If someone needs to pay for something via US Mail and does not want to write a personal check, what does he do? He buys a money order! This method of paying bills is still popular today, and many people prefer a money order to a personal check.

A money order is an instrument that orders a sum of money to be paid to someone else. The buyer goes to a post office, grocery store or even a convenience store, pays for the order in the amount he wishes, along with a fee to the establishment selling it, and sends the order to the person he wants to pay. Because the money order must be paid for in full at the time of purchase, the payee is guaranteed the money will be paid to him.

A money order does not expire, so the payee can cash it at any time. Companies such as Western Union guarantee the funds for a money order, so the buyer does not have to buy the money order and then worry about the money coming out of his checking account unexpectedly some time later. The money order is also popular with those who do not have a bank account. They can pay bills via mail and not worry about sending cash or paying to wire cash to an individual. Anyone with cash in hand can purchase a money order, so there are no age requirements, as there may be for opening a bank account.

The money order system was first formally established in Great Britain in 1792, by a private company. It didn't do very well, and in the mid-1830s the system was taken over by the post office. The trend caught on in the U.S. as a safe way to send money and as a guarantee that the money would be available.

Cashier's checks from a bank are much the same as a money order, but usually involve larger sums of money. Many stores have limits on how much someone can make a money order for. Cashier's checks usually involve amounts of money over $500 or $1,000. They are guaranteed by the issuing bank.

A person should always ask how much the store's fee is to purchase a money order and should be ready with that amount of cash in hand.