Withdrawing money whilst abroad!

Sherlo87

I would consider myself to be very aware of my finances and pretty good when it comes to saving money but i have a query about what is the cheapest way to withdraw money from the atm's on the card you are using.

I currently have a few options to withdraw money whilst abroad:
1. Sta travel money card
2. Post office Australia card
3. debit and credit cards (which are a last resort and hopefully will never have to be used!)

I use the STA travel money card which charges £2.50 per withdrawal, when I get to Australia, I will switch to the Post office card. I have chosen this method as there are no Post office cards that suit my travel needs.

My query is that it has always been said that when using the ATM or shop, if they offer to do the conversion for you, always reject and let the card company do it in order to get the best rates. Well after spending 2 months in India and making a lot of withdrawals of the same, maximum amount, my average withdrawal cost was between £116 - £122 due to the conversion rates. On 3 separate occasions whilst there, the ATM offered to do the conversion rate for me and having kept tabs on my spends. i realised this was a better rate at between £109 - £111. Both sets of figures include the £2.50 withdrawal charge.

I have performed this experiment in Nepal and had the same outcome over a 1 month period and now i am in Singapore and just tested the theory out. the ATM withdrawal charge (without £2.50 withdrawal fee) was £198.11 but after choosing the Master Card rate that the STA card is with it cost me £212.18 (including the £2.50 withdrawal fee).

Am i right in saying that Martin Lewis always says to use the cards conversion rates because after 4 months of testing this theory out, i can honestly say that this does not seem the case.

I would appreciate any feedback as to whether anyone else has experienced a similar thing or any information as to why this is happening or whether i should always choose the ATM/shop conversion rate.

photome

Your post confuses me, I have always chosen to withdraw in local currency and it is always a better rate than withdrawing in sterling if that's what you mean.
I always use Halifax clarity CC which doesn't charge anything to withdraw other than the ATM fee if there is one and minimal interest which can be avoided

SW17

photome wrote: »

Your post confuses me, I have always chosen to withdraw in local currency and it is always a better rate than withdrawing in sterling if that's what you mean.
I always use Halifax clarity CC which doesn't charge anything to withdraw other than the ATM fee if there is one and minimal interest which can be avoided

I think the OP is asking if it is better to accept the conversion being done by merchant / ATM owner on a foreign currency transaction, or to decline and let their card issuer determine the rate.

OP - my experience has been that it is better to decline the merchant /ATM conversion, the rate I get from my cards (Metro Bank debit in Europe / Halifax Clarity elsewhere) is usually 2-5% better. You seem to have found differently, though I would suspect on this forum the feedback you get will be more likely in line with my experience than yours. Doesn't make you wrong, I've just never seen a better rate from letting the merchant/ATM do the conversion - sometimes it has been similar. I'm not familiar with your cards, maybe they don't have great conversion rates / fees.

benjus

If you're using a card that's relatively expensive to use abroad, as the OP appears to be, the exchange rate offered by the shop/ATM might be better than putting the transaction through in local currency.

However, if you're using one of the top cards for overseas use (e.g. Halifax Clarity credit card, N&P debit card, Kalixa Pay prepaid card) you should always pay in local currency and let the bank handle it.