Travelex Money Card Review Review [Updated 2023]

The Travelex Money Card (formerly the Travelex Cash Passport) provides a safe way to access and spend multiple currencies at millions of outlets worldwide.

Few travel cash cards are as liberal with international ATM use as Travelex, which has no ATM withdrawal fees and a generous A$3,000 withdrawal limit within 24 hours. It also imposes no limit to the number of times you can visit an ATM in any given month — something almost unseen in other travel cards.

However, it’s not without limitations. With access to just 10 major currencies, travellers covering an extensive area may not be able to load all the currencies they need onto the card. This is where a Wise Multi Currency Card or Revolut travel card may be better.

The average Travelex review on Trustpilot is 4.4 stars, with 74% of reviewers rating it 5 stars (from 13,813 users on 27 January 2023). The most common complaints were about the poor exchange rates and issues with unhelpful customer service.

The Travelex Money Card is a prepaid travel card that can be used abroad wherever Mastercard is accepted and allows you to:

Load up to 10 major currencies
Lock in exchange rates before you travel
Make purchases overseas both online and in-store
Access your money safely and quickly from millions of ATMs worldwide

Note: The Travelex Money Card replaces the Cash Passport. Travelex no longer sells Cash Passports, but if you already have one of these cards, you can continue reloading it or managing your account until it expires.

Example

Peter travels from Australia to the UK and France with a stopover in Singapore. Before he leaves, he loads British pounds, euros, and Singapore dollars onto his Travelex Money Card.

As he travels, purchases made in Singapore dollars are automatically deducted from his Singapore dollars fund. In the UK, purchases are deducted from his British pounds balance. When he heads to France, he has S$80 and £5 remaining, along with an untouched euros balance.

On his last day in France, he buys a meal at the airport but doesn’t have any euros left on his card. Travelex uses up the last few pounds first, then deducts Singapore dollars to pay off the remainder.

The best way to reload your Travelex card is online via the Travelex website or Money App.

You can also top up at a Travelex store or directly via BPAY but reloads not made through travelex.com.au or the Travelex Money App incur a fee of 1% of the amount.

You can hold up to 10 currencies and move money between each currency as required.

Australian dollars (AUD), US dollars (USD), euros (EUR), British pounds (GBP), New Zealand dollars (NZD), Thai baht (THB), Canadian dollars (CAD), Hong Kong dollars (HKD), Japanese yen (JPY), and Singapore dollars (SGD)

The Travelex Money Card comes into its own with its fee structure. With no currency conversion fees or ATM fees, the Travelex card eliminates a lot of the hidden costs associated with spending money overseas.

Fees associated with inactivity can start to add up and closing the account incurs a A$10 fee so this card is best recommended for frequent travellers who will use the card at least once a year until its expiry.

Getting your Travelex card	FREE via the Travelex website or app* *Fee set by the agent you purchase the card from.
Adding money	Via the Travelex website or app: FREE In-store (into AUD): 1.1% of the amount or A$15, whichever is greater In-store (into foreign currency): FREE Via BPAY (not through Travelex website): 1% of top-up amount
Spending money	Free if you hold the currency in your account. If you don’t hold the currency in your account, you’ll pay the ‘spend rate’, an exchange rate determined by Mastercard Prepaid.
Currency conversion	FREE
Withdrawing from an ATM* *Some ATM operators may charge their own fees	FREE
Replacing a lost or stolen card	FREE
Getting an additional card	A$5
Monthly inactivity fee* *Charged when no transactions are made on the card in the previous 12 months	A$4 per month
Closing your card or withdrawing your funds* *Set and charged by Mastercard Prepaid	A$10

The ability to load your card with up to 10 currencies means you avoid excessive conversion fees every time you make a purchase.

You can also lock in a favourable exchange rate each time you load the card (although the opposite is also true — you might miss out on a better deal).

If you don’t hold the local currency for a particular purchase, Travelex will convert money from another currency you hold using what they call a ‘spend rate’. This rate is the individual foreign exchange rate set by Mastercard Prepaid, which you can calculate here.

In this respect, Travelex is not as good as Revolut or Wise travel cards, both of which use the mid-market exchange rate (the rate you see on Google or XE, which are typically better than the rates provided by Travelex).

	Revolut (Standard plan)	Wise	Qantas Travel Money	Travelex Money Card
Account Fee	Free	Free	Free	Free
Exchange rate	Mid-market rates	Mid-market rates	Set by Qantas	Set by Travelex
Conversion Fee	Free on weekdays, 1% on weekends	Starting from 0.41%	Free	Free
ATM Fee	Free ATM withdrawals up to $350. 2% thereafter	2 free withdrawals. $1.50 + 1.75% thereafter	$1.95 up to $3000	Free up to A$3,000 per day
Currencies available	25+	53	10 at any one time	10 at any one time

As one of the largest currency exchange brands in Australia, it’s easy to get your hands on the Travelex Money Card. You will need a photo ID to order your card.

1. Order your card

Order your Travelex Money Card online and receive free delivery to your home. Alternatively, visit your local Travelex store to buy or collect the card. In-store rates vary from online rates.

2. Activate your card

Register your account online to activate your card. If you purchase or collect your card in-store, they will activate it for you.

3. Top up

You can top up your Travelex card online, at a participating Travelex outlet in Australia, over the phone, or using the Travelex Money app.

What’s the deal with the Travelex Money Card free wifi?

It’s true, your Travelex Money Card gives you 3 months of access to free WiFi at millions of locations worldwide.

All you need to do is head to the Boingo website, verify your card number, and register an account. Once you’ve done that, you’ll have free WiFi access from Boingo hotspots for 3 months on up to 4 devices at a time.

How long does a Travelex card take to arrive?

If you’ve ordered your Travelex card online and selected home delivery as your collection method, your card should arrive within 5-7 business days. If you need your card sooner, you can collect your card from your nearest Travelex store.

Is the Travelex Money Card safe to use?

Travel cards like Travelex allow you to travel safely with a large sum of money without carrying wads of cash. Travelex has checks and balances in place to ensure your hard-earned savings are protected.

Your Travelex Money Card comes secure with a chip and PIN, as well as a signature panel on the back. You can also freeze and unfreeze your card at any time if you misplace it or detect unusual activity on it.

Travelex also monitors activity on your card daily and will contact you if suspicious behaviour is detected.

If you think your card has been stolen, skimmed, or otherwise breached, a Global Emergency Assistance helpline is available 24/7. A full list of international phone numbers for this helpline is available here.

Can I use my Travelex card at an ATM?

You can use Travelex at any ATM where the Mastercard logo is displayed. ATM withdrawals are free, with a withdrawal limit of A$3,000 within a 24-hour period.

It’s worth remembering that some ATM operators apply their own fees and limits to their ATMs but you will usually be notified of these costs before completing the transaction.

What happens if I lose my Travelex Money Card?

If your card is lost, stolen or damaged, you should contact Travelex Card Services immediately. A full list of international phone numbers for this helpline can be found here.

Travelex can send you a replacement card or arrange for emergency funds in the local currency to be sent to you — normally available within 20 minutes.

For security, the Travelex Money App also allows you to freeze your card to protect your balance and ensure no unauthorised payments are made. If you find your card, you can unfreeze it using the app.

To avoid being left cashless, you can buy a backup card for A$5 when you buy your main Travelex Money Card. You can continue using this card even if you lose the main card.

Transaction Type	Limit
Minimum load	$100
Maximum load	$100,000
Maximum total balance	$100,000
EFTPOS transactions within 24 hours	$15,000
ATM withdrawals within 24 hours	$3,000
Cash over the counter within 24 hours	$350

Travelex Money Card Review [2023]

Our Take

3.8

In a Nutshell

Travelex Travel Card

Travelex Travel Money Card

Pros

Cons

Avoid Nasty ATM Fees

Avoid Nasty ATM Fees

What is the Travelex Money Card?