Ages 13-17
iOS, Android, Web
Alliant Teen Checking
By Alliant Credit Union
Reviewed by Alex Thompson, founder of Kids Financial Guide · Updated November 2026
The short answer
Alliant Teen Checking is a free online credit union checking account and Visa debit card for teens 13-17 with a parent as joint owner: no monthly or overdraft fees, 0.25% APY in months with e-statements and at least one recurring electronic deposit, such as a paycheck or a regular transfer from your bank, and up to $20 a month back on ATM fees. It has no chores, allowance tool or store-level controls, its card limits are high, and you see the account only once your teen gives you access, so it suits older teens with a paycheck or set allowance and a parent willing to join the credit union.
| Ages | 13-17, with a parent or guardian as joint owner; at 18 it becomes a regular Alliant checking account with a new card and higher limits, and you stay a joint owner unless your teen removes you |
|---|---|
| Price | Free: no monthly service, minimum balance, overdraft or insufficient-funds fees; 1% on card purchases and ATM withdrawals with merchants or ATMs outside the US, even in US dollars; the savings accounts that come with membership can be charged $10 if left dormant or inactive |
| Debit card | Yes, a Visa debit card that works with Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay; Alliant is a credit union, and deposits have NCUA insurance, the credit-union version of FDIC insurance |
| Investing | No |
| Interest | 0.25% APY in any month the account has e-statements and at least one recurring electronic deposit, such as a paycheck or a transfer from another bank (moves between your own Alliant accounts don't count); about 25 cents a year on $100. Alliant can change the rate |
| Limits | $500 a day at ATMs, $500 a day in PIN purchases (where you type the PIN) and $5,000 a day in signature purchases (most tap, online and card-run-as-credit payments), set by Alliant |
| What the parent needs | To be an Alliant member and joint owner; a parent who isn't a member joins during the application by opening a membership savings account, and anyone can join through the Alliant Credit Union Foundation, whose $5 fee Alliant pays |
| Chores and allowance | No |
Compare it with other apps: Best Money Apps for Kids and Teens, Compared
Alliant Teen Checking is a free credit union account and debit card for teens 13-17, co-owned by a parent; 0.25% APY with e-statements and a monthly deposit.
Alliant is a large online credit union based near Chicago, and Teen Checking is its account for teens 13 to 17, opened with a parent or guardian as joint owner. There is no monthly fee, no minimum to open and no overdraft or insufficient-funds fee. The teen gets a Visa debit card that works with Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay.
The account pays 0.25% APY in any month it has e-statements and at least one recurring electronic deposit, such as a paycheck or a transfer from another bank; moving money between your own Alliant accounts doesn't count. Teens can use more than 80,000 fee-free ATMs, and Alliant repays up to $20 a month of ATM fees.
Once your teen grants you access in online banking, you see the account and can set up alerts, and only you can set up transfers out. Alliant sets the card limits, and there are no chores, allowance tool or savings goals. At 18 the account becomes a regular Alliant checking account.
Key Features
- ✓No monthly, minimum balance, overdraft or insufficient-funds fees
- ✓0.25% APY with two simple monthly rules, which a regular allowance transfer from your bank can meet
- ✓More than 80,000 fee-free ATMs and up to $20 a month back on ATM fees
- ✓Only the parent can set up transfers out of the account
- ✓The account turns into a regular checking account at 18, so your teen keeps it (you stay a joint owner unless they remove you)
⚠Limitations
- ×The parent must join Alliant (free through the Alliant Credit Union Foundation), and membership savings accounts can be charged $10 if left dormant or inactive
- ×You see the account and get alerts only once your teen grants you access in online banking
- ×No chores, allowance tool, savings goals or lessons
- ×High card limits ($5,000 a day in signature purchases), and Alliant doesn't list a way for parents to lower them or block stores
- ×The parent is a joint owner, so either of you can withdraw everything, and gifts to your teen aren't set aside for them the way they are in a custodial account (one legally held for the child)
- ×Your teen can add the card to PayPal, Venmo or Cash App, where payments to strangers can't be undone
- ×1% fee on transactions with merchants outside the US, including some foreign websites
- ×Alliant shares account information with outside companies for marketing unless you opt out
Learning Outcomes
- •Spending with a debit card within the money you have
- •Setting up direct deposit from a first job
- •Seeing how interest works on a real account
Our Verdict
Our take: Alliant Teen Checking is a strong free account for an older teen with a paycheck or a set monthly allowance, because a recurring deposit earns the interest and the account carries on at 18. Its card limits are high and Alliant doesn't list a way to lower them, so for a younger teen or tighter limits, Axos First Checking or Capital One MONEY is the safer free pick.
Parental Controls
- •See the account and get alerts by text, email or the app, once your teen grants you access in online banking
- •Only the parent can set up outgoing transfers
- •Daily card limits set by Alliant
Alliant Teen Checking: our in-depth review
How it works day to day
A parent or guardian applies online with the teen, and becomes an Alliant member during the application if they aren't one already. Once approved, the teen creates their own login for the Alliant app and gets a Visa debit card. To see the account and get alerts, the parent needs the teen to grant access from their online banking, so set this up together on day one.
Money comes in by direct deposit from a job, transfers from the parent, or mobile check deposit. Only the parent can set up transfers out. The card works up to $500 a day at ATMs and $500 a day in PIN purchases, and up to $5,000 a day in signature purchases, which covers most tap and online payments. Alliant has more than 80,000 fee-free ATMs and repays up to $20 a month of ATM fees.
There's no overdraft or insufficient-funds fee. Courtesy Pay, Alliant's service that covers purchases when an account is short, isn't available on Teen Checking. Only you, as joint owner, can turn on Overdraft Protection, which is free and covers a shortfall from another Alliant account. If the account still goes below zero, you owe the money along with your teen, so check the balance together.
What kids actually learn
This is a real account, so the lessons are the real ones: spend only what you have, check the balance, and set up a regular deposit. Look at the spending together each week; the app has no lessons, chores or goals.
The 0.25% APY (the yearly rate, including interest on interest) pays about 25 cents a year on $100, and only in months with e-statements and a recurring electronic deposit. A set monthly allowance sent from your own bank can count, which also builds the habit of a regular payday. Rates can change, and online savings accounts often pay more, so compare them with your teen once a year.
Safety, privacy and who owns the money
Alliant is a federally insured credit union: NCUA insurance, the credit-union version of FDIC insurance, covers deposits up to $250,000 per member, per credit union, for each account ownership category. The parent is a joint owner, so either of you can withdraw all the money. A debit card can normally only spend what's in the account, so the $5,000 daily signature limit matters most when the balance is large, for example after a few paychecks; Alliant doesn't list a way for parents to lower it, so agree a spending rule and turn on alerts.
Your teen can add the card to PayPal, Venmo or Cash App. Teach them to only pay people they know in person, and that a stranger who asks for payment by app, gift card or crypto, offers to double their money, or sends money "by mistake" and asks for it back is running a scam. If the card is lost, report it in the app or call Alliant at 800-328-1935.
Alliant has no separate children's privacy policy. Its online privacy statement (effective July 31, 2025) says it doesn't knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 without a parent's consent and doesn't mention COPPA or teens. Its Privacy and Opt-Out Notice says Alliant shares information with outside companies so they can market to you and with financial companies it markets jointly with; you can limit the first, and Alliant's own marketing, by calling 800-328-1935, and your choice covers everyone on the joint account, but you can't limit joint marketing. Its website uses cookies and pixel tags, including in online ads, which you can only block in your browser. On the App Store, Alliant lists data such as location and device IDs as collected but not linked to you; on Google Play it says no data is shared with third parties and collected data can't be deleted.
Who it's best for
Alliant Teen Checking suits teens 13 to 17 with a paycheck or a set monthly allowance sent from a parent's bank, in families happy to join a credit union and bank online.
For tighter built-in limits and blocked merchant types like bars and gambling, Axos First Checking is free from 13. For younger kids, savings goals or an automatic allowance, Capital One MONEY is free from 6.
Frequently asked questions
Is Alliant Teen Checking free?
Yes. Alliant charges no monthly service, minimum balance, overdraft or insufficient-funds fee, and there's no minimum to open. Card purchases and ATM withdrawals with merchants or ATMs outside the US cost 1%, including some foreign websites even when you pay in dollars. Savings accounts, including the parent's membership savings, can be charged $10 if they go dormant or inactive, and outgoing wires cost $25 ($50 abroad). Alliant repays up to $20 a month of ATM fees. As a credit union, Alliant makes money by lending members' deposits out at a higher rate than it pays in dividends (what credit unions call the interest they pay), and from the fees stores pay when a card is used.
Who can open Alliant Teen Checking?
Teens 13 to 17, with a parent or guardian as joint owner who is, or becomes, an Alliant member. You can join if you work for a partner company, are family of a member, or live or work near Alliant's Chicago headquarters; anyone else can join through the Alliant Credit Union Foundation, and Alliant pays the $5 fee. You apply online, and once approved the teen sets up their own login. At 18 the account becomes a regular Alliant checking account with a new card and higher limits, and you stay a joint owner unless your teen removes you.
What can parents control in Alliant Teen Checking?
As joint owner, a parent can see the account and set up alerts by text, email or the app once your teen grants you access from their own online banking login, so do this together when you open the account. Only the parent can set up transfers out of the account, but the teen can still spend by card and pay people through PayPal, Venmo or Cash App. Alliant sets the card limits: $500 a day at ATMs, $500 a day in PIN purchases and $5,000 a day in signature purchases. Alliant doesn't list a way for parents to lower them, block stores, approve purchases or lock the card, so ask Alliant at 800-328-1935 before you open, and agree a spending rule with your teen.
Is Alliant Teen Checking or Axos First Checking better?
Both are free online accounts for 13-17 with a parent as co-owner and no overdraft fees. Alliant pays 0.25% APY in months with e-statements and a recurring deposit, repays up to $20 a month of ATM fees and has more than 80,000 fee-free ATMs, but the parent must join the credit union, the card limits are high and you need your teen to grant you access. Axos needs no credit union membership, though parents monitor from their own Axos account; it repays up to $12 a month of other banks' ATM fees, caps cash at $100 and purchases at $500 a day, and blocks bars and gambling. Pick Alliant for an older teen with a paycheck or set monthly allowance; Axos for tighter built-in limits.
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