Depositing a check with Chime is easy if you have set up a direct deposit and received at least $1 through it. To deposit a check with Chime, open the app and head to the Move Money tab. From the Move Money tab, click Mobile check deposit.
The Chime online banking app is doing what it can to create a great, well-rounded platform that can compete with the likes of Venmo and Paypal, letting their users deposit checks straight into the app.
While other online banks or fintech platforms may let you deposit checks into your account without any requirements, Chime only allows users who already have payroll deposits set up through direct deposit to take pictures of their checks.
Once you receive your paychecks electronically through Chime, you’ll be able to unlock and use their mobile check deposit feature.
Some mobile finance apps have barriers like Chime’s; Cash App won’t give you a routing or account number unless you have their debit card, the Cash Card.
It’s not unusual for an online bank to try and entice you with more features, trying to get you to move your deposits over.
If you do move your direct deposits over to Chime and unlock their mobile check deposit feature, you can deposit your checks on the go, saving you from a trip to the bank.
Check this video guide by Elijah to see the process in detail:
I’ll break down how exactly you can go about depositing a check with Chime here.
How to Deposit a Check with Chime (Step-by-Step)
As I’ve said in this article, depositing a check with Chime is simple. You can do it right from the app just by taking a picture of the front and back of your check.
Chime isn’t the first finance platform to try out mobile check deposits, but they don’t need to be to do it well.
Let me break down Chime’s mobile check deposit in a couple of easy to follow steps:
1. Open Chime
Open the Chime app on your phone or mobile device to begin the mobile deposit process. You can also deposit checks through Chime on a tablet. If you created a PIN for your Chime account as an added layer of protection (like I did), go ahead and enter it now.
2. Go to the Move Money Tab
The Move Money tab is located on the bottom portion of the Chime app, the second of four buttons. Click on the tab to open up the transfer section of Chime, where you can deposit your checks into the app.
3. Click Mobile Check Deposit
The third of the four ways to add money to Chime externally, click on the mobile check deposit button to move forward.
4. Click on the Type of Check You’ll be Depositing
Chime separates the checks you can deposit with them into two categories:
- Payroll provider checks
- Other checks.
Payroll provider checks are the checks you would get from an employer, while the checks that fall into the other category are anything from state-issued checks to personal checks to checks from a retirement fund.
Click on the category that best fits the check you want to deposit into Chime.
5. Set up Direct Deposit
As I previously mentioned in the article, Chime will only allow you to use their mobile deposit feature if you’ve set up direct deposit. If you haven’t and have gone this far in the mobile deposit process, they will ask you to set up direct deposit now.
6. Take a Picture of the Front of Your Check
Once you’ve set up direct deposit, or at least gotten past that portion of the mobile deposit process, Chime will ask you for permission to use your camera. They’ll use it to take pictures of your check, verifying the information on them is legitimate.
They will also use the numbers on the check to draw money and eventually send it to your account.
When you take a picture of the front of your check, make sure it’s clear and easy to read. If someone from Chime needs to verify it days later, you won’t want to have to look for it.
7. Take a Picture of the Back of the Check
Chime needs images of the front and the back of the check before they can process it.
Before you take a picture of the back of your check, make sure it’s signed.
Some banks will ask you to write “for mobile deposit only” on the back of the checks you deposit through their mobile deposit feature, but Chime doesn’t have any requirements, so long as the back of the check is signed.
8. Finalize Your Deposit
Once you’ve taken pictures of the front and the back of your check, it’s always a good idea to look them over a second time and make sure everything is legible.
Make sure the dollar amount you entered for the deposit is the same as the one Chime thinks it’s going to deposit as well. Finalize your deposit and continue.
9. Receive Your Funds
Depositing checks through Chime’s mobile app takes about one to three business days for the check to clear.
If Chime is having a hard time reading the check and needs more time to process it, they may take up to five business days.
Once they’re done though the funds will be in your account and you’ll be able to transfer them to a bank account, send them to another Chime user (or non-user), or spend them on your Chime card.
Why Won’t Chime Accept My Check?
If you deposited your check with Chime through their mobile deposit feature on their app, and your check isn’t being accepted, it could be due to a couple of reasons.
I’ll go over the biggest and most common reasons below, as well as some solutions (if they are any).
Bad Images
When you deposit a check in person, the bank that takes your check receives it from you and maintains it forever. If they ever have any problems with the check or think they may have transposed a number or two, they can find the check in their vault and review it.
When you deposit a check online, the only thing the bank has as a proof is an image of it. If you deposited a check with Chime and it hasn’t been accepted, the image might not be good enough.
They need clear renderings of the writer’s account number, routing number, written dollar amount, and numerical dollar amount. If Chime wasn’t able to confirm that information, you may need to retake the pictures.
Check from a Bad Account
Not every check writer is writing checks in good faith.
If you’re having a hard time getting your check accepted by Chime, it could be due to no fault of your own.
They may not be able to tell you, but the check you’re trying to deposit may be coming from an overdrawn account or a closed account, meaning there’s nothing you can do about it.
If this happens to you,Chime will usually send you an email or a letter in the mail notifying you that they weren’t able to accept your check.
Mobile Deposit Limit
Chime has a limit for how much they’ll allow you to deposit through paper checks. They also have a limit on how many checks they are willing to accept in one month, 10.
As a Chime user, you’re allowed to deposit up to $2,000 per non-treasury check, $5,000 per treasury check, and $10,000 in total checks per month.
If you’re trying to deposit a personal check for $3,000, you’re going past your Chime limit.
If your check is below the $2,000 threshold, you might have already reached your $10,000 monthly limit.
How Long Does Chime Mobile Deposit Take?
Chime mobile deposit works about as quickly as any other bank or online bank’s mobile deposit process.
Chime will take around one to three business days to process your mobile deposit, taking as many as five to confirm your check and give you your funds.
Once you’ve received the funds, you’re free to dispose of the check you got them from.
I’d recommend shredding the check if you have a shredder or disposing of it in any way that destroys all of the information on there and stops someone from stealing any of it.
You can deposit checks using Chime’s mobile check deposit feature at any time.
How to Deposit a Check with Chime Mobile Deposit without Direct Deposit
Unfortunately, if you don’t have direct deposit set up through Chime, you won’t be able to use their mobile deposit feature.
However, if you have a check and need to get the funds into your account, you’re not entirely out of options.
So long as the check is made payable to your legal name and you have an ID card with you, you should be able to head to the bank it’s being drawn from and cash it there.
With the cash, you can head over to one of the participating stores that accept Chime cash deposits.
About Mobile Check Deposit in Other Banking Apps
- 5 Things to Do When Depositing a Large Check with Chase Bank
- 4 Steps to Mobile Deposit a Paper Check on Cash App
- How to Deposit a Check for Someone Else (Surprisingly Easy)
- 11 Simple Steps to Mobile Deposit a Check on Venmo
- How to Deposit Checks on Chase App (By ex-Banker)
- 8 Best Direct Deposit Apps to Get Paid Early
