I`m thinking about ordering one of these as a back-up in case my Krungtai ATM card ceases to work / gets swallowed by an ATM etc . I haven`t used my KTB account for over a year now , but I sent some £ last month and checked the balance at the ATM in the UK and it was credited , so I assume everything is still ok .

Any downside to using the Wise card ?

Can't have them if your adress is in Thailand

OK , I`m in the UK at the moment .

I sometimes use mine for THB payments in Thailand.  Works fine. Also contactless works here through Google Wallet.  Very limited fee free cash withdrawals but I would never do that so not an issue for me.  Also use for hotel and flight bookings from time to time.

Wise cards are excellent.

Have been using mine for 3 years now.

 

Only thing I find annoying is their low commission-free limits for ATM withdrawals.

Max 2 withdrawals/month for a maximum cumulated amount of 200EUR.

Anything above that is charged 0.50EUR per withdrawal and 1.75% on the amount of money withdrawn.

So let's say you wanna withdraw once a month 20000THB (500EUR).

You'd pay nothing for the single withdrawal, then nothing on the first 200EUR and then 5,25EUR on the remaining 300EUR.

Essentially a 500EUR withdrawal would cost you 5,25EUR which amounts to a little bit more than 1%.

Add a 220THB (5,50EUR) fee from the Thai bank owning the ATM.

Ultimately a 500EUR withdrawal would cost you around 11EUR - 2% and then some.

 

That said. A Wise card won't beat a Thai card linked to a Thai bank account receiving money from the West.

I don't think so anyway...

 

 

 

 

 

OK , thanks - sounds like it might be ok as a back-up but probably too expensive to use all the time . One thing I was unsure about - Do I have to convert my £ balance held with Wise into Baht before I make an ATM withdrawal in Thailand , or can Wise do an instant xchange . ?

6 hours ago, persimmon said:

Do I have to convert my £ balance held with Wise into Baht before I make an ATM withdrawal in Thailand , or can Wise do an instant xchange . ?

They will convert on-the-fly, so you can keep your balance in GBP but still use it for THB purchases or in ATMs.