Most cost effective way to buy US dollars?

J

JMG

Registered User
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Hi everyone.

I’m going to the US soon, and I’m wondering which is the more cost effective way to buy dollars:
- Go to my local bank/post office and buy over the counter?
- Or, put my credit card account in credit and withdraw dollars from an ATM using my credit card (Bank of Ireland card)

If the recommendation is to buy ove rthe counter here, does anyone know if the post office gives a better deal than the banks?

Thanks for any advice offered.

jmg
 
There are people who'll disagree with me but I would never recommend anyone to travel with a large amount of cash. Nor would I recommend putting a credit card in credit as you're not insured for any credit value should your card be stolen.

I normally use my ATM card to withdraw a maximum of $200 dollars (consider the ATM in Dublin airport that dispenses dollars and sterling to minimise commission costs) and use my credit card for the majority of my spending, and clear it when I get home taking advantage of the interest free period.
 
The (new) credit cards from Post Office for US $ and sterling are excellent. they are issued in the currency you require, at the rate on the day so you know exactly how much foreign currency you have. There is no charge for uploading the card and no commission. ATM charges of $2.50 when you withdraw cash, no charges when used at a point of sale. There is a Government levy anually but it is much lower than the charge on a regular credit card
 
eames said:
The (new) credit cards from Post Office for US $ and sterling are excellent. they are issued in the currency you require, at the rate on the day so you know exactly how much foreign currency you have. There is no charge for uploading the card and no commission. ATM charges of $2.50 when you withdraw cash, no charges when used at a point of sale. There is a Government levy anually but it is much lower than the charge on a regular credit card
Click to expand...

What about the FX margin when you convert EUR to USD when you open the account? I bet the FX margin is where An Post is making its money.
 
Agreed on the FX margin !

Best strategy in the US is to use cash as little as possible .. you can pay credit card for almost anything and that's the most cost effective way to do it (no fees, only a 2% or so FX margin)

You'll of course need some cash so use your ATM card to withdraw cash from a US ATM then you'll have to pay the fee your bank charges, most US ATMs also charge a fee ($1.50- $3.00 depending on location/ bank) and you still pay the FX margin as well) ... So don't use cash too much, credit card is lots cheaper.

Personally I would steer clear of preloaded cards etc. unless I was very sure of decent rates .. don't be fooled by commission free / no ATM fees etc. .. If they have all this but then are still only giving you say $1.25 or less to the euro then you're being ripped off ( The true rate is about $1.35 today - with a 2% spread then you'd expect to get around $1.32 if you use your credit card in the US today)

When comparing things the best way to think about it is if I spend 500EUR how many US$ do I get .. that's a question anyone selling pre-loaded cards etc. should easily be able to answer
 
Good advice EvilDoctorK on using your credit card primarily.

Agreed on staying well clear of these pre-loaded cards for 2 reasons. (1) The FX margin is not clearly stated anywhere and is probably very high and (2) it is difficult to exactly predict your USD requirement for a holiday.

The An Post "no fees" advert is extremely misleading.
 
EvilDoctorK said:
Agreed on the FX margin !

.. don't be fooled by commission free / no ATM fees etc. .. If they have all this but then are still only giving you say $1.25 or less to the euro then you're being ripped off ( The true rate is about $1.35 today - with a 2% spread then you'd expect to get around $1.32 if you use your credit card in the US today)
Click to expand...

Today's An Post rate.... 1.3085!!!!!! So that's where they're making money. Using my mastercard recently, the rate I got was consistently within 2c of the daily rate.
 
Yup - not as bad as I thought it might have been but still not great .. it's about twice as expensive as using your regular credit card (around 4% margin rather than 2%) and you have to give an Post the money in advance rather than (with purchases at least) paying 25-50days after the transaction - e.g. after your holiday probably!

It's certainly better than changing cash at the airport, but I still think your regular credit card(s) is the best way to go.
 
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