A new analysis has found the average ATM surcharge was unchanged from last year at $3.08.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.–A new analysis has found the average ATM surcharge was unchanged from last year at $3.08.

“This marks a rare feat, as this surcharge has increased in 20 of the past 23 years, with 2004, 2020, and 2021 being the exceptions,” reported Bankrate.com, which conducted the survey and performed the analysis. “However, every ATM owning bank surveyed will charge non-customers.”

The average fee charged by banks when their own customer goes outside the network fell for the fourth consecutive year, to $1.51, a 10-year low and down 12% from the previous record in 2017 of $1.72. The decrease can be linked to continued increases in the number of accounts permitting free out-of-network withdrawals, now 40%, up from 35% last year and 32% in 2019, according to Bankrate.com.

The company’s analysis said that in combining the two fees, the average total cost of an out-of-network ATM withdrawal is $4.59, down for the second year in a row, and about 3% below the record high of $4.72 set in 2019.
ATM fees vary by metro area, with Atlanta having the highest average out-of-network ATM fee of the 25 major metro areas in the study ($5.23), while Los Angeles has the lowest ($3.90), the company said.

The same Bankrate.com analysis found NSF fees in 2021 have hit a new high.

Methodology
The survey group consisted of 245 banks and thrifts in 25 large U.S. markets. A total of 236 interest and 236 non-interest checking accounts as well as their associated ATM and debit card fee policies were included in the survey, which was conducted July 19 to Aug. 9, 2021.

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