When you need your checking account number to make a financial transaction and all you have is a check, you need to use that check to find your account number. Your checks have quite a bit of information about your checking account, including the name of your bank, the routing number of that bank and, of course, your checking account number.
Spot the series of numbers in the magnetic ink character recognition line. The MICR line is always on the bottom of a check.
Note the check number in the upper right-hand corner of your check. Locate the same check number in the MICR line on the bottom of your check.
Look for your bank's routing number, which is always the first nine digits on the MICR line.
Find your account number in the remaining series of numbers on the check's MICR line once you have eliminated the check number and the bank routing number. The account number is always listed after the bank routing number, although it may be preceded by your check number.
Write down your entire account number.
References
- Bankrate: Anatomy of a Check
- National Credit Union Administration. "Understanding a Check and Balancing a Checkbook." Accessed June 4, 2020.
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. "I Received a Check Where the Words and the Numbers for the Amount Are Different." Accessed June 4, 2020.
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. "Can a Bank or Credit Union Cash a Post-Dated Check Before the Date on the Check?" Accessed June 4, 2020.
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. "My Bank/Credit Union Cashed a Post-Dated Check Even Though I Told Them About the Post-Dated Check Before They Received It." Accessed June 4, 2020.
- Department of the Treasury. "U.S. Treasury Check Security Features." Accessed June 4, 2020.
- Federal Reserve Consumer Help. "Can a Bank Refuse to Cash My Check?" Accessed June 4, 2020.
- Georgia Department of Banking and Finance. "Check Fraud / Counterfeit Checks." Accessed June 4, 2020.
- American Bankers Association. "ABA Routing Number." Accessed June 4, 2020.