Wisely Direct prepaid card review

Who is Wisely Direct best for?

Wisely Direct can be a decent option for people who either don’t want a checking account or can’t qualify for one but still want perks like cashback rewards and early direct deposit.

If you can qualify for its checking account, you may not need the Wisely prepaid card. Most modern checking accounts offer early direct deposit up to two days in advance, and there are plenty of cashback debit cards. And if you want a regular checking account but can’t qualify due to a poor banking history, consider a second-chance bank account instead of a prepaid card.

What we like about Wisely

Among other prepaid cards, the Wisely card is one of the more affordable options available. Most prepaid cards are full of fees, often charging monthly, annual, activation, direct deposit, bill pay and withdrawal fees.

The Wisely prepaid card has no monthly, overdraft, direct deposit, in-network ATM withdrawal or purchase fees. There are also no opening deposits or minimum balance requirements. The Wisely card doesn’t charge any cash withdrawal fees at domestic Allpoint and Fifth Third Bank ATMs, either.

Wisely offers mobile check deposit services through Ingo and bill pay services with Papaya, both of which you can access with the myWisely app.

Cashback rewards

Most prepaid cards don’t have a rewards program, so Wisely is unique in this area. You can earn up to 10% cash back when purchasing eGift cards in the Wisely app.

Wisely also offers cashback rewards through Dosh, a cashback rewards app that works with over 10,000 participating merchants, including Adidas, AT&T, Costco, Disney+, Shake Shack and Lyft. In the Wisely app, you can opt into the Dosh rewards program to start earning cash rewards.

Wisely automatically sends your cashback rewards to your Rewards Savings Envelope, which you can transfer to your Wisely card balance. Cashback rewards from eGift card purchases are sent instantly, whereas Dosh rewards may take up to four weeks to appear.

Where it falls short

As a prepaid card, you’ll likely encounter fees with some reload methods, such as the high 5% mobile check cashing service fee with Ingo. Wisely does accept cash deposits at places like Western Union and Green Dot retail locations, but you’ll pay $3.95 at Western Union or $5.95 with Green Dot per deposit. You can load between $20 and $500.

You’ll also have to be aware of the inactivity fee, common with prepaid cards. In most states, you’ll be charged a $4 inactivity fee if there are no transactions with your card for 90 days. However, there are no inactivity fees for Minnesota, Montana or New York residents, and Connecticut, Illinois and Pennsylvania residents are charged the fee after 12 months of no activity.

Additionally, using this card overseas may not be the best idea, considering there’s a 3% foreign transaction fee and a $3 international ATM fee.

Wisely Direct’s fees and access

Compare Wisely Direct to other prepaid cards

Narrow down top prepaid cards by monthly or annual fees, features and availability. For a better comparison, tick the Compare box to see cards compared side by side.

1 - 2 of 2

Name	Product	Fee	ATM withdrawal	Features
Wisely Direct		$0 per month	$0	Up to 2 days early direct deposit Cash back rewards No minimum balance fee or spending fees Automatic transfer to savings envelope	Go to site Compare	loading Fetching your data...
PayPal Prepaid Mastercard®		$4.95 per month	$2.50	Faster access to deposits PayPal Prepaid mobile app Open a savings account PayPal Payback Rewards	Go to siteMore Info Compare	loading Fetching your data...

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Customer experience

Wisely holds a 1.3-star rating on Trustpilot out of just over 50 customer reviews. It holds the highest possible rating of A+ with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) but has received over 1,000 customer complaints in the last few years.

Happy customers on Trustpilot and Reddit say the Wisely cards work great for them. They praise the cards for having few or no issues after years of use, early direct deposit, quick card deliveries, fast bill pay, helpful customer service reps and no-fee cash withdrawals at in-network ATMs. Customers love the lack of overdraft fees or monthly fees.

On the other side of the fence, common complaints from customers say they only use the card because it’s how their employers pay them. Negative reviews are often about the cards being deactivated without notice, frozen deposits and getting the runaround from customer reps. But overall, these types of complaints are common for prepaid and debit cards.

Frequently asked questions

Is Wisely Direct a checking account?

Wisely Direct offers a prepaid card and isn’t a checking account. The Wisely cards are all prepaid cards issued by either Fifth Third Bank, N.A., Member FDIC or Pathward, N.A., Member FDIC. Wisely states that references to a “digital account” refer to the management and servicing of your card online or with its mobile app.

Can I send money from my Wisely Direct Card?

Yes, Wisely allows you to transfer money to external debit cards or bank accounts using the myWisely mobile app. This funds transfer costs $3, and transfers may clear within 30 minutes or less. However, you can only link one external debit card to the Wisely account, and it may take three business days to add and validate a new debit card to the Wisely account.