How to use the YouTrip card in Malaysia

If you’ve got a YouTrip card¹ you may be wondering how to use YouTrip in Malaysia, for easy spending and withdrawals in ringgit. This guide covers what you need to know, including the YouTrip Malaysia ringgit exchange rate, and fees you may encounter while you’re away.

We’ll also cover an alternative to using YouTrip in Malaysia - the Wise card.

With Wise you can top up in SGD, and then convert and hold MYR in your account, using the Google exchange rate - to lock in the rate when it’s good, or plan your Malaysian holiday budget in advance.⁷

Can I use Youtrip in Malaysia?

You can use YouTrip to spend and make withdrawals in Malaysia. However, you can’t hold a balance in ringgit on your YouTrip card². This means that your SGD balance - or the balance of any other supported currency you might hold - will be converted to ringgit at the time you make a purchase or withdrawal.

This can make it a bit trickier to keep on top of your budget, as you won’t be able to easily see in advance exactly how much you have in MYR before your trip.

Pay merchants anywhere Mastercard is accepted

YouTrip cards are issued on the Mastercard network, which is widely accepted around the world. To use YouTrip in Malaysia, just look out for the Mastercard logo when you’re shopping - usually displayed next to the checkout. Or, simply ask the merchant if Mastercard is accepted before you pay.

Youtrip Ringgit exchange rate in Malaysia

As we mentioned, you can’t hold a balance in MYR on your YouTrip card. This means that the YouTrip Malaysia rate you get will be the live exchange rate at the time your payment or withdrawal is processed³.

YouTrip uses very fair exchange rates - based on the wholesale rate you can find on Google or using the Mastercard currency converter⁴.

This means you should get a good deal on your YouTrip MYR spending - you just won’t necessarily be able to see in advance exactly what rate is being used, as the applicable exchange rate is likely to be the one at the time of processing - which can be a day or so after you actually initiate a transaction. At worst, YouTrip states it can be up to 8 days until your payment is processed⁵.

Withdraw Ringgit from local ATMs

You’ll also be able to make cash withdrawals in ATMs in Malaysia with your YouTrip card. If you do this, there will be a 5 SGD⁶ or equivalent fee from YouTrip, plus any applicable fees from the ATM operator. You’ll get the Mastercard exchange rate as you would when making a purchase - and can take out up to 5,000 SGD a day if you need to.

Don’t forget, though - you can’t take cash out in Singapore.

Avoid DCC

One important thing to watch out for when you withdraw or spend in a foreign currency with your YouTrip card - or any other payment card for that matter - is DCC. DCC stands for Dynamic Currency Conversion, and it’s where you’re asked in a merchant or when making a withdrawal if you’d rather pay in your home currency or the local currency wherever you are.

DCC is positioned as a service, as you’ll be able to easily see the cost of your purchase in your home currency, without needing to convert it. However, in reality, when you choose DCC you get the exchange rate the merchant selects, plus extra fees. That means it costs far more than it would do if you chose to pay in the local currency instead.

Multi-currency card alternative to use in Malaysia - Wise card

As an alternative to YouTrip in Malaysia, check out the Wise card.

Open a Wise account online or in the Wise app, and order your Wise card for a one time fee of 9 SGD.

You’ll be able to add funds to your Wise account in SGD and convert to MYR in advance so you’ll be able to see exactly what your budget is in ringgit for your upcoming trip. Or, switch over the MYR when you spot a good rate - Wise always uses the Google exchange rate to convert funds, with low exchange fees from 0.43%.

Finally, if you’d rather not convert in advance of travel, just let the Wise card do the conversion for you. You’ll get the great rate Wise is known for, with the lowest possible fee.

In addition:

• With Wise you’ll get up to 10 sets of local bank details, including MYR, USD, AUD, SGD, etc. So you can also receive money like a local whenever you need to
• With Wise you’ll be able to make some free ATM withdrawals every month, with low, transparent fees after that. “Wise will not charge you for these withdrawals, but some additional charges may occur from independent ATM networks."
• You can hold 40+ currencies, so Wise is here for almost all your remittance needs
• Wise accounts are available to customers based almost anywhere in the world. So just apply wherever you are, using your normal proof of ID, and you’re good to go

Here’s a quick head to head comparison of the YouTrip card vs the Wise card:

Looking for more on how YouTrip compares against some other great providers? There’s also a head to head of Revolut vs YouTrip here.

Pricing/fees: Please see Terms of Use for your region or visit Wise Fees & Pricing for the most up to date pricing and fee information

No matter what you plan to do in Malaysia, you want to get the best available exchange rates and the lowest possible fees when you convert your dollars to ringgit. This guide covers all you need to get started - including the YouTrip ringgit rates and fees, and an alternative you can compare - the Wise card. Enjoy your trip!

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