šŸ‡ŗšŸ‡ø Monzo in the USA [Discussion]

Iā€™ve been using my Monzo online with no problems, for tickets, Amazon, Uber, Lyft anything basically. The only problem is that if the transaction is limited to a certain zip code (for example, sports games), it will be rejected. But other than that, no problems at all.

Hmm I see, didnā€™t know that. Cheers :slight_smile:

Iā€™ve just moved to the US for an 8 month masters. Does anyone know if itā€™s more cost effective for me to set up a bank account here for this longer period of time or whether I could get away with simply topping up my monzo card and using it?

Any thoughts are much appreciated!

depending on how you use your card you could come up against the cash withdrawals limiting your cash availability over 8 month time period - e.g. cash withdrawals over 1 year period on advanced verification is Ā£5K - roughly Ā£145/week for the 8 month period if you still have your full allowance on enhanced limits - also at some stage in those 8months prepaid are going to full current accounts so you could get problems with obtaining your new card

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Thank-you Ian, that is helpful! I have a few further questionsā€¦

  1. So the disadvantages are to do with logistics rather than cost? I wouldnā€™t be paying more by using my monzo card than from setting up a bank account here?
  2. I mostly use it as contactless rather than getting out cash, so I presume that doesnā€™t affect the withdrawal aspect?
  3. Once the card becomes a full current account, will the prepaid card stop working? I would get my mum/dad to post it out here but I would need something to tide me overā€¦

bear in mind I am not Monzo staff so take my advice with as much salt as you want - :slight_smile:

  1. I donā€™t really see any logistical problems continuing using the pre paid card as long as you have funds based in UK in GBP that you will use to top up your prepaid card - thats what it is designed for. - you would be subject to currency fluctuations from GDP to USD when you transfer to Monzo card, rather than having an amount in USD in a US bank - you could win or lose :slight_smile:

  2. Cash limits as previously said could be a problem however if you say you mostly use contactless POS terminals shouldnā€™t be a problem as long as you can fund the minor irritations of tipping being refunded at later date ( couple of days)

  3. Pre paid to current account - no real details from Monzo on this except Monzo will eventually convert all pre paid to Current accounts, in reality I cant see Monzo blocking the pre paid card if you chose not to take the Current account - I could however see them not allowing you to top up the pre paid once you have been offered a CA - donā€™t really know yet :slight_smile: if you do take the CA of course you could get it posted out to you.

  • money to tide you over - you would really be advised to have another debit card with you for your 8 months as advised by Monzo themselves - they have had a couple of outages recently where if you were desperate for money you would have had problems for a couple of hours :slight_smile:

except Tom said they plan to wind up the prepaid card by the end of the yearā€¦so you could not use it after that point

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But then you could take the option to convert it to a Current Account :slight_smile:

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doing so would neccessitate fresh KYC checks with ID and residence. If you outside the UK at that time you could fail the account qualification requirement of UK residency, so make sure you remain on electoral register during your temporary stay in US.

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Just about to visit NYC and SanFrancisco and wondered what the limit was in the US for contactless payments? When contactless came in here (UK), there was a Ā£30 limit for contactless transactions. Cheers

When contactless came to the UK the limit was actually Ā£20, it did not increase to Ā£30 until later.

Be prepared to find far less outlets accepting contactless than in UK. Also many cashiers shocked when you use a card contactless as many have only seen phones used for contactless payments.

Ok Ā£20/30, but is there a limit to transactions in the US?

if youā€™re on iPhone you can find your limits by - ā€œcardā€ - ā€œsettingsā€ - ā€œspending and top up limitsā€

Im an enhanced ID verified user

and my limits are
ATM (cash)
Daily withdrawals Ā£400 limit
Rolling 30 day limit Ā£2000
Annual limit Ā£5000

POS terminals
max single payment Ā£2000 - can use multiple times a day though
max top up limit in 30 days Ā£10000

It would be the same on Android - unless the iPhone gets more love on limits as well as updates :slight_smile: :slight_smile:

Thanks thatā€™s really useful. Iā€™ll have a look :slight_smile:

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I am in NY right now and I was very scared as at the beginning was not working in the metrocard machinesā€¦ Later I realised that non-US card users had the same issue. Letā€™s hope it was just in the tube!

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Hi,

Just want absolute clarification. Iā€™ve used my monzo card to make online purchases in USD. But iā€™m travelling to the USA shortly and not sure if itā€™s been covered but can I definitely make cash withdrawals in the USA in Dollars using my monzo card? Iā€™m on board with the zero fees from monzo and will obvz be vigilant of ATM charges. But just wanted clarification. Apologies if this has already been discussed/answered.

Cheers

Yes, Monzo card will allow you to withdraw USD in the USA. Enable magstripe (itā€™s in the app), as many places still rely on magstripe. If you donā€™t enable magstripe withdrawals, thereā€™s a high chance it will fail.

I have just returned from holidays in the USA.

Monzo worked like a charm most of the time, except:

  • at NYC Metro Station machines (to top up your metro ticket)
  • at airport check-in machines (United Airlines in my case)
  • at petrol stations (like @nickcj mentioned in this comment)

Also, in bars and restaurants, I recommend to leave tips in cash or you will be charged twice for every bill (already explained in this comment).

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Hi Hannah,

Iā€™m doing something similar, here for a 6-month placement. So far, Iā€™ve been only using Monzo and itā€™s working out great! There are some issues when shopping online (some websites/apps wonā€™t accept a British post code, for example), but still doable.

As said before, the biggest problem would be cash withdrawals. ATMs in the US charge between $3 and $6 (that Iā€™ve seen so far) for each withdrawal.

I have no idea what it takes to setup a bank account here, but Iā€™m happy with Monzo (the app itself is a reason to use it anyway).

Luiza

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Bear in mind that depending on which city you are, contactless is non-existent. Monzo will work fine anyway. Also, if you can, tip in cash to avoid double charging (it if happens, you can always cancel directly with Monzo with the in-app chat). You will probably need cash for laundromats as well :wink:

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