Thread: How much does Mastercard charge for international purchases?

Does Mastercard charge for international purchases the same for everyone or is it different depending on the bank its from? My nephew in Canada says they are charged a flat 1% conversion fee when he uses his in the USA but I recall paying higher than that when using mine internationally?

The fee for transactions denominated in foreign currency is set by the bank issuing the card, not MC/Visa, etc.

As far as I know, the only issuer that does not assess such a fee is CapitalOne. However, this may have changed. I keep a CapOne card specifically for transactions that I suspect might be subject to such a fee, but I haven't used it in a while.

I think some banks probably charge more for foreign transactions than others, and this probably can vary among the card "levels" (e.g., platinum, signature, world, etc.), too, but I don't know for sure.

Thanks for clearing that up. The international fees seem to be higher than they once were. I could swear that in the nineties I would pay 1% for the conversion. If Capital One doesn't charge I woud certainly be interested in applying with them.