Articles · Money
Say No to the Conversion: The Two-Second Habit That Saves 3-8%
You will see the question many times in Thailand. You see it at the cash machine, on the hotel card terminal at check-out, and sometimes in a shop at the airport: pay in pounds, or pay in baht?
Choose baht. Every time.
What is actually being offered
The offer has a name: dynamic currency conversion. When you agree to it, the converting is done by the ATM operator or the shop’s payment provider, at a rate they choose. Your own card provider is bypassed. The offer is presented as a convenience, since you see the cost in pounds straight away. The convenience is real. What you pay for it is the exchange-rate markup.
That markup is usually somewhere between 3 and 8 per cent above the market rate. One Thai bank’s fee schedule has been reported to charge 5 per cent of the amount withdrawn for accepting conversion at its ATMs. That charge comes on top of the usual 250- or 350-baht machine fee.
When you choose baht instead, the amount goes to your card provider in Thai currency. Your provider converts it at the card network’s rate plus whatever foreign transaction fee your card carries. On many cards that comes out cheaper. On cards with no foreign transaction fee it is much cheaper.
What it costs, in real numbers
| Transaction | Amount | Extra cost at a 5% conversion markup |
|---|---|---|
| ATM withdrawal | 20,000 baht (about £449) | 1,000 baht (about £22) |
| Hotel bill | 10,000 baht (about £224) | 500 baht (about £11) |
| Dinner | 2,500 baht (about £56) | 125 baht (about £2.80) |
On a two-week trip with a few withdrawals and a hotel bill, accepting the offer each time can add up to a few thousand baht. That is money spent on nothing.
How to spot it
Card networks set rules for how the offer must be presented. Visa says the screen and receipt must show:
- the amount in both baht and your home currency;
- the exchange rate used;
- any fee or markup.
You must be given a genuine choice. The provider must not make it for you, and must not use larger type or brighter colours to steer you towards one option.
In practice, look for wording like this:
- “Pay in GBP” or “Charge me in my home currency”: decline
- “Guaranteed rate” or “Fixed rate”: decline
- “Without conversion”, “Continue in THB”, “Decline conversion”: choose this
At an ATM, the offer usually appears near the end, after you have chosen an amount. Read each screen before you press anything.
At the card terminal
In hotels, restaurants and shops, the terminal may show the choice, or the staff member may ask you. A simple “baht, please” is enough. If the terminal shows pounds before you have been asked, you can ask for the transaction to be cancelled and run again in baht. Check the receipt before you sign or leave. It should show the amount in baht only.
Visa’s advice is to decline the offer if the required details are not shown, or if you feel pressured. You can also report it to your card provider. Declining does not stop the transaction going through.
If it happens anyway
Take a photo of the screen or keep the receipt. Contact your card provider promptly and explain that you did not choose conversion. Providers vary in what they can do, but evidence helps.
Online and at the airport
The same choice can appear when you book Thai hotels, transfers or tours online with a UK card. Sometimes it is a currency selector on the page, sometimes a pre-ticked box at checkout. Choose baht where the option exists. Airport currency counters and shops sometimes show the choice as well. Treat it exactly as you would at an ATM.
A way round the question
Paying from a local e-wallet loaded with baht avoids the question altogether. You pay in baht at the till, so there is nothing to convert and nothing to decline. Visitors can now open one, and the Thai Savings Guide explains how.
The habit
Read the screen. Choose baht. It takes two seconds and costs nothing.
For everything else that affects what you pay for cash in Thailand, including the 250 and 350 baht machine fees, see our full guide to Thai ATM fees.
Sources
All checked 17 October 2026.
- Visa: “What you should know about Dynamic Currency Conversion”. Display requirements, cardholder choice, and advice to decline and report. visa.com
- CashFate: reports a 5 per cent conversion charge in Krungthai’s fee schedule effective 1 Sep 2026; checked 24 Sep 2026. cashfate.com. Secondary source; we could not open the bank’s document.
- ThaiRate: describes dynamic currency conversion as adding 3–8 per cent. thairate.com. Secondary source.
- Exchange rate: Xe GBP/THB mid-market, 17 Oct 2026, 08:39 UTC (15:39 UTC+7).