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This post is entirely based on my personal experience.
Long time ago, the first time I decided not to carry cash while travelling, I started searching for the best option in terms of debit and/or credit card. I know a lot of my friends and colleagues who use regular debit/credit card while in abroad. But I found out that to be a disaster because you'd be loosing in two fronts:
The first one, foreign transaction fees, is common with most of the cards where the bank charges you a percentage of your expenditure when you use that card overseas. However, point 2, i.e. poor foreign exchange rate, is the one which most people overlooks. For example, first time I was talking to a CBA representative about my options, he was selling me their special "Travel Money Card" as if that's the best thing it could happen to me. Furthermore, being a student, he was offering me the card free of cost which is otherwise $30. I was very happy for the nice gesture, but soon after I found out the catch. While the CBA travel money card is a better alternative compared to a regular card in the sense that you are not charged any foreign transaction fees, the FX rate of CBA is always poorer compared to MasterCard or Visa.
The above issue is true for almost all the banks which charge you ridiculous amount for foreign transaction or cash withdrawal. So, I kept searching for a better alternatives and found out there are two credit cards which does not charge any foreign transaction fees AND follow the MasterCard/Visa FX rate (which is almost guaranteed to be better that Bank's own FX rate) while converting to AUD. Below is a comparison of those two cards along with CBA travel card
Note: CBA Travel Money Card offers you to store fix FX rate before you travel while the other two uses the current FX rate. But I didn't find that very much useful keeping in mind the large margin between CBA and MasterCard FX rate.
Okay, so in terms of foreign transaction, 28 degree and/or BankWest Platinum Zero Master Card seem to be an easy choice. But one major issue with both of them is, they charge you a lot if you need to withdraw cash from an overseas ATM. Fortunately, Citibank Australia offer a nice solution for that. If you open a Citibank Plus account, you can use Citibank Debit card to withdraw money from anywhere in the world without being subjected to any transaction fee. The sweet cherry on top is, they also follow MasterCard FX rate and there is no account maintenance fee associated with a Citibank Plus account! If you want to use Citibank locally in Australia, the only issue you might face is the lack of Citi ATM/branches around. However, with big 4 now offering zero ATM transaction fee, you can now use Citibank card in their ATM in Australia to withdraw money without any fee.
Note: When you withdraw cash overseas, you can be affected by two kind of fees - (1) The transaction fee charged by your bank, and (2) transaction fee charged by the ATM network. With a Citibank plus account, you can get rid of (1) while if you search a bit before withdrawing money overseas, I always found ATM options which does not charge (2).
So, to conclude:
Final Notes:
Long time ago, the first time I decided not to carry cash while travelling, I started searching for the best option in terms of debit and/or credit card. I know a lot of my friends and colleagues who use regular debit/credit card while in abroad. But I found out that to be a disaster because you'd be loosing in two fronts:
- The foreign transaction fees
- The poor foreign exchange rate
The first one, foreign transaction fees, is common with most of the cards where the bank charges you a percentage of your expenditure when you use that card overseas. However, point 2, i.e. poor foreign exchange rate, is the one which most people overlooks. For example, first time I was talking to a CBA representative about my options, he was selling me their special "Travel Money Card" as if that's the best thing it could happen to me. Furthermore, being a student, he was offering me the card free of cost which is otherwise $30. I was very happy for the nice gesture, but soon after I found out the catch. While the CBA travel money card is a better alternative compared to a regular card in the sense that you are not charged any foreign transaction fees, the FX rate of CBA is always poorer compared to MasterCard or Visa.
The above issue is true for almost all the banks which charge you ridiculous amount for foreign transaction or cash withdrawal. So, I kept searching for a better alternatives and found out there are two credit cards which does not charge any foreign transaction fees AND follow the MasterCard/Visa FX rate (which is almost guaranteed to be better that Bank's own FX rate) while converting to AUD. Below is a comparison of those two cards along with CBA travel card
Card Type | Annual Fee | FX rate | Foreign transaction fee | Eligibility |
CBA Travel Money Card (debit card) | $30 every 3 years | Follows CBA FX rate | None | Anyone can get |
28 Degree Master Card | 0 | Follows MasterCard | None | Comparatively easier to get approved |
BankWest Platinum Zero Master Card | 0 | Follows MasterCard | None | Comparatively harder to get approved |
Note: CBA Travel Money Card offers you to store fix FX rate before you travel while the other two uses the current FX rate. But I didn't find that very much useful keeping in mind the large margin between CBA and MasterCard FX rate.
Okay, so in terms of foreign transaction, 28 degree and/or BankWest Platinum Zero Master Card seem to be an easy choice. But one major issue with both of them is, they charge you a lot if you need to withdraw cash from an overseas ATM. Fortunately, Citibank Australia offer a nice solution for that. If you open a Citibank Plus account, you can use Citibank Debit card to withdraw money from anywhere in the world without being subjected to any transaction fee. The sweet cherry on top is, they also follow MasterCard FX rate and there is no account maintenance fee associated with a Citibank Plus account! If you want to use Citibank locally in Australia, the only issue you might face is the lack of Citi ATM/branches around. However, with big 4 now offering zero ATM transaction fee, you can now use Citibank card in their ATM in Australia to withdraw money without any fee.
Note: When you withdraw cash overseas, you can be affected by two kind of fees - (1) The transaction fee charged by your bank, and (2) transaction fee charged by the ATM network. With a Citibank plus account, you can get rid of (1) while if you search a bit before withdrawing money overseas, I always found ATM options which does not charge (2).
So, to conclude:
- For shopping/spending overseas, get a 28 degree or BankWest Platinum Zero MasterCard. If you are not eligible to get a credit card, CBA Travel Money Card is better than using your regular debit card overseas.
- For overseas cash withdrawal, manage a Citibank Plus account.
Final Notes:
- One might ask what is the problem in using Citibank debit card for shopping as well. Well, no major issue but
- Credit cards are more secure against fraudulent activities
- Credit cards are better to get a quick refund (e.g. when you deposit in hotel or rental cars)
- Usually, the major rental cars do not accept debit cards, or at least need a credit card or credit check for deposit
- The above discussion is based on the cards with no annual fees. There might be other options which might suit you better among the cards with Annual Fees.