EUR
Euro
5
5
EUR banknote
5 EUR banknote · Classical gateway
About 5 dollars 40 cents
Portugal
travel money guide
Money in Portugal
Meet the euro with salt air and Portuguese ingenuity: royal seals in your coin pocket, an ATM that behaves like a civic counter, a fifty-cent key to Lisbon and toll roads that read the car before they charge it.
Portugal puts nine centuries of history on its coins, a miniature service desk inside the ATM and a toll account above the open road.
CurrencyEuro
Cash since2002
National ATM signMB / Multibanco
Lisbon travel keyEUR 0.50 Navegante card
Best setupCard + small euros
The quick answer
Should you carry cash in Portugal?
Bring one widely accepted card, a separate backup and EUR 40-80 in EUR 5, 10 and 20 notes. Cards cover most planned travel, while small euros keep cafes, markets, taxis and card-selective businesses uncomplicated.
Portugal is easy to pay through once you notice its local systems. Multibanco is a national payment network rather than a generic word for every ATM, Lisbon's occasional Navegante card can hold tickets or zapping credit, and some motorways collect tolls without a booth.
Read the logo before the terminalPortuguese merchants choose which card brands and card types to accept. The sign at the door or till matters more than the presence of a card machine.
Keep Lisbon's little green keyThe Navegante occasional card costs fifty cents, lasts a year and can be reloaded instead of discarded after one ride.
Choose the toll solution before the gantryAn electronic-only motorway has no booth where a foreign car can stop and pay. Link the plate to a valid method before using it.
Meet the EUR
Paper money
Euro notes follow an easy architectural colour ladder - grey €5, red €10, blue €20, orange €50, green €100 and yellow €200 - wherever you spend them in Europe.
EUR
Euro
10
10
EUR banknote
10 EUR banknote · Romanesque arch
About 11 dollars
EUR
Euro
20
20
EUR banknote
20 EUR banknote · Gothic windows
About 22 dollars
EUR
Euro
50
50
EUR banknote
50 EUR banknote · Renaissance window
About 54 dollars
EUR
Euro
100
100
EUR banknote
100 EUR banknote · Baroque gateway
About 108 dollars
EUR
Euro
200
200
EUR banknote
200 EUR banknote · Iron and glass
About 216 dollars
The euro banknote theme is imagined European architecture rather than real monuments: windows and gateways move from classical to modern styles, while bridges on the reverse suggest connection. Cash by Country artwork is an original, simplified interpretation and is not legal tender.
Shared currency guide One euro, many destinations See where the euro is used, what stays the same and why the coins change. Explore →
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Portugal travel money guides
Portugal makes familiar euros feel unexpectedly local. Follow three royal seals across the coins, step inside Multibanco, unlock Lisbon with a reusable card, prepare for roads without toll booths and leave a small obrigado only when it feels earned.
01 Three seals across eight values
Nine Centuries in Your Pocket
Turn over Portugal's euro coins to find three seals of Afonso Henriques, then look for castles and shields around the EUR 2 edge.
Break the royal seals 02 More than a cash machine
The Country Inside the ATM
Understand Multibanco, the national network that lets Portuguese cards withdraw, pay bills, transfer money and buy services.
Step inside Multibanco 03 A reusable key to Lisbon
The Fifty-Cent Key
Load tickets or zapping credit onto one Navegante occasional card and use it across Lisbon's participating transport operators.
Unlock Lisbon 04 The motorway has no cashier
The Road Reads the Plate
Choose EasyToll, TollCard or a compatible device before a foreign-registered car reaches an electronic-only motorway.
Prepare the number plate 05 Service is included, thanks are optional
A Little Obrigado
Handle restaurants, cafes and taxis with Portugal's modest 5-10% custom, without turning appreciation into a compulsory charge.
Tip the Portuguese way 04 One currency, many countries
Where Is the Euro Used?
Meet the euro-area members, agreement countries and de facto users, then see why the notes match while the coins can look local.
Explore the euro
Source desk
The Portugal source desk
Sources include the ECB, Banco de Portugal, Lisbon Metro, Portugal Tolls, Portuguese government and the national tourism board.