≫Where to change euros to pounds

Where to change euros to pounds

Tabla de contenido

1. Exchanging euros to pounds at a currency supplier

1.1. 1. Make a comparison by foot through the centre of your city

1.2. 2. Order them online and receive them at home

1.3. 3. Make an online reservation and collect your pounds at the desired office

1.4. 4. Make a euro to pound comparison with Cambiator

2. Changing euros to pounds at your bank

3. Euro to pound exchange at the airport

4. Conclusion: where is it best to change euros to pounds?

“Where to change euros to pounds”. Publication date: October 6th 2024.

If you are planning a trip to the United Kingdom to visit London or any of its attractive destinations, or your are a UK citizen living in Spain, you are sure to wonder where to exchange euros for pounds cheaper. In 2023, we will receive the visit of more than 17.3 million English people, our largest foreign tourist. Many of them made a pound to euro exchange in our country, so there are many pounds available to us in Spain for when we travel to England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.

Below we indicate the main places where you can exchange euros to pounds in Spain, and we give you our assessment of each of them.

Exchanging euros to pounds at a currency supplier

Follow our advice: the best option to change euros to pounds is a currency supplier, since most do not charge commissions and their euro to pound rates are quite tight. Especially in the center of Madrid, Barcelona, Alicante, Palma or Malaga.

Currency suppliers are, along with banks, the only two businesses authorized by the Bank of Spain to exchange pounds (or any other currency). Unlike banks, which are not very fond of currency exchange and handle between 10 and 25 currencies depending on the entity, currency suppliers are specialists. They handle between 40 and 70 currencies depending on their size.

Your can find their outlets in the centre of the most touristic cities (those that receive the most foreigners), such as Madrid, Barcelona, Alicante, Benidorm, Malaga, Valencia, Palma, Tenerife, etc.

There are four ways to find the best euro to pound exchange office near you:

1. Make a comparison by foot through the centre of your city

Walk around the centre of your tourist city and ask for their euro to pound rate for the day. Or check rates on the different websites of the suppliers (provided they have one).

Don’t forget to ask them if they charge a commission for the exchange operation, as some can reach up to 20% of the euros exchanged. And this is completely legal if they are transparent on this. Take note and visit the following supplier.

Advantages: The more you walk through the centre of your city, the better the comparison will prove and the better your euro to pound rate.

Disadvantages: you will have to go for a long walk. Also, you will need to make a decision quickly because the euro to pound exchange rate you get today may not be the same as tomorrow, as rates change daily.

2. Order them online and receive them at home

If there are no currency exchange offices in your city or you don’t feel like walking around and wasting time looking at their rates, you can order them online and receive them by courier at home or at the office.

Currency suppliers such as Ria or iCambio are reliable and send them to your home. Other suppliers that may send pounds to your home are much more expensive (Global Exchange and Exact Change), even though they claim to have the best rates for the pound.

Advantage: you avoid having to go to the exchange office yourself.

Disadvantage: you have to trust the currency supplier (all of them say on their websites that they have the “best euro to pound exchange rate” and this is not usually true). You don’t know if the rate to pay to change euros to pounds is the best. For small amounts (the average euro to pound exchange rate is around 200 to 300 euros), you will be charged shipping costs. If you are in a hurry, this is not the best option (buying pounds online can take 2 to 4 days depending on the day you order them).

3. Make an online reservation and collect your pounds at the desired office

The third option is to make an online reservation of pounds on the currency suplliers’ website and collect them at one of its outlets near you. This way you save on shipping costs, you ensure availability and you pay on the spot without having to pay online.

That is, you can back out if you don’t trust them, or you find a better euro to pound exchange rate.

4. Make a euro to pound comparison with Cambiator

This is the quickest and most convenient option. It allows you, in just 30 seconds, to enter the euros you want to change to pounds, choose your city, and get the best euro to pound exchange rate from 7 different currency suppliers at the office of your choice.

Then you just have to leave your name, email and phone number and at the supplier´s store they will have the pounds ready for you so you only have to pay with cash in euros or with your card.

Cambiator is a currency exchange comparator of 7 suppliers that change euros to pounds. We are free for the user, neutral and independent. You do not have any extra cost for choosing us and you can solve in one minute the question of this post: where to change euros to pounds at the best rates.

Changing euros to pounds at your bank

The second option to buy pounds is your local bank. All the big Spanish banks (Caixabank, BBVA, Santander, Sabadell, ING) change pounds as it is common and stable currency.

They all change euros to pounds for you, but, curiously, their exchange rates are well hidden on their websites.

The second drawback of this option is that Spanish banks charge you a commission of between 2 and 3% (with a minimum of around 10 euros) on your euros. And then they apply an exchange rate to the remaining euros.

For example, if you change 100 euros to pounds, they will charge you a 10 euro commission (the minimum, higher than 3% in this case) and you will really change 90 euros to pounds.

Euro to pound exchange at the airport

If you live in a city with an international airport (Alicante, Madrid, Barcelona, Málaga, Palma or Tenerife) you have the option of buying pounds at the airport on the day of your trip. But this option is not recommended at all. The currency supplier that provides the currency exchange service at the main airports in Spain is called Global Exchange.

They have spectacular offices with large illuminated signs and they advertise “no commission”, but the reality is that they have exchange rates that are totally out of place. This is so expensive because they have to pay AENA (the airport manager) huge sums of money to be there.

So our recommendation is not to change at the airport.

Conclusion: where is it best to change euros to pounds?

If you want to know where to change euros to pounds cheaper, grab your calculator and in two minutes you will have the answer. The best euro to pound exchange option will be the one that gives you the most pounds for your budget in euros, right?

Our recommendation is that you check the exchange rates at your bank (online or at the office) before anything else to see what commission they apply to you and what euro pound exchange rate they apply to you on the day you go to do the bank.

Remember that you have to subtract the bank´s commission from the euros to be exchanged and apply the exchange rate to the resulting amount of euros. For example, if you are going to change €600 to pounds and your bank charges you a commission of 3% (18 euros), you will really apply the euro pound exchange rate of 600 – 18 = 582 euros.

And with that information, compare rates on Cambiator to find out which currency exchange office gives you the best euro to pound exchange rate, bearing in mind that none of our partners charge a commission and that Cambiator is a free service for the user.

Compare the pounds that your bank gives you with those of the best euro to pound currency exchange office on Cambiator and decide for yourself.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) EUR-GBP

Where can I exchange euros for pounds cheaper?

In Spain you can only exchange euros for pounds in banks and currency exchange suppliers. These two entities have a license from the Bank of Spain to operate. And they are subject to frequent inspections. There is no black market for currency exchange.

Where is it best to exchange euros for pounds?

Cambiator recommends comparing euros to pounds rates between your bank and a local currency supplier´s office or home delivery website.

We do not recommend doing it at currency suppliers at the airport and ask your bank if they charge a commission to exchange euros to pounds, as they usually do, and 3% of what you exchange.

How much does it cost to exchange euros to pounds?

If you exchange at your bank (ING, BBVA, Caixa, Santander, etc.), they will probably charge you a 3% commission on your euros. They will then apply an exchange rate on the remaining euros, from euro to pound.

We recommend asking your bank for a price and then finding out the same exchange rate at currency supplier. Finally, compare rates of the day between the bank and the supplier and see how many pounds you get for each way.

Cambiator is a free service that compares euro to pound exchange rates at 6 competitive currency suppliers that do not charge commission.

Which is the cheapest exchange office to change euros to pounds?

If you want to find a cheap exchange office for a euros to pounds exchange, check exchange rates on Cambiator, the currency supplier comparator.

We are a free and very convenient service for you, which will allow you to find the suppliers that give you the most pounds for your euros, daily, and without any additional cost to you.

Do currency suppliers charge commission in Spain when you change euros to pounds?

In Spain, most currency suppliers advertise "no commission", but some of them charge you a commission when you pay in cash or if you have not previously made an online reservation on their websites.

None of the suppliers that collaborate with Cambiator charge you a commission, so you can rest easy. But it is important to compare rates of the day to know where you will get the most pounds for your euros.

Is the airport a good place to exchange euros for pounds cheaper?

The answer is a resounding No. The exchange office that operates at the airport (in Spain it is called Global Exchange), has to pay a very high fee to AENA, which is the owner and manager of the airports for operating in its facilities and bringing it a lot of passenger traffic.

This means that, even though it advertises "no commission" on its bright and shiny signposts, the exchange rates it charges are very uninteresting. As a result, you will get much less pounds for your euros than other places in the city.

Where can I exchange euros for pounds cheaper in Madrid?

In Madrid, you have currency exchange offices in the central area. Go to Gran Via, Puerta del Sol, Calle Mayor and surrounding areas and you will see multiple offices of different currency suppliers. But ask for rates and ask if they charge commission because it can go up to 20%.

Currency exchange suppliers that do not charge commissions keep changing their rates several times a day. Cambiator helps you find the best rate for your cheap exchange of euros to pounds in Madrid.

Where can I exchange pounds for euros cheaper in Barcelona?

In Barcelona, you have currency exchange offices in the Ramblas area. There are multiple offices of different suppliers. But ask for rates and ask if they charge commissions because they can go up to 20%.

Currency suppliers that do not charge commission have changing rates several times a day. Cambiator helps you find the best rate for your exchange of euros to pounds in Barcelona.

Is there a maximum amount of euros that I can exchange for pounds?

The money laundering prevention law requires Spanish currency suppliers to limit the maximum amount that an individual can exchange with their passport or Spanish ID to 5,900 euros per calendar quarter (January-March, April-June; July-September and October-December).

You can exchange euros for pounds in a larger amount, but you will be asked to justify the origin of your euros with a pay slip or proof of their origin.

Note that some suppliers may have a limit of less than 3,000 euros per transaction, but they do allow a couple of transactions to be made by the same person on the spot, one after the other. Cambiator will tell you these particularities when you compare rates with us.

Should I bring an ID to exchange euros for pounds?

Yes. We advise you to bring a valid identity document such as your passport, NIE document, or Spanish DNI with you to the currency exchange office in order to exchange your euros to pounds at an exchange office.