Can I use Monzo like a regular debit card in shops abroad?

[tequila (Mr P T Brookfield)]

I think the answer is yes and I need to RTFM, but I’m unsure. Will be fantastic paying for meals without needing lots of euro on me.

I take it this removes the need to even withdraw much cash on holiday? I am off to Spain (Canary Islands).

[alexs (Alex Sherwood)]

Yes you can. As a general rule, it’ll work anywhere where MasterCard cards are accepted. The known issues for Monzo (which are mainly due to the fact that it’s a prepaid card) are listed here.

You’ll find more tips on using Monzo in Spain here -

Monzo in Spain [Wiki]

This is a wiki crowdsourced by the Monzo Community to help you travel with Monzo. Just like Wikipedia, anyone can edit it to help out others. If you have any tips or feedback for visiting Spain with Monzo, please feel free to edit this guide. You can also add a comment or question below — someone will then incorporate your comment into the main text below and then delete your comment. To create your own “Monzo in …” guide if one doesn’t already exist, just copy this template into a new post and…

If you have any additional questions, please ask them there to make it easy for other users to find the advice.

The complete list of dedicated pages for advice on using Monzo in countries around the world is here -

Travelling with Monzo

Travel tips and advice on using Monzo abroad from our high-flying community! If you don’t see the country you’ve visited or plan to visit, please feel free to start a new thread, and we’ll get it added to the directory Note: There may be issues making withdrawals from mag stripe ATM’s if your identity has not been verified or you have not enabled mag stripe withdrawals in the app. List of non-mag stripe ATMs (Worldwide) Africa The Americas Asia Europe Oceania/Austr…

[Avishai (Marta)]

@tequila

I take it this removes the need to even withdraw much cash on holiday? I am off to Spain

I’d take 20 euros in cash with me (just in case), but travelling with Monzo is awesome. If you need cash, you should do this with Monzo at first free ATM in Spain. I did my research and average ‘Cash Zone’ exchange that I had worse rates than Monzo. So it makes no sense to bring any euros with you from UK except for emergency reserves.

Make sure you withdraw Euro from Monzo directly and avoid using built-in rates, so basically - always pay in euros, them Monzo does the currency exchange for you. This applies to ATMs and POS terminals.

Please note monthly ATM withdrawal limit £1000. No limit on payments with card at merchants.
Your account needs to be verified, so check with in-app support if you are. Otherwise other limits kicks in.

[tequila (Mr P T Brookfield)]

Hi -

I don’t actually think I’ll bother with taking any money from the UK at all. If we’ve already paid for our car hire online (with everything included - cheap as chips at £12 a day!), the only possible problem I can think of would be finding somewhere to buy petrol nearby on card. Apart from that, we’re sorted.

I have a question to ask about a close friend of mine who is thick (her own way of describing herself, not mine) were to get one of these cards, but that’s for another thread.

[BobT (Bob)]

You might want to take cash if visiting markets or you go out for a drive inland and find a great little spot for lunch.

Also, Monzo is still in beta so take a spare card just in case

[ross_o (Ross)]

I’ve used my monzo card in a few countries now with no issues. Always have some back up cash though as certain places only take cash

[jzw95]

Yeah, I haven’t taken cash with me when when travelling in over ten years (unless I have some left from a previous trip). Refuse to pay the rip-off rates of currency changers. There’s always an ATM at the airport at a minimum to withdraw some cash. I do agree that it’s worth having some cash on you after you arrive.