An ATM at your destination is normally the cheapest way to get local currency, and it is also the step most likely to go wrong on day one. Use a machine attached to a real bank, decline the offer to charge you in dollars, take out a sensible amount rather than the minimum, and have a second card in a different pocket.
The short version
- Bank ATMs beat standalone machines on fees, reliability and security.
- Always decline conversion to dollars. Choosing the local currency is always cheaper.
- Fewer, larger withdrawals beat many small ones, because most fees are per transaction.
- Availability is genuinely uneven. 57 of the 211 destinations the U.S. State Department covers discuss ATM availability or reliability specifically.
- Have a second card elsewhere, and know your bank’s international phone number.
What You Need to Know
An ATM withdrawal abroad involves up to four charges: your own bank’s foreign transaction fee, its out-of-network ATM fee, the machine operator’s fee, and the conversion applied somewhere in the middle. Most of them are per transaction rather than per amount, which is why one larger withdrawal usually costs less than three small ones.
Which machine
Prefer an ATM in the wall of a bank branch, inside a bank lobby, or inside an airport terminal operated by a bank. Standalone machines in shops, bars and tourist streets typically charge more, are more often out of service, and are the ones most associated with card skimming.
Availability is not a given
The State Department’s country information discusses ATM availability or reliability for 57 destinations, and the entries are specific rather than generic: machines limited to major cities, machines that dispense only local currency, machines that run out of cash, and banks at home that decline transactions from certain countries without prior notice. That last one is a reason to notify your bank rather than a reason to worry.
What to Do Before Your Trip
- Notify your bank, with countries and dates, for every card you are taking.
- Find out your daily withdrawal limit, in the local currency it will be applied in.
- Check your card’s ATM and foreign transaction fees, so you know what a withdrawal actually costs.
- Confirm your PIN is four digits and that you know it numerically.
- Take a second card on a different network, stored separately.
- Write down your bank’s international number on paper.
- Find out whether ATMs are dependable at your destination, and carry more arrival cash if they are not.
Arriving with a group? Twenty travelers queueing at one airport machine is a slow start, and it is the moment a group discovers which cards were never notified to a bank.
Explore group travel planningImportant Considerations
Decline the conversion, every time
When a machine offers to complete the transaction in your home currency, that is dynamic currency conversion, and the rate is set by the machine operator rather than your bank. It is consistently worse. Choose the local currency and let your own issuer convert. This is the single most reliably profitable decision at an ATM.
Skimming
Check the card slot and keypad for anything loose or added, cover the keypad while entering the PIN, and prefer machines inside a bank where a device is harder to fit unnoticed. If a machine looks tampered with, use a different one; the inconvenience is trivial next to the alternative.
When the machine keeps the card
It happens, usually after a wrong PIN or a timeout. If the ATM belongs to a bank that is open, go inside immediately. If it does not, call your issuer and cancel the card. This is why a second card in a different pocket is worth the small effort of arranging.
Take the receipt, and check the statement
The receipt is what lets you reconcile the charge later, and abroad the number on your statement will not match the amount you withdrew because of the fees and the conversion. Checking once early in the trip tells you what a withdrawal really costs and lets you adjust how often you make one.
Tips for Group Travelers
- Plan one ATM stop into the first day at a bank rather than at the airport, and tell the group it is coming.
- Remind everyone to notify their bank before departure; this is where the failures surface.
- Say what a sensible withdrawal is for the destination, so people are not drawing the minimum repeatedly.
- Tell the group to decline dollar conversion. Most will not know what the prompt means.
- Carry a small contingency for the traveler whose card fails on arrival, agreed as a loan.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Accepting the machine’s offer to charge in dollars.
- Many small withdrawals, each paying the same fixed fees.
- Standalone machines in tourist areas when a bank is two streets away.
- Not notifying the bank, and being declined on arrival.
- One card only, in the same wallet as everything else.
- Assuming there will be a machine at a rural stop or a small airport.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is using an ATM abroad cheaper than exchanging cash?
Usually yes. A bank ATM gives you close to the interbank rate less your own bank’s fees, which is generally better than an exchange counter’s spread, and much better than an airport or hotel desk. The exception is a destination where machines are unreliable, where arriving with some cash is worth the worse rate.
Should I accept the machine’s exchange rate?
No. When an ATM offers to charge you in dollars, that is dynamic currency conversion at a rate set by the machine operator, and it is consistently worse than your own bank’s. Always choose the local currency. The same applies to card terminals in shops and restaurants.
How much should I withdraw at once?
Enough for a couple of days rather than the minimum, because most of the fees are charged per transaction rather than per amount. Balance that against not wanting to carry a large sum: two days of spending is the usual compromise, more where machines are scarce.
What if the ATM keeps my card?
If it is attached to an open bank branch, go inside at once and ask. Otherwise call your issuer on its international number and cancel the card. Then use the second card you brought, which is the entire reason for bringing one.
Are ATMs available everywhere?
No, and the unevenness is documented: 57 of the 211 destinations covered discuss ATM availability or reliability specifically, describing machines limited to major cities, machines that run out of cash, and home banks that decline transactions from certain countries without notice. Check the entry for your destination and carry more arrival cash where it is a concern.
Related Travel Tips
- Money, currency and payments, the section this guide belongs to.
- Understanding Foreign Exchange Rates. Why declining the conversion matters.
- Foreign Transaction Fees. The four charges on a withdrawal.
- Credit Card Security Abroad. Skimming and what to do about it.
Plan Your Trip With LABUSA Travel
Whether the machines at your arrival airport work, and where the last dependable bank is on a rural itinerary, are local facts rather than general ones. LABUSA Travel builds the cash stops into the plan rather than leaving them to the morning.
Talk with a LABUSA Travel advisor about a trip you are considering, or browse our destination guides for a specific country.
Verify Before You Travel
Withdrawal limits, ATM fees and foreign transaction fees are set by your own bank and card issuer; confirm them directly before you travel. Country-level information on ATM availability and reliability is published per destination by the U.S. Department of State. Official reference rates are published by the Federal Reserve. This page is general guidance, not financial advice.
Travel requirements, health guidance and safety conditions can change. Always confirm current requirements with the appropriate government or official authority before departure.