ATM in Spain and Portugal

[Sho]

I've barely been out of the house for over 2 years, so before I head to the CF, I have a few questions and the threads here may or may not be outdated. My credit union has stopped being a reliable source of information.

• Which Spanish and Portuguese banks with ATMs are on the Cirrus or Plus networks? I've tried finding this online but can't locate up-to-date information.
• Will my US debit card with 4-digit PIN still work in these ATMs as it did in 2019? It's also a chip-and-signature credit card but I want to use it to debit my bank account.
• Is an airport ATM still recommended as the most convenient way to get Euros early in the trip? (I'd buy them at home but my credit union doesn't sell them and the local banks that do require a bank account.)

Thanks!

 

[Anniesantiago]

I’m in Spain and so far have had no trouble using my ATM card with four number pin

 

[irishrock]

I've barely been out of the house for over 2 years, so before I head to the CF, I have a few questions and the threads here may or may not be outdated. My credit union has stopped being a reliable source of information.

• Which Spanish and Portuguese banks with ATMs are on the Cirrus or Plus networks? I've tried finding this online but can't locate up-to-date information.
• Will my US debit card with 4-digit PIN still work in these ATMs as it did in 2019? It's also a chip-and-signature credit card but I want to use it to debit my bank account.
• Is an airport ATM still recommended as the most convenient way to get Euros early in the trip? (I'd buy them at home but my credit union doesn't sell them and the local banks that do require a bank account.)

Thanks!

there are ATM's everywhere and they work just like at home.

But one piece of advice: Be sure and call your credit card company and provide the dates and the country you will be visiting...they'll "keep the card open" and ready for use. If not, they might shut down your access.

And, I'd have three cards at the ready. Once, my card worked EVERYWHERE, except for the train station in Santiago...the other credit card saved the day as I purchased my return ticket to Madrid

Good luck

 

[trecile]

Since you're from the US the best thing that you can do is open a Charles Schwab checking account (free, with no minimums) and get their debit card.
Schwab doesn't charge ATM fees and refunds all ATM fees charged by banks worldwide

Charles Schwab

 

[Sho]

Thanks, I appreciate it. Since I don't have a brokerage account, Schwab wanted quite a high deposit when I last went in to check.

I'm fine with my current debit card, just want to be sure it will still work and to learn which Spanish and Portuguese banks are on Cirrus or Plus networks.

 

[Friend from Barquinha]

Thanks, I appreciate it. Since I don't have a brokerage account, Schwab wanted quite a high deposit when I last went in to check.

I'm fine with my current debit card, just want to be sure it will still work and to learn which Spanish and Portuguese banks are on Cirrus or Plus networks.

I was in small-town Portugal last month; used the Multibanco near our home. 4-digit PINs still work and seem to be the norm, though the Portuguese themselves seem to be gradually switching to wireless. Same for supermarkets. Smaller stores seem to be using debit less than previously. I think the service fees are high, for them, for the number of customers that want the service. Cash is still preferred in smaller towns and villages.

As far as I can remember, Cirrus and/or Plus are still displayed on all the Multibanco entry screens that you find. Multibanco itself seems to be the front end for all or most of the Portuguese banks so you'll see it on almost every non-tourist-oriented ATM in Portugal.

Avoid the stand-alone ATMs (not Multibanco) that you see in the airports and big railway stations. Can't remember the name, but they're obviously aimed at international travellers and their colours are royal blue and yellow, I think. They charge higher fees than Multibanco ATMs.

 

[CWBuff]

Thanks, I appreciate it. Since I don't have a brokerage account, Schwab wanted quite a high deposit when I last went in to check.

I'm fine with my current debit card, just want to be sure it will still work and to learn which Spanish and Portuguese banks are on Cirrus or Plus networks.

That's strange
I just opened mine and the initial deposit was $500.00
Granted I beefed it up since as my day is getting closer....but no high deposits were required

 

[Former member 92300]

4 digit pin worked pretty much everywhere in Europe for me.

I don't like getting Euros at the airport. I stop at the first bank atm outside of the airport myself. I don't like stand alone ATMs. I like using ATMs that are actually attached to a bank. The others often have higher transaction fees and if you have a problem - there is no one there to help you. But - if you need to use the ones at the airport - no real reason why you can't!

 

[Former member 94614]

Thanks, I appreciate it. Since I don't have a brokerage account, Schwab wanted quite a high deposit when I last went in to check.

I'm fine with my current debit card, just want to be sure it will still work and to learn which Spanish and Portuguese banks are on Cirrus or Plus networks.

hi there. i recently started with schwab and they don't require any money in the brokerage acct and there is no minimum for the linked checking acct

 

[Kathar1na]

@Sho, if you have not yet switched to a Schwab card in the meantime and are still interested in an answer to your question: I have the impression that connection to these two global networks - Cirrus and Plus - are so common at ATMs that you will not have any problems in Spain. I made a screenshot from a recent news article and marked the two logos, perhaps readers who are currently in Spain and happen to get some cash from the nearest ATM can have a look and confirm.

 

[Kathar1na]

Also, below is a link with information about the cash machines and the one bank branch (Caixa) at Madrid airport. Plus and Cirrus are mentioned as being accepted.

Banks and ATMs | Madrid-Barajas Airport | Aena

Find out all the information about the location of branches and ATMs at Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport. All the info at the Aena website!

www.aena.es

 

[lt56ny]

Since you're from the US the best thing that you can do is open a Charles Schwab checking account (free, with no minimums) and get their debit card.
Schwab doesn't charge ATM fees and refunds all ATM fees charged by banks worldwide

Charles Schwab

That is what I use also. It works everywhere and like you see no fees and refunds.

 

[williamlittig]

I was ahead of ATM's everywhere and put on too many miles trying to find one. Begin with notifying your bank where and when you're traveling. Keep an eye on how much money you have, be prepared. My first Camino Pilgrimage was a learning experience.

 

[mark stevens]

I was ahead of ATM's everywhere and put on too many miles trying to find one. Begin with notifying your bank where and when you're traveling. Keep an eye on how much money you have, be prepared. My first Camino Pilgrimage was a learning experience.

I always notify my bank ahead of coming from the UK just in case. I’m in Spain at the moment and debit cards work fine everywhere although I know some US cards are different.

 

[A Crackpot Abroad]

I have Charles Schwab (I have an unused brokerage account with my “checking account”-no problems for the last 10+ years. Schwab recently dropped their foreign transaction fee) and 1st Republic (no ATM or the extra on top of the current rate “foreign transaction fee” banks charge $3 for that) . Schwab and 1st Republic only charge the going rate of the day. Last few year were no problem.

I withdrew 300 euro in Barcelona last month and got a 7 euro fee using either Caixa or Santander (I thought it would go away but it didn’t (using my go to 1st Republic). Seperate fee they attached. I can’t blame them.).

I tested out Santander today in Madrid and the warning notice of the fee is there. I tested BBVA and they want 6 euro. I used Euro6000/Kuxtsta. No fee (today. See how long that lasts).

These are not my main accounts. These are my travel accounts. There is only little more than what I expect to use while traveling. My other account charges way too much during travel so I don’t use them while traveling.

BTW. Since Covid, not using nearly as much cash as the preference is the much cleaner no touch credit card (Capitol One) - same deal as above except I get 1% back on all transaction. I don’t fly enough to get an airline card.

 

[NinjaBee]

That's strange
I just opened mine and the initial deposit was $500.00
Granted I beefed it up since as my day is getting closer....but no high deposits were required

This is true, no need to make high deposit as they don't require a minimum. I recently opened one with $50 in the brokerage then transferred $0.01 in the checking to generate the bank card! So now that it works I'll have to add more funds to use whilst in Europe.

 

[Friend from Barquinha]

I was ahead of ATM's everywhere and put on too many miles trying to find one. Begin with notifying your bank where and when you're traveling. Keep an eye on how much money you have, be prepared. My first Camino Pilgrimage was a learning experience.

Heads-up from the Portuguese caminho:

When you cross the railway tracks in Barquinha (day north of Golega) and walk up to the roundabout, thence to head up hill to Atalaia, the building at the roundabout (just on your left as you're walking) is the junta da freguesia (town hall) and it has a Multibanco ATM at the front entrance.

I'll check when I'm there again (mid-May), but I'm pretty sure at least one of Cirrus and Plus networks (maybe both) are displayed there. This is 5 or so days out of Lisbon, so may be a good time to get some cash!

 

[Sho]

Thanks, everyone!

 

[jungleboy]

Avoid the stand-alone ATMs (not Multibanco) that you see in the airports and big railway stations. Can't remember the name, but they're obviously aimed at international travellers and their colours are royal blue and yellow, I think. They charge higher fees than Multibanco ATMs.

The ones to avoid are called Euronet. As @Friend from Barquinha says, use multibancos in Portugal which are marked MB.

 

[Kathar1na]

Just to avoid misunderstandings (and correct me please if I am wrong):

Euronet is an independent financial operator; their ATMs are stand-alone ATMs, not belonging to a mainstream bank. Their fees are high, I believe. I don't use them.

Cirrus, Plus, Euro6000, Servired (see logos in photo above) are interbank networks. You can't choose them, the system will automatically pick one for you depending on the card you use and connect you to your own bank account. Cirrus and Plus are global networks and nearly omnipresent in Europe, Euro6000 and Servired are national Spanish interbank networks, I believe.

 

[Friend from Barquinha]

Euronet is an independent financial operator; their ATMs are stand-alone ATMs, not belonging to a mainstream bank. Their fees are high, I believe. I don't use them.

Correct. They seem, in Portugal anyway, to only have appeared in the last 4 or 5 years. Very prominently and conveniently placed in railway stations, airports, and bus stations. MB (Multibanco) ATMs often need to be searched out but there usually will be one somewhere. And in Portugal anyway, "Multibanco" is used as a generic term for ATM. Everyone will understand the term.

In Portuguese, it's pronounced roughly "Mul'-tee-bahn-koo."

Typical look of Euronet ATMs to avoid:

 

[Laurie Sanantone]

Interesting article from October 2021 about the disappearance of many ATMs in Spain:

Spanish banks’ ATMs are disappearing or being replaced: What you need to know

Spanish banks are closing thousands of ATMs across the country, forcing many people in Spain to have to change the way they withdraw money.

www.thelocal.es

Some good news:
“Spain’s national post service Correos has announced that in 2022 it will install 1,500 ATMs across all of Spain’s regions, 300 of them in small rural areas with a population under 3,000 which currently don’t have a single cajero at their disposal.”

According to the article, regional governments are taking steps to ensure that older residents and rural populations (and hopefully pilgrims?) will have access to cash.

 

[Orlando Wren]

Thanks, I appreciate it. Since I don't have a brokerage account, Schwab wanted quite a high deposit when I last went in to check.

I'm fine with my current debit card, just want to be sure it will still work and to learn which Spanish and Portuguese banks are on Cirrus or Plus networks.

Actually, there is no minimum required, there are no fees. You simply open the checking account, they establish the brokerage account (which is simply a savings account unless you want to trade) and you fund the brokerage account. Once it is funded, you transfer some funds into the checking account and they issue you the free ATM card. There is never a fee, never a minimum and they reimburse the ATM fees incurred at the end of each month with your statement. I've had the Schwab accounts and ATM card for years. It's a true win-win!

 

[Former member 94614]

Actually, there is no minimum required, there are no fees. You simply open the checking account, they establish the brokerage account (which is simply a savings account unless you want to trade) and you fund the brokerage account. Once it is funded, you transfer some funds into the checking account and they issue you the free ATM card. There is never a fee, never a minimum and they reimburse the ATM fees incurred at the end of each month with your statement. I've had the Schwab accounts and ATM card for years. It's a true win-win!

hi-you don't have to put any money in the brokerage account it can have a zero balance. you just need to open the brokerage account in order to be eligible to create the separate checking account- also with no minimum balance.

 

[Orlando Wren]

hi-you don't have to put any money in the brokerage account it can have a zero balance. you just need to open the brokerage account in order to be eligible to create the separate checking account- also with no minimum balance.

good info, thanks!