Illustrated euro cash, a euro coin and European map pins
Shared currency guide

The Euro: One Currency, Many Countries

The notes can cross borders without changing. The coins may tell a different national story, and the way you pay can change again at the next stop.

One wallet
27 guides
21 euro-area members 4 monetary agreements 2 de facto users
What crosses the border?

Same cash. Different travel wallet.

The value stays put

A euro remains a euro between euro-using destinations. There is no currency exchange at the border.

The notes travel

Banknote designs and denominations are shared, so a note from Lisbon works in Tallinn.

The coin face changes

Coins share one common side and carry a national design on the other. They still circulate across the area.

Payment habits stay local

Cards, cash, tipping, ATMs and transport payments still deserve a country guide of their own.

Choose your stop

Where are you taking the euro?

The currency is shared. The useful cash reserve, card culture and small payment habits are not.

Showing all 27 euro destination guides

Euro agreement Andorra Mountain euros, low-tax shopping, customs limits, visitor tax, ski passes and tipping. Open guide Euro area Austria Euros, Bankomat ATMs, coffee-house tipping and Alpine cash. Open guide Euro area Belgium Euros, Bancontact, CASH points, transit taps and tipping. Open guide Euro area Bulgaria Europe's newest euro wallet, old lev exchange, Sofia taps and tipping. Open guide Euro area Croatia Croatian euros, island ferries, coastal cash, toll gates and tipping. Open guide Euro area Cyprus Euro cash, Green Line currency changes, Motion buses and tipping. Open guide Euro area Estonia Map-stamped euros, digital payments, Tallinn transit, Baltic ferries and tipping. Open guide Euro area Finland Finnish euro stories, five-cent rounding, Helsinki zones, bottle deposits and tipping. Open guide Euro area France New French euro faces, cafe bills, Paris tickets, free-flow tolls and tipping. Open guide Euro area Germany German euro symbols, cash culture, Berlin validation, Pfand and tipping. Open guide Euro area Greece Greek coin stories, receipts, Athens tap-to-ride, island ferries and tipping. Open guide Euro area Ireland Irish harp coins, the sterling border, Leap travel, M50 tolls and tipping. Open guide Euro area Italy Pocket art, espresso payments, regional trains, ZTL cameras and the Italian table bill. Open guide De facto euro Kosovo Unilateral euro use, city cards, road cash, border declarations, currency rules and tipping. Open guide Euro area Latvia Folk-maiden euros, Riga's ticket clock, ten-cent returns, the Jūrmala gate and quiet tipping. Open guide Euro area Lithuania Vytis euros, five-cent cash rounding, Vilnius card taps, the road to Nida and Lithuanian tipping. Open guide Euro area Luxembourg Grand-ducal euros, the zero-euro network, border fares, regulated fuel and service-included bills. Open guide Euro area Malta Temple coins, two-hour bus tickets, Gozo's return gate, the EUR 1.50 nightly contribution and relaxed tipping. Open guide Euro agreement Monaco Royal euro coins, capped contactless buses, tax-free paperwork, casino planning and tipping. Open guide De facto euro Montenegro A de facto euro, coast-and-mountain payments, visitor registration, road money and tipping. Open guide Euro area Netherlands King's euros, PIN culture, OVpay, bottle deposits and relaxed tipping. Open guide Euro area Portugal Royal-seal euros, Multibanco, Lisbon transit, electronic tolls and tipping. Open guide Euro agreement San Marino Two euro coin series, overnight visitor discounts, mountain arrivals, passport stamp and tipping. Open guide Euro area Slovakia Mountain euros, Bratislava ticket clocks, e-vignettes, rescue cover and tipping. Open guide Euro area Slovenia Story-rich euros, Ljubljana's Urbana card, e-vignettes, mountain huts and gentle tipping. Open guide Euro area Spain Cathedral euros, card and ATM choices, city transport wallets, Camino cash and tipping. Open guide Euro agreement Vatican City Papal euro coins, official museum tickets, a free basilica, Vatican Post and zero-euro audiences. Open guide
The story behind the cash

Where is the euro used, exactly?

Meet the 21 EU members in the euro area, four countries with monetary agreements and two destinations that use the euro without one.

Read the full euro guide →