Does anyone have a hack for quickly identifying euros and British coins? They often have tiny writing and it's hard to see the correct coin. I know I should try to memorize beforehand. Also considering a separate coin purse for each denomination. Yes I know most places accept cards but many don't.
ziplock baggies marked with a sharpie is the least bulky and easiest way to see what you have. Otherwise try old film canisters. We have coins in those from trips years ago that the kids wanted to save.
It's also good to have coins on hand for any restrooms which require them for access.
My grandpa used to have a coin purse that had a plastic insert with slots for each denomination. The coins were fanned out and it held maybe 4 or 5 in each slot.
This looks similar, but Grandpa's was in a leather cover that opened flat and snapped shut.
Yen Coin Holder
This is another one, but may be a little bulky for your pocket. Euro Coin Sorter
They make 2 sided kiss-lock coin purses too, and maybe 3 sided.
I have ziploc baggies for euros and another for pounds. Land in the euro zone, that bag comes out, move to the UK, back in the bag and the other bag comes out, I just never mix the two.
I also only ever carry the major coins in my pocket (0.20 and up for both), makes it easier to pull out what is needed. Easier to memorize at a glance. All the other small coins I get, just go into a separate spot, and they get tossed in donation bins, buskers, etc. It is just not worth keeping track of the small coins or try to use them.
More like this.
Coin wallet
Here is the official Euro coin catalogue of federal bank of Germany.
The hack is that on the number side of each Euro and Eurocent coin you will find a little map of the 15 Euro countries.
Tip how to avoid carrying Euro coins back: in a lot of supermarkets you can pay with the rest of your Euros and pay the remaining amount with your credit card.
I use a small baggy for coin and carry it in an easy to reach zip pocket in my purse. I sort out small coin and leave it in the hotel room for staff or give to street performers. I only carry currency for the country I’m visiting. If I change currencies, the unused coin gets donated or packed in my suitcase for future use.
Aren't the sides or edges different between pounds and Euros?
Euro have the number written fairly large on the coin. Only the small copper ones are tough: 1, 2, 5 cent. The 10, 20, 50, 1 and 2 are easy.
Can't help with the British ones, they confuse me too.
Euro coin holders Fanny pack that waiters wear. On Amazon. Separate slots for different sizes.
Increasingly I am using cards, but cash still has a place so I use the snack size ziplock method if I am visiting different countries (and only the coins for the country I am in go in my purse, the other is in my suitcase), and to avoid having too much coinage in my purse that doesn't get used I put larger denomination coins in my jeans pockets to be sure I use them the next day.
I use a small change purse that has 3 sections. I organize the coins into the three sections so I can find them more quickly. For example, in the UK:
One section has 1 and 2 pound coins
One section has 50p and 20p coins
One section has 10p, 5p, 2p, and 1p coins
This just makes it quicker for me to retrieve coins when I need them. I am finding that I rarely need coins post-pandemic.
One coin purse for Euros and one for British Pounds. Beyond that the coins denominations are mixed together.
My wife would say the solution is to travel more to become more familiar with the coins.
Thank you all!
I have a Baggallini currency and passport organizer that is kind of like this one. I see duplicates of mine on preowned sights like Poshmark. Mine had a top RFID zipper for passport, cards or paper cash or whatever, and 4 zippers with different colored zippers. When my daughter lived abroad, I used this a lot because of all the coins that accumulated. I could divide up most of the denominations by zipper color so I could easily use my change without feeling silly for not knowing my coin sizes. LOL.
I suggest you hunt for the original with the different colored zippers. Otherwise, it would lose its ease. IMO