Currency converter
Convert between the currencies we cover, with the rate's capture date shown so you know how fresh it is.
Every converter gives you the mid-market rate: the midpoint between what banks buy and sell a currency for. It is the honest number, and it is not the number you will get. Knowing the gap is the difference between a budget that survives the trip and one that quietly runs 4% over.
Where the real cost hides
Three charges sit between the mid-market rate and what leaves your account. The spread is the margin the provider takes on the conversion itself, usually the largest of the three and rarely stated as a fee. A fixed transaction charge sits on top, which matters most on small amounts: a flat charge on a coffee is a different proposition from the same charge on a hotel bill. And if a card machine or a website offers to bill you in your home currency, that is dynamic currency conversion, where the merchant sets the rate and keeps the difference. Decline it every time and pay in the local currency.
The practical consequence is that the rate you convert at is decided before you travel, by which card you bring, not at the moment you pay. A card with no foreign transaction fee and mid-market conversion will beat airport exchange by several per cent on every transaction of the trip.
Convert to Chinese yuan
100 USD = ¥675.69 CNY
1 USD = ¥6.76 CNY
What this converter does and does not do
It converts between the twelve currencies our destination guides cover, and it shows the date the rate was captured rather than implying it is live to the second. That is deliberate. A rate presented without a date invites you to trust a number that might be a week old, and for trip planning the difference between today’s rate and last week’s is almost never what decides a decision - whereas the spread and the fees above always are.
For a specific currency, the per-currency pages go further: alongside the conversion they carry what the cash is actually like to use in the country - which notes are hard to spend, whether cards are accepted outside cities, whether an ATM or an exchange desk is the better bet on arrival.
Common Questions
Why does my bank give me a different number?
Because banks and card networks do not sell you the mid-market rate. They apply a spread to it, and often a fixed fee as well. The mid-market rate is the reference point, not the price.
Should I exchange cash before I fly?
Usually no. Airport and hotel exchange desks carry the widest spreads of any option. A small amount of local currency for the first hour is worth having; the rest is better drawn from a bank ATM on arrival with a card that does not charge foreign transaction fees.
Is it better to pay in my own currency when a card machine offers?
No. That is dynamic currency conversion, and the rate is set by the merchant's payment provider rather than by your card network. Always choose the local currency.
How current is the rate shown here?
It carries the date it was captured, shown next to the result. For planning that is what matters; for a large transfer, check the rate with the provider actually moving the money.