With rising prices forcing shoppers to make tough choices at their favorite stores, many retailers are incentivizing customers with cash back on debit card purchases, much like rewards credit cards. Others offer the convenience of using the store register as an ATM by allowing customers to withdraw cash from their own bank accounts at checkout.
However, each store’s policy is different and some charge steep fees for the service. Here’s a look at how much cash back you can earn as a bonus or pull from your checking account at your favorite retailers.
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A Few Retailers Pay Cash Back as a Reward
Some stores offer cash back on debit card purchases through programs that mimic credit card rewards, where shopping either with a linked or store-specific debit card earns you a percentage of your money back on many purchases.
Target
The Target Circle Card links to an existing checking account, so there’s no credit check to apply and no monthly or annual fee. When you use it to shop, you earn 5% back every day, both in stores and online.
Other perks include free two-day shipping on hundreds of items, an extra 30 days for returns and exchanges, easy checkout through the Target app wallet and up to $40 cash withdrawals at checkout.
Walmart
Walmart, in partnership with Green Dot Bank, issues the Walmart MoneyCard, a cash-back debit card with added perks, including two-day early direct deposit and up to $300 in overdraft protection.
The card earns the following cash-back rates:
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2% at Walmart gas stations
There are no monthly fees with direct deposit, you can add cash to the card at checkout and you can enable tap-to-pay by adding the card to Google Pay or Walmart Pay.
Walgreens and Duane Reade
Walgreens and its subsidiary Duane Reade offer Scarlet, a digital account and debit card exclusive to the drug store chains. It pays:
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5% cash back on Walgreens-branded items
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3% on all other Walgreens purchases
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1% everywhere debit Mastercard is accepted
Additionally, you can use ATMs for free with the card at all Walgreens and Duane Reade locations and deposit checks to the account through the app or add money at in-store checkout. However, it’s important to note that Scarlet pays Walgreens Cash, not legal tender.
Many Offer Debit Cash Back as a Perk — But Often at a Cost
The second kind of cash back on debit card purchases is an optional service that lets shoppers swipe more than the purchase price on their card and receive the difference as cash at checkout.
However, it might cost you.
In 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) found that nearly 1 in 5 adults pulled physical cash from their checking accounts through debit card cash back from retail purchases instead of visiting a branch or going to an ATM — and many of them were paying for the convenience despite the wide availability of free cash back on debit purchases.
Two years later, in 2026, little has changed.
Grocery Stores Are Most Likely To Offer Cash Back
In May, cash-back locator and p2p cash-exchange platform Cashtic reported on the state of in-store debit cash-back services and it reflected CFPB data from two years earlier nearly identically — except that some fees had increased.
It was still grocery chains that were most likely to offer cash back for debit purchases and the same players were still charging a fee for the service.
Free Cash-Back Grocery Stores
Here are the supermarket chains that offer free cash back at the register, with each store’s maximum dollar amount.
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Albertsons/Safeway/Vons: $200
Cash Back at a Cost
The following stores charge for cash back on debit purchases. Here’s a breakdown of their maximums and fees, some of which rival typical ATM surcharges.
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Dollar General: $40; $1-$2.50 fee
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Family Dollar: $50; $1.50 fee
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Harris Teeter: $200; $0.75 fee if less than $100, $3 if more than $100
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Kroger / Ralphs / Fred Meyer / Pick ‘n Save: $300; $0.50 fee if less than $100, $3.50 if more than $100
This article was provided by MoneyLion.com for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial, legal or tax advice.
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