how much do money orders cost 
although there is a fee for buying a money order it s generally only a small fraction of the value of the order for example the u s postal service charges 2 35 for money orders of up to 500 and 3 40 for orders from 500 01 up to 1 000 fees are lower for money orders issued in military postal facilities 3money orders from commercial institutions may have different prices but the fees will tend to be similar however international money orders may incur higher fees 8money orders vs cashier s checksa cashier s check is similar to a money order in that both are sometimes used for payment in situations where cash or a personal check would be impractical neither can be bought with credit you have to use cash or a debit card 9but unlike a money order a cashier s check is simply a check written by a financial institution against its own assets 10 this is considered more reliable than a personal check because there is no chance of the check bouncing for this reason cashier s checks are frequently used to make large purchases such as for a house or vehicle whereas banks might place a hold on a personal check for that much money funds issued by a cashier s check should be available the next business day in contrast money orders are typically used for smaller transfers such as for rent or mortgage payments many institutions such as the u s postal service cap money orders at 1 000 3alternatives to money ordersin addition to checks and money orders other ways to send guaranteed funds to an individual or business include traveler s checks wire transfers bank drafts and cashier s checks but money orders are frequently used for payment in situations where the party being paid isn t set up to receive cash in some cases a personal check debit card credit card or even online payment apps might also be acceptable for payment however money orders are slightly different from these alternatives unlike card or electronic payments the recipient of a money order doesn t need any special technology to accept a money order and unlike personal checks a money order can t bounce frequently asked questions faqs 