Cash or card in the Baltics?

All three Baltic states are in the eurozone. Estonia joined in 2011, Latvia in 2014 and Lithuania in 2015. There is no currency change when you cross a border, no exchange to think about, and no leftover notes at the end.

This is worth saying because plenty of travel writing still refers to the lats or the litas. Those currencies have been gone for over a decade. If a website quotes you prices in them, it has not been updated this decade either.

Poland is the exception in this part of the world and keeps the zloty, so a Baltic trip that continues to Kraków or Warsaw does involve one currency change. Finland is in the euro, so a Helsinki day from Tallinn does not.

Very far. Contactless is standard in cafes, shops, museums, taxis, city transport and petrol stations, and there is no meaningful minimum spend culture. A two-euro coffee on a card is completely ordinary here in a way it still is not in parts of Germany or Italy.

Estonia is the extreme case. It is genuinely possible to spend a week in Tallinn without touching a note. Latvia and Lithuania are only slightly behind, and any business in a capital city that cannot take a card is unusual enough to be a small surprise.

Apple Pay and Google Pay work throughout. American Express is accepted far less widely than Visa and Mastercard, so bring one of those two as your main card.

Farmers' markets and the market halls. Riga Central Market, Vilnius Halles and the Tallinn market stalls have plenty of card terminals now, but the producer selling honey, smoked fish or amber from a folding table often does not.

Small rural shops and village petrol pumps. Roadside berry and mushroom sellers, which are a genuine feature of an August drive. Some public toilets, which take fifty-cent coins. Parking machines in smaller towns. Church donation boxes and candle stands. The occasional guesthouse in the countryside.

Twenty to fifty euros in small notes covers all of it for a week. Break a fifty early at a supermarket rather than trying to hand one to a market stall.

First, use a bank's own ATM. Swedbank, SEB, Luminor and Citadele machines are everywhere in the capitals and charge normal fees or none. The standalone yellow-and-blue machines that cluster in old-town tourist streets are operated by independent networks and charge considerably more, on top of a poor exchange rate.

Second, always decline dynamic currency conversion. When the screen offers to bill you in pounds or dollars rather than euros, and helpfully shows you the rate, that rate is worse than your own bank's. Choose to be charged in euros. This applies to card terminals in shops and restaurants too, not just ATMs.

Those two habits are worth more than any amount of shopping around, and they apply everywhere in the eurozone.

Tipping is not obligatory and service staff are paid a wage rather than living on tips. Nobody will chase you down the street.

In practice: in a restaurant where you had a proper meal and the service was good, round up or leave around ten percent. In a cafe or a bar, rounding up is plenty. In a taxi or a ride-hailing app, rounding up is normal and nothing more is expected. For a private guide or driver on a full day, ten percent is a generous and welcome gesture rather than an expectation.

A service charge is very rarely added automatically. If you see one on the bill, which happens occasionally with large groups, no further tip is needed. Tips left in cash reach the person more reliably than tips added to a card.

The Baltics are noticeably cheaper than Scandinavia and broadly comparable to Poland or Portugal, with Tallinn and central Riga the most expensive corners and Lithuania the best value overall.

Rough current figures: a coffee three to four euros, a beer four to six in a capital-city bar, a cafe lunch nine to fourteen, a good dinner twenty-five to forty a head with a drink, a city transport ticket one to two euros, a museum six to fifteen.

Prices in the capitals have risen sharply since 2021 and the region is no longer the bargain it was a decade ago. It is still, by a clear margin, the cheapest good-quality corner of northern Europe.

What currency do the Baltic states use?

All three use the euro. Estonia adopted it in 2011, Latvia in 2014 and Lithuania in 2015. There is no currency change when crossing between them.

Do I need cash in the Baltics?

Very little. Cards work almost everywhere, including for small amounts. Carry twenty to fifty euros in notes for farmers' markets, rural shops, parking machines, public toilets and roadside stalls.

Are credit cards widely accepted in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia?

Yes, close to universally, with contactless standard. Visa and Mastercard are accepted everywhere; American Express far less so. Apple Pay and Google Pay both work.

Which ATMs should I use in the Baltics?

Use a bank's own machine: Swedbank, SEB, Luminor or Citadele. Avoid the independent standalone ATMs that cluster in old-town tourist streets, which charge higher fees and a worse rate.

Should I let the ATM charge me in my home currency?

No. Always choose to be charged in euros. The conversion the machine offers, called dynamic currency conversion, is always worse than your own bank's rate. The same applies to card terminals in shops and restaurants.

How much should you tip in the Baltics?

Tipping is not obligatory. Round up in cafes and taxis, and leave around ten percent for good restaurant service. A service charge is rarely added automatically. Cash tips reach staff more reliably than card tips.

Are the Baltics expensive?

Not by northern European standards. They are far cheaper than Scandinavia and broadly comparable to Poland or Portugal, though capital-city prices have risen a lot since 2021. Lithuania is the best value of the three.

• European Commission: EU countries and the euro
• Art Museum of Estonia: ticket prices
• JUDU: Vilnius ticket types and prices
• Rīgas satiksme: time ticket prices
• Visit Tallinn: public transport tickets
• Eurostat: comparative price levels of consumer goods and services

• What a Baltic trip costs per day
• What a private Baltic tour costs
• Do they speak English in the Baltics?
• Plan a custom trip