Better credit card to use overseas

sultan123

Going for a holiday in Dubai.

Have the halifax clarity credit card and Barclays reward card. Both do not cause any charges for using abroad. 

But which gets you better rate? 

Albermarle

No need to start two new threads on approx the same subject.
I am pretty sure both will give you the prevailing spot rate.

sultan123

Where can I check the rate on that day?

sultan123

Anyone help?

Albermarle

sultan123 said:

Where can I check the rate on that day?

Market Data - BBC News

jbrassy

The difference between the Visa and Mastercard rates are pretty minimal (pennies). I wouldn't worry about it - you've got the two best credit cards for spending abroad. 

sultan123

jbrassy said:

The difference between the Visa and Mastercard rates are pretty minimal (pennies). I wouldn't worry about it - you've got the two best credit cards for spending abroad. 

Thanks. Is there somewhere standard you can check rates for referencd?

lr1277

Both Visa and MasterCard have fx currency converter websites. Into Google I entered visa/MasterCard fx converter.
oOn the relevant web page I entered:
transaction currency
card currency 
transaction date
they both requested a bank fee for which I entered 0.
Both gave me very similar figures for an equivalent amount on !5/09.
As someone else said pennies or within a pound of each other for a US$ transaction of $558. If memory serves.
HTH

TOP_CAT

Exchange rates are one thing to consider .

The Clarity will charge a percentage for cash advances on a daily basis  where I believe the Barclays travel card is the better if not the best mainstream bank credit card to use for cash advances while travelling .

These  high percentage cash advance charges are overlooked vs the exchange rates and also the order of payments is something else to understand .

I dont know why people "over look" paying high percentages to withdraw  cash overseas as acceptable  (....unless the terms have changed recently with the barclaycard reward card .)
Cash advance use or need may depend on where you travel and the unexpected .

But you have a choice so long as you can get the better cards .

The Halifax clarity card made changes around 2017 (or possibly 2018 ? ) as it used to have "a cash advance work around " but not anymore .
If you withdraw cash you pay high cash advance interest on it until payed off on your statement you cant pay it off early
Many on short trips dont care or feel this needs addressing so the banks profit from your pocket,

Most people are also on shorter trips of a week or so ie. generally less than a month ... just swallow cash advance charges but you do have a choice depending on the card or tool you use .

The op has two very good cards in the toolbox as another poster stated.

To do even better or complete the toolbox "you could also" look at adding the Chase debit card for 1% cashback while travelling/spending .
The chase card is not without its  issues or big problems so I wouldnt have it as a sole travel card .

Having multiple cards is more complex in practise travelling so its up to the individual on whats worth doing personally .
 

mgfvvc

sultan123 said:

Where can I check the rate on that day?

The rate on the day varies. I don't think I ever get the same rate twice.

Maple08

For the two cards you've got, as far as I'm aware, it's Mastercard that gives the best rates, though the Halifax card doesn't offer cashback. You can use the currency converters for them and usually takes a few days for the transaction to post, so the rate shown on the converter will be outdated by then.

I'm using Curve Blue with Barclaycard Avios. It's about £1K per month that gets 0% fees and I don't use it on the weekends as I mostly travel during the week. It uses Mastercard's conversion rate, so it's nice. Paid 0% fees this past week in Copenhagen and earned Avios - 0.8% in Nectar points/vouchers.