How to use wells fargo cardless atm

Starting on Monday, Wells Fargo will be the first major U.S. bank to offer a card-free option at all of its ATMs. The bank’s customers will be able to use their smartphones to access any of the bank’s 13,000 ATMs. Other major U.S. banks have rolled out card-free ATMs in limited locations.

Here’s how it works: Customers must download and log into the Wells Fargo app on their smartphones and request an eight-digit code, which they can type into an ATM instead of inserting a debit card. Next, they enter their PIN, just as they would if they were using their cards.

Wells Fargo is offering the cardless option at a time when consumers are increasingly comfortable with using their phones to check their balances, deposit checks and transfer cash, says Jonathan Velline, head of branch and ATM banking for Wells Fargo. Using the phone to tap into an ATM is a logical next step, he says.

The card-free option can be more secure than using a debit card, Velline says, because it reduces the chance that fraudsters can steal and copy the numbers on your debit card. The smartphone app generates a unique code that expires within 30 minutes.

Plus, consumers using the app have to prove their identity on their smartphones — either by providing their thumb print or by typing in their online banking password — in addition to entering their PIN numbers. (With your physical debit card, you only need to provide the PIN code.)

Consumers can expect to see more cardless ATMs over the next couple of years. JPMorgan Chase is testing the technology at some locations, while Bank of America has introduced a card-free option at about half of its ATMs. For Bank of America, some machines currently accept mobile wallet programs, such as Apple Pay and Android Pay. Consumers need to only tap their smartphones on or near the ATM, provide their passcode or thumbprint on the phone, and then enter their PINs into the ATM. Wells Fargo says it is upgrading its ATMs to incorporate the digital phone readers and hopes to make the mobile wallet technology more widely available throughout this year and next year.

Banks are also working on programs that can help people cue up transactions even before they reach the ATM. For example, Bank of America said it is rolling out a service this summer that lets customers use their smartphone apps to say how much money they want to withdraw and what kinds of bills they need. Then they show up at an ATM, sign in and collect the cash. (Requests expire within 24 hours.)

Use of the card-free options is still in the early stages, says Sarah Grotta, who heads the debit card research for Mercator Advisory Group, a payments research firm. Consumers have been slow to use mobile wallet options such as Apple Pay, so it may be awhile before most people leave their debit cards at home, she says.

Still, she expects the technology will catch on.

“People are interested in doing more with their phones,” Grotta says. “So eventually we will get there.”

As of April 1, 2021, Wells Fargo will discontinue its ATM Access Code feature. The ATM Access Code is a feature that allows you to use a code obtained from your phone on any Wells Fargo ATM. By using this code, you do not need to carry your debit card with you. Also, if you ever lose your debit card, you can still have access to an ATM by using this code.

Unfortunately, many Wells Fargo customers are used to this feature but are unaware that the Wells Fargo one-time access code is an obsolete way of using an ATM in case you left your wallet at home. There are various ways of accessing an ATM in a cardless way. As long you have an NFC-enabled smartphone and a mobile wallet, the Wells Fargo ATM Access Code is no longer a needed feature.

Wells Fargo ATM without card

Thanks to NFC (Near-field communication), requesting an access code from the app and then typing it on the ATM is a thing of the past. Now, instead of typing all you have to do is bump your cell phone with the ATM’s Contactless Symbol.

After that, just type in your account PIN. But to do this we first must set up a digital wallet on our cell phones.

Setting up a digital wallet with Wells Fargo

Setting up a digital wallet is a simple process. The procedure is actually the same on Android cell phones and iPhones. The only difference is that iPhone users will use Apple Pay as their digital wallet while Android users have the option of using Google Pay or Samsung Pay.

1. Download the official Wells Fargo app for iPhone or Android and login into your account.
2. Tap Menu on the bottom right corner.
   

3. After Menu, tap Cards> Digital Wallets.
4. The “Add Cards to Digital Wallets” page will give you a list of all digital wallets you can associate with your Wells Fargo account. For example, iPhone users should have Apple Pay and PayPal on their list, while Android users should see a combination of Google Pay, PayPal, and Samsung Pay as their options.
   

5. Tap the digital wallet you would like to use. In my case, I personally prefer Apple Pay. From there you will see a list of all your cards. Just tap “Add to Apple Wallet” if you’re on iPhone, or “Add to Google Pay” if you’re using an Android-based device.

Once you have all of your cards in your mobile phone’s digital wallet, you no longer need to carry your physical card. Through your digital wallet, you can do the most important things: withdrawing cash from the ATM or paying for an item at a store.

Using digital wallets (Apple Pay) to withdraw cash at ATMs

Now that you have successfully set up a digital wallet for your Wells Fargo account, it’s time to learn how to make payments at stores or take out cash from ATMs.

1. Put your phone near the contactless symbol on the ATM machine. This contactless symbol should be near the screen.
   

2. Your device will ask you for your ID, fingerprint, or Face ID to allow your phone to communicate with the ATM.
3. After you have granted access to your phone, just type your card’s PIN on the ATM.

If you would like to make any payment at a store using your digital wallet inclduing Apple or Google Pay, just tap or get your phone near the payment terminal and grant the machine access to your device by unlocking your device.