Capital One 360 Review – Great Online Bank Account for Americans that Spend Significant Time Abroad

Are you a frequent traveler, someone who spends significant time working abroad, or a digital nomad or expat who has maintained an active physical US mailing address?  If so, and you’re looking for a great online US bank account to use abroad, I love my Capital One 360 Account.  Read on for a complete review of the Capital One 360 account, a great online bank account for expats.

*Disclosure:  This post contains a referral link where you and I can both earn a bonus for signing up for a Capital One Account.  It may also include affiliate links.  There is never any additional cost to you.  For more information, please consult my Disclosure Policy.

Capital One 360 Review

I live and work much of the year here in Colombia.  A few years back I was looking for a good US based bank account and a friend recommended Capital One to me.  It was super easy to set up, is even easier to use, and has a lot of great benefits.

At the time, I actually was mainly just looking for an easy way to pay my fantasy football league dues, and maybe get a credit card to have for online purchases like plane tickets.

With starting this website and digital payments and also trying to dabble in investing in the stock market with some of my savings, it has come in even more handy having a bank account based in the states while living abroad.

In this review, I’m going to discuss the details of the account, what I like about my Capital One 360 accounts (I now have a savings as well as a couple credit cards in addition to the original checking account I opened), and why I think it’s a great online bank account for US citizens living abroad as well as those that travel frequently.

Capital One 360 Details

Requirements to Open a Capital One 360 Account

An Important Note:  You must have a US physical mailing address.

Ok, first things first, I’m presenting the Capital One 360 as a great online bank account for expats, but one of the terms of opening a Capital One 360 account is you must maintain a physical mailing address in the US (no PO Box).

In addition to that you must also be a US citizen or permanent resident and have a Social Security Number to open your account online

So, if you don’t have a mailing address you can use in the US and/or or are not a US citizen or resident, you do have to look for another option for an online expat bank account.

There’s nothing that says you have to spend a certain amount of time each year at that mailing address, however.  This address is simply where they will mail your debit card and any replacement if you need it.  

So, Capital One 360 is still a great bank account for US expats who have an address they can reliably receive mail at in the United States.

What I Like About My Capital One 360 Account

It’s All Online and Easy to Use

This is one of the big benefits of using Capital One and what makes it a great online bank account for frequent travelers.  Everything is handled easily online.  All statements are also paperless.

You can also easily set up bill pay for any bills you have to companies based in the US. My understanding of the terms is you cannot set up bill pay for any companies with addresses outside the US. So, it might behoove you to open a bank account in the country you live in as well if you can.

If you’re looking for a good way to transfer money to and from different countries, check out Transferwise, which offers better exchange rates than many banks. Another option is MoneyGram with offers money sent from the US to a number of countries abroad.

Speaking of transfers, it is very easy to receive transfers into your Capital One 360 account, whether it be from services like those mentioned above, PayPal, or by direct wire from domestic or foreign banks. Capital One does not charge any fee for receiving transfers.

I can easily wire money from my Colombian Bancolombia bank account to my Capital One 360 account.  Those transfers usually process within a couple days.

Finally, I can also use it to freely fund my TD Ameritrade investment account through the ACH transfer option, which also usually process within a day or two.

They also have a great and easy to use mobile app, where you can easily see and manage your accounts as well as get immediate purchase notifications should you ever fear your cards have been compromised.

You can even deposit checks with your phone’s camera (that feature does only work when you are physically present in the US).

Capital One does have some offices they call cafes in the US if you should need certain services, but most of what you’ll need to do you can do all online, which makes the using the Capital One 360 a breeze to use bank account for digital nomads or US citizens living abroad.

No Fees

This was the big selling point for me and the reason why I had closed my old Bank of America account and gone without a US based account for years.  

Since I wasn’t getting regular direct deposit paychecks, they were charging me a monthly fee and it just wasn’t worth it to maintain it as I didn’t necessarily need an online bank account living abroad all that badly at the time.

Capital One 360 however has no account fees.  There are also no minimum balance or transaction requirements. Those are big reasons why it’s got to be one of the best bank accounts for people living abroad.

Having a Debit Card if I Need It

Since I spend most of my time here in Cartagena and have a debit account here, I rarely use the debit card.  

However, when I am in the states, it’s great to have as I save tons on fees I used to pay using my foreign card and being charged on both ends at the ATM and my Colombian account.

Speaking of ATMs, you can withdraw fee free from Capital One or Allpoint ATMs.  There is also no fee from Capital One for using other ATMs on their end, but you may have to pay ATM fees.

There are also no foreign transaction fees for using your debit card abroad.  Again, might be subject to fees from the ATM itself, but at least you know Capital One isn’t charging you on the other end.  

I always recommend people who come here as travelers to not exchange money and just take out of the ATM, and the no foreign transaction fee is another reason Capital One 360 is one of the best bank accounts for frequent travelers or expats.

My Capital One Credit Cards and 360 Savings Account

A big factor for me opening this account was to make sure if I used a credit card based in the states I could pay it back easily.  I had an old credit card I hardly ever used except to buy plane tickets since I wasn’t able to open one here in Colombia for a long time.

After opening the 360 checking account and looking at Capital One’s Credit Card offers, I decided to open one as a way to build my credit and give me another card to use.  I’ve been very impressed with my Capital One credit cards.

I’ve now got both the Quicksilver which gives a flat 1.5% cash back and SavorOne, which gives 3% cash back on purchases at restaurants.  Both have no annual fees and no foreign transaction fees.

You can read my review of the Quicksilver here or learn more about applying for it or read my review of the SavorOne here and learn more about applying for it.

I also got generous introductory bonus offers and interest free grace periods when I opened both cards.  I’m considering getting their Venture travel rewards card one day down the road as well.

I also recently opened a 360 Savings Account, which gets a decent 1.5% annual interest rate and is easy to transfer money in and out of with my 360 checking account online.

There is a nominal 0.20% interest on the checking account by the way, which isn’t much, but not shabby considering there’s no fees.

And of course, there are also no fees or minimum balance requirements on the 360 Savings Account, making it, along with the higher than average returns, absolutely one of the best savings accounts if you live abroad.

And all of these are easily managed on their website or within the app.  Whether that’s transferring money from my checking to savings or vice versa, or paying off my credit cards (including with those great reward benefits), it is all super easy to do online.

That ease of use online and ability to manage nearly all you need there is another big reason why this has to be one of the best bank accounts online for people living abroad.

Any Drawbacks?

The only thing I’d say is there doesn’t appear to be a way to do an international wire, which may be a drawback for some.  In my case, I was primarily looking for a way to send money I earned abroad to an account based in the states.

However, there may be better bank accounts for expats or frequent travelers looking to do the opposite and send money from the US to abroad.  One option could be using the aforementioned services of Transferwise or MoneyGram to send money abroad.

Also, it’s worth keeping in mind that since there are no foreign transaction fees on the debit card, you can use it to make purchases with no cost if you can use it for most expenses.

How often you can use it likely depends on the country where you are and how prevalent card payments are there, but it’s still another point in the column for the Capital One 360 being one of great bank accounts for frequent travelers and people abroad.

Verdict – One of the Best Bank Accounts for Expats from the US and Frequent Travelers

In conclusion, the Capital One 360 is a terrific option for an online bank account for digital nomads or frequent travelers.  It’s also a great online bank account for US citizens that live abroad but still have a US mailing address.

It’s easy to set up, easy to receive money into, and offers great benefits in the form of no fees and competitive interest rates for both the checking and savings account.

I highly recommend the Capital One 360 Account for US citizens living abroad and frequent travelers.

Want to Open an Account Yourself?

Open an Account and Earn a $25 Bonus

Click the button above or follow this link to learn more about Capital One 360 and earn up to a $25 bonus if you meet certain qualifications.

There you have it, a complete review of the Capital One 360 Account as an option for an online bank account for expats or travelers.  I hope you found it informative and if you do open an account, you like it as much as I do.

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You may be interested the following posts:
SavorOne Credit Card Review
Quicksilver Credit Card Review
Colombian Pension System Explained
How to Get the 2020 Stimulus if You Live Abroad

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