box order of single checks. Shipping varies according to quantity.
Costco
Costco members ($50 annual fee for a Gold Start membership) can order checks online at Costco Check Printing. Orders are available in two- or four-box options. Two hundred checks come in each box of one-part checks; duplicate checks come in 150-check boxes. Four boxes of one-part checks in the cloyingly sweet Puppy Love design will set Costco members back $21.18. Standard shipping and handling is included, making the deal even sweeter.
Judith Zwolak - Judy is a mother of two and a freelance writer living in South Dakota. Raised by notoriously frugal parents, she comes by her family ...
