Finding a good place to exchange money in Nice was a little more work than I wanted it to be so I thought this guide might be helpful for others looking to do the same. I know that France is usually pretty good about taking credit cards, but there were two main reasons why I need the euros. First, I wanted to eat at Chez Pipo (so good btw!) and they only take cash. The second reason was that I was going to Monaco in a few days and I had to gamble at least once at the famous Monte Carlo Casino.
Why Not Exchange Your Money at a Bank?
Usually, I would pull out money from the ATM, but I knew I only needed a little amount so it wasn’t worth the foreign bank transaction fees. If I didn’t use the ATM, my next choice would be to exchange my dollars at a big bank to get the best rate but I heard France does not allow this. The only way to exchange your currency is through third-party exchange places that you see in all the touristy areas.
Where Can I Exchange Money in Nice Then?
So, for this research, I went to three different places to check out what the best rates were. At the time of my visit, the exchange rate was for every $1 USD, I should receive something around .86 euros. So, in other words, if I wanted to exchange $100, I would get approximately 86 euros.
Money Exchange #1: BNC Exchange Nice, 17 Av. Jean Médecin, 06000 Nice, France
I went to this place first because it had good Google reviews and it sounded like I would get the best rate. Once I got there though, I was surprised that the rate wasn’t as good as I was hoping for. I’m sure it’s better than the airport but I still didn’t think I would lose this much. For this location, for every $100 I exchanged, I would only get 80 euros! That means I would be losing 6 euros (~$7 USD) for every $100. Feeling disheartened, I decided to at least check out another exchange place.
Money Exchange #2: Comptoir Financier Arin Sauclières, 9 Av. Jean Médecin, 06000 Nice, France
This location is literally on the next block over. I quickly stepped inside to take a look at their exchange rates and unfortunately it also had a rate of 80 euros for every $100 USD. This was a bummer since I hate wasting money. I decided I was going to sleep on it and look for another place the next day.
Money Exchange #3: Change de la Piétonne, 2 Rue de France, 06000 Nice, France
This location is not on the main shopping strip of Av. Jean Médecin so I thought I would have a better chance at a better rate. The reviews on Google weren’t that good but it had mostly to do with wire transfer so I thought I would still go take a look. The exchange rate was actually a little better but not anything that I would be excited about. For every $100, they were willing to pay you 80.50 euros. So, I would get an extra .50 euros here than I would at the other two places.
I’ve come to the conclusion that you’re pretty much going to get a base rate of 80 euros for every $100 dollars. I decided to just exchange my money at the third place since I was already there and it had the best rate albeit, not by much. Again, if I didn’t have to go to these cash-only places, I wouldn’t bother exchanging my money at all.
Should I Exchange My Money in Nice or in Monaco?
Definitely exchange your money in Nice! There was a moment when I thought I would just change a little bit in Nice and exchange most of my money in Monaco, but I’m glad I didn’t. The rate in Monaco when I checked was 74.91 euros for every $100. You get even less money! You are now losing around 11 euros (~13 USD) per every $100 But if you HAVE to exchange it there, this is the place that I went to for reference.
Conclusion
I hope this helps you out a little bit on your travels. Again, most places in France and Monaco take credit cards. Just for my purposes, I knew I was going to a couple of cash-only places. If you have a debit card with no foreign transaction fees, that would be the best scenario. Unfortunately, after all these years, I still don’t have one, and not sure why I just don’t sign up for one. Laziness is my best guess lol. Also, if you need to find a place to get a COVID test while in Nice, I’ve listed some locations here. Happy travels!
