The honest answer is both, in a ratio that depends heavily on where you're going: contactless card payments now cover the great majority of everyday spending across much of Europe, North America and East Asia, while cash is still essential in large parts of the world, and even in card-friendly countries, for markets, small towns, tips and the occasional machine that just won't take a foreign card.
Why you still need some cash, everywhere
Even in the most card-friendly destinations, a handful of situations reliably still want cash: small family-run shops and market stalls, tipping in cash-tipping cultures, public toilets in some countries, small transport like a shared taxi or a rural bus, and any situation where a card reader is broken, offline, or simply doesn't exist. Carrying some local cash from the moment you land — enough to get into town, eat a meal and cover a taxi — avoids the stress of being stranded at an airport with an unfamiliar machine and no working card.
Roughly how much cash to carry
There's no single right number, but a reasonable rule of thumb for most independent travel is enough cash for 2–3 days of incidental spending — meals, tips, transport, small purchases — topped up from ATMs as you go, rather than carrying a large sum for the whole trip. Carrying large amounts of cash is itself a risk (loss, theft) that a card doesn't carry, so little and often, via a fee-free card at a sensible ATM, usually beats withdrawing everything at the start.
Where contactless and card coverage is strongest
Contactless card payments — tap-to-pay, whether physical card or phone wallet — are close to universal for everyday spending in Western and Northern Europe, Australia and New Zealand, and most of North America's cities. Public transport in many major cities (London, Sydney, and a growing number of others) accepts a contactless bank card directly as a transit ticket. In these regions, you can comfortably travel with only a small cash float for tips and emergencies.
East Asia is more mixed but trending strongly toward card and mobile payment. Japan has historically been more cash-reliant than its reputation for technology suggests, though card acceptance has expanded significantly in cities; South Korea and Singapore are highly card- and app-friendly; China runs largely on domestic mobile-payment apps (Alipay, WeChat Pay) that increasingly (though not universally) accept foreign cards or foreign-visitor modes — worth checking before you rely on it.
Where cash still rules
Cash remains dominant, or at least essential as a backup, across much of Southeast Asia outside major hotels and malls (see our guide to a month overland in Southeast Asia for how this plays out on a real route), most of Africa, large parts of South America outside capital cities, and rural or small-town areas almost anywhere in the world. In these places, plan for cash to cover the majority of day-to-day spending, with a card mainly for hotels, larger restaurants and bigger purchases. Markets, songthaews and tuk-tuks, street food, and small guesthouses typically want cash only.
Even within card-friendly countries, the gap between a capital city and a small town is usually large. A trip that mixes big cities with rural stops should plan cash top-ups before leaving the cities, since ATMs can be scarce or unreliable in remote areas.
Practical mixed-payment habits
- Carry two cards from different providers — if one is blocked or lost, you're not stuck relying on cash alone.
- Keep a small "emergency" cash reserve separate from your day-to-day spending cash, ideally in a different bag or pocket.
- Notify your bank if it still requires travel notification (many no longer do, but it avoids a fraud-flagged card at a crucial moment).
- Check card acceptance for your specific route before departure — a country can be broadly card-friendly while a specific rural region or border crossing is cash-only. This matters even more on a longer overland trip crossing several countries, each with a different cash/card balance.
Card declines and what to do about them
Foreign cards are sometimes declined for reasons that have nothing to do with your balance: a merchant's card machine may not accept your card network, an international transaction may trigger a fraud check on your bank's end, or a chip-and-PIN machine may not recognise a foreign PIN format. Having a backup card and enough cash to cover an evening's spending means a single declined card doesn't become an emergency. If a card is repeatedly declined, a quick call or message to your bank (many now handle this by app) usually resolves it faster than trying a different machine repeatedly — another reason to have working data via an eSIM from the moment you land.
Currency and payment choice at the point of sale
Card machines abroad will sometimes ask whether you want to pay in the local currency or your home currency — always choose local currency. This is the same dynamic currency conversion trap that applies at ATMs; see our full guide to dynamic currency conversion for exactly why the "convenient" option costs more.
Frequently asked questions
Should I exchange cash before I leave home?
A small amount for the first few hours — enough for a taxi or a meal on arrival — is sensible, especially for a late-night landing. Beyond that, ATMs on arrival on a fee-free card usually offer a better rate than home exchange bureaux or airport kiosks.
Is it safe to carry a lot of cash while travelling?
Carrying more than you need for a few days increases the impact of loss or theft. Splitting cash between a wallet, a separate bag and a hotel safe, rather than keeping it all in one place, reduces the risk without needing to carry less overall.
Do card payments abroad always cost more than cash?
Not if you're using a fee-free card and always choosing to pay in local currency — in that case, card payments typically cost the same as cash, without the risk of carrying notes. A standard card with foreign transaction fees, by contrast, can make card payments the more expensive option.
What about mobile wallets like Apple Pay or Google Pay abroad?
They work anywhere that accepts contactless card payments, using the same underlying card and its fee structure, so a fee-free card loaded into a mobile wallet gets you the same benefit with the same convenience as tapping a physical card.
Sources and further reading:
- Check current card and contactless acceptance for your specific destination via your bank's travel guidance before departure.
- European Commission guidance on cross-border card payments within the EU.