ATM exchange rate

tessie, As others have said, you get the best rate from an ATM (bancomat), very close to the interbank rate (usually less than a penny difference). The Italian banks don't charge for using their machines but your bank may charge. See http://flyerguide.com/wiki/index.php/Credit/Debit/ATM_Cards_and_Foreign_Exchange
near the bottom of the page that shows what some banks charge.

You will never receive the marketwatch.com rate because that is the rate banks and money traders would receive. They then add their percentage on for their profit. Generally, you will receive the best rate, which varies daily, from a bank ATM in Italy. We always exchange about $100 - $150 at the Travelex kiosk at our home airport so we have enough money to transit to Roma or Milano then start using bank ATM machines as we need it. I, personally, would never use ATM's in European airports as a matter of security.

Have never had any issues with using ATM's at FCO, FRA, CDG, MAN, POZ, Barcelona, Lisbon, and so on. As far as exchange rates, I use my credit UNion debit card and it charges 1% and I get the interbank rate for that day. In addition, usually pull out in either 200 or 250E increments and split the Euros (ifl with my wife). When solo just put all but 40 or 50 Euros in my $ belt.

When using an ATM, you get the interbank rate. That is the best rate you can get, period. Your bank may charge you a transaction fee, typically 1-3% and whatever their out-of-network fee is. European banks cannot charge ATM fees. When exchanging at a bank itself, they will either charge you a fee or give you a worse exchange rate. They are providing a service that costs them money and they will at least make up that cost if not get some profit too. Use the ATM and take out larger sums to limit the fees. Keep it safe in a money belt and you are good to go. Don't forget to notify your bank and sometimes they will temporarily increase your daily withdrawl limit.

If you have time, get an account somewhere other than Wells Fargo. I believe they charge 3 percent plus 5 dollars per transaction - among the worst rates charged. I ended up at USAA; they charge 1 percent and no transaction charge on ATM withdrawals - which saved us quite a bit. The rate you get through the ATM will be the best possible rate. The charges depend on what your bank charges. Exchanges from a bank or booth make money by charging about 8 percent more than the value of your Euros (you also lose the same amount changing back to dollars). Don't be fooled by a booth that claims they don't charge a fee.

In this day and age, there's not a major airport in Europe that doesn't have ATM's, and I'm not sure why security concerns would be any greater at the airport than anywhere else in town. Just use bank-owned ATM's, not "private label" ones. For what it's worth, like JerryG I've used ATM's at numerous overseas airports and never had a problem.

Consider looking into a Credit Union and finding one that doesn't have fees. While my husband's credit union charges a transaction fee and a fee around 1%, mine does not charge either. I get the interbank rate.

Tessie, The eurousd rate from marketwatch.com and the bloomberg.com are very close. The rate as of today close are 1.3677 and 1.3678. This is the open market rate. The interbank rate which the bank charge their customers is higher. It build in the profit for the bank. It is usually less than 1/2% higher. I would think it will be 1.373. I withdraw from ATM several times last May in Italy with my debit card. I checked out the rate from bloomberg.com and that was what my bank charge me. Some bank will also charge you the ATM fee and exchange fee. That will be on the top of the exchange rate. I think Charle Schwab Bank and Capital One are the two banks do not charge you the exchange fee and the ATM fee. Charle Schwab is out of the CC card business. I do not know any change to their debit card at this point.
Have a good trip!

As others have mentioned, ATM(bancomat) & credit cards use the interbank rate. (You can find this by desired date or current on oanda.com). You will find a difference in fees charged by your bank or card. My credit union charges a 1% fee, my VISA a 1% fee, and AMEX a 2.7%fee. Also, let your bank/card companies know that you will be traveling so they don't shut cards down for suspicious activity!

Tessie, I withdrew money out of an ATM in Rome yesterday. It posted to my account at the rate of 1 euro to $1.33 US.

I went to an American Express Travel Office today to buy euros. They were charging an exchange rate of 1.45. The transaction fee is $4 or $3 if you are an AMEX holder or in October if you spend more than $500 US dollars then no transaction fee. Also, you can purchase a rate guarantee for $5 total. So in 30 days you will get the exact same rate back. For me that works out much nicer than an ATM because my banks transaction fees and charges are a bit ridiculous. I also like to have a bit of euros on hand before I arrive.

With all the figures that Beth posted, I would be curious as to how many E's she got for how many US $. I see todays rate is 1.365 to which my CU adds a 1% fee, or about $0.014 so that I would be getting E's at 1.379 or about 1.38. I prefer to use ATMs in Europe every summer to save a little money and have never had a problem getting them where I land.

Beth - Your post is proof of why most of us discourage people from exchanging more than about $100 in the US just to have some cash on hand on arrival. Based on your numbers, to obtain 500 Euro at Amex you will spend $725 (not counting their exchange fee). That's at the 1.45 rate. Based on Charlie's numbers, to obtain 500 Euro at an ATM you will spend $690 (the 1.38 rate which includes 1% fee) plus $3-4 dollars in fees. The total would be almost $695. By using an ATM, you will have saved over $30. Just for 500 Euro so that difference will be substaintially more for 1-2 weeks worth of Euros. So even if your bank charges higher fees, you'll still save significant money using an ATM. And what good is a rate guarantee for 30 days on exchanging the money back if the rate goes down?

FYI - If you have a Capital One credit card, there is no transaction rate on purchases. Only the dollar/euro conversion rate. Other credit cards charge a transaction fee on top of the conversion rate.

Since everyone seems curious I will let you know that the difference between what I would have paid today taking money out of the ATM and the purchase of my euros at American Express was only $20. Yes, if I had a 1% transaction rate and no fee it would absolutely be better for me at the ATM. But since mine are much higher than that I am fine with how I did it. If I took money out of the ATM more than twice it would be almost equivalent to the extra $20. It's all a matter of personal preference and doing the math for your rates. For me spending that extra $20 was well worth it.
The rate guarantee states that should the rate go down you will still get the rate you paid so I don't have to worry about it.

Beth - I'm not trying to criticize you - just using your experience and numbers to show that the ATM is still the best value. Most people come here asking what the best financial value is, get Euros in the US or from the ATM. One thing we recommend is for people to temporarily increase their daily ATM limit so they can withdraw more money each time. That limits fees, especially if the fees are high. If you get that 500 Euros in 3-4 ATM withdrawls, of course you'd loose that $20-30 if fees are high. But you should be able to get the 500 Euros in 1-2 withdrawls. Of course it is personal choice on how you get your Euros. Some people take time to set up new checking accounts with financial institutions that charge low/no fees. But that's not for everyone. And for some people, $20 is not anything to get worked up over on a trip costing thousands.