[Expired] PNC Up To $300/$400 Checking Bonus

Deal has ended, view more bank account bonuses by clicking here.

Update 10/3/21: Extended until 10/31/2021.

Update 9/24/21: Deal seems to be back at $300/$400. Hat tip to reader Jackie

Update 5/5/21: Fine print states: Virtual Wallet Checking Pro will no longer be available in the following states as of June 25, 2021: AZ, CA, CO, NM and TX

Update 4/24/21: The $400 bonus has been reduced to $300.

Update 3/2/21: Deal has been extended until 6/30/21.

Offer at a glance

• Maximum bonus amount: $200 or $400
• Availability: Nationwide
• Direct deposit required: $2,000-$5,000 depending on bonus
• Additional requirements: 10 debit card transactions
• Hard/soft pull: Soft 
• Credit card funding: Up to $2,000 with Visa, Discover or Mastercard Now codes as a cash advance
• Monthly fees: $15-$25, waive-able 
• Early account termination fee: $25 if closed within six months
• Household Limit: None
• U.S. Citizenship Required: Yes, for online applications. Resident alien and non-resident aliens now allowed online.
• Expiration date: June 30th, 2018 September 30th, 2018 December 31st, 2018 March 31st, 2019 May 31st, 2019 September 30, 2019 December 31st, 2019 July 31st, 2020 September 30, 2020 October 29, 2020 November 30, 2020 February 1, 2021 March 1, 2021 9/30/21 2/28/2022

The Offer

Direct link to offer | Out of footprint offer

• PNC is offering checking bonuses of up to $400. Both bonuses require the following direct deposits within 60 days of account opening:
  • Open a Virtual Wallet Checking Pro with Spend, Reserve & Growth and receive $200 with direct deposits totaling $2,000
  • Open a Virtual Wallet with Performance Select and receive $300 with direct deposits totaling $5,000

 

 

The Fine Print

• You may earn a $200 reward if you open a new Virtual Wallet with Performance Spend or Performance Checking account. You may earn a $300 reward if you open a new Virtual Wallet with Performance Select or Performance Select Checking account. You will only be considered for one reward amount, which is based on the product type you open.
• To qualify for the reward, the new checking account must be opened online via the “Apply Online” links on this web page OR at a branch using the appropriate coupon between 4/1/18 to 6/30/18 and the following conditions must be met within the first 60 days: (a) qualifying Direct Deposit(s) must be received and (b) 10 qualifying purchases must be made using the PNC Bank Visa® Debit card associated with the newly opened account.
• Your checking account must remain open in order for you to receive the reward, which will be credited to the eligible account within 60-90 days after all conditions have been met and will be identified as “Cash Trans Promo Reward” on your monthly statement.
• A qualifying Direct Deposit is defined as a recurring Direct Deposit of a paycheck, pension, Social Security or other regular monthly income electronically deposited by an employer or an outside agency into a Performance Checking or Performance Select Checking account, or the Spend account of a Virtual Wallet with Performance Spend or Virtual Wallet with Performance Select.
• The total amount of all qualifying Direct Deposits credited to your checking account must be at least $2,000 for Virtual Wallet with Performance Spend or Performance Checking or $5,000 for Virtual Wallet with Performance Select or Performance Select Checking. Credit card cash advance transfers, transfers from one account to another or deposits made at a branch or ATM do not qualify as qualifying Direct Deposits.
• A qualifying debit card purchase is defined as any debit card purchase made at point of sale using your signature or PIN, or a purchase made electronically or online using your debit card number, including recurring payments.
• New account will not be eligible for offer if any signer has signing authority on an existing PNC Bank consumer checking account or has closed an account within the past 90 days, or has been paid a promotional premium in the past 24 months,
• If multiple accounts are opened with the same signers, only one account will be eligible for the premium.
• For this offer, signing authority will be defined by the customer name(s) and Social Security number(s) registered on the account. Offer may be extended, modified or discontinued at any time and may vary by market.
• The value of the reward may be reported on Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Form 1099, and may be considered taxable income to you.
• Please consult your tax advisor regarding your specific situation.
• All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them

Avoiding Fees

Virtual Wallet Checking Pro with Spend, Reserve & Growth No Monthly Fee ($200 Bonus)

This account has no monthly fee.

Virtual Wallet With Performance Select $25 Monthly Fee ($300 Bonus)

You can get this fee waived if you meet any of the following:

• Average monthly balance of $5,000 or more
• Qualifying direct deposits of $5,000 or more
• $25,000 in linked eligible accounts

Early Account Termination Fee

There is an early account termination fee of $25. This is charged if you close your account within 180 days. There is some evidence to suggest that they don’t actually charge this fee, but YMMV.

Our Verdict

Normally this bonus is restricted to the following states: AL, DC, DE, FL, GA, IL, IN, KY, MD, MI, MO, NC, NJ, NY, OH, PA, SC, VA, WI and WV. This offer has no such restriction in the terms. The URL does say “checking-offer-for-PNC-customers”, but again the terms don’t say anything about needing to be an existing PNC customer so technically everybody should be able to sign up and get this bonus. In practice this has also been the case with nobody being denied the bonus.  This is a great bonus, it’s a shame that credit card funding now codes as a cash advance.  I’ll be adding this to the best checking bonuses.

Big thanks to reader, HatFullOfGasoline who let us know. Learn how to find bonuses and contribute to the site here.

Useful posts regarding bank bonuses:

• A Beginners Guide To Bank Account Bonuses
• Bank Account Quick Reference Table (Spreadsheet) (very useful for sorting bonuses by different parameters)
• PSA: Don’t Call The Bank
• Introduction To ChexSystems
• Banks & Credit Unions That Are ChexSystems Inquiry Sensitive
• What Banks & Credit Unions Do/Don’t Pull ChexSystems?
• How To Use Our Direct Deposit Page For Bank Bonuses Page
• Common Bank Bonus Misconceptions + Why You Should Give Them A Go
• How Many Bank Accounts Can I Safely Open Within A Year For Bank Bonus Purposes?
• Affiliate Links & Bank Bonuses – We Won’t Be Using Them
• Complete List Of Ways To Close Bank Accounts At Each Bank
• Banks That Allow/Don’t Allow Out Of State Checking Applications
• Bank Bonus Posting Times

Post history:

• Update 2/2/21: Extended until 3/1/21.
• Update 1/1/2021: Extended until 2/1/21. Deal now harder to churn ‘New account will not be eligible for offer if any signer has signing authority on an existing PNC Bank consumer checking account or has closed an account within the past 90 days, or has been paid a promotional premium in the past 24 months,’
• Update 12/3/20: Extended until 12/31/20
• Update 11/4/20: The best bonus is now $400 (previously $400). If you live in a state with a PNC branch you’ll see the $400 bonus, otherwise you’ll only see the $200 bonus (not all states with branches show the $400 offer unfortunately).
• Update 10/1/20: Extended through 10/29/20. Hat tip to reader SamL
• Update 9/8/20: Deal is now valid through 9/30/20. If your in an area where the $200 bonus is offered the new Pro Checking account has no monthly fees to worry about.
• Update 8/1/20: Good through August 31st, 2020.
• Update 7/20/20: Looks like this link still shows $300 for everybody. Hat tip to reader SamL
• Update 7/19/20: Looks like some areas are no longer seeing the $300 offer, but they might still be seeing the $200 offer when using this link. Frustrating as this was one of the best nationwide bonuses. I assume the areas with the $300 bonus are: AL, DC, DE, FL, GA, IL, IN, KY, MD, MI, MO, NC, NJ, NY, OH, PA, SC, VA, WI and WV.
• Update 7/1/20: Bonus has been extended until July 31st, 2020. Some states show July 10th end date.
• Update 6/3/20: Bonus has been extended until June 30th, 2020.
• Update 5/5/20: Extended until 6/1/20. Hat tip to reader Shake.
• Update 4/2/20: Deal has been extended until May 4th, 2020. Hat tip to reader Phil
• Update 1/1/20: Bonus has been extended until March 31st, 2020, in addition the debit card transactions are no longer required.
• Update 10/2/19: Bonus has been extended until December 31st, 2019
• Update 6/2/19: Bonus has been extended until September 30, 2019.
• Update 4/1/19: Bonus has been extended until May 31st, 2019.
• Update 1/1/19: Bonus extended until March 31st, 2019. Hat tip to reader Shawn
• Looks like PNC is Early Warning Systems sensitive, EWS is similar to ChexSystems so if you’ve opened a lot of checking accounts that report to EWS you might not be approved.
• Deal has been extended until December 31st, 2018.