Learning how to withdraw money from Varo without a card can make your banking experience easy and more satisfying.
You are supposed to Transfer Funds to Another Bank Account, Send Money to Your Friend’s Account, Use a Mobile Payment App, and Use a Global Debit Card.
Please read on for more detailed information.
Table of Contents
Does Varo Offer Cardless Withdrawals?
Simply put, if you don’t have your debit card on you, you cannot use a cardless ATM to withdraw money from Varo.
Despite having access to free withdrawals from over 55 thousand ATMs nationwide (around 19 thousand of which offer cardless withdrawal services¹), it’s currently not possible to withdraw money from any of these machines without a card because The capability to handle these kinds of transactions hasn’t yet been made available by Varo.
As a result, you can only withdraw money from Varo using your debit card at an ATM or over-the-counter* at the majority of major banks or credit union branches, in which case you’ll also need to present your debit card.
How to Withdraw Money from Varo Without a Card?
Transfer Funds to Another Bank Account
Since transfers can take up to two days to complete, this approach isn’t the best. In addition to that, the process is time-consuming. But, here are the steps to first link an external account in the Varo app:
- At the bottom of the Accounts page, tap ‘Link an Account +’
- Select your external bank or search for it if you don’t see an icon
- If you see options when you select your bank, pick the one with the web address where you would normally log in online
- Enter your user ID and password and tap ‘Submit’
- Follow any prompts from your bank, like entering your phone number or email and using a one-time password to get set up
- Varo will keep asking you questions until you see your external accounts and balances appear on the Accounts. Then you’ll know you’re successfully linked
To transfer money from Varo to another account:
- Open the Varo app and tap ‘Move Money’ > ‘Transfer Money’
- Select From: Varo Bank Account and To: the account you want to receive the transfer
- See the limit for the transfer under the transfer amount
No more than $5,000 per transfer and $10,000 per calendar month may be made to checking or savings accounts.
Send Money to Your Friend’s Account
Even though you forgot your Varo card, one of your friends might still be carrying it.
Money can be instantly transferred from one Varo account to another without incurring any fees. To send your friend money using Varo:
- Log in to the Varo app
- Tap ‘Move Money’ at the bottom of the screen
- Tap ‘Varo to Varo transfer’
- Select a recipient by entering the email address of the person you’re sending money to
- Enter the amount you want to send
- Review the transfer a final time
- If the recipient information and the amount of the transfer are correct, tap ‘Send Money’ to finish the transfer
Double-check all the information before sending the transfer because it cannot be stopped or reversed once it has been sent.
Why not ask them to lend you the needed amount if transferring to a friend’s account is not an option?
Use a Mobile Payment App
This is an option if you want to access your Varo balance to make payments using other methods (like credit or debit cards) and don’t necessarily need to use an ATM to get cash. online or point-of-sales payments). In this case, it’s always a good idea to have your Varo account linked to a mobile wallet or digital payment solution, the most popular of which in the US include:
- Apple Wallet;
- Google Pay;
- Vemo;
- PayPal;
- Zelle;
- Cash App.
To link your Varo account to one of these mobile payment solutions, you can add your Varo account as a payment method in their mobile app and transfer money to your Varo account via ACH transfer or even using a Varo instant transfer.
Additionally, you can use your smartphone to make a payment by scanning a barcode and having the funds taken directly out of your Varo balance (a feature accessible through the Varo app).
What You’ll Need
- A smartphone;
- A Varo account with sufficient balance;
- an app for P2P mobile payments.
Use a Global Debit Card
The best way to get cash out of an ATM is with a prepaid debit card that is made for low-fee transactions, including ATM withdrawals, whether you don’t have a Varo card, lost it, or left it at home.
Even when traveling abroad and using a foreign currency, you can completely avoid ATM withdrawal fees by using a competitive travel card product. (The only costs you might incur in these instances could be network fees from the ATM itself or a small Visa or Mastercard exchange rate markup, although it depends on the card.)
If you travel abroad from the US frequently, one of the best options available is to open a Wise Multi-Currency Account, which gives you access to a current online account, multi-currency balances, and a debit Visa or Mastercard.
Once you’re signed up, and your card has arrived (which takes up to 3 weeks in the US), you’ll be able to take advantage of the following unique features:
- Local bank details in the US, Eurozone, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Romania, Canada, Hungary, and Turkey;
- Hold, exchange, and top-up up to 56 currencies;
- A multi-currency Mastercard debit card that’s handy for paying in foreign currencies without hidden fees;
- From your account balance, you can use Wise’s robust international money transfer service.
On the other hand, if you’re looking for a similar alternative to Varo, we recommend Chime®, which offers an online checking account and no daily account management fees (including no withdrawal fees from all ATMs belonging to the Allpoint network, ATMs from the Visa Plus Alliance or MoneyPass networks found in 7-Eleven stores). For your daily finances, Chime is one of the most affordable mobile finance apps and debit cards, and it provides a great alternative to accounts like Varo.
We also recommend taking a look at our pick of the best banks for international travel (number one is among the best options out there for fee-free international withdrawals).
What You’ll Need
- Proof of residence;
- a legitimate ID, such as a driver’s license, passport, social security card, etc.);
Do Cardless ATMs Take Provision?
A cardless ATM may ask for some information from you, mainly generated codes and pins, depending on the verification method you choose. The ATM might ask you to enter your pin if you choose to use NFC after connecting to it. Additionally, if you choose to use app-generated codes, the majority of the transactions will be carried out on your phone, and the moment the QR code is scanned, cash is distributed.
READ ABOUT How To Withdraw Money From Venmo Without A Card?
The Bottom Line
Therefore, if you don’t have your Varo card with you, these are your options for making a withdrawal from your Varo account. Even though these aren’t the ideal answers, we hope we were still able to make your life a little bit easier.
In order to at least be able to make purchases when your physical card isn’t present, it’s always preferable to link your Varo card to a service like Apple Wallet, Google Pay, PayPal, or Cash App in advance.