Find A Coin Machine Near Me (Avoid The Fee)
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Are you looking for a Coin Machine Near You? Here’s how to find a Coinstar near me and avoid the fee. BTW, the ‘me’ in this sentence is really ‘you’, but ‘you’ didn’t rhyme…
Due to the recent coin shortage in the U.S., you may be itching to exchange all those loose coins for some cold, hard cash. But, where exactly can you go to exchange them without having to roll them all by hand? Coinstar, of course.
If you don’t have access to a bank, are not a member of a credit union, or your bank simply does not accept loose change, your nearest Coinstar machine may just be your best bet if you’re looking to unload all of those water bottles filled with change.
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Coinstar Storytime
Funny story: When my kids were younger, they would beg to go to Walmart with me. Why? Because they knew there was a treasure-trove of fallen change beneath the Coinstar machine!
They would lay flat on their bellies and stretch their long, skinny arms as far under the machine as they could to retrieve the stray quarters, nickels, and dimes.
Their faces would beam with joy as they took their hauls into the Walmart arcade or to the candy machines where they traded their ‘free’ coins for a brief moment of enjoyment.
Eventually, they learned the value of saving, and they would instead load their pockets with their found change, save it up, and later cash it in at our local bank.
Unfortunately, the manager at Walmart soon got wise to their antics and installed a guard on the bottom of the machine. My kids’ treasure hunting days came to an end.
Needless to say, they no longer beg to come to Walmart with me!
Find A Coin Machine Near Me?
Simply enter your zip code in the box below and click the button to locate a nearby Coinstar. You may need to enable pop-ups for the map to show.
According to Coinstar,
90% of the U.S. population lives within 5 miles of a Coinstar.
So, you shouldn’t have any problem locating one.
How does Coinstar work?
For those of you wondering just what the gosh darn heck a Coinstar is, allow me to explain.
A Coinstar is simply a handy-dandy machine usually located in your friendly neighborhood Walmart, Kroger, as well as a few other smaller grocery store chains.
It’s big and green, so you can’t miss it. It’s usually located near the store’s customer service desk.
To cash in your coins, you just haul in your loose change (no need to separate it or roll it), dump it all into the machine (which then counts it) and walk away with a voucher which you can then exchange for either cash (for a fee) or an eGift card to one of 29 retailers. (See the complete list below). You can even choose to donate your change to charity.
How much does Coinstar take?
The short answer…yes. Coinstar charges an 11.9% fee if you choose the cash option. This means, if you exchange $50 in coins, you’ll actually walk away with $44.05 in cash.
How to avoid the Coinstar fee
Luckily, for all of us cheapskates (er…people who know that paying extra money in exchange for money is what Dave Ramsey likes to call a ‘stupid tax’), there is a totally legit way to avoid the Coinstar fee. And, it doesn’t involve reaching under the machine for spare change!
All you need to do to avoid the Coinstar fee is to choose to receive your earnings in the form of an eGift card!
Here are the current Coinstar e-gift card options:
| Merchant | Exchange Limits |
|---|---|
| AMC | Minimum Amount: $10.00 Maximum Amount: $100.00 |
| Amazon.com | Minimum Amount: $5.00 Maximum Amount: $1,000.00 |
| Applebee’s | Minimum Amount: $5.00 Maximum Amount: $500.00 |
| Burlington | Minimum Amount: $10.00 Maximum Amount: $250.00 |
| Cabela’s | Minimum Amount: $5.00 Maximum Amount: $500.00 |
| Chili’s | Minimum Amount: $5.00 Maximum Amount: $100.00 |
| Chuck E Cheese | Minimum Amount: $5.00 Maximum Amount: $250.00 |
| Domino’s | Minimum Amount: $10.00 Maximum Amount: $100.00 |
| GameStop | Minimum Amount: $5.00 Maximum Amount: $500.00 |
| Gap | Minimum Amount: $10.00 Maximum Amount: $500.00 |
| Hotels.com | Minimum Amount: $10.00 Maximum Amount: $500.00 |
| IHop | Minimum Amount: $5.00 Maximum Amount: $200.00 |
| Karma Koin | Minimum Amount: $10.00 Maximum Amount: $500.00 |
| Krispy Kreme | Minimum Amount: $5.00 Maximum Amount: $200.00 |
| Lowe’s | Minimum Amount: $5.00 Maximum Amount: $1,000.00 |
| Nike | Minimum Amount: $5.00 Maximum Amount: $500.00 |
| Outback Steakhouse | Minimum Amount: $10.00 Maximum Amount: $500.00 |
| Roblox | Minimum Amount: $5.00 Maximum Amount: $500.00 |
| Razer Gold | Minimum Amount: $10.00 Maximum Amount: $500.00 |
| Red Robin | Minimum Amount: $5.00 Maximum Amount: $150.00 |
| Regal Entertainment | Minimum Amount: $5.00 Maximum Amount: $100.00 |
| Ruby Tuesday | Minimum Amount: $5.00 Maximum Amount: $200.00 |
| Showtime | Minimum Amount: $25.00 Maximum Amount: $200.00 |
| Sephora | Minimum Amount: $10.00 Maximum Amount: $500.00 |
| Southwest | Minimum Amount: $25.00 Maximum Amount: $500.00 |
| Starbucks | Minimum Amount: $5.00 Maximum Amount: $500.00 |
| Steam | Minimum Amount: $10.00 Maximum Amount: $100.00 |
| The Home Depot | Minimum Amount: $5.00 Maximum Amount: $2,000.00 |
| iTunes | Minimum Amount: $5.00 Maximum Amount: $500.00 |
*Here’s what ya gotta know: Not all gift cards (codes) are available on all kiosks. So, ya gotta do your homework before dumping your coins.
To find out which gift cards are available at a specific Coinstar machine, click here to find a kiosk. Then, enter your zipcode and click on the machine you’re interested in using from the ones shown on the map. Next to the e-gift cards icon click the link for ‘see brands’.
This will show you which offers are available at that particular kiosk. Don’t see the one you want? Try another location. Gift card options will vary by Coinstar kiosk.
Is Coinstar free at Walmart?
SOME Walmart’s (not all) will allow you to skip the Coinstar fee if you redeem your cash voucher for use in their store. Again…check with your local Walmart before dumping your coins!
Not sure if your local Walmart offers this Coinstar service? Just call ahead and ask the service desk, they should know.
For example, my local Walmart exchanges an e-gift card (really just a piece of paper you can use in the store) for coins turned in through the Coinstar machine. Before you hop in your car to take a trip to my local Walmart for this feature, just know, I live in a small town in the middle of nowhere…
What stores have Coinstar near me?
Coinstar machines are typically located inside the following retail stores:
- Walmart
- King Soopers
- Safeway
- Winn Dixie
- Harvey’s
- Neighborhood Market
- Ralphs
- Superior Grocers
- CVS (west coast)
- Vons (west coast)
- Kroger
- Randalls
- H.E.B
How to donate your coins to charity
Another way to avoid the Coinstar fee is to simply choose the ‘donate to charity’ option before pouring your coins in.
Bonus tip: Save the receipt…cause your donations are tax-deductible!
Here are the current charity choices:
- American Red Cross
- Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals
- Feeding America
- Leukemia and Lymphoma Society
- The Humane Society
- UNICEF
- United Way
- WWF
Where can I cash in coins for free?
Coinstar isn’t the only coin machine in town…there are other options. Unfortunately, most of them charge a fee. In fact, many banks are now charging a fee to cash out coins, or at the very least, they require you to separate and roll your coins before exchanging them.
I did some research, and here’s what I came up with in regard to places where you can still cash in your coins for free.
Most local banks and credit unions still have coin counting machines. It’s just not cost-effective for them to use them, so they often charge a fee to non-members. However, the majority of banks will still give you money wrappers (for free) and will allow you to cash in pre-rolled change (even if you are not a member).
The only larger bank I found that will exchange rolled change for cash to non-customers, is Chase Bank. The catch is they will only allow you to cash in a maximum of $200 per branch.
Notice I said per branch. This means if you have more than $200 in change to cash in, and you live near more than one Chase Bank, (or are willing to travel to one), you’re in luck. You can exchange your coins for free!
Otherwise, you may want to check out local grocery stores and see if they still have coin-counting machines (some still do).
Have you had any luck (legally) cashing in your coins for free?
