Withdrawing cash in the USA for free?

americandragon

Not sure if this is in the right forum but we'll see...

Are there any UK banks that will allow you to withdraw cash in the USA without a charge? I know that Barclays as a member of the Global Alliance allow withdrawals at the Bank of America for a fixed charge of 3%. Is that the best I'm going to get?

dr_adidas01

americandragon wrote: »

Not sure if this is in the right forum but we'll see...

Are there any UK banks that will allow you to withdraw cash in the USA without a charge? I know that Barclays as a member of the Global Alliance allow withdrawals at the Bank of America for a fixed charge of 3%. Is that the best I'm going to get?

Nope most UK banks charge a fee for converting sterling to USD.

Hence why I have a Citibank UK account that has a USD and a Euro account attached to it. All I then do is transfer money to which ever account I need to use while i'm abroad and thus avoid paying any conversion fees.

PeacefulWaters

Three charges to consider.

1. The hidden charge within a poor exchange rate.

2. UK card provider charge for overseas transactions, typically 3% of value (sometimes with a minimum fee for cash of £3 or £5). Not to forget interest on cash transactions on a credit card.

3. USA ATM withdrawal fee.

The first two can be avoided by using a Halifax Clarity Card, although there will be interest of about 3p-6p per day for each £100 drawn in cash. Clear it quick and cap the costs.

The third one depends on the local ATM provider. Typical charges were $3 per withdrawal. In NYC last year TD Bank ATMs didn't charge. The ATM in a nearby McDonalds store only charged $1. If using the latter withdraw a larger amount to avoid repeating charges on multiple withdrawals.

Focus your energy on maximising credit card use for purchases to minimise your need for cash.

Read this for a broader understanding and other options:
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/travel/cheap-travel-money?_ga=1.209148498.1116300417.1393518509

grumbler

dr_adidas01 wrote: »

All I then do is transfer money to which ever account I need to use while i'm abroad and thus avoid paying any conversion fees.

Any?
Citibank charge you when you transfer between accounts. This charge is smaller than typical 2.5-3%, but reportedly Citybank was getting worse and worse in this respect recently. Also, most likely USD and Euro accounts are not free, at least for new customers, or require high balance while paying next to zero interest. I don't see how this arrangement can beat other well known opportunities. The only advantage is that you can keep balances in other currencies thus reducing exchange rate fluctuation risks.

platterfish

Are you going on holiday?

Nationwide Flex Plus. Although its £10 a month, you don't pay this until the end of month the second month. If you sign up today your first £10 would come out end of September. if your holiday was before then just downgrade when your back and you get the travel insurance/free withdrawals.

Just make sure you find a machine that doesn't have a fee to withdrawal applied also.

BigBelly

Is there a list of ATMs in the USA which don't charge a fee?

PeacefulWaters

I'd use google maps to identify ATMs near to where you travel and research from there.

The McDonalds $1 or free ATM option seems quite common. Casino Royale in Vegas is $1. As at last October TD Bank in NYC were free. But over 98% of ATMs will charge non-customers a fee when they withdraw.

BarkingMad

MSE has details of debit and credit card charges

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/travel/overseas-card-charges

There may be local ATM charges to pay, but with a N&P Gold Classic http://www.nandp.co.uk/current-account/gold-classic-current-account/ there is no loading etc. but you have to pay in £500 per month or keep balance of £500 otherwise there is a charge. I think you can pay in £500 and trasnfer it out the next day.

I'm trying to work out whether its worth the effort applying / running the N&P account because I've already got a Santander Zero Credit Card which has no loading or fee for use, but for cash withdrawls I would pay interest. We take some local currency and use the CC whenver possible, I'm not sure whether the N&P is worth the hassle.

SnowTiger

BarkingMad wrote: »

MSE has details of debit and credit card charges

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/travel/overseas-card-charges

There may be local ATM charges to pay, but with a N&P Gold Classic http://www.nandp.co.uk/current-account/gold-classic-current-account/ there is no loading etc. but you have to pay in £500 per month or keep balance of £500 otherwise there is a charge. I think you can pay in £500 and trasnfer it out the next day.

I'm trying to work out whether its worth the effort applying / running the N&P account because I've already got a Santander Zero Credit Card which has no loading or fee for use, but for cash withdrawls I would pay interest. We take some local currency and use the CC whenver possible, I'm not sure whether the N&P is worth the hassle.

The Zero is a Mastercard credit card? N&P's offering is a Visa debit card. It might be useful to have both a credit and debt card using different card networks.

The N&P card isn't much of an effort. Just cycle £500 through the account every month. The biggest downer (for me) is that N&P only seems to process Faster Payments during office hours. No transfers during the evening and at the weekend.

I use Halifax Clarify and the N&P card in the Philippines. Most cashmachines there charge P200 (about £280) for credit card withdraws. Debit card withdraws are free from many (BPI).

callum9999

SnowTiger wrote: »

The Zero is a Mastercard credit card? N&P's offering is a Visa debit card. It might be useful to have both a credit and debt card using different card networks.

The N&P card isn't much of an effort. Just cycle £500 through the account every month. The biggest downer (for me) is that N&P only seems to process Faster Payments during office hours. No transfers during the evening and at the weekend.

I use Halifax Clarify and the N&P card in the Philippines. Most cashmachines there charge P200 (about £280) for credit card withdraws. Debit card withdraws are free from many (BPI).

That's a rather pricey withdrawal fee!

jonesMUFCforever

Google visa.com - there is an ATM locator on there - don't know if it tells if they are free or not.


If it was me I would take some cash with me but use cards for all purchases - eliminating most ATM fees.