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Money in Czechia, sorted.
A calm, current plan for the money side of your trip: why your tap-to-pay card covers almost everything, the two tourist traps that quietly cost the most, and the small nightly city fee in Prague.
The three things people ask
Will my card work? Do I need cash? Are ATMs easy?
The quick read for a first trip.
Your card
Works almost everywhere
Visa and Mastercard are taken nearly everywhere in cities and towns, contactless is the norm, and Apple Pay and Google Pay are widely accepted. Amex is patchier at small spots. The odd neighborhood pub, bakery or market stall is still cash only or sets a small card minimum.
Check yours →Cash
A little, for the small stuff
You do not need much. Keep about 1,000 to 2,000 Kč in small notes for pubs off the tourist strip, markets, tips, paid restrooms and small towns. A 200 note is far easier to spend than a 2,000.
How much to bring →ATMs
Easy, but avoid the yellow ones
Bank ATMs (ČSOB, Komerční banka, Česká spořitelna, Raiffeisenbank, UniCredit) are all over the cities. Avoid the bright yellow standalone Euronet machines at tourist sites, which charge the most and push the dollar conversion. Read the on-screen fee and decline "convert to dollars."
See ATMs in Czechia →(opens in a new tab)Cash or card
Very card-friendly, with a little cash for pubs and small towns.
A rough feel for everyday spending. Cards and contactless work almost everywhere in Prague and the cities, on transit, in shops, restaurants and supermarkets. You still want a little koruna for neighborhood pubs, market stalls, small-town bakeries, tips and paid public toilets, and cash leans more useful the further you get from the tourist center.
See what the trip really costs →Your money plan
Four steps and you're set.
Before you go
- Bring a no-foreign-fee Visa or Mastercard with contactless for nearly everything, plus a backup card from a different bank.
- Get a no-foreign-fee debit card for cash. Charles Schwab refunds ATM fees worldwide; Wise and Revolut are low-fee.
- You will need little cash, so plan to pull a modest amount of koruna once you land rather than buying it at home.
At the airport
- Skip the airport exchange counters and currency kiosks, the rates are poor.
- Pull koruna from a bank ATM (ČSOB, Komerční banka, Česká spořitelna, Raiffeisenbank) and decline "convert to USD."
- Avoid the bright yellow Euronet ATMs, even the ones at the airport and in the arrivals hall.
Day to day
- Card or phone for shops, supermarkets (Albert, Billa, Lidl, Tesco), restaurants, museums and transit.
- Cash for neighborhood pubs, market stalls, small-town bakeries, tips and paid public toilets.
- In tourist-area restaurants, check the bill for a cover charge (couvert) or service charge before you add a tip.
- Always choose koruna, never dollars, on every card terminal and ATM screen.
A golden rule
- Always pay in koruna, never in dollars. Choosing your home currency (dynamic currency conversion) quietly adds 3 to 8%.
- Ignore the "0% commission" street exchange booths; a bank ATM gives you a fairer rate with less hassle.
Staying connected
Will my phone work here? And what will it cost?
Very good, and cheap. The three networks, O2, T-Mobile and Vodafone, all give strong 4G and growing 5G across Prague, the other cities and most of the countryside, with only the odd dead spot in deep forest or on rural train lines. A local prepaid SIM is easy to buy, and eSIMs from Airalo, Nomad, Ubigi or Holafly work well if your phone supports them. You do not need mobile data to pay for anything, cards and contactless stand on their own, so data is really just for maps, transit apps and calling a taxi. The cost is where people get caught out, and on most US plans it lands in one of two buckets.
Your plan may already include it
Often, do nothing
Some US plans include slow data abroad at no extra cost. If that is you, the honest move is to leave it alone.
we earn nothing
Or it charges quietly, after the fact
The bill lands later
On pay-per-use plans the cost runs in the background while you travel, and the charge can show up weeks after you are home. Forgetting to switch off data roaming is the classic one. For a week or more, an eSIM is usually cheaper and keeps you in control.
Check what your own carrier charges before the trip, not after.
If an eSIM is the cheaper call, Nomad covers Czechia.
Get your Nomad eSIM for Czechia→(opens in a new tab)we may earn a commissionMedical cover
The one cost with no price tag.
Every other number on this page has a price you can look up. This one does not, and it can be the largest of them all. Most US health plans cover little or nothing once you leave the country, and Medicare covers essentially none of it abroad. A serious illness or injury is paid up front, and a medical evacuation runs from tens of thousands of dollars to past $100,000 if you are remote or an ocean from home.
First, you may not need to buy anything.
A cheap, refundable trip close to home does not need this. And if you are healthy, headed somewhere with good care, and one of the premium cards on the shortlist above already includes emergency medical and evacuation, you may be covered already. Check your card's benefits guide before you buy. Saying that costs us the commission, and it is still the right call.
How much cover matters here
Here, good hospitals are easy to reach and the care is high quality, so for a healthy traveler this leans more toward your call than a must.
If you do want cover, this is what it is for: the evacuation and the up-front hospital bill, the part no card limit is meant to absorb.
Enough for most trips
Faye, or a comparable whole-trip policy
Bundles trip protection with emergency medical, which is enough cover for most travelers on a typical trip.
The deeper end
A dedicated travel-medical plan built for serious care and evacuation abroad
Stronger on medical care and evacuation, for a remote or higher-risk trip where that is the real exposure.
If it happens
Call it first, then call your insurer's 24/7 assistance line, which is what confirms payment and arranges an evacuation. 112 reaches every service, and 155 goes straight to an ambulance.
TrueTripCosts explains the gap and points to options. It does not set your coverage amounts or act as your insurance advisor, and every policy carries its own exclusions, so read them before you buy. Emergency number checked Jul 2026. Confirm the current number before you travel, as local lines can change.
Currency basics
The koruna, in plain terms.
Quick conversion
At about 22 koruna to the dollar in mid-2026, 100 Kč is roughly $4.50, 500 Kč about $23, and 1,000 Kč about $45. To sanity-check a price fast, divide the koruna figure by 22.
Notes and coins
Notes run 100, 200, 500, 1,000, 2,000 and 5,000 Kč; coins are 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 Kč. Small shops and pubs dislike breaking the 2,000 and 5,000, so ask the ATM for a mix where you can, and spend the big notes in supermarkets.
It's koruna, not euros
Czechia is in the EU but does not use the euro; it uses the koruna (Kč). Some tourist-area hotels, shops and restaurants will take euros, but the rate they give is poor, so pay in koruna whenever you can.
Tipping is light
No US-style percentage is expected. Round up, or leave about 10% for good restaurant service, usually by telling the server the total when you pay. See the tipping section below.
Real exchange rate
What your money is really worth here.
This is the mid-market rate, the one the banks trade at and the yardstick every other rate is measured against. Your card lands a little below it, and if a screen ever offers to bill you in dollars, that is worse again. So this is the number to expect, and how you spot a bad one.
1 US dollar is about 21.25 CZK
Taxes and refunds
A small city fee, plus money back on shopping.
Prague and many Czech tourist towns add a small local accommodation fee to your room, capped by national law at 50 Kč per person, per night (Prague charges the full amount), with children under 18 exempt. Everyday prices already include VAT, a 21% standard rate with a reduced 12% on things like hotel stays and restaurant food, so the figure on the tag or menu is what you pay. If you shop, non-EU visitors can reclaim part of the 21% VAT on goods (not services): spend over 2,000 Kč in one store, ask for a tax-free form, keep the goods unused, and have customs stamp it when you leave the EU. After the refund operator's fee, expect back roughly 12 to 17%, not the full 21%. There is no separate departure tax; it is built into your airfare.
Before you book: passports, the six-month rule and whether you need a visa. Not a US citizen, or connecting through Europe? The rules can differ, and even a layover can need its own visa. See our passports and visas guide →
Watch out for
The small traps that catch first-timers.
Tipping
Round up, or about 10% for good service.
Tipping in Czechia is light and not the US 18 to 20%. In a restaurant, leave around 10% for good service, or just round up at a casual spot. The local habit is to tell the server the total you want to pay, tip included, when they take your card or cash, rather than leaving coins on the table and walking off. Card terminals often have no tip line, so a cash tip is the easy way to do it. In tourist-area restaurants, check whether a service charge is already on the bill before adding more. Round up for taxis and in pubs, and leave 20 to 50 Kč for hotel porters or housekeeping. None of it is obligatory; staff are paid a wage.
Common questions
Quick answers.
Do I need cash in Czechia?
Not much. Prague and the Czech cities are very card-friendly, with contactless almost everywhere. Keep about 1,000 to 2,000 Kč on hand for neighborhood pubs, markets, tips and paid restrooms, and top up at a bank ATM if you run low. Cards and your phone cover nearly everything else.
Should I pay in koruna, dollars or euros in Czechia?
Always koruna. If a card terminal or ATM offers to charge you in dollars, decline; that dynamic currency conversion adds roughly 3 to 8%. And although some tourist spots accept euros, the rate they give is poor, so the koruna price is the better deal.
What is the best ATM to use in Prague?
Use a bank-branded machine: ČSOB, Komerční banka, Česká spořitelna, Raiffeisenbank or UniCredit. Avoid the bright yellow standalone Euronet ATMs that cluster around the tourist sights, which charge high fees and push the dollar conversion. Read the on-screen fee and decline "convert to dollars."
Do you tip in Czechia?
Lightly. Around 10% for good restaurant service, or just round up at casual spots and for taxis, and 20 to 50 Kč for hotel porters or housekeeping. Tell the server the total you want to pay, tip included, when they take your card or cash; a cash tip is easiest since terminals often have no tip line. Check for a service charge before adding more.
What is Czechia's tourist tax?
A local accommodation fee, capped nationally at 50 Kč per person, per night, and added to your hotel bill. Prague charges the full 50 Kč; other towns set their own up to that cap, and many small places charge nothing. Children under 18 are exempt, and it applies only to the first 60 consecutive nights.
How much cash should I bring for a week in Czechia?
For two mid-range travelers, very roughly 3,000 to 5,000 Kč (about $140 to $230) in day-to-day cash across a week beyond your hotel, pulled from a bank ATM once or twice. Cards and your phone cover the great majority of spending; the cash is for pubs, markets, tips and the odd cash-only spot.
What it really costs
What you'll really spend in Czechia.
Your flights if you want them counted, your room, your on-the-ground spending, the two fees most US cards add without telling you, and Czechia's tourist tax. One number, nothing waiting on the statement. No bank to pick, no sign-up, nothing saved.
Optional. Enter your round trip fare per traveler to fold flights into the total.
In Czechia, plan for about $0.
Realistically somewhere between $0 and $0.
Whether at an ATM or a card terminal in a shop or restaurant, always choose to be charged in the local currency, not dollars. Paying in dollars (called dynamic currency conversion) lets the machine set its own, worse, exchange rate on top of any fee.
Rough guide, not a quote. The percentage here is a blended stand-in for a typical US card's foreign fee, not your exact rate. The real number moves with the card you carry: one no-foreign-fee card can cover both sides, while a plain rewards credit card only removes the fee on what you buy, and cash still costs a little unless that card also waives ATM and foreign-cash fees. A debit card, or accepting the "pay in dollars" (dynamic currency conversion) offer at a till or ATM, can push it higher. Rates checked Jun 2026 and rounded.
How this estimate is built
These are the assumptions behind the number. Change the room price, nights, travelers, or travel style above, and every line here moves with them.
- Hotel
- Daily spending
- Flights
- Cash vs card
- ATM withdrawals
- Foreign fee
- The range
- Tourist tax
Not sure which card to bring? See my pick for Czechia.
Already carry a card with no foreign transaction fee? Then you are set for Czechia, and can skip this. There is nothing to buy.
If you are getting a card for Czechia, this is the pairing I would pick: a no-foreign-fee credit card for spending, and a fee-free ATM debit card for cash. We earn nothing on these today. Always confirm the current fee with the issuer before you apply. Checked Jun 2026.
Capital One charges no foreign transaction fee on any of its cards.
No foreign transaction fee
Fee-free ATM cash worldwide
Want one account that holds and spends in the local currency? A different job from the three above, and the one I reach for abroad. It is free to open; you can create a virtual card in the app and add it to your phone wallet in minutes, without waiting for the physical card; and you can convert US dollars into the local currency inside the account before you travel, then spend from that balance. Wise uses the mid-market rate plus a small conversion fee (around 0.4% and up), with no flat foreign fee.
The three picks above pay us nothing, and their tags say so. Wise is the only option here that can earn us a commission, and its tag says that too. Paid or not, the pick is still the pick.
Travelers, not touristsA little Czech goes a long way
A little Czech goes a long way
Czech is a Slavic language and no one expects you to master it, but a Dobrý den on the way in and an Ahoj among friends, plus a story or two, mark you as a guest rather than a tourist.
Say a few words
Tip: Use Dobrý den (good day) when you walk into a shop or restaurant, and save the cheerful Ahoj for friends. Then raise a glass of the local beer: the Czechs invented pilsner and drink more beer per person than anyone else on Earth.
Know a story
The oldest clock still ticking
Prague's astronomical clock, the Orloj, has kept time on the Old Town Hall since 1410, making it the oldest working clock of its kind anywhere in the world. On the hour a little parade of the twelve apostles appears in the windows above the dial. Crowds still gather in the square to watch it strike.
Good to know: the Orloj dates from 1410
The clay giant of Prague
Legend says that centuries ago a learned rabbi in Prague's old Jewish quarter shaped a giant from the clay of the riverbank and brought it to life with a sacred word, to guard his people. The creature was called the Golem. It is one of Europe's most famous folk tales, and Prague still tells it with pride.
Say it: the Golem of Prague
A bridge fit for an emperor
The great stone Charles Bridge was begun in 1357 under Emperor Charles IV, who built much of golden Prague, including the oldest university in central Europe. Legend says egg yolks were mixed into the mortar to make it strong, and it has stood for more than 650 years. Cross it at dawn, before the crowds, and it is pure magic.
Good to know: begun in 1357 under Charles IVCzechs can seem reserved at first but warm quickly, and they are quietly proud of a country that gave the world pilsner beer and Art Nouveau, and a capital of a hundred spires that came through the centuries almost untouched.
No links here, nothing to buy. This part is just to help you travel well.
Sources, and how this guide was checked
Last checkedJul 2026
Changed since last checkSources added. Verified with the City of Prague that the local accommodation fee is 50 koruna per person per night (doubled from 21 in 2022), capped by national law, applying to the first 60 nights, with under-18s exempt. Standard Czech VAT is 21%, and non-EU visitors can reclaim it on shopping. The guide's figures are current.
- City of Praguethe local tourist fee, 50 koruna per person per night since 2022, under Act 565/1990
Our own judgmentThe daily cash share, tipping norms, and likely ATM behavior are our own estimate from experience, not an official figure.
More money guides in Europe
If you are also weighing up nearby destinations, each guide covers cards, cash, ATMs and the fees to expect.
Going deeper on Czechia
The money questions people ask on the ground.
Short, focused answers to the specific things that catch first-timers out in Czechia.
- Do I need cash in Czechia, or can I use cards?Short answer: cards work well, especially in Prague, but the currency is the koruna, not the euro, so do not pay in euros. Carry a little koruna for small shops and pubs. Here is how to handle it.
- Tipping in CzechiaCzechia tips a little more than Western Europe: about 10% at a restaurant, told to the server rather than left on the table. Here is what you actually owe.
- Prague taxis, the apps, and the airport scam to skipPrague's taxis had a bad name for years, but apps have quietly fixed most of it. Here is which one to install, the airport trick that still catches people, and how to get into the city cheaply.
- Bringing your dog or cat to Czechia.Czechia runs on the single EU pet-entry process for a US-origin dog or cat: microchip, rabies in the right order, and an EU health certificate on a 10-day clock. No quarantine, no rabies titer. Here is what that means for Czechia, and the local parts worth knowing.
This is how Czechia stands today.
Money rules move. We can let you know for free if that changes.