To get the best exchange rate and get the most out of your money without paying commissions to the banks I recommend:

Gets dongs at the airport to cover your initial expenses.

Once you arrive to Vietnam, I recommend you get some dongs at the airport to cover your initial expenses.

To get cash in vietnamese at the airport, you have two options: 1) take out at one of the many atms that are in the airport (I recommend using card Wise or N26) or 2) change money in cash at one of the counters of the airport.

I recommend you to change or take out a little money , because, in fact, the best exchange rates, you will not get in the airport, but in the jewelry centre of the cities.

Change up the bulk of the money for your trip at a jewelry store

Once in the city, I recommend you to get closer to one of the many jewelry stores where you change money without commissions and offering a currency exchange, frankly, incredible.

These stores offer, without a doubt, the best to exchange. This is due to the fact that they do not pay taxes and carry out their work in a mode “legal”. I have changed in this type of shops on multiple occasions (€dongs, from dongs to euros, to thai Baht, Yen…), and I have never had any problem.

Finally, I commented that the jewelry also are a good place to, at the end of your trip, change again the dongs that you have left to your own currency before leaving the country.

Where are these jewelry stores in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh city?

This type of jewelry tend to concentrate in specific locations of the cities. For example, if you find yourself in Hanoi, I recommend you go to the street Has Trung, which is lined with jewellery shops, where you can change money at a very good change, and it is the street that the vast majority of vietnamese are going to change currency (I personally soil change in the jewelry shop located at number 27). I’ve also heard that the jewelleries of the street, Hang Bac is possible to change currency, but this is not a street in the vietnamese foot tend to change currency (I think that is more focused on tourists).

If you find yourself in Ho Chi Minh city, you’ll be able to change money in the streets of the vicinity of the Ben Thanh market (especially in the street and Le Thanh Ton). In this case, the jewelry stores in which I asked were all exactly the same change.

If you are in other cities, too, are going to be able to find jewelry stores of this type. In order to know where to find them, I recommend that you ask at a coffee shop or a restaurant (NOT in the tourism agencies or in your accommodation, because in these places almost sure they will offer to change the money themselves to a change worse than the jewelry).

Places to exchange currency in other places in Vietnam:

• Currency exchange in Hue (very good change) – Phu Cuong Gold Shop
• Currency exchange in Da Nang (very good change) – Kim Yen Huong
• Currency exchange in Hoi An (very good change) – Phụ kiện Sasa – Accessories Sasa

How to change money in these stores?

The best way is to spend a few to compare the change that they offer and change in the offers will be a change better (sometimes you’re going to give you a better price when you see that you’re). A time to remember the amounts written, you give them the money and wait to bring you the equivalent in the currency you requested. once you return, you have to tell it there one last time to make sure everything is in order before leaving.

¡¡PRO TIP!! — Carry your currency in large bills and new, because otherwise it can get a little picky, and / or don’t change you or change you to a change worse.

Save bank fees using Wise or the N26

Although I recommend you carry most of your money in cash, and change in the jewelry, really , you never know when you’ll need it to get money or pay with a card. if you run out of the cash, you will forget it at the hotel or you have an emergency, I recommend you to carry your cards international.

What is best, Wise , or the N26?

I, personally, the most I have used is the card Wise, its low fees compared to other banks (most banks charge around 5% per transaction), and because I’ve been using from many years ago to transfer money to other countries. The card N26, on the other hand, has positive aspects that have surprised me, and that I believe that complement well to the account of the Wise.

• POSITIVE ASPECT OF N26 – Withdrawals free without limit of amount. The card Wise allows you to pull money out of the atm in the foreign 2 times a month, for a total amount of up to€ 200, while that of N26 lets you draw without commissions up to 3 times, without limit of quantity.
• POSITIVE ASPECT OF WISE – commissions for currency exchange lower. Both Wise as N26 have commissions very advantageous for the currency exchange foreign currency exchange, but the Wise are quite low. At the time of writing this article, to change euro to VND vietnamese in an account of the Wise is a commission only 0,88%, while N26 the commission is of 1.7%.

My advice is that you use both accounts to take advantage of the benefits of each. For example, pcan withdraw up to € 200 free of charge using Wise and, once that limit is reached, use the N26. In addition, when you have both accounts, you’ll have a backup in case one of them is retained by an atm, or to stop working.

How banks make money in Vietnam without commissions?

In Vietnam, most of the atms in Vietnam charge a fee for withdrawal of between 20,000 and 55,000 VND (0,74–2,04 €) per transaction.

Bank	What commission?	Limit for withdrawal
VPBank	✅ No commission	10.000.000 VND (394 €)
Citibank	✅ No commission	8.000.000 VND (315 €)
TPBank	55.000 VND (2,04 €)	10.000.000 VND (394 €)
Other banks	20.000–55.000 VND (0,74–2,04 €)	Variable

Other banks that some travellers comment that they do not have commission are ACB (without a commission for some cards), Eximbank and Saigon Bank.

TPBank used to enable them to take free money, but since June of 2025 has also introduced a commission 55,000 VND for each withdrawal, with a maximum of 10 million per transaction.

Can I pay with card in Vietnam in restaurants, accommodation, etc?

It is possible to pay with card in Vietnam in many places, such as restaurants, shops and hotels. However, keep in mind that often apply a 3% surcharge for paying with a card, which makes it preferable to pay in cash. The majority of those who apply this surcharge are establecimeintos mid-range or low, while restaurants, hotels, tourist establishments and supermarkets most reputable typically do not charge you this charge.

In practice, to give an example, if you go to a housing in which the room costs 10-15 euros per night, most likely, or do not have the option of card payment, or if you apply a 3% surcharge. On the other hand, if you are staying in a bed in the room costs 40€ or more per night, the more likely it is that you can pay with a card without paying a commission. A positive thing of the card Wise is that it allows you to change your money from your currency to vietnamese dongs from the same application, so that you can pay with card on dongs directly (in this sense, it is like having a card from a local bank).

When you should pay with credit card?

In my experience, applications, rental of transportation in cities (type Uber as Grab) offer lowest prices or special offers when paying with a card, and avoid you also have to pay the driver in hand. If you use your card Wise, and you have your money become dongs in advance, this payment is completely free.