It is important to know and understand your checking account – as it is not just a place to store and receive your money as you wish.  A checking account is part of your bank and it should work for you, not the opposite.

Look into banks that offer free checking accounts; these may be particular to students.  Make sure to know the policies and abide by them. Watch out for fees that you may be charged when you have too many ATM withdrawals, too many checks written, or use a funds transfer. As well, it is definitely helpful to have a checking account that you can access anytime (via online an online account and with many ATM machines in any and all areas you made need them). Free online banking, bill pay and management, without attached fees, are not uncommon – it is necessary among any checking account. 

Most checking accounts that work for you may offer free checks that the bank offers in the maximum amount they allow, such as 50 or 100 checks.  Take the initial free checks and do not order any (especially for a fee, until you need them down the line). If you need more, you  can simply go online and order more, but leftover checks are more typical than not, especially with online bill pay options becoming more commonplace. Extra checks become nothing more than wasted paper and wasted dollars.

It is important to keep track of your bank/checking accounts all of the time.  It can be costly not to keep your financial records in place and accurately accounted for.  All banks will charge you some type of fee for overdraft fees. Your debit card can easily get you into the red if you don’t know what’s in your checking account. Make sure to stick to ATM’s that belong to your bank. Banks tend to charge their own additional fees for withdrawing money from other bank’s ATM machines, plus the ATM fees when you withdraw money, causing you to lose between $2 and $5 for each withdrawal unless it is within your own bank. 

As well, checking accounts and savings account can work together, for a small or no fee, that offer assistance in transfer funds if you accidentally overdraft one or the other. There may be a fee that is charged, but much less if you are signed up for the overdraft transfer assistance program.