Money, cards and ATMs in Australia

Money and payments

Australia is a card country. The official currency is the Australian dollar (AUD); use the converter above the prices on this guide rather than a rate written into a sentence, which is out of date the week after it is typed. Cards are preferred even for a single coffee, and many venues in city centres run a "No Cash" policy.

• If a merchant refuses cash, consumer law is on your side: with no surcharge-free way to pay, the card fee must already be included in the advertised price on the tag.
• Card surcharges - merchants may currently pass on the direct cost of processing, usually 1% to 1.5% of the purchase.
• That ends on 1 October 2026. The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) approved legislation banning all payment surcharges on debit, credit and prepaid cards of the eftpos, Visa and Mastercard networks. Until then, expect small fees at terminals.

Withdrawing cash with a foreign card is straightforward.

• Big-bank ATMs - the four largest Australian banks (Commonwealth Bank - CBA, Westpac, ANZ, NAB) charge domestic cardholders nothing, but typically apply a fixed 2 AUD terminal fee to foreign cards.
• Independent networks - ATMs in bars, casinos, hotels and convenience stores (atmx, rediATM, Cash Plus) charge 3 to 5 AUD per transaction.
• Daily limits - typically 500 to 2,000 AUD, depending on the issuing bank and card type.
• Always refuse Dynamic Currency Conversion. When an ATM or terminal offers to settle in your home currency at a fixed displayed amount, choose the local currency (AUD) instead. The DCC markup can realistically add 1% to 4% to a withdrawal.
• Tipping is neither required nor expected - hospitality wages are covered by high national standards. Rounding up or 10% is customary only if you are exceptionally happy with service in an upscale restaurant, not in regular cafés or pubs.