Ally Bank Rolls Out eCheck Check Deposit: Scan Your Checks Online

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The Ally Bank blog recently announced that they are gradually rolling out their eCheck Deposit service, where you can use a scanner and submit your deposits over the internet without having to visit a branch or mailing anything in. This is another step towards being able to step away from the big Brick & Mortar banks and take advantage of the higher interest rates and lower fees of internet banks.

The service is currently only available by invited account holders of an Ally Interest Checking account, but you can call them at 1-877-247-2559 and ask to be added to their next rollout list. They expect to continue expanding this service throughout 2011. (Update: Ally contacted me and said that invited account holders of their online savings account and money market account are also eligible.)

This adds another feature to my Ally Bank Checking account review, which I found comparing the features to be one of the best online checking account alternatives out there. No minimums, no direct deposit required, all ATM fees refunded, 24/7 phone reps, and a decent interest rate.

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Comments

  1. Paper Stacker says

    This is a great move, even if it’s not particularly useful for me. It throws another benefit on, IMO, the best checking account available.

    If they could get out an Android app with photo check depositing (as I enjoy with Chase), they would probably turn me into a fanatic

  2. I agree this is a great move on their part, they do need an app though 🙂

  3. Matt Klein says

    This great! Now I just need an iPhone app.

  4. Wow – technology is getting more and more amazing. This will be so cool to be able to deposit checks from home.

  5. Add me to the list of people that think they need Android and iPhone apps.

  6. Cooper's Dad says

    I know this is “news” b/c of your enthusiasm for Ally Bank, but this is a yawner for customers of First Internet Bank (firstib.com) who’ve enjoyed this feature for…oh…almost a couple of years now. In addition to $6 of ATM fee rebates monthly, their Checking accounts are now paying 0.70% APY and carry no service fee if average balance exceeds only $500.

  7. Actually, I didn’t know that about FirstIB. Looking at their site, it’s the same software backend used by Everbank for online deposits. $6 isn’t bad for my habits, that’s about two withdrawals a month. Does it offer international rebates as well?

    Ally hinted at an smartphone app by the end of the year. That would be even better than dealing with a scanner.

  8. FirstIB does offer international rebates as well, except for the 3% fee Visa charges for international transactions.

    But I still think Ally is better. FIB charges $14 for the cheapest set of checks (after the first free set) while Ally continues to be free. And Ally currently has .90% APY while FIB has .70%. Just to name a couple off the top of my head. Would be nice to have an Android app though!

  9. And FIB has a $10 Monthly Maintenance Fee for their interest checking account. Which is a deal breaker for me.

  10. Cooper's Dad says

    Maintenance fee at FirstIB applies *only* if $500 minimum average balance is not met for the month. Compare that to Ally, with no fee at all, but a .90% APY on an average balance ABOVE a whopping $15,000 and a mere .50% for smaller balances. FirstIB pays its .70% APY on the first and every penny in your account.
    Why buy checks from FirstIB (or any bank, for that matter)? Google Shopper will find dozens of far cheaper sources, including both WalMart.com and Costco.com, both of which I’ve used with perfectly fine results and 60% savings over bank/Deluxe Check pricing. But for that matter, how often do you need to buy checks for these accounts? If you’re maxing your savings with an online bank, aren’t you also maxing their online bill paying offering also? I opened my FirstIB account in 1999, shortly after First Internet Bank was chartered and didn’t have to buy my next refill of checks first the first time until 2008. Paid $9, averaging $1 per year for checks. Not enough money to justify this paragraph, but I think it makes the point.
    FirstIB isn’t the only the game in town and maybe not even the best, but I’m just sayin’…

  11. This is dated technology. Chase lets me use my iPhone to snap a pic of the front and back of check and deposit it. No scanner required. There’s an app for that!

    Schwab has this planned for their iPhone app upcoming upgrade.

    The concept of depositing checks without going to a brick and mortar is a great idea, regardless of how it’s implemented. I just hate to think of the bank tellers who may be losing jobs because of loss of traffic to the local bank.

  12. Do you think Ally needs an iPhone app? Like this Facebook page!

    http://on.fb.me/allyiphone

  13. They need a smartphone app for different devices, not just iPhone.

  14. Worst experience ever for a online check deposit with Ally, it took me about at least 30 mins to get a GOOD scanned image of the check. It complains about everything, resolution (this makes sense, but painful), size, crop image, didn’t recognize the account number. Basically, the image has been to perfect until they accept it. I seriously doubt this is a good option now. Just too painful!!

  15. @Ning I think you just need a better scanner.

  16. @Brandon, it’s the full size scanner in my company, I think it’s powerful enough to handle any case. But for me, it’s just asking too many things for a simple check scan. Why not just do what Chase does, a cell phone photo should work …

  17. Can’t wait it will be so useful for me since no local branch here in Spartanburg sc !! I need to be able to make deposits asap ! I need the app for android

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