You can cash a money order at the post office, at a bank or credit union, at many grocery stores and big-box retailers, or at a check-cashing store. Where to cash a money order mostly comes down to who issued it and whether you have a bank account: USPS money orders cash for free at any post office, your own bank is usually free too, and fees climb from there.1USPS. Money Orders
Your Options, Cheapest to Most Expensive
The issuer is almost always the best place to go. A USPS money order can be cashed at any post office in the country, including APO and FPO locations, at no charge.2USPS. Money Orders – The Basics Western Union and MoneyGram money orders can be cashed at retail agents that sell those products, but not every agent handles redemptions. Call ahead or check the issuer’s website before making the trip.
Your bank or credit union is the next best stop. Account holders typically pay nothing, especially if you deposit the money order rather than ask for cash back. Non-customers can usually still get a money order cashed, but expect a flat fee in roughly the $5 to $10 range. Some banks accept money orders from any issuer; others only take USPS or specific brands, so it’s worth a quick call.
Grocery stores and large retailers like Walmart run customer service desks that handle money orders during regular business hours. Fees are usually modest, often around $1 to $4, and policies vary by chain. These are useful when banks are closed or you don’t have an account anywhere.
Check-cashing stores are the last resort. Fees commonly run between 1% and 5% of the face value, and some charge as much as 10%. On a $1,000 money order, that can mean giving up $50 to $100 just to access your own money. State laws cap check-cashing fees in some jurisdictions but not others, so rates vary widely by location.
One thing worth clearing up: the fee to buy a money order is not the fee to cash one. USPS charges roughly $2.55 to $3.60 to issue a money order, but cashing it at a post office costs nothing.1USPS. Money Orders
What to Bring to the Counter
Every location will ask for government-issued photo ID. A driver’s license or U.S. passport works everywhere, and military IDs are widely accepted. The post office also accepts foreign passports and the Matricula Consular card issued by Mexico for money order transactions.3USPS. Acceptable Forms of Identification Digital or electronic IDs generally are not accepted.
The name on your ID has to match the payee printed on the front of the money order. Only the person or business listed as payee can cash it. A misspelled name is grounds for a clerk to reject the instrument, and you cannot sign a money order over to a third party the way you might endorse a personal check.
Do not sign the money order before you get there. USPS specifically tells recipients to sign at the counter in front of a retail associate.1USPS. Money Orders That’s smart practice at any location. A pre-signed money order is essentially a bearer instrument if it’s lost or stolen, and no one will reimburse you if someone else cashes it first.
Mobile Deposit Usually Won’t Work
If you were hoping to snap a photo in your banking app and skip the trip, most major banks don’t allow it. Bank of America and Wells Fargo, for example, explicitly exclude money orders from mobile deposit.4Wells Fargo. Mobile Deposit FAQs Plan on an in-person visit.
If You Deposit Instead of Cash, When Can You Spend It?
Cashing at a counter puts money in your hand immediately. Depositing into a bank account is different, and federal rules decide when you can touch the funds.
Under Regulation CC, a USPS money order deposited in person by the named payee gets next-business-day availability, which makes postal money orders one of the fastest-clearing instruments you can deposit.5eCFR. 12 CFR Part 229 – Availability of Funds and Collection of Checks (Regulation CC) Money orders from Western Union, MoneyGram, and other private issuers are treated as ordinary checks. Your bank may hold the funds for up to two business days for local items and up to five for nonlocal ones.
New accounts face stricter holds. If your account has been open fewer than 30 days, the bank can hold deposited funds beyond the first $6,725 for up to nine business days.5eCFR. 12 CFR Part 229 – Availability of Funds and Collection of Checks (Regulation CC) If you need the money fast and your account is new, cashing at the issuer avoids the hold entirely.
Old, Lost, or Damaged Money Orders
What happens to an uncashed money order depends on who issued it. USPS money orders never expire and do not lose value over time, no matter how long they’ve been sitting in a drawer.1USPS. Money Orders You can walk into any post office and cash one from years ago for the full face value.
Western Union money orders begin accruing a non-refundable service charge if they go unused for more than one year, or three years in California.6Western Union. Retail Money Order Terms and Conditions MoneyGram money orders don’t technically expire, but a monthly service charge starts eating into the value after one year, with the specific amount printed on the back of the instrument.7MoneyGram. Help for MoneyGram Money Orders
Lost a USPS money order? You can start a replacement at any post office. Bring your original receipt, and a retail associate will open a Money Order Inquiry. The investigation takes up to 60 days, and the replacement carries a $21 processing fee.1USPS. Money Orders Hang onto the receipt stub; without it, proving you bought the money order gets much harder. A damaged or defective USPS money order can be exchanged at any post office if you still have the receipt and the instrument itself.
Before You Accept One, Check It
Counterfeit money orders are common enough that clerks inspect security features on every transaction, and you should too before accepting one as payment. Legitimate money orders from major issuers have watermarks visible when held to light and perforated edges where the receipt tears off. MoneyGram money orders include a heat-sensitive mark that temporarily disappears when you press your thumb against it. If any of these features are missing, don’t accept it.
Watch out for the overpayment scam. Someone sends you a money order for more than you’re owed and asks you to send back the difference by wire or gift card. The money order turns out to be fake, but by the time your bank catches it, you’ve wired real money that’s gone for good. If a stranger overpays and asks for change back, it’s a scam. When a deposited money order is later found to be fraudulent, the bank reverses the credit and takes the amount back out of your account.