Can't find your card — not in your wallet, not in your pocket — but you're not sure yet if it's really lost? For moments like this, your bank's app (the program on your phone) has a handy button. It's called "Freeze card" or "Lock card." This is a temporary action — like flipping a light switch. Turn it off, and you can turn it right back on. This is different from permanently blocking a lost card and ordering a new one — that action can't be undone. This one can be reversed at any moment.
While your card is frozen, no one can use it — not you, and not anyone else if they happen to find it. But your money in your account stays exactly where it is and doesn't go anywhere. Freezing only affects your ability to pay or withdraw cash with that specific card.
Don't be afraid to tap buttons in the app. You can't break anything by mistake: if you freeze the card by accident, just unfreeze it the same way — it takes less than a minute.
Step by step: how to temporarily freeze your card
- Pick up your phone and unlock the screen (enter your code, use your fingerprint, or look at the camera — whichever you have set up).
- Find your bank's app icon on your phone screen — it's a square, colored picture with your bank's logo.
- Tap that icon once to open the app.
- Log in to the app the way you normally do — with your fingerprint, your face, or a password.
- On the main screen, find the section called "Cards" — it's often a word or a card-shaped icon near the bottom of the screen.
- Tap the card you want to freeze.
- On the card's screen, find a switch labeled something like "Freeze card," "Lock card," or "Temporary block." It usually looks like a small strip with a circle on it — the same kind of switch you see for sound or Wi-Fi settings on your phone.
- Tap that switch once.
- If the app asks you to confirm, tap "Yes" or "Confirm."
- Check that the card's status on the screen has changed — for example, it now says "Frozen," or the card picture has turned gray or dimmed.
That's it. Your card is frozen. Now you can keep looking for it calmly — in your bag, your coat pockets, or your car.
Step by step: how to unfreeze your card again
Found your card? Great. Unfreezing it is just as simple.
- Open your bank's app the same way as before.
- Go to the "Cards" section and tap the card in question.
- Find the same switch — it will likely now say "Unfreeze card," or appear flipped to the other position.
- Tap the switch once.
- Confirm the action if the app asks you to.
- Check that the card's status now shows "Active" again, and its picture has returned to its normal color.
Your card is working again, and you can use it as usual.
If something doesn't look right
If your app's screen looks a little different from what's described here, don't worry. Banks update their apps regularly, so button names and layouts can vary. Look carefully for similar words: "freeze," "lock," or "suspend" — that's most likely the button you need.
If you can't find such a button at all, or the app shows an error, call your bank yourself, using the phone number printed on the back of your card (if you have the card in hand) or the number listed on your bank's official website.
An important warning about scams. Sometimes scammers call, claiming to be from the bank's "security department," saying something like: "Someone is trying to steal your card, please read us the code from the text message so we can unfreeze it for you." This is always a scam. No real bank employee will ever ask you to read out a one-time code from a text message — not to freeze your card, and not to unfreeze it either. That code is meant only for you, and it should only ever be typed by you, inside the app.
If someone calls you and says something like this, hang up. Then call your bank yourself, using the number printed on the back of your card. That way, you know for certain you're talking to your real bank, not a scammer.
If you're still choosing a bank with an app that's easy and comfortable to use, you can browse our ranking of personal accounts: /en/best/personal-accounts.