🇬🇧 Monzo in the UK [Wiki]

Monzo Chat Travelling with Monzo
1

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 The UK 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 write away!

Safe travels! :wave: :airplane:

image
image1280×640 4.9 KB

Currency

Pounds Sterling (£) - 100 pence to one pound -

denominations - coins - 1 penny, 2 pennies, 5 pence, 10 pence, 20 pence, 50 pence, 1 pound coin, 2 pound coin.
notes - £5, £10, £20, £50 notes (£50 note not readily accepted by merchants )

Card usage

Cards accepted nearly everywhere except tiny villages. Contactless accepted everywhere cards are accepted with very rare exceptions. High-value contactless (when using Apple Pay or Google Pay above £30) accepted almost everywhere except ASDA and Tesco supermarkets.

ATMs

Make sure you use ATMs that include the Mastercard logo and watch out for LiNK network only ATMs.

Payment and withdrawal limits

All Monzo cards have some payment and withdrawal limits. To check yours before you leave, tap “Account” under the picture of your card and then “Spending and card limits”.

Crowdsourced merchant data

As Monzo’s home country, merchant data should be extremely excellent. :tada:

Miscellaneous

To edit this guide, just tap the pencil icon below. Alternatively, add a reply with your comments and someone from the community will incorporate your suggestions into the guide and then delete your comment

1 Like
2

I am 100% serious about this, I have never crossed an ocean before there is a very high possibility I’ll get flown out to either the UK or Germany in early/mid 2020. I suppose the humans of monzo may have some advice…

2 Likes
3

How tables have turned…

Well mate, let me add my grain of sand.
I haven’t been to very remote towns, so someone would need to fill in more info for me, but I can talk about London, Liverpool, Manchester, Newbury, Reading and Bristol.

London: Literally everything accepts contactless or card payments in general. Some small off-license shops might ask you for a minimum 3-5 quid (£) purchase but more often than not is just their preference, they can still sell you that bottle of water :droplet: if they are in a good mood.
I am not exaggerating, most street performers will even have a contactless terminal for you to donate with your card.
ATMs and otherwise, there are some “free currency withdrawal” machines around, mostly in heavily touristic places, but I wouldn’t even bother if you are using Monzo, just go to a regular bank ATM (you can differentiate them because they don’t say “exchange” of “free” anywhere) and do your thing. I can’t remember the limits and I have Monzo Plus, so my perception is skewed.

Pro tip, avoid black cabs like the plague, and if you really really really need to take one, get out if they even try to say “cash only”, they are trying to rip you off. Get your Ubers and carry on.

In summary, your card is all you need, I would recommend you getting Apple pay or Google pay set up as well.

For the other cities I mentioned things are roughly the same, card card card card, no complications, although as you get further away from the big cities and into their rims, you might find yourself having to pay cash for tiny things, can’t remember precisely but has happened. Transport-wise though, card is all you need, bring that hot coral with you all the time and you will be fine, just carry like 10-20£ in smaller bills just in case.

BTW, it is 6am here and I reckon I am probably not writing the best post of my life, but bare with me.

Finally, regarding other miscellaneous, I am generalizing HARD but from personal experience (on both ends) and friend’s references, I would say that at least London (because it is the one place I know for sure) is full to the brim with very nice people who are more than willing to go out of their way if you need any help, we all just look a bit too preoccupied getting fast to some place to do some stuff and avoiding eye contact. Ah, and also, stand on the bloody right hand side of the escalators if you are not going to be walking, for all that is holy! Some of us need to get to places slightly faster and avoid human interaction along the way!

4 Likes
4

Use your card pretty much everywhere (cash only is rare)
In rural areas you may need cash for small village shops with a min card spend of £5-£10
Lack of ATM’s in rural areas is a problem so plan ahead if you need cash for somthing
Cities card works everywhere with min spends rare
Have a good trip btw

1 Like
5

You need to make this editable so people can add to the content.

2 Likes
6

On the other hand, if you crave human interaction, stand on the right and place the largest suitcase you can find on the left (suitcases are cheap in Primark, and many people buy one just so they can interact with people on escalators :rofl:).

7 Likes
7

And they can then delete all the dummy content you’ve left in there :laughing: :wink:

1 Like
8

I’ve made the post into a wiki and added some basic starter information. :slightly_smiling_face:

2 Likes
9

Hmm, I should try that in America :joy:

1 Like
10

Note that some ATMs may charge a fee. ATMs in any UK bank will not charge a fee for Monzo cards. If an ATM charges a fee it will usually say on the screen, and it will also inform you of the fee and prompt for confirmation after you select an amount to withdraw.

1 Like