No matter where you go these days, chances are there's a cash machine not far away. You can find them at gas stations, grocery stores, even local restaurants.

But with fees as high as $3 a pop, trips to the ATM can add up.

Cash machines are convenient, but they also rake in an estimated $2 billion to $3 billion a year in fees and surcharges, and in most cases, those charges could be avoided altogether.

Think about the number of ATM trips you make every week, then add up all the fees -- $1.50, $2.75, some machines even charge $3 or more.

And if you don't use your own bank's machine, you could be hit with two fees.

"The first is what's known as the surcharge. This is charged by the ATM owner when a non-customer uses the ATM.
On top of that, your bank very often charges a fee if you go outside the network," explained Greg McBride of Bankrate.com. But here's a growing trend of ATMs that are surcharge-free.

They're popping up around the country as an extra incentive to customers of small banks and credit unions.

"If you're a customer of a very small bank or credit union that has half a dozen ATMs, that institution very often joins an alliance with other institutions around the country so that you have thousands of ATMs at your disposal." said McBride.

Anyone can use them surcharge free machines. BECU, which does not impose a surcharge at any of its 175 ATMs, even installed a surcharge-free machine outside Safeco Field. You can tell a no-surcharge machine by a CO-OP logo.

ATMs at most 7-Eleven stores are even part of the surcharge-free network.

The only down side: if your card is not from a credit union, you may still be charged a "foreign ATM" fee by your bank.

But regardless of where you bank, if you plan ahead you can avoid ATM fees altogether.

If you're a bank customer, only use machines from your banking network. If you're a credit union member, use a machine that's part of the credit union network.

Limit small withdrawals. Plan ahead and take larger amounts of money. And get cash back when you make debit card purchases at the store.

Finally, be prepared. Call your bank or credit union and find out the location of the closest machines in their network. Better yet, go online to their Web site, enter the zip code you want, and get a print out of the ATM locations in that area.

Stick to those ATMs and you'll be surprised at how much you can save in fees. This is especially true if you're in a city or neighborhood you're not familiar with.

More information:

Enjoy Surcharge-Free Access at 25,000 CO-OP Network ATMs

NWCU Alliance ATM Locator

Alliance One ATM Locator

Find a free ATM near you