Overdraft fees at US credit unions
A credit union overdraft fee is not the same table as a bank overdraft fee. This page is the dollar each credit union printed on 20 October 2026. Bank checking accounts are on [US overdraft fees by bank](/guides/us-overdraft-fees-by-bank).
Last updated: October 20, 2026
Last checked: Oct 2026
The fee each credit union prints
Opened 20 October 2026. A paid overdraft and a returned item are different lines when the page prints both. How to ask about a fee that already posted at a bank is on how to ask about an overdraft fee. The line on your own statement is the one that counts. Upload it on the upload page. The PDF stays on your device. Expenvo lists the lines. It does not sign in to the bank.
| Credit union | Fee the page prints | What the same page also says |
|---|---|---|
| Navy Federal | $20.00 when it pays an overdraft | The fees page prints a $20.00 Optional Overdraft Protection Service transaction fee, at most one fee a day per account. No fee on a transaction of $20 or less, and no fee if the account is overdrawn by less than $50 after the day's transactions post. NSF, an item returned unpaid, prints no charge. Paying an overdraft is not guaranteed. |
| PenFed | $30.00 non-sufficient funds | The service fee page prints $30.00 for non-sufficient funds on a returned ACH, check, or preauthorized debit, and $10.00 for uncollected funds. It does not print a separate dollar for an overdraft it chooses to pay. The overdraft options page says Overdraft from Savings has no fee to sign up or use, and an Overdraft Line of Credit has no access fee. That line of credit prints a fixed 17.99% APR. |
| SchoolsFirst | $22 per transaction | The overdraft page prints $22 when it pays the overdraft, only if the account is negative by more than $10 and the transaction is over $10, and at most three fees per share per day. Debit card overdrafts need an opt-in. The fee PDF prints the same $22 for a returned NSF item and for a standard overdraft it pays. |
| Alliant | $0 | Alliant's own page, dated 18 July 2024 and still up on 20 October 2026, says it eliminated overdraft fees on checking and savings, including NSF and Courtesy Pay. A store you were paying can still charge its own fee if a check is returned. This row is that page. It is not a fee schedule PDF. |
A transfer from savings is a different line
Navy Federal's checking protection page says a transfer from linked savings is free of charge, and it does not cover debit card authorizations. PenFed says Overdraft from Savings has no fee. Those sentences are not the $20 or $30 rows above.
Download steps for the statement PDF are on Navy Federal and PenFed.
Questions
- Does Navy Federal charge $20 every time a payment bounces?
- No. The fees page prints no charge when an item is returned unpaid. The $20.00 is for an overdraft it pays, with a maximum of one fee a day, and with the $20 and $50 exceptions on that same page.
- Is PenFed's $30.00 an overdraft fee?
- The service fee page labels $30.00 as non-sufficient funds on a returned ACH, check, or preauthorized debit. It does not print a separate paid-overdraft dollar. Overdraft from Savings is listed as no fee.
- Does Alliant still charge an NSF fee?
- The page opened on 20 October 2026 says Alliant does not charge NSF fees or other overdraft fees on checking and savings. The merchant you were paying can still charge you.
Sources
Related guides
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