It should go without saying that all the money in the world doesn’t mean anything if you don’t have access to it. Being able to interact with, transfer, and otherwise manage your finances is a crucial part of day-to-day life. Many financial institutions understand just how valuable this access is for consumers and go above and beyond in ensuring it.

Over the past 20 years, most banks have adopted online banking platforms, offering another amenity to their clients. While many people have taken advantage of this service, some people still remain skeptical.

For those who have yet to embrace online banking, let’s take some time to explain just how beneficial online banking can be for people in their daily lives.

Online Bill Pay Flexibility

For those who are still cutting checks each month and throwing them in the mail, online banking provides the same security as paying via mail – but with more convenience. With online bill pay, you can instruct your bank to automatically deduct each bill’s total amount on the same day each month and have it transferred directly, meaning no more stamps, paper, or driving to each place to pay.

Most online bill pay systems work similarly to writing a check: the best online banks will cut a check and mail it on your behalf, complete with all the information needed for your power company, mortgage lender or other company to process it. This not only saves time, but it can save money and prevent you from incurring late charges in the event you forget to pay on time in any given month.

Instant Bank Balancing

There’s nothing wrong with keeping a running tally of how much you’ve spent versus how much is in your account. In fact, doing this exercise mentally often results in more fiscally responsible decisions.

However, those who are still using checkbooks to track their expenditure can put down the paper and use online banking to keep track of all of this information. Anytime, 24/7, online banking users can log in from a computer or phone to see their current balance. Additionally, they’ll be able to see line-item transactions and know down to the cent how much has been spent. It can then help people keep track of their finances in a more efficient way. Some people with poor money management habits may find online banking useful if they want to do a money makeover someday. Making a record of expenditures can be a significant component of the total money makeover steps, and having that record already on your phone can make it faster.

This also is great because those who check their online banking often will be more likely to catch fraudulent expenditures sooner. The sooner these expenditures are caught, the more likely it is that they’ll be reversed.

Simple Transfers

Another great option with online banking is the flexibility offered in transferring money back and forth between accounts. Not only will you never have to visit a bank in-person again to move money from checking and savings accounts, but some online banking solutions – when coupled with their mobile apps – will even allow you to cash checks electronically using a phone’s camera and have it deposited directly into your account.

The ease at which transfers can be made basically makes it unnecessary to ever visit a bank again unless you need to make a cash deposit.

Ultimately, there are many unique benefits that come with online banking, but these three broader benefits should be enough to convince anybody to embrace the concept today. Whether it is transferring funds easily, instant access to balances and expenditures, or the ability to automatically pay bills online, this form of banking will soon replace the traditional banking experience entirely.