If you travel internationally and pay attention to your credit card statements, you might notice something odd. The same purchase in a foreign currency can show up as slightly different amounts depending on which card you use.
I’m not talking about the obvious reason — a card charging a foreign transaction fee. Even when two cards both advertise no foreign transaction fees, the final dollar amount for the same purchase can still be different.
That’s because the exchange rate used for the conversion usually isn’t determined by your bank, but by the payment network.
Who Actually Converts The Currency?
When you make a purchase abroad, several companies are involved in processing that transaction.
In most cases, the conversion from the local currency to U.S. dollars is performed by the card network, not the bank that issued your card.
The main networks are:
- Visa
- Mastercard
- American Express
- Discover
Each network publishes its own daily exchange rates based on wholesale currency markets. Because of this, a purchase converted through Visa may be slightly different from one processed through Mastercard or American Express.
In practice, the difference is usually tiny — often a fraction of a percent — but it’s enough that frequent travelers occasionally notice it.
You Can Check The Network Exchange Rates Yourself
Visa and Mastercard both provide tools where you can estimate how a foreign transaction will convert before it appears on your statement.
These calculators let you enter:
- The purchase currency
- The amount
- The transaction date
- Your card currency (USD)
The network then shows the estimated conversion amount.
These tools can be useful if you want to compare the exchange rates used by different networks or verify the amount that eventually appears on your statement. Just keep in mind that the final amount may differ slightly because the conversion is typically based on the processing date, which might be a day or two after the purchase.
Where Your Bank Comes In
After the network converts the currency, your bank may apply a foreign transaction fee. This fee is usually around 2–3% and is added by the card issuer, not the payment network. Many travel credit cards advertise that they have no foreign transaction fees. Even with those cards, however, the card network’s conversion rate still applies.
That’s why two cards with no foreign transaction fees can still show slightly different totals for the same purchase.
Why Timing Matters
Another factor that can affect the amount you see on your statement is timing.
When you swipe your card abroad, the transaction usually goes through several stages:
- Authorization (when the charge is approved)
- Settlement (when the merchant submits the charge)
- Processing by the card network
The exchange rate used for the conversion is typically the rate in effect when the transaction is processed. If the currency moves between the time you make the purchase and the time it settles, the amount may change slightly.
That’s why the pending amount you see immediately after a purchase might not exactly match the final posted amount.
The Bilt Card Controversy
This issue recently surfaced in a more noticeable way with the newer Bilt credit cards issued by Cardless.
Some cardholders noticed that foreign purchases on the new cards, which run on the Mastercard network, were posting at slightly higher amounts than expected — about 0.2% more.
Doctor of Credit originally suggested that the difference might be tied to a small currency conversion assessment charged by Mastercard.
Since then, View From The Wing reported that Bilt says it will refund any cardholders who paid a higher exchange rate than what the original Wells Fargo-issued Bilt cards would have charged.
The amount in question was small — about 20 cents on a $100 purchase — but it still drew attention because the cards are advertised as having no foreign transaction fees.
It’s also a good reminder that even when a card says it doesn’t charge foreign transaction fees, there are still several steps involved in converting a purchase from one currency to another.
Don’t Confuse This With Dynamic Currency Conversion
The small differences in exchange rates discussed above are not the same as something called Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC).
This is when a payment terminal abroad asks if you want to pay in U.S. dollars instead of the local currency. If you accept that option, the merchant or payment processor converts the charge instead of your card network — often at a much worse rate. In some cases, the markup can be several percent higher than the normal exchange rate.
That’s why the best practice when traveling internationally is to always Pay In Local Currency When Traveling Abroad
Final Thought
A foreign purchase may look simple on your credit card statement, but there’s a lot happening behind the scenes. The merchant charges you in local currency, the card network converts that amount into U.S. dollars, and your bank may or may not add a foreign transaction fee. On top of that, small differences in network rates or the timing of when a transaction is processed can slightly change the final amount that appears on your statement.
Most of the time, those differences amount to just a few cents and aren’t worth worrying about. But every once in a while, as the Bilt situation showed, those small discrepancies can reveal something much more interesting about how credit card payments are actually handled when you use your card abroad.
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