I am in Cambodia for a month, and, while I brought enough cash for everyday expenses, I am thinking about making a larger purchase (a bicycle) for which I would have to use my Krungthai standard master debit card. Gemini says that visa/master charge a 1% fee, while Thai banks usually charge a 2.5% fee, which would add up to 3.5%.

To test it I made a smaller purchase at a supermarket, did the math, and it turns out that I lost 2.3% compared the XE midrate of the day.

The question is, would I lose more (or less) if I withdrew the cash I need at a Cambodian ATM and pay in cash, or to pay with my Thai card at the shop?

Should be the same

When you use a foreign ATM with a Thai debit card, there are two additional charges compared with a purchase at a shop:

Firstly, the fee that the foreign bank that operates the ATM charges. In Cambodia, that depends on the bank and could be in the $4 to $10 range from what I've seen.

Secondly, the Thai bank charges a 100 baht fee for a foreign ATM withdrawal.

15 hours ago, Caldera said:

When you use a foreign ATM with a Thai debit card, there are two additional charges compared with a purchase at a shop:

Firstly, the fee that the foreign bank that operates the ATM charges. In Cambodia, that depends on the bank and could be in the $4 to $10 range from what I've seen.

Secondly, the Thai bank charges a 100 baht fee for a foreign ATM withdrawal.

Additionally you lose on the exchange rate, I would assume.

16 hours ago, Caldera said:

Secondly, the Thai bank charges a 100 baht fee for a foreign ATM withdrawal.

That is the main point of discussion. If the Thai bank only charges 100 baht say for a 500 euro withdrawal (from an ATM where there are no local fees), using a Thai credit cards to get cash abroad is OK. It's just up to you to locate ATMs that have no local fees (eg Bradesco in Brazil, Stadtsparkasse in Germany etc.).

I would also be worried about pre-authorisations from car rentals (say Avis or Alamo in Frankfurt or Orlando). How would a Thai credit card react to that? Hopefully not with "transaction denied".

Edited August 24Aug 24 by JackGats

5 minutes ago, JackGats said:

That is the main point of discussion. If the Thai bank only charges 100 baht say for a 500 euro withdrawal (from an ATM where there are no local fees), using a Thai credit cards to get cash abroad is OK. It's just up to you to locate ATMs that have no local fees (eg Bradesco in Brazil, Stadtsparkasse in Germany etc.).

I would also be worried about pre-authorisations from car rentals (say Avis or Alamo in Frankfurt or Orlando). How would a Thai credit card react to that? Hopefully not with "transaction denied".

In the past, Maybank was the only Cambodian bank that didn't charge for foreign card withdrawals. As far as I know they all do now.

12 hours ago, JackGats said:

That is the main point of discussion. If the Thai bank only charges 100 baht say for a 500 euro withdrawal (from an ATM where there are no local fees), using a Thai credit cards to get cash abroad is OK. It's just up to you to locate ATMs that have no local fees (eg Bradesco in Brazil, Stadtsparkasse in Germany etc.).

I would also be worried about pre-authorisations from car rentals (say Avis or Alamo in Frankfurt or Orlando). How would a Thai credit card react to that? Hopefully not with "transaction denied".

Note that my reply to the OP that you quoted was about withdrawing money with a Thai debit card, not credit card. If you use a Thai credit card to withdraw cash at an ATM, there might be different ("cash advance") fees.

On 8/24/2026 at 3:51 AM, scubascuba3 said:

Should be the same

Is that just a guess or do you know this from personal experience?

9 hours ago, thecyclist said:

Is that just a guess or do you know this from personal experience?

Just an educated guess, why don't you check the terms and conditions

Edited August 25Aug 25 by scubascuba3

11 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

Just an educated guess, why don't you check the terms and conditions

Terms and conditions are pages upon pages of technical jargon with subclauses, exceptions, buts and ifs..., so boring that after 5 minutes I give up. 😜😊💤

31 minutes ago, thecyclist said:

Terms and conditions are pages upon pages of technical jargon with subclauses, exceptions, buts and ifs..., so boring that after 5 minutes I give up. 😜😊💤

That used to be a major hindrance, but nowadays, just feed the T&Cs to your favorite AI and ask it your specific questions.

That being said, the price list is usually published separately and not quite a long or difficult to read as the T&Cs.

33 minutes ago, thecyclist said:

Terms and conditions are pages upon pages of technical jargon with subclauses, exceptions, buts and ifs..., so boring that after 5 minutes I give up. 😜😊💤

copy and paste or attach the file into Gemini, 2 seconds