If you are one of those who regularly run out of money before your next paycheck, the Earnin app may be a lifeline for you.
As you probably know, many Americans live paycheck to paycheck, and many of us cannot afford a $400 emergency expense without taking out a loan.
As a result of this financial conundrum, many Americans have fallen prey to loan sharks and payday lenders. The Earnin app hopes to change this.
What Is The Earnin App
Earnin is a financial services company that was founded in 2014 by its CEO Ram Palaniappan.
The app is viral because it gives you access to your paycheck whenever you need it.
Unlike regular paychecks that come in every two or four weeks, Earnin lets you access your earnings the instant you request it — all from your mobile phone.
What might shock you is that Earnin does not charge a fee for this service; instead, it allows customers to pay them whatever they think is fair.
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How Does The Earnin App Work
Earnin works by paying members up to $100 per day, and a total of $500 per paycheck in between pay periods. And rather than charging a fixed fee or an interest rate like the banks do, Earnin allows members to pay whatever they think is fair, usually between $0 -$14.
Compared to a payday lender, Earnin is like a dream come true. You can get a cash advance free of charge with Earnin. Remember, you can decide to pay nothing at all — it’s all up to you. It will be useful, however, to give them a tip because that’s how they keep the service running.
- To get started with the Earnin app, you will first have to download and sign up using your e-mail address, phone number, and password.
- Then connect your bank and tell the app where you work.
- Earnin will verify your bank and confirm the hours you work.
What Does The Earnin App Do
An Earnin app account lets you do the following:
- Receive cash advances
- Reduce Your medical bill
- Earn cashback rewards on your purchase, and
- Receive notification for low-account-balances, and
- Tip yourself, i.e, save more for a goal
Services Earnin App Offers
Earnin offers an array of excellent services and the they are all listed below.
Cash Out – Earnin App
Cash out, the feature for which Earnin is most popular, allows you to access your income –earned wages or government benefit– by requesting a cash advance from Earnin. You then get to repay Earnin when you receive your income.
What’s outstanding about Earnin is that they do not charge a fee for this service. Earnin members can request anywhere from $100 – $500 per pay period, and rather than paying a fixed fee or interest on the amount borrowed, Earnin allows members to tip whatever they think is fair.
This business model is remarkable especially in this era where lenders are fond of exploiting their customers.
Balance Shield – Earnin App
Balance Shield is like an overdraft protection system that notifies you when your account balance falls below a certain threshold. If Earnin is connected to your bank account, you will have the option to activate the Balance Shield feature.
Once the Balance Shield is activated, it stays on indefinitely until you turn it off.
Here’s how Balance Shield is more than just another overdraft protection: Balance Shield also includes Cash Out. If your account balance falls below the threshold you set, usually, $0 – $400, Earnin will automatically give you a Cash Out of up to $100.
When you receive your Cash Out, you can opt to give a voluntary tip of between $1.50 – $14.50.
Health Aid – Earnin App
According to a survey conducted by the Commonwealth Fund, over 41% of working age Americans are struggling with medical debt.
If you are one of those struggling with medical debit, the Earnin app, through their Health Aid feature, can help.
Health Aid allows members to submit their eligible medical bills to Earnin so that Earnin can negotiage with their medical providers and lower their payments.
Here’s how that works:
- Start an account with Earnin
- Upload your medical bill through the Earnin’s app
- Earnin reviews the bill and notifies you if your medical bill is eligible or not
- For eligible medical bills, Earnin will contact your medical provider to negotiate
- Earnin will contact you within 48 hours to provide you with all the best options.
Earnin’s Health Aid does not guarantee a successful reduction of all eligible medical bills. Its offer to negotiate a reduction in your medical bill is a non-binding good faith offer.
Just like Cash Out, there are no fees or costs associated with using Health Aid. If Earnin succeeds in reducing your medical bill, you can choose to leave them a tip of any amount in appreciation for their service.
Cashback Rewards – Earnin App
Another benefit of using the Earnin app is the prospect of receiving cashback on your purchases.
When you sign up with Earnin, you’ll have the option to enroll your debit card or credit card in Earnin’s Cashback Rewards Program.
If you use your enrolled debit card or credit card to make a qualified purchase, you will earn cashback on your purchase. Your cashback will be credited to your card within ten days of making the purchase. There is, however, a $250 cashback limit per transaction.
Tip Yourself – Earnin App
Tip Yourself is a feature that allows you to transfer a chosen dollar amount from your bank account into an account held at Earnin. The rationale of this service is to allow you to put money aside for a goal. You can opt for a one-time transfer or a recurrent transfer.
You can save money for several different goals by creating different “tip jars” within your Tip Yourself account.
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Is The Earnin App A Scam or Legit
Earnin is not a scam. It is a legitimate app with over 130,000 mostly good reviews in the app store.
It is reasonable to be skeptical about a loan company that does not charge interest or a fee for its services. Earnin, however, had to meet some stringent government regulations and scrutiny to be able to provide the services it provides. You can rest assured that the company is legitimate.
Is The Earnin App Safe?
Yes, Earnin is safe. The app uses bank-level encryption technology to securely connect to your bank account.
It is understandable to worry about the safety of an app especially it that app connects to your bank account.
Thankfully, Earnin uses 256-bit data encryption to keep your data secure. It is also compliant with US privacy and data security laws. Additionally, Earnin does not store your bank login details.
What Earnin Could Improve
Overall, Earnin is a great app. There are, however, some aspects of its business that it need to develop further.
For example, it takes 2-3 business days to receive the funds when you request a cash advance. Usually, people requesting $100 -$400 cash advances do so because they are in an emergency situation.
Waiting for up to three days to receive the cash can sometimes defeat the purpose of requesting it in the first place.
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Final Thoughts On The Earnin App
In a country where millions of people live paycheck to paycheck and millions more cannot afford a $400 emergency expense, services like Earnin can be a lifesaver.
What separates Earnin from traditional loan services such as payday loans is that the app does not charge a fee for the loan it provides. Borrowers can opt to tip whatever they think is fair.
In addition to Earnin’s loan service, it also gives cashback on purchases and helps negotiate reductions in medical bills. Any of these services would be a good reason to join the Earnin app; if you haven’t done so already.
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