Read this first. This tool reports public database facts (the Federal Reserve routing directory and the FDIC bank lists). It does not and cannot tell you whether a specific check, money order, or wire is genuine. The only reliable way to verify a specific instrument is to call the issuing bank or money-order company using a phone number you find yourself on their official website — never a number printed on the check or given to you by the person who sent it.
A cashier's check is drawn on a bank's own funds, so people treat it as "as good as cash." Scammers know that — counterfeit cashier's checks are one of the most common fraud instruments. Here is how to actually verify one.
Look up a routing number
Enter the 9-digit routing number printed at the bottom-left of the check. We'll resolve it to the real bank in the Federal Reserve directory and flag failed/nonexistent banks.
Step 1 — Resolve the routing number
Type the 9-digit number at the bottom-left of the check above. We resolve it against the Federal Reserve FedACH directory and flag if it maps to a failed or nonexistent bank.
Step 2 — Call the issuing bank (the only real verification)
Search the bank's name + "customer service" and get the number from its official website.
Do not call any number on the check — scammers print their own number.
Ask them to verify the check number and dollar amount.
The trap people fall into
Your bank may make the funds "available" in a day or two. That is not the same as the check clearing. A fake cashier's check can bounce weeks later — and the bank pulls the money back from your account.
How fake-check scams work
Real banks make funds available in 1–2 days, but a fake check can take weeks to bounce. By then the scammer is gone — and your bank takes the money back from you.
You're "overpaid" and asked to wire back the difference (overpayment scam).
You're asked to deposit a check and send part via Zelle, gift cards, crypto, or wire — that's the tell.
The check is for a job, prize, rental, mystery-shopper, or online-sale you didn't expect.
There's pressure to act fast before the check "expires".
If any of these match: do not deposit, do not wire anything back, and report it at reportfraud.ftc.gov.