A paycheck is tangible proof of a job well done. While you may not get to hold your paycheck in your actual hands if your workplace offers direct deposit—a method in which your paycheck is transferred electronically into your bank account each payday—the benefits you receive will make it worth the sacrifice.

Immediate Access to Funds

Direct deposits are designed to show up in your account on payday. If your money isn’t paid electronically via direct deposit, you’ll have to wait for your check to be distributed at work and then take it to the bank on your lunch hour or after work, or perhaps deposit it using your smart phone. No matter how you make your non-direct deposit, the amount of your check typically won’t be available until later that day or the next day.

Say you get paid twice a month, on the first and the 15^th, and your rent is due on the first. If you are paid via direct deposit, the funds will be available right away to pay your landlord. Another benefit: You don’t have to be at work on payday to be paid. If you take a sick day, attend an out-of-town conference or are on vacation, you’ll be paid on schedule. You can also sign up for auto bill pay without worrying you won’t have funds to cover your bills.

Financial Perks

Many financial institutions will waive monthly checking account fees or minimum balance requirements if you have a certain amount of funds (a paycheck, pension check or Social Security check, for example) direct deposited. So if your account normally carries a $10 monthly maintenance charge, you’ll save $120 per year.

Financial institutions may also offer cash bonuses to customers who open a new account and enroll in direct deposit. There are typically minimum deposit requirements and amount of time the account must be open to receive a one-time bonus, but for those who meet the criteria, the benefit can reach several hundred dollars.

Split Your Earnings and Save

With direct deposit, you can typically direct your paycheck into more than one account. You can choose to have set amounts (80% to your checking account and 20% to your savings account, for example) deposited to each account. This helps you build your savings—and on autopilot—eliminating the temptation to spend that extra money in your checking account after paying your bills. When the money is out of sight in your savings account, it’s out of mind.

With direct deposit, you frequently can make deposits into more than two accounts, increasing your opportunities for automated savings. You can add an account that you’ve set aside for any of a number of purposes, such as a vacation fund, a home down payment fund, or a college fund.

Increased Security

Direct deposit eliminates many of the worries we have about checks. With money going straight into your account, you don’t need to fear a stolen check, or losing your check before it’s deposited. If you lose it, it could take several days for your employer to stop payment on the misplaced check and issue a new one, meaning your access to the money is delayed.

A Final Benefit

Switching to direct deposit, as well as encouraging your employer to issue your pay statements electronically instead of on paper, also offers an environmental benefit.

Paycor, which offers payroll and human resources services, shared an interesting statistic: while 64% of employers either require or encourage workers to sign up for direct deposit, nearly 44% of American workers still receive their pay statements (the stub) by paper. That represents about 1.8 billion check stubs issued each year, which require about 3.6 million reams of paper, the equivalent of 200,000 trees, on an annual basis.

If your workplace offers direct deposit and you’re not taking advantage of it, consider making the change.

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