BIN Checker

Enter 6 to 11 digits of a card number to check whether the prefix belongs to a real issuer range, and see exactly what it resolves to:

Real production data — the same records the API returns on the free tier. No signup required to use this tool.

Checking a BIN vs Looking One Up

The two are usually treated as the same thing, and mostly they are, but the difference matters when you're deciding what to do with the answer.

Looking up a BIN assumes it's valid and asks what it describes. Checking a BIN asks a prior question: does this prefix exist at all? A prefix that resolves to nothing is a meaningful signal — the digits are mistyped, they came from a test card, or the range has been retired.

Our API expresses this directly. A prefix inside a live issuer range returns 200 with the full record. One that isn't returns 404 NOT_FOUND. A prefix that isn't a valid BIN shape at all — too short, too long, non-numeric — returns 400 BAD_REQUEST, which is a different failure and worth handling separately.

What a BIN Check Can Tell You

Card scheme Visa, Mastercard, Amex, Discover, JCB, UnionPay, Diners, and co-brands Funding type Credit, debit, prepaid, or charge card Card level Classic, Gold, Platinum, World, Business, Corporate, Fleet, and others Issuing bank Name, plus website and phone where held Country and currency ISO country codes and the issuer's ISO 4217 currency Flags Commercial and prepaid indicators Card number length Expected PAN length for the range — useful for form validation

What It Cannot Tell You

BIN data describes a card product, not a card. No BIN checker — ours or anyone else's — can tell you:

  • Whether a specific card number was ever issued
  • Whether the card is active, expired, blocked, or reported stolen
  • The available balance or credit limit
  • Anything at all about the cardholder

Any of those requires an authorisation request to the issuer. A tool claiming to check card validity or balance from a BIN is either misdescribing what it does or doing something you don't want to be part of.

BIN Checks and the Luhn Algorithm

These solve different problems and are frequently conflated. The Luhn algorithm is a checksum over the full card number, verifying the final check digit. It catches typos. It knows nothing about which banks exist.

A BIN check verifies the issuer prefix against real allocations. It knows nothing about the digits after the BIN.

So a card number can pass Luhn while carrying a BIN that was never allocated — which is exactly what generated test numbers look like. And a genuine BIN can be followed by digits that fail Luhn, which is what a typo looks like. In a checkout form you want both: Luhn client-side to catch mistyping, and a BIN check to establish what the card actually is.

Don't Send Full Card Numbers

A BIN check needs 6 to 11 digits. It never needs the rest. Our API rejects anything longer than 11 digits with BAD_REQUEST and replaces the value with [REDACTED] so it is never written to request logs.

That is deliberate: truncating client-side, before the value leaves your system, keeps full PANs out of third-party logs entirely and keeps the integration well clear of cardholder-data scope.

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FAQ

What does a BIN checker actually check?
It checks whether the digits you entered fall inside a real issuer range, and returns what that range resolves to: the issuing bank, card scheme, funding type, card level, country, and currency. It does not check whether a specific card exists, whether it has funds, or whether it has been reported stolen.
What does it mean if a BIN is not found?
A 404 means the prefix isn't in any issuer range we hold. Usually the digits are mistyped, or they were taken from a test or example card number rather than a real one. It does not mean the card is fraudulent — it means the prefix has never been allocated, or has been retired.
Is a BIN check the same as validating a card number?
No, and this is the most common confusion. A BIN check validates the issuer prefix. The Luhn algorithm validates the full card number, including its final check digit — it operates on the whole PAN, not on the BIN. A number can pass Luhn while having a BIN that was never issued, and a real BIN can be followed by digits that fail Luhn.
Can a BIN checker tell me if a card is stolen or has funds?
No. BIN data describes the card product and the bank that issued it. It carries nothing about an individual card or account. Balance and status can only come from an authorisation against the issuer.
How many digits do I need?
Six is the minimum. Eight is the current standard for Visa and Mastercard, and our API accepts up to 11 for the most specific match. Never enter a full card number — anything over 11 digits is rejected and redacted rather than logged.
How current is the data behind the checker?
Minor updates ship weekly and a major database refresh ships every four weeks, including retirement of withdrawn records. This is the difference between a checker and a static BIN list: a list that only ever grows will tell you a retired range still belongs to its former issuer.
Is this BIN checker free?
Yes. The tool on this page is free with real production data, and API accounts start on a free tier with 10 real lookups per day, no credit card required.

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