Money Tip - Turn Coins into Gift Cards for Free

[SharonL]

Coinstar is a service that will take all your coins and give you bills.

They charge 8 cents for every dollar you put in.

However, there is no fee anymore if you choose to get paid in gift certificates. You can choose gift certificates from

Amazon, ITunes, Virgin Digital, Starbucks, Borders, Pier 1 Imports, Linens 'n Things, Hollywood Video

- Find your local Coinstar here

 

[smurf]

yo thats hot..nice look out!

 

[segaboy0]

sweeeeeet! I always wondered why people would use these machines rather than going to bank and not getting charged a fee. Here's the first good reason!

 

[Rockstar]

Question: Is it true that you have to roll your coins in certain sleeves before turning them into the bank? Or can you just give them a jar full of coins?

 

[ksocia]

All of the banks I've been a member of make you roll the coins. Chevy Chase Bank (DC Area + others?) has free coinstar type machines.

 

[majic2930]

Question: Is it true that you have to roll your coins in certain sleeves before turning them into the bank? Or can you just give them a jar full of coins?

None of the banks I belong to make you roll the coins into sleeves. They even ask you not to because they would break them apart anyways to feed into their coin counting machines.

 

[clubchick]

i've had to pay a fee for turning in loose change to my credit union. this is sweet! thanks!

 

[Liss]

Most banks also charge a fee for turning in loose coins. They make cheap plastic rollers that are easy to use if you do this sort of thing all the time.

 

[StevenJ]

Many small town banks will roll your coin for you for free, but big city banks don't. My dad is a recently retired small town banker and he was totally shocked when he visited me and found out big city banks charged to accept unrolled coin.

You do want to check the coinstar web site for not all locations do all gift certificates. Until just recently, most of the locations in my area didn't do gift certs at all. But I look now and see they all do but each seems to do a specific list of certs--not all of them.

 

[Derk]

Not all coinstar locations have the gift certificate option, though, so you should check on their website for a location that will do it.

 

[Cedar]

My local Wachovia offers free coin counting.

 

[babietuan323]

whats so hard about rolling your coins?

let your sons/daughters roll them and give them a dollar

 

[dehawk]

whats so hard about rolling your coins?

let your sons/daughters roll them and give them a dollar

child labor

 

[Applepielicious]

I think HSBC has this machine for coins (no need to roll up your coins)...don't think they will charge a fee. I've seen it before although I've never used it.

 

[khris]

Here in NYC, Commerce Bank has this type of machine for free. It asks you to guess the total amount before counting, they give you a free gift if you get it right.

 

[morriefisher]

"whats so hard about rolling your coins?"

You don't often have a full roll, so you have to wait until it's full to bring it in.

I think that my store charges 8.9cents per dollar, not 8.

 

[Uleepera]

For those in the Northeast this is a bum deal. Goto your local commerce, they don't care if your a customer or not. They have a "Penny Arcade" which will count and spit out a reciept which you bring to the teller. There are no fees at all. And best of all your don't have to roll anything.

-Marc

 

[EricDerek]

This is not a good deal. 9% of your money is stolen. Look around and you will find a place that does it for free. Plus, gift certificates are bad, unless you are sure you are going to use them. I'd rather have $50 cash to spend anywhere than $50 at Home Depot or iTunes.

 

[prncssnish]

Here in NYC, Commerce Bank has this type of machine for free. It asks you to guess the total amount before counting, they give you a free gift if you get it right.

Commerce Rocks!
I have taken advantage of this offer a few times alreay and now it acts as an incentive for us to hold onto our change!

 

[jweb1510]

Our small town bank rolls coin for free, if you have an account. Otherwise, we charge a flat $3 fee. But I always thought these coinstar things were bogus, primarily because I've always banked at places that take coin for no charge.