Currancy in England and Scotland

It wouldn't go well at all.

The currency is the pound sterling £ - nothing else.

Of course, you can change euros to pounds.

Do you mean Euro? Know that not all EU countries use the Euro. England and Scotland use the British Pound. Accept it. If anyone accepts the Euro, it will be at an extremely poor rate of exchange.

By "EU Currency" I take it you mean Euros. There are many EU countries that still have their own currencies (Czech koruna, Polish złoty, Hungarian forint and of course the British pound is an EU currency!).

The answer is usually not. A few big shops in London will take foreign currency, but that is all. You may not get a good exchange rate.
No hope for restaurant, small shops, or anywhere outside tourist areas of London.

Won't work. The UK uses British Pounds and is proud of the fact (rightfully so). Just like using Pesos in Texas won't work. It's difficult enough using Northern Ireland Pounds or Scottish Pounds in England even though they are technically the same thing.

You have a couple options: exchange the Euro for Pounds at an exchange booth at the airport when you arrive in the UK at a bad rate, sell them to your bank at home for US$ at a worse rate, keep the Euro for your next trip to Europe (no extra cost), find a friend going to Europe and sell the cash to them at the current exchange rate.

As Mark mentioned, there are pounds printed by the Bank of England, English Pounds, which feature an image of Queen Elizabeth II, and Scottish Pound notes printed by different banks in Scotland, generally more colorful. All are worth the same, and, technically, should be freely accepted by merchants throughout the U.K.

In practice, though, while English pounds are widely accepted in Scotland, Scottish pounds aren’t always cheerfully or immediately accepted in England, so you may need to be assertive and remind people that you have “real” money, as long as they’re Scottish or English pounds.

As mentioned above, save your Euros, or exchange them thru a bank or with another traveler.

Using euros in the U.K. is about as useful as trying to use them in Texas! If you plan on returning somewhere in Euroland soon, you may prefer to hold onto them rather than lose out on the exchange rate. If you aren’t planning on returning, then there are many bureau de change in London where you could exchange them. I have had good rates at Thomas Exchange near Oxford Circus.

", so you may need to be assertive and remind people that you have “real” money, as long as they’re Scottish or English pounds."

Actually no. The currency is the same. So are the coins. And notes issued by one bank can be used in another part of the country. But a shopkeeper, for example, in Devon can legally refuse to accept a Bank of Scotland note and being "assertive" (code I assume for obnoxious), won't make any difference. Generally, chains accept notes from whichever home nation more than independent shops. Hardly anywhere accepts Euros.

Nick, actually, yes. So I’m going to be assertive, and not trying to be obnoxious, and reassert that the currency varies in appearance between English and Scottish paper currency, but it’s all legal tender throughout the U.K. Assertive was no code, just a single word that serves to impart the same meaning that one might need to remind a shopkeeper or waiter that Scottish pounds are to be accepted in England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. Paying our B&B in York one time, after we’d cone from Scotland, involved a reminder, as he didn’t see Scottish notes too often, but he readily accepted them after being reminded that they were pounds.

A shopkeeper in Devon might refuse notes from Scotland, but he’s not legally right, just ignorant. And obnoxiousness isn’t appropriate or helpful, in retail or in posting online advice or criticism.

"but it’s all legal tender throughout the U.K."

But it isn't, and that is where you are wrong. And you incorrectly being assertive that the Devon shopkeeper is not "legally right" but is being "ignorant", is - I might suggest - not entirely nice, some might even suggest it's being obnoxious.

https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/knowledgebank/what-is-legal-tender

Save your € for your next trip to one of the many countries whose currency is the €. I always do that and it's such a convenience.

Nick is absolutely correct! While you will likely have no problem using notes issued by the Bank of England in Scotland, the same is not always true when trying to use Scottish bank notes in England. In practice towns close to the Scottish border might be fairly accustomed to seeing and accepting Scottish notes, but the further south you go the less likely you are to find a shopkeep who is keen to accept a Scottish note. And that is just the way it is!

As for Euros - no they are not even remotely acceptable anywhere in the UK! And why would they be? It's not our currency.

Well, Nate, your question has clarified this for me: turns out that while Scottish pound notes are legal “notes,” they’re not legal “tender” in England, Wales, or even in Scotland. So we lucked out with our B&B proprietor in York, England, as well as at the ice cream shop in Glasgow, Scotland.

And I agree that it’s not nice if a shopkeeper in Devon won’t take Scottish bills. Hope your trip is good — are you finishing it up in Scotland, or returning to England, after being in Scotland for a while?

so you may need to be assertive and remind people that you have “real” money, as long as they’re Scottish or English pounds.

Yeah, I agree, you will still have problems. Even "Expired" or older version notes are not accepted beyond a short period of time.

Like others said, if you have Euros and don’t plan to return to the Eurozone soon, exchange them for pounds or else exchange them for US dollars back home. The exchange rate won’t be great, but it’s better than having useless Euros sitting in a drawer.

I’ve seen a few places in major tourist areas in central London that had prices displayed in Pounds and Euros, but for the most part, they’re as useless as US Dollars would be in the UK.

I’d try to go as cashless as you can. While I always assume I will return, I can’t predict when counties will change their notes or what will come up in life.

Thanks All for the info! I figured EU currency may not work well in the UK, but it was worth checking into. Since we will be headed back to Italy next year I reckon we will just hang on to it

Thanks Again

I figured EU currency may not work well in the UK,

As several people have explained upthread, it’s not a question of “EU currency.” Some countries within the EU (and as at this moment the UK is in the EU) use the Euro as their currency and others don’t. Hungary is in the EU, no current plans to change that, but Euros are no good there either because their currency is the forint.

Only countries in the EU have the Euro - but not all countries in the EU have the Euro.

Only countries in the EU have the Euro - but not all countries in the EU have the Euro.

Not quite. Montenegro and Kosovo also use the Euro, as do the microstates (San Marino, Monaco, Andorra). In those cases they are not "members" of the European Central Bank, it is like any other smaller countries using somebody else's currency; they can't print any, they have to buy it in.

And, pedantically, the British Pound IS an EU currency, so yes, you can use one of the EU currencies in the UK.

Scottish and Irish pounds are not legal tender, but there is an agreement so they can be used in England. Jersey and Guernsey pounds also are not legal tender but no agreement so you cant use them in the UK. Complicated, yes! But that is what makes travel fun!!! And yes a merchant has the right to not accept any note, be it Scottish/Irish or too big - a £50.

Not quite. Montenegro and Kosovo also use the Euro, as do the
microstates (San Marino, Monaco, Andorra). In those cases they are not
"members" of the European Central Bank, it is like any other smaller
countries using somebody else's currency; they can't print any, they
have to buy it in.

The microstates all have monetary agreements with the EU and have issuing rights. That's why there are Monégasque and Vatican euro coins. But Montenegro and Kosovo has adopted it unilaterally, which is logical since they both used the D-mark earlier.

To get back to the topic, I wouldn't worry too much about the different pounds in the UK, I've never had any problems using Scottish pounds in England and vice versa.

Trying to use Euros in the U.K., is like trying to use them here in the US.

I've never had any problems using Scottish pounds in England and vice versa.

I have. Each and every time I've tried to spend a Scottish note in southern England (only a handful of occasions) I initially get rebuffed until I confidently assert that it's legal tender (I always assumed it was) and they have reluctantly accepted them.

I too have had problems with Scottish notes in England. Luckily the hotel I was staying at exchanged them for me.

Fortunately these days in shops there is a way of avoiding jobsworth staff by using the self-service tills. Although the need for cash anyway is much reduced in the first place.