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There’s an undeniable, nostalgic satisfaction that comes with converting a gallon full of pennies into cash. The go-to coin-to-cash tool is a Coinstar machine, which can most likely found in your local grocery store. Tragically, you don’t get to reap all of the rewards of your hard-earned loose change, since Coinstar machines eat nearly 12% of the value of your coins in fees.
How to avoid it: Instead of choosing the cash option on the Coinstar machine, choose to convert your coins into a gift card. Gift card options are limited, but at least there’s no cash fee.
Otherwise, consider going to the bank instead of using Coinstar. They might not take your dirty pennies, but you can get free coin rolls from them and then roll the change yourself. Then, your properly rolled change can be deposited in your account easily enough.
