On the streets of our country there are about 45,000 ATMs, according to the Bank of Spain. And yet, sometimes finding one where you can withdraw money for free becomes a real nightmare.
In the cities it is easier, but there are municipalities, especially in rural Spain, that do not have any ATMs, so their inhabitants have to arm themselves with patience and travel several kilometers to find one. But not just any one will work. "Withdrawing money from an ATM of a bank that is not ours can cost us up to 2.95 euros," explain the experts from the financial product comparator HelpMyCash.com, who have released the ATM guide to withdraw money for free in Spain. .
Banco Santander is the entity that charges a higher commission for using its ATMs with a card issued by another entity. Specifically, 2.95 euros. They are followed by Cajamar, Deutsche Bank and Unicaja, which charge 2.90 euros. Using a BBVA ATM with a card from another bank costs 2.70 euros and one from CaixaBank, 2.50 euros, explain comparator sources.
Years ago, the maximum commission for using an ATM from another entity was two euros, but banks have raised their prices. In any case, they cannot charge this commission directly to the consumer, but rather they have to transfer it to their bank so that it can decide whether to pass it on in whole or in part to their client or, on the contrary, not charge them at all.
The banks that have the most ATMs are CaixaBank (more than 13,000), Banco Santander (more than 7,000) and BBVA (more than 4,500). However, its clients are not the ones who can withdraw money from the most free ATMs in Spain. Because? Because these three entities only allow you to use their own terminals without paying commissions.
Some banks have reached agreements with other entities so that their clients can use their ATMs without paying commissions and many others have opted not to pass on the commission that the owners of ATMs from other networks transfer to them so that they can withdraw money for free from any machine. .
Banks that allow you to withdraw money for free from any ATM eliminate the problem of having to look for one of a specific brand, since you can use the first one you find, they point out in HelpMyCash.
Customers who do not want to waste time searching for a specific ATM have several options. The N26 Standard Account, for example, has no commissions and allows you to withdraw money three times a month at any ATM in Spain and the eurozone for free.
Another online entity that follows a similar policy is Revolut. People who open a commission-free account at this online bank will be able to withdraw money up to five times a month for free at any ATM in the world with a maximum of 200 euros per month.
Pibank also allows you to withdraw money at any ATM in Spain and the world for free, although in this case without limitations, just like the holders of Deutsche Bank's Nómina Más DB Account, who can withdraw debit cash for free anywhere in the world.
Banco Mediolanum allows you to withdraw money four times a month for free in Spain as long as you withdraw at least 100 euros each time. Abroad, when withdrawing money in a currency other than the euro, there is no minimum amount (withdrawals are free even if less than 100 euros are withdrawn). Of course, Mediolanum only subsidizes the ATM commission up to a maximum of three euros per operation. In Spain, in general, banks charge a maximum of 2.95 euros to use their ATMs, so there will be no problem withdrawing in most.
EVO Banco makes available to its customers 18,000 free ATMs where money can be withdrawn without limitations. They are those of Euro 6000, Abanca, Bankinter, Cajamar, Targobank, Caja Rural, Caja de Ingenieros, Banca March, Deutsche Bank, ING, Euro Automatic Cash and Euronet. In addition, in the rest of the national ATMs you can also withdraw money for free if you withdraw 200 euros or more and the ATM commission does not exceed two euros (if it is higher, the difference is paid by the customer). Abroad, you can withdraw money for free at any ATM, with no minimum amount.
In any case, the fact that a bank offers thousands of free ATMs does not mean that it is a good option for everyone. "The important thing, before opening an account, is to verify that the entity has free ATMs in our municipality, near our place of residence or our work," HelpMyCash sources explain.
