Varo is a free fintech banking app similar to Chime or Current. It’s currently offering a $35 bonus to new users that open a new Varo account with a referral link. Here’s how to earn your Varo referral bonus:
- Open a Varo account using a referral link (here’s my Varo referral link)
- Spend $20 within 30 days of opening your Varo account.
- Your bonus will be deposited within 4-7 business days of meeting the requirements.
The Varo referral bonus is particularly easy right now because it doesn’t require a direct deposit – all you have to do is spend $20 on the Varo debit card.
Varo is also a good beginner bank account bonus for several reasons. It has no fees or minimum balance requirements, so you don’t have to worry about managing the account. The bonus terms are also easy to meet since it doesn’t require a direct deposit. The bonus also posts relatively quickly, so you don’t have to spend a lot of time waiting for your bonus. And finally, when you open a Varo account, you get a referral link that you can use to refer your friends and family, allowing you to stretch your bonus even farther.
In this post, I’ll walk you through exactly what you need to do to earn your Varo referral bonus.
What Is Varo?
At the outset, it can be helpful to explain what Varo is for those of you unfamiliar with it. Varo is a fintech banking app, very similar to banking apps like Chime, Current, and Lili. While they aren’t technically banks in themselves, they partner with FDIC-insured banks and all of your funds are FDIC-insured.
Varo is a solid fintech bank because it offers a checking account with no fees or minimum balance requirements. They also offer early pay, so direct deposits arrive up to 2-days early.
Perhaps most interesting, Varo offers a 5% savings account on up to $5,000. That’s really good, but the downside is to qualify for the 5% interest, you need to have a monthly direct deposit of $1,000. If you were to use Varo as your primary bank account, then this would be a no-brainer – you’d want to take advantage of the savings account.
But if you’re using Varo solely for the 5% interest account, it’ll require more work. Varo also is fairly strict on what qualifies as a direct deposit, so you’ll likely need to do a real direct deposit to qualify for the 5% interest.
I personally don’t use the Varo savings account because of this strict direct deposit requirement, instead opting for 5% interest accounts that are easier to manage (you can read more about those accounts in this post: Where To Get 5% Interest Savings Accounts).
Varo $35 Referral Bonus: Step-By-Step Directions
With that background out of the way, let’s look at how to earn your $35 Varo referral bonus. You’ll need to do the following to earn the bonus.
1. Open A Varo Account Using A Referral Link. The first step is to open a Varo account using a referral link. Here’s my referral link if you’d like to support this blog. The signup process is straightforward and doesn’t have any impact on your credit (if you’re worried about that). You can signup for your account on your phone or on the website.
2. Spend $20 With Your Varo Debit Card Within 30 Days Of Account Opening. Your next step is to spend $20 on your Varo debit card. You’ll have 30 days from when you open your account to do this. Varo will mail you a debit card and you should receive it within a few days. It’s important to remember that the 30 days begins the moment your account is approved, so in practice, you’ll have fewer than 30 days to spend the $20 on the debit card since it’ll take a few days for your debit card to arrive in the mail. Don’t let this trip you up!
Of course, to spend $20 on your debit card, you’ll also need to fund your Varo account with at least $20. You can fund your Varo account at the time you open it. Varo uses Plaid, which allows you to link your external bank accounts to Varo and transfer money into it.
Be sure to make actual purchases with your Varo debit card. The bonus terms specifically state that ATM or over-the-counter cash withdrawals do not qualify, nor do third-party transfers using apps like Cash App, Venmo, or PayPal qualify. The easiest way to meet the $20 spending requirement is probably to pay a bill with your Varo debit card. Paying $20 towards a utility bill or phone bill, for example, would make things simple.
3. After Meeting The $20 Spending Requirement, Your Bonus Will Post Within 4-7 Business Days. The terms state that your bonus will post within 4-7 business days after meeting the spending requirement. That’s nice because it means you won’t have to wait long to get your bonus.
Once your bonus posts, you can withdraw it immediately and send it to your regular bank account.
Pro-Tip: Refer Your Friends And Earn More Varo Referral Bonuses
One nice thing about accounts like Varo is that you get your own referral link that you can use to refer other people. You’ll earn $35 for every person you refer. You’re limited to 5 referral bonuses per calendar year. You can still refer more than 5 people each year – you just won’t get a bonus after you’ve referred 5 people in a year.
From a practical standpoint, if you have a spouse or partner, you can refer them and earn a referral bonus from them. You’ll earn $35 for referring them and they’ll earn $35 after meeting the referral terms.
For example, if you’re a two-person household, you can open a Varo account using my referral link, which will get you $35. You can then refer your spouse or partner, earning an additional $70 ($35 for them and $35 for you). That’d get you $105 for a few minutes of work. That’s well worth it for most people.
Final Thoughts
Varo is an excellent beginner bank bonus because the terms are easy to meet, it doesn’t have any fees or minimum balance requirements, and it comes with the ability to refer other people so you can earn even more referral bonuses.
For anyone who hasn’t earned a Varo bonus yet, this is worth doing. It’ll also get you more comfortable with bank bonuses in general, so you can start moving on to more advanced bonuses.
There’s a lot that goes into bank bonuses and if you’re interested in learning more, I highly recommend reading my post, The Ultimate Guide To Bank Account Bonuses. That post goes into a lot of detail about how bank account bonuses work and how you can take advantage of them and should be required reading for anyone looking to diver deeper into this world.
More Recommended Ebike/Scooters
Check out these other ebikes/scooters I've had the chance to do a review for:
- GEN3 Outcross Bike – The GEN3 Outcross is a solid, affordable fat tire ebike that does a good job of doing what I need it to do. It works great for city riding, giving me a smooth ride in all conditions. It’s works really well as a winter ebike since the fat tires give it good traction over snow and ice. Check out my GEN3 Outcross Review.
- Himiway Escape Bike – The Himiway Escape is an interesting bike for anyone looking for a moped-style ebike. If you’re a gig economy worker, the Himiway Escape is particularly interesting and it’s possible to think of it as an investment, especially if you can opt to do deliveries with the Himiway versus using a car. It’s not cheap, but you can definitely make your money back when you compare the mileage you’ll put on your car versus using an ebike. Check out my Himiway Escape Bike Review.
- Espin Sport Bike – The Espin Sport is a good ebike for someone who is looking for an ebike that feels and rides more like a regular bike. There are many ebikes that are really only bikes in name. In reality, they’re basically electric mopeds. The Espin Sport, by contrast, is a bike you could probably ride without the battery and you’d feel like you’re just riding a regular bike. Check out my Espin Sport Review.
- Varla Eagle One Scooter – The Varla Eagle One is an excellent scooter that can make sense for a lot of people. It can work as a primary mode of transportation. You can use it to work on gig economy apps like DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub. And it can also be a recreational vehicle if you’d prefer to use it for that. Check out my Varla Eagle One Review.
- Fucare H3 Scooter – The Fucare H3 is a fun scooter and I’ve enjoyed testing it out. For a daily commuter or quick trips or errands, the Fucare H3 is probably the scooter I’ll use. It’s portable and easy to maneuver, so it’s just easier to take on the road when I need it. Check out my Fucare H3 Scooter Review.
More Recommended Investing App Bonuses
For additional investing app bonuses, be sure to check out the ones below:
- M1 Finance ($100) – This is a great robo-advisor that has no fees and allows you to create a customized portfolio based on your risk tolerance. You also get $100 for opening an account. Check out my M1 Finance Referral Bonus – Step-By-Step Guide.
- SoFi Invest ($25) – SoFi Invest is an easy brokerage account bonus that you can earn with just a few minutes of work. Use my SoFi Invest referral link, fund your SoFi Invest brokerage account with $100 and you’ll get $25 of free stock. I also have a step-by-step guide for the SoFi Invest referral bonus.
- Moomoo (15 free stocks, $100 cash reward, 1 stock of Tesla or Google) – Moomoo is a free investing app currently offering 3 different referral bonuses if you open an account using a referral link. Read my Moomoo referral bonus guide for more information.
- Webull (24 free stock shares) – Webull's current promotion gives you 24 free shares valued between $3-$3,000 each if you open an account using my referral link. Here’s a guide I wrote about how to earn your free shares using Webull.
- Robinhood (1 free stock) – Robinhood gives you a free stock valued between $2.50-$225 if you open an account using my referral link.
- Public (1 free stock) - Public gives you a free stock valued between $3-$70 if you open an account using my referral link.
More Recommended Bank Account Bonuses
If you’re looking for more easy bank bonuses, check out the below options. These bonuses are all easy to earn and have no fees or minimum balance requirements to worry about.
- GO2Bank ($100) - GO2Bank is an easy bank bonus that I recommend people take advantage of if they have an easy way of meeting the direct deposit requirement. I like that it’s easy to open the account and that the bonus pays out quickly. Check out my step-by-step guide on how to earn your GO2Bank $100 referral bonus.
- Chime ($100) - Chime is a free bank account that offers a referral bonus if you use a referral link and complete a direct deposit of $200 or more. In practice, any ACH transfer into this account triggers the bonus. This bonus is easy to earn and posts instantly, so you’ll know if you met the requirements as soon as you move money into the account. I wrote a step-by-step guide on how to earn your Chime referral bonus that I recommend you check out.
- US Bank Business ($750) – This is a fairly easy bank bonus to earn, since there are no direct deposit requirements. In addition, you can open the Silver Business Checking account, which comes with no monthly fees. Check out how to earn this big bonus here.
- SoFi Money ($275) – SoFi Money is a free checking account from SoFi. They’re currently offering a $25 referral bonus if you open a SoFi account with a referral link and deposit $10. You can also make an additional $250 as well if you complete a direct deposit. This is a good bank that is also 100% free, so you won’t have to worry about managing this account. Here’s a post I wrote with instructions on how to earn your SoFi Money bonus: SoFi Money Referral Bonus: Step By Step Guide.
- Fifth Third Bank ($225) – This offer is limited to customers in the following states: Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, West Virginia, and South Carolina. If you don’t live in one of those states, you won’t be able to open an account online but you can still open an account in-branch if you happen to be visiting a city that has a branch. This is a fairly easy bank bonus to earn, especially since there are plenty of data points showing what will trigger the direct deposit requirement. In addition, you can open the Fifth Third Momentum Checking bank account, which comes with no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements. Read my guide on this bonus here.
- Fairwinds Credit Union ($100) – Fairwinds Credit Union is offering a referral bonus for users that sign up using a referral link. Fairwinds has no fees or minimum balance, so this is a particularly easy bonus to earn. Since this is a smaller credit union, my gut instinct tells me this offer won’t be around long, so if you’re in a position to meet the bonus requirements, grab this bonus before it’s gone. Here is my step-by-step guide on how to earn your Fairwinds Credit Union bonus.
- Netspend ($40 + 5% Interest Savings Account) – Netspend is a company that provides 5% interest savings accounts. If you sign up using my referral link, you’ll get a $40 signup bonus once you make your first deposit into your Netspend account of $40 or more. That means you get a 5% interest savings account and a free $40 to start! Make sure to check out my in-depth guide on how to set up these accounts.
- Current ($50) – Current is a free fintech bank that’s offering new users a $50 referral bonus after signing up for an account using a referral link.Current is an easy bonus to earn and also gives you access to three savings accounts that pay you 4% interest on up to $2,000. That means you can put away up to $6,000 earning 4% interest. That’s very good and makes Current an account I recommend to everyone. Check out my step-by-step guide on how to earn your Current Bank bonus.
- Digital Federal Credit Union ($20) – Digital Federal Credit Union (DCU) is a free, nationwide credit union that I recommend to readers for two reasons. First, DCU has a $20 referral bonus if you open a free DCU checking account with a referral link. Second, DCU has a saving account that gives you 6.17% interest on your first $1,000. Check out my in-depth post on how to set this account up.
- Novo Bank ($40) - Novo bank is a free business checking account that’s currently offering a $40 bonus if you open a Novo business checking account using a referral link. In addition to being a good bank bonus, Novo is also a good business checking account. It has no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements and operates a good app and website. Indeed, it’s the business checking account I currently use for this blog. Check out my post on how to easily open a Novo account.
- Varo ($35) – Varo is a free fintech banking app similar to Chime or Current. It’s currently offering a $35 bonus to new users that open a new Varo account with a referral link. The bonus for this bank is very easy to meet, all you need to do is spend $20 within 30 days of opening your Varo account. Check out my step-by-step guide to learn how to earn this bonus.
Kevin is an attorney and the blogger behind Financial Panther, a blog about personal finance, travel hacking, and side hustling using the gig economy. He paid off $87,000 worth of student loans in just 2.5 years by choosing not to live like a big shot lawyer.
Kevin is passionate about earning money using the gig economy and you can see all the ways he makes extra income every month in his side hustle reports.
Kevin is also big on using the latest fintech apps to improve his finances. Some of Kevin's favorite fintech apps include:
- SoFi Money. A really good checking account with absolutely no fees. You'll get a $25 referral bonus if you open a SoFi Money account with a referral link, and an additional $250 if you complete a direct deposit.
- US Bank Business. US Bank is currently offering new business customers a $750 signup bonus after opening a new account and meeting certain requirements.
- M1 Finance. This is a great robo-advisor that has no fees and allows you to create a customized portfolio based on your risk tolerance. You also get $100 for opening an account.
- DCU. Digital Federal Credit Union (DCU) is a free, nationwide credit union that I recommend to readers for two reasons. First, DCU has a $20 referral bonus if you open a free DCU checking account with a referral link. Second, DCU has a savings account that gives you 6.17% interest on your first $1,000.
- Personal Capital. One of best free apps you can use to monitor your portfolio and track your net worth. This is one of the apps I use to track my financial accounts.
Feel free to send Kevin a message here.
Received my bonus. Very easy process! Thanks a bunch!
How do I know my referral to a friend was successful ?
Anyone know if spending $20 using the virtual debit card you gain instant access to upon account creation will trigger the bonus?
The website doesnt say anything about an available bonus as of 11/26/22. Does FinancialPanther remove leads when they are confirmed to no longer be available? Asking to make sure Im not missing something. :}
I still see the referral bonus with the same terms, so no change yet.
Y does the friend get it instant and person who opened have to wait