No check printing software is free in every way with no limits, but some has a permanent free plan. Check Writer 123's free plan prints up to 5 checks a month with 1 bank account, no card and no expiry. Beyond that, what you can find are five kinds of free: free trials, free demo downloads, free templates in Word or Excel, free tiers with conditions on online payment platforms, and the check tools already inside your bank or accounting software. Each gets you part of the way, and each leaves something out.
The five kinds of free check printing
| Kind of free | What you get | What it leaves out |
|---|---|---|
| Free trial of paid software | The full product for a limited time, with real alignment and a register. | It ends. Check how long, and whether a card is needed. |
| Free demo download | A limited version of desktop software, often with a cap on printed checks. | Limits such as watermarks or a number of runs. |
| Free template (Word, Excel, Google Docs) | A layout you fill in by hand. | No automatic check numbers, no MICR line, manual alignment, and no record unless you build one. |
| Free tier on a payments platform | Check printing alongside ACH and mailed payments. | Conditions. Some pages mention minimum balances or fees for other services. Read the terms. |
| Your bank or accounting software | Print checks on stock you buy for it. | You buy the stock, and the layouts are limited. |
What 'free' tends to cost you
- Time. A template means retyping every field and lining it up by hand each time.
- Risk of rejection. A check without a proper bank number line may be refused when you deposit it or when a vendor deposits it.
- Records. Without a register you have to track check numbers and cleared checks yourself.
- Conditions. Free tiers can come with balance requirements, limits or fees for the features you actually need.
A fair look at the options
Our check printing software comparison lists ten options, with prices as listed on each vendor's site in October 2026, and our guides cover printing checks from Word and from Excel if you want to try a template first. For a payments platform that promotes free printing, see our OnlineCheckWriter comparison.
Where Check Writer 123 fits
We are honest about this: Check Writer 123 is paid software. It offers a 14-day free trial with no card needed, a free Test Print on plain paper that never counts toward your plan, and a set of free check tools that need no sign-up. After the trial, plans start at $5.99 a month with no per-check fees. Logo, signature and cloud backup come with Mid Tier and Unlimited.
A simple way to get the most from free
- Start with a free trial that needs no card, and print one test check on plain paper.
- Use the free tools for the small jobs: the amount-to-words converter and the routing number checker.
- Work out your real monthly check volume, then compare with our cost calculator.
- Pick the paid option only if the time and error savings are worth it.