So, you are traveling abroad and you are interested in places where you can exchange currency? Or maybe you just want to turn the money you’ve received from your cousin from another country into domestic currency? Regardless of the scenario and the reason why you want to exchange currency, you should know that there are good and bad places where you can conduct activities like this.

What every person that wants to exchange money is interested in is low fees and fast transactions. Unfortunately, some scammers are using this opportunity to take advantage of people. It’s crucial to stay away from situations like this and you can do this only by learning more about where a process like this should take place. This is the main reason why we have written this guide for you.

• Learn more about legit places where you can exchange currency
• Find out more about dubious locations and situations that you should avoid
• Get familiar with the basic rules of the process

We have prepared a list of 5 good and 5 bad places where you can exchange currency. Our guide includes all the details you need for a hassle-free exchange.

The Best Places

1. Bank

Availability: Found in almost every place in the world

Limitations: Every person with an ID should be able to exchange money

Fees: Low/No fees

Type of currency: Almost all fiat currencies

Speed: Relatively fast

One of the most popular choices for people who want to exchange currency is to visit a bank. Just think about – what’s the first thing that comes to your mind when you are thinking about this activity? What’s great about banks is that they are available in almost every place in the world. Even in small places, you will find more than one bank.

We should also mention that the majority of banks won’t charge you anything for a service like this, but even if there’s a fee this fee is usually symbolic. Of course, just like in the case of almost any other form of currency exchange, you will have to show your ID to finish the process. Finally, one of the main reasons why most people recommend this form of activity when you need to convert money is the fact that you will finish the job relatively fast. Only in rare cases, there are long waiting times in banks and some banks have separate counters for this purpose.

• This is one of the safest ways to exchange currency
• Banks are available in all countries in the world
• There are low (or even no) fees involved in the process

2. ATM

Availability: Found in almost every place in the world

Limitations: All you need is a card

Fees: Low/No fees

Type of currency: Popular fiat currencies

Speed: Fast

Regardless of your location (even if you are abroad), one of the best places to exchange currency is an ATM. First of all, there are many ATMs even in relatively small places across the globe. Next, with their help, you can exchange money fast – usually, there are no lines in front of these machines and the process is finished in a matter of minutes. Of course, all you need is a credit/debit card.

Keep in mind that there are fees involved in these cases too. However, most of the ATMs will charge low fees. It would be even better to prepare yourself and look for ATMs from your bank in the place where you are going. Many of the banks have an international presence and when using their ATMs you can rest assured that you will avoid high fees. Just in case, it’s wise to withdraw larger amounts at once because many ATMs have fixed fees for every transfer you make regardless of the amount of money you are withdrawing.

• ATMs are another good option for those who want to get money in other currencies
• These machines are available across the globe
• They usually charge low fees

3. Exchange shops

Availability: Present in some countries

Limitations: Sometimes you need to show your ID to get the transaction done

Fees: Low to high fees

Type of currency: Almost all popular fiat currencies

Speed: Relatively fast

Exchange shops were quite popular just a few decades ago, but thanks to the advance of technology and the expansion of ATMs, these shops are now rare. This makes sense because exchanging money through a machine is usually easier. Another thing that we would like to mention is that exchange shops as places where you can exchange currency can easily be listed under “worst places” on this list too. It all depends on the exchange shop.

A good shop of this kind usually has just one employee and they have clearly displayed rates at the desk. There are situations where you can get better rates compared to banks here, but most of them have more or less the same rates. On the other hand, bad exchange shops will charge you high fees. By being more cautious you will be able to avoid these shops.

• Exchange shops were quite popular back in the days
• There are many good shops like this, but also bad ones
• Be careful when you are using exchange shops

4. Money apps

Availability: Everywhere

Limitations: You need a mobile device/computer and internet connection

Fees: low to high

Type of currency: Almost all fiat currencies

Speed: Fast

Did you know that modern technology can be quite useful when you want to exchange money? As you are probably aware, almost every adult person in the world owns a cell phone and most of them are smartphones capable of running applications. In the recent period, there are many mobile apps focused on finances and money and some of them allow their users to exchange money with just a click on the phone’s screen.

Monzo and Revolut are good examples of applications like this. With their help, you can get a virtual debit card that you can use on almost any ATM. You will manage the currency from the app. We should also mention the latest NFC technology applied in many smartphones. Thanks to this technology, you don’t even need a card to withdraw money or pay services/products. All you have to do is to unlock your smartphone and point it to the POS terminal to complete a transaction.

• Use modern technology to exchange currency
• There are many mobile apps for iOS and Android that can help you with that
• Most of them issue virtual debit cards that you can use around the globe

5. Traveler’s Checks

Availability: Found in many places in the world

Limitations: Every person with an ID should be able to exchange money

Fees: Low/No fees

Type of currency: Almost all fiat currencies

Speed: Relatively slow

Those of you interested in exchanging money should consider this option too. Traveler’s checks were extremely popular a few decades ago, but modern technology has made them less popular recently. Yet, this doesn’t mean that you can’t benefit from this option when you want to exchange currency.

What’s interesting is that a huge number of these checks are issued by American Express, but the fact is that many banks and credit unions issue checks like this too. To purchase a check that you can use on your next trip, you will probably have to cover a small fee. In some cases, you can arrange to get them by mail, but in this case, you can expect higher fees.

Of course, not everything about these checks is great. For example, if you want to exchange them in foreign banks, you will have to wait for their employees to validate the checks and this procedure can take some time. There are shops and hotels that accept traveler’s checks, but their number is relatively low.

• Traveler’s checks were very popular in the past
• Many of these checks are issued by American Express
• They are not accepted in many shops and hotels

The Worst Places

1. At the airport

Availability: Only if you are traveling by plane

Limitations: You need an ID

Fees: Huge fees

Type of currency: Selected fiat currencies

Speed: Relatively fast

Let’s be honest- this definitely sounds like a convenient way to exchange currency when you are traveling. However, this is probably the worst option you have because of one thing – extremely high commission charges that are present in these exchange desks in most countries of the world. It turns out that only people who are practically forced to convert currency are using these desks at the airports because they have no other solutions.

If you still want to use a convenient option at the airport, you might want to pre-book currencies before you travel, an option that only some terminals provide. In all other cases, it’s strongly advised to look for another option although this activity is fast and you don’t need anything but your ID to finish the job.

• Very high commissions
• A convenient, but expensive solution
• Look for pre-book currencies option if possible

2. The street guy

Availability: Usually found in third world countries

Limitations: No limitations

Fees: High fees

Type of currency: Limited fiat currencies (two or three)

Speed: Fast

Did you know that there are street guys in many countries around the world (typically in third world countries) that will offer their services when you want to exchange currency? This might look like a good option for those who want to complete a transaction like this fast and without showing their ID or without any other questions asked. But, this convenience can cost you a lot in the end.

First of all, no one can tell whether the guy who is offering help like that is honest. They could be scammers which means that you can get fake money. But, even if they are not dishonest, they will usually charge high fees. This makes sense because you can expect to get money fast without any questions asked. In addition to this, there’s one more problem related to this method. Namely, these people will usually exchange one currency into another and vice versa. You can’t show up with any currency you want and expect to complete this task.

• Many of these street guys are scammers
• You can expect high fees
• They are usually working with two currencies

3. Hotels

Availability: Found in almost every place in the world

Limitations: Every person with an ID should be able to exchange money (you should be a guest at the hotel)

Fees: High

Type of currency: A few different fiat currencies

Speed: Fast

There are hotels in almost every place in the world. They are still one of the most popular forms of accommodation for travelers, but it turns out that they can serve as places where people can exchange currency too. So, this is another solution that you can use for that, but you should know that this is not a good option.

The reason why we are saying this is simple – there’s a bad exchange rate in most hotels. Obviously, hotels are doing this to make your stay easier, but they are not banks. So, they are charging huge fees for this service. That’s why it’s better to use another option than to use a hotel to convert money even if you are in a hurry.

• This is a place where you can expect high commissions
• Using hotels, for this reason, is a convenient, but expensive solution
• There are other similar options that are way cheaper

4. Tourist centers

Availability: Found in almost every tourist place in the world

Limitations: Every person with an ID should be able to exchange money

Fees: High to low

Type of currency: Almost all popular fiat currencies

Speed: Relatively fast

To be honest, tourist centers can be viewed as both good and bad places to exchange currency. It all depends on the fees that you can expect to find there and it seems that every country has different rules. In some cases, the fees are different in places that are located in the same country. So, if the fees are high or there are hidden fees, you will definitely get a bad experience. On the other hand, if the fees are reasonable, there’s more than one reason why someone would want to use tourist centers as places where they can exchange money.

First of all, if you are traveling abroad to a popular travel destination, it’s very likely that this place will have a tourist center. This means that using this option is convenient. In addition, you just need an ID to finish the job and usually, there are no long lines there. In addition, they are working with the most popular fiat currencies. Finally, don’t forget that they are called tourist centers for a reason – they can provide useful information to tourists making their stay there more enjoyable.

• Tourist centers can be both good and bad places to exchange money
• Look for centers with low fees to avoid unpleasant experiences
• Tourist centers can provide other useful information to travelers

5. At the train station

Availability: Found in many places around the world

Limitations: Every person with an ID should be able to exchange money

Fees: High

Type of currency: Almost all popular fiat currencies

Speed: Relatively fast

Trains are still a very popular type of transportation in many countries. This is especially true for those who are traveling from one European country to another. Many people prefer this form of transportation because it’s safer and relatively inexpensive. But, what can be very expensive is to exchange currency at the train station.

Just like in the case of airports, many train stations have kiosks where people can change money. These kiosks usually have almost all popular fiat currencies in their offer and changing money is relatively fast because there are not many people waiting for this service. So, using a train station, for this reason, might sound like a good solution, but there’s one huge downside – high fees. That’s right, an activity like this will cost you a lot and since there are other low-fee options out there, we suggest avoiding train stations for currency exchange.

• Many train stations have special kiosks where you can exchange money
• Traveling by train to different countries is popular on many continents especially in Europe
• This is not a good option for changing money due to the high fees