Capital One Money Teen Checking Account Review: Is it any good? (2024)

Is Capital One a good bank for your teenager? Here are the pros, cons, and fees of a Capital One Money Teen Checking account.

Every parent wants their kid to be financially successful.

But not everyone teaches their kids about money from a young enough age.

Without hands-on experience, many children enter adulthood with bad money management skills. With a children's bank account and debit, parents can give their kid a head start.

Capital One Money aims to introduce kids to convenient online banking. In this review, find out if Capital One Money is legit and safe for your kid.

Plus, check out how it stacks up against competitors like Chase First Banking and Greenlight.

What is Capital One Money Teen Checking?

You may know Capital One by its "What's in your wallet?" campaigns. The bank originally started out as a credit card company in 1994 and has since become one of the top national banks.

It now has more than $400 billion in total assets and offers a full range of banking services, including checking, savings, CDs, and loans.

Capital One Money Teen Checking is a no-fee checking account and debit card for kids. This joint account is geared toward teens, but parents can open an account for any kid age 8 or older.

Before reading about Capital One Money's features, take a look at the quick details to see if it's right for your kids:

Is Capital One a safe bank?
Capital One Bank is a member of the FDIC. This means the funds in your Capital One Money account are insured up to $250,000. If the bank ever fails, the FDIC will mail you a check with your balance.

Capital One Money Key Features

Capital One Money can help older kids and teens manage their money. Learn more about the account's key features below.

Debit Card

Capital One Money Teen Checking offers a free debit card for kids. Teens can use the debit card to make purchases online and in store.

Parents can lock and unlock the debit card any time in the app. As an extra safety feature, the card can't be used at places that are inappropriate for kids, including:

• Bars, nightclubs, and liquor stores
  
• Cigar stores
  
• Massage parlors
  
• Online prescription drug stores
  
• Car rentals

The debit card lets your kid withdraw cash at 70,000+ Capital One, MoneyPass, or Allpoint ATMs.

Cash deposits can only be made at a Capital One ATM or branch. There are only about 2,000 Capital One ATMs across the U.S., so your options are much more limited.

Mobile App

Parents and kids each get separate logins for the mobile app. The experiences for each app are slightly different.

Teens can manage their money, set up direct deposit, and deposit checks through the app. The savings goals feature lets them separate spending money from savings. If your kid wants new shoes, for example, they can set a specific amount and deadline to reach that goal.

The app looks and feels similar to an adult banking app. It doesn't offer educational content like some other banking apps for kids. This makes it better suited for teens who want a more mature banking experience.

Parents can send and remove money from their kid's account, monitor spending, and set up allowances. The app lets you give your kid as much freedom as you want, but you're ultimately in control.

Parental Controls

Parental controls are important for any product designed for kids. Capital One Money Teen Checking offers a couple safety features to help parents keep their kids in check:

• Parental monitoring
  
• Spending and activity alerts
  
• ATM and spending limits
  
• Lock and unlock debit card

What happens to the Capital One Money account when my child turns 18?
Your kid can still use a Capital One Money account once they turn 18. The account doesn't convert to a different account, but your kid can upgrade to a Capital One 360 Checking Account if they want. Once your kid turns 18, transaction limits get bumped up from $500 per day to $5,000 per day.

Fees to Look Out For

Capital One Money has no monthly fees or balance requirements to keep the account open or earn interest. The account can't be overdrafted, so there are no overdraft fees to worry about.^[1]

There are a couple fees you might run into:^[2]

• Expedited card delivery: $25
  
• Foreign check return fee: $10
  
• Cashier's check: $10

These services are all optional and pretty easy to avoid. For everyday use, the Capital One Money really is a fee-free account.

Customer Service and Reviews

If you don't live near a Capital One branch, you have a couple options to contact customer support about your bank account:

Phone
Call 1-800-655-2265 (agents are available 8:00 am - 11:00 pm EST, 7 days a week)

Twitter
Tweet @AskCapitalOne

Mail
Checking Accounts, Savings, Money Market, and CD Accounts
Capital One Bank
PO Box 98707
Las Vegas, NV 89193

Like many other big banks, Capital One has some mixed reviews in the customer service department. Some customers report long waits and turnaround times to hear back from the support team.

The mobile app generally has very positive reviews. The app has a rating of 4.7 out of 5 on the Google Play Store and 4.9 out of 5 on the Apple App Store.

Pros and Cons

Still not sure if Capital One Money is right for your kid? Review these pros and cons for the quick takeaway.

Pros

• Free banking app and debit card for kids and teens
  
• No overdraft fees
  
• Available for kids age 8+
  
• Access to 70,000+ Capital One, Allpoint, and MoneyPass ATMs
  
• Balance earns interest
  
• Set personalized savings goals
  
• Easy-to-use app
  
• Don't need an existing Capital One account to open

Cons

• Can only deposit cash at Capital One ATMs and branches
  
• Low interest rate
  
• No investment services
  
• No in-app educational tools
  
• Fewer features than other banking apps for kids
  
• No paper checks

How to Open a Capital One Money Account

A parent or guardian can open a Capital One Money Teen Checking account for kids age 8 or older.

Here's how to get started:

1. Go to the Capital One Money page and click Open Account.
   
2. Log into your existing Capital One account if you have one.
   
3. Enter personal details for you and your child.
   
4. Add funds.
   
5. Confirm your account.
   
6. Receive the debit card in the mail in 5-7 business days.

Capital One needs to check your identities when you open an account. You and your kid will need to provide details like your address, date of birth, and Social Security number.

Can I open a bank account for my 14-year-old?
Parents can open a joint bank account or custodial account for their minor children. Typically, children age 13 and older are eligible for these accounts. Some accounts have even lower age requirements. Every account is different, so be sure to double-check the age requirements beforehand.

How It Compares

Find out how Capital One Money stacks up against other free and paid banking accounts for kids.

Capital One Money vs. Chase First Banking

Chase First Banking is a free kid's debit card and checking account from one of the biggest banks in the nation. You can only open this account if you're a current Chase customer, but it's a solid account if you qualify.

The account offers some features you won't find with Capital One Money, like more parental controls, limits for specific merchants and spending categories. Parents can also assign chores and set allowance amounts for completing tasks.

Kids can withdraw and deposit cash more easily since Chase has 15,000+ ATMs and 4,700 branches nationwide. Capital One may have a larger ATM network for withdrawals, but there are only about 2,000 Capital One ATMs that accept cash deposits.

These features make the account great for a wider age range. The account is open to kids ages 6 to 17. One caveat is that Chase First Banking doesn't accept direct deposit. This could be inconvenient when your teen gets their first job.

Capital One Money vs. Greenlight

Greenlight is a paid app and debit card that offers a lot more features than most free accounts. The app offers checking, high-interest savings, investing, and much more.

The app has a monthly fee, but it covers up to 5 kids per family. There are 3 different pricing plans to choose from:^[3]

• Greenlight Core ($4.99/mo.): Includes kids' debit card, basic banking, educational content, parental controls, financial literacy games, credit card for parents, investing for parents with limited features, and 1% savings reward.
• Greenlight Max ($9.98/mo.): Adds an investing platform and research tools for kids and parents, priority customer support, protection plans, cash back on purchases, and 2% savings reward.
• Greenlight Infinity ($14.98/mo.): Adds family location sharing, crash detection, SOS alert, cash back, and 5% savings reward.

Capital One Money is good if your kid already has a good handle on money. But if you really want to teach your kids about money management from the ground up, Greenlight is a great alternative.

Capital One Money vs. Copper Banking

Copper Banking is a financial education platform designed to make learning about finance enjoyable for kids and teens.

Copper offers rewards for completing short quizzes and educational videos, and setting up a savings goal. The educational content is bite-sized and engaging to keep your teen interested. The app also encourages kids to set goals, budget, and save money.

Copper is open to teens and kids 6 and older. This is a great option if you're looking for a financial app that emphasizes financial literacy education.

Can you open a bank account by yourself at age 16?
Minors can't open a bank account by themselves. You need to be at least 18 years old to open an account. If a child is under 18, they will need a parent or guardian to set up a bank account.

Bottom Line

Capital One Money is a solid free bank account for kids. The account earns a small amount of interest and lets parents monitor their kids spending. Plus, a network of 70,000+ ATMs makes it easy to withdraw cash. On the other hand, depositing cash is a bit more difficult.

There aren't any in-app educational tools to help kids learn more about finances. But for basic, dependable checking and debit card usage, Capital One Money delivers.

Want to learn more about other banking products for kids? Check out the top accounts and popular alternatives:

• Best First Checking Account for Kids
  
• Greenlight Review
  
• GoHenry Review

References