NEW YORK — A survey from Bankrate.com, an Internet site that tracks card trends and their impacts on consumers, has found almost none of the card issuers surveyed still charge the cardholders a fee for using their debit cards, no matter whether they sign to validate transactions or use a personal identification number.

Bankrate researchers surveyed the 10 largest banks and thrifts in 10 top markets and gathered their check card policies and fees. Only seven of the 100 surveyed institutions charge a point-of-sale, or POS, fee for PIN transactions. Five of these charge per transaction and two charge a monthly fee, the site reported.

Bankrate called the rise of the debit card "very good news for consumers" and said that consumers have embraced check cards as their preferred purchasing plastic. Since 2003, check cards have been used to make more purchases than credit cards, according to the Federal Reserve.