--- title: Airbnb: How to Avoid Foreign Transaction Fee on Site description: Be sure to have a travel-friendly credit or debit card in hand canonical: https://time.com/3973175/airbnb-foreign-transaction-fees/ author: Map Happy article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-07-27T21:32:32.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:45:14.633Z og:title: How to Save Money on Airbnb og:description: Be sure to have a travel-friendly credit or debit card in hand og:url: https://time.com/3973175/airbnb-foreign-transaction-fees/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdb29e7eac6d2e2de/69885c92a988ca16806b3a14/airbnb-user.jpg?branch=production&width=594&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 594 og:image:height: 334 og:image:alt: An Airbnb user navigates the site in Havana on July 10, 2015. og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: How to Save Money on Airbnb twitter:description: Be sure to have a travel-friendly credit or debit card in hand twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdb29e7eac6d2e2de/69885c92a988ca16806b3a14/airbnb-user.jpg?branch=production&width=594&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # How to Save Money on Airbnb > Sponsored content. 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MONEY teamed up with Travel + Leisure to give you some tips of great places to travel without breaking the bank._ by [Erica Ho / Map Happy](https://time.com/author/map-happy/) ## Erica Ho / Map Happy Jul 27, 2015 9:32 PM UTC  An Airbnb user navigates the site in Havana on July 10, 2015. An Airbnb user navigates the site in Havana on July 10, 2015. Yamil Lage—AFP/Getty Images by [Erica Ho / Map Happy](https://time.com/author/map-happy/) ## Erica Ho / Map Happy Jul 27, 2015 9:32 PM UTC Imagine my surprise when I found out Airbnb charges a foreign transaction fee on top of listings booked outside the country. One of our readers Ted [pointed this fact](http://maphappy.org/2014/06/use-point-of-sale-to-get-cheaper-international-tickets/#comment-1746772950) out a little while ago when we originally posted on the fact that it’s sometimes possible to save money on airfare by [paying in a different currency](http://maphappy.org/2014/06/use-point-of-sale-to-get-cheaper-international-tickets/). Turns out, by using the same tactics, it’s also possible to save an easy three percent on Airbnb bookings through this method. Airbnb charges an [automatic 3%](https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/502) on top of the base rate, usually in the local currency. I surmise this is supposed to account for the conversion fees Airbnb has to pay. (It’s important that you need a credit or debit card [that doesn’t charge foreign transaction fees](http://maphappy.org/2014/08/the-best-credit-and-debit-cards-for-traveling/) for this to work or otherwise…. you pay end up exactly the same amount you originally would.) I was reminded of this when my current man friend—who happens to be Australian—booked our accommodation for a road trip up the Californian coast. Out of curiosity, I compared the booking totals with the prices I was getting in American dollars. | Property Location | Total Cost (AUD) | Converted Price\* (USD) | Original Price (USD) | Difference | | -------------------- | ---------------- | ----------------------- | -------------------- | ---------- | | Paso Robles Airbnb | $338.00 | $253.77 | $246.00 | $7.77 | | Carmel Airbnb | $451.00 | $344.06 | $334.00 | $10.06 | | San Francisco Airbnb | $309.00 | $233.63 | $229.00 | $4.63 | Foreign transaction fee existence confirmed. If I had booked it, we would have saved a total of $22.46 off all our bookings which totaled $831.46. Now onto the good part. The quickest way to avoid the fee is to go to the dead bottom of each individual listing. In the lower-left hand corner, there’s an option to change language and currency. Do not go to profile country (the point of sale) in your account because it just messes things up. Also, the footer settings seemed to override those preferences. That’s all there is to it. But I wanted to see how different currencies compare across the board, so we tested four different Airbnb properties in different countries around the world with five different currencies. The majority of the time, the local currency yielded the cheapest price, with the glaring exception of Rio de Janeiro. (Note: it did come dangerously close, though. The Australian dollar and Swedish krona were used as controls.) The cheapest currencies are bolded for easy reference. | Airbnb Location | USD | AUD | BRL | EUR | SEK | HKD | | ---------------------- | -------- | ---------------- | ------------------ | ---------------------- | ------------------- | ----------------------- | | San Francisco, CA | **$315** | $436 $324.08 USD | R$1035 $321.52 USD | €292 $321.81 USD | 2749 kr $323.05 USD | $2507 $323.24 USD | | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | **$34** | $48 $35.68 USD | R$112 $34.79 USD | €32 $35.27 USD | 298 kr $35.05 USD | $272 $35.09 USD | | Hong Kong, China | $78 | $105 $78.05 USD | R$250 $77.67 USD | €71 $78.25 USD | 666 kr $78.86 USD | **$590** **$76.11 USD** | | Paris, France | $70 | $94 $69.89 USD | R$224 $69.58 USD | **€61** **$67.19 USD** | 596 kr $70.04 USD | $543 $70.05 USD | One interesting thing to note is Ted pointed out that: --- > “” --- But perhaps the biggest sticking point here is that this hack only works if you have a credit or debit card that’s [travel-friendly](http://maphappy.org/2014/08/the-best-credit-and-debit-cards-for-traveling/) and doesn’t charge these fees, otherwise the savings are nonexistent. Disregarding that, it’s a no-brainer thing to tweak one setting. _This_ [_article_](http://maphappy.org/2015/07/airbnb-charges-a-foreign-transaction-fee-and-this-is-how-you-beat-it/) _originally appeared on_ [_Map Happy_](http://maphappy.org) _More from Map Happy:_ * [Read the Fine Print Before You Swipe Abroad](http://maphappy.org/2012/03/read-the-fine-print-on-using-your-charge-card-abroad/) * [Google Adds Foreign Currencies Together Easily](http://maphappy.org/2014/05/google-adds-foreign-currencies-together-effortlessly/) * [Oanda Currency Converter Calculates Rates for iPhone](http://maphappy.org/2012/05/oanda-currency-converter-calculates-rates-for-iphone/) ## Transcript [ MUSIC ] We're here today with Jacky Gifford, senior editor at Travel and Leisure, with one big question. Given today's exchange rates, is it possible to get a luxurious, international, travel experience On a budget. Yes, it absolutely is. The exchange rate, the US dollar is strong right now and you don't wanna sit on this and wait because exchange rates, of course, can fluctuate, so if you're looking to take a vacation abroad now is a great time to do it. Is there a destination you would recommend for someone who's looking to get far from home, who wants something a little bit off the beaten track? RIght, someone who wants something a little bit more exotic. We actually recommend South Africa. So this is a beautiful destination. Go right to Cape Town, this is a fantastic city right on the water, it's known for it's incredible shopping, it's night life, Its food and its wine, and one of the best hotels in town is the Cape Cadogan. So this is a cool boutique hotel right in the Gardens District which is a really buzzy, fun area. You walk right outside the doors and you're on Bree Street which is where all the cool galleries and shops are. So, again, this is a great value. It's about $ 170 a night. So under $ 200. I mean, you can't beat that. What about Europe? We know that the Euro and the dollar have kind of never been closer in recent memory. What are some great rich cultural destinations in Europe that won't cost you too much. Well one city you should consider is Berlin. So Berlin is actually more on the. On the affordable side anyway. And really, you go there because you it has an incredibly rich history, but also it's sort- of known as the cool, young hip city, and one hotel that we'd really recommend is the 25 Hours Hotel Bikini Berlin, and we really love this spot because locals are coming here, too. So, they go to the top of the floor because it has a great restaurant, Neni. [ MUSIC ] Which serves Mediterranean food. And then they also have the Monkey Bar. And it gets its name. Because actually, the hotel faces out onto the Berlin Zoo. So you can actually see monkeys playing, which is pretty cool. And are there any destinations, you know, within Berlin, that would give you a cultural experience? Checkpoint Charlie. So this is the division between what was once East and West Berlin. Also, the Brandenburg gate, it's an iconic site. Another thing that we recommend, go to the luxury department store KaDeWe, so the top two floors, it's sort of like a glamorous grocery store. What about someone who is looking for more of a European vibe, but has only a long weekend or a similarly low budget? Right, so why not consider Canada, our neighbor to the north? It has that French flair and you can stay at the Auberge de Vieux- Port, so this is set in 19th century warehouses right along the river, it's a 27 room, and they have cool details like wrought iron beds, stone walls, it's full of charm, full of character, and also again, under $ 200 a night. Are there any places you'd check out for great food or nightlife? So actually a really fun bar that we recommend is called Big in Japan. So this is actually located in the hip plateau neighborhood, and locals like to come in and sit at the maze- like bar, and then in terms of dining, there's a new restaurant called [ UNKNOWN ] [ MUSIC ] And this is an Italian / Asian mash- up, and it's from some popular restauranteurs based in Montreal and this is on the western edge of old Montreal which is a neighborhood that in general just [ UNKNOWN ] youthful vibe. 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