A travel money card can be a convenient tool for frequent travellers. Before leaving, you pay into the travel money card account and you use it for purchases and cash withdrawals like a debit or credit card. You lock in the exchange rate for foreign currencies when you load money on the card. 

The best travel money cards

7-Eleven Just Go Visa Prepaid

Currencies: AUD, USD, GBP, EUR, NZD 

Why we like it: Low-fee card – the only fee that can apply is an inactivity fee after 12 months which you can avoid by cancelling the card.

What we don't like: Smallest number of currencies, so if you want to travel anywhere else or do a stopover in Asia on the way to Europe it won't work for you.

NAB Traveller card

Currencies: AUD, USD, NZD, EUR, GBP, SGD, HKD, JPY, CAD, THB

Why we like it: Low-fee card with a good variety of currencies. While it has a $3.75 fee to withdraw leftover funds when you are back in Australia you can avoid that by doing a free transfer to a linked NAB account. 

What we don't like: 4% cross-currency (foreign exchange) fee*  so you need to make a good estimate of how much money you want to load in each currency you need.

Qantas Travel Money

Currencies: AUD, USD, NZD, EUR, GBP, SGD, HKD, JPY, CAD, THB, AED

Why we like it: Low-fee card with a good variety of currencies. It has a 0.5% debit card reload fee but you can avoid that by reloading online.

What we don't like: Charges overseas ATM fees, so avoid making a lot of small ATM withdrawals.

Travel money card with the widest range of currencies

Commonwealth Bank Travel Money Card

Currencies: AUD, USD, NZD, EUR, GBP, SGD, HKD, JPY, CAD, THB, AED, VND, CNY

Why we like it: The widest variety of currencies. No purchase fee if you apply via Netbank.

What we don't like: 

• 5.25% cross-currency (foreign exchange) fee* – the second highest of the cards we looked at – so you need to make a good estimate of how much money you want to load in each currency you need.
• Charges overseas ATM fees, so avoid making a lot of small ATM withdrawals.

Travel money card with the best exchange rate 

Travelex Money card

Currencies: AUD, USD, NZD, EUR, GBP, SGD, HKD, JPY, CAD, THB

What we like: While there wasn't a huge difference between the exchange rates on the cards we compared, the Travelex card came out on top over our 10-day test period (in August 2019). It also does not charge ATM fees overseas.

What we don't like: High fees

• A purchase fee, reload fee if not booked beforehand, closure fee, inactivity fee, ATM fee in Australia 
• At 5.95%, the highest cross-currency (foreign exchange) fee* of the cards we looked at, so you need to make a good estimate of how much money you want to load in each currency you need. 

Note: There was a cyber-attack on Travelex earlier this year which may affect the availability of this card. Our sister organisation, Which?, has advice on what to do if you are a Travelex customer.

*The cross-currency (conversion) - also called foreign exchange fee - applies when you or the card automatically convert another currency e.g. $AUD to the required currency e.g. $US if you do not have enough funds in the required currency on your card to complete a purchase or ATM withdrawal, for example.

Should you use a travel money card?

Travel money cards are usually not worth your while if you're only taking a short trip. Using your normal debit card might be more convenient.

If you choose to buy a travel money card, you need to be organised.

Travel money card tips

• Make sure the card allows all currencies you need, some currencies such as the Chinese Yuan, South African Rand or Fijian Dollar are only supported by a few cards.
• Try to load your card with the right currencies and amounts, on a day with a good exchange rate. 
• Make sure you know how to re-load if you run out of funds while overseas.
• It may be more convenient to choose a card that has an app which can be linked to your bank account
• Avoid loading too much on the card as there may be high fees to get the money back that is left over.
• Remember to cancel the card if it has inactivity fees. 

What do our members think?

The experience of CHOICE members with travel money cards is mostly positive: 

• Nearly 80% of respondents to a recent survey found travel money cards easy to use and convenient.
• The great majority of respondents found it easy to load and convert currency on the card and to make a transaction. 
• A small group of people had problems with the quality of customer service when problems arose.

 Travel money cards pros and cons

Pros

• Accepted at most places
• Can be replaced if lost or stolen
• You can lock in an exchange rate which can be an advantage as long as you are good at estimating currency fluctuations
• Most allow a large range of currencies
• Most don't charge a fee if you load and reload them online
• Some don't charge an overseas ATM fee

Cons

• Some have purchase or closure fees
• May charge ATM fees overseas 
• Additional ATM and other transaction fees can be charged by local merchants or financial institutions
• Nearly all charge you an ATM or closure fee to withdraw cash left over on the card after your holiday
• Some have monthly inactivity fees so you need to make sure you cancel them once you get back
• About half charge a cross-currency fee if you need to convert money to another currency
• Some only allow you to load amounts of $100 and more which can be a disadvantage at the end of your holiday.
• Some only allow you to load a selection of the currencies they support at any one time (e.g. 5 currencies out of 11 supported currencies for Westpac and St George)