Home › Leftover currency
That handful of leftover foreign cash: don't let it rot in a drawer What to do with leftover foreign currency
Almost everyone who travels often has that handful of foreign currency in a drawer: a few notes, a pile of coins, shoved there the day they landed and never touched since. It doesn't vanish, but it quietly loses value, and the coins barely change back at all. The trick to dealing with it isn't to march the whole lot off to be converted. It's to treat it differently by amount, by currency, and by notes versus coins: find a way to change the big notes back, repurpose the small amounts and coins, and don't fuss over what isn't worth the bother.
On this page
- First, sort it into three piles by "amount + currency"
- Big notes: where to change back with the least loss
- Small amounts and coins: barely convertible, so what now
- Is keeping it for next time worth it
- A few ways to digitise or repurpose it
- How the options compare on value
- The moves that lose you the most
- When to just not bother
- Common questions
- What to read next
01First, sort it into three piles by "amount + currency"
Before you do anything, spread the foreign cash out and split it into three piles. Each pile takes a different route from here:
- Big notes in major currencies: dollars, euros, yen, pounds and the like, enough to be worth changing. This pile is worth converting properly.
- Small notes plus all coins: not worth changing back, and coins often nobody will take at all. Repurpose this pile or hold on to it.
- Obscure currencies / ones likely to lose value: a wide spread to change back, and possibly worth even less if you keep it. Try to spend this pile down on the ground, don't bring it home.
Sort those three piles and the plan sorts itself out. The most common mistake is hauling all three to an airport counter at once, where the big notes eat a wide spread and the coins get flatly refused.
02Big notes: where to change back with the least loss
Big notes in major currencies are the only pile genuinely worth "changing back". But even changing back has a cheap version and a dear one, and the core of it is still the spread, same logic as changing money on the way out, with the airport counter usually carrying the widest spread on the way home too.
The better move: once you're home, go to a proper bank or bureau to change it back, compare how far its board sits from the mid-market rate, and only change where the gap is small. Don't change back on a whim at the arrivals airport, that eats the spread on both the outbound and the return. If you regularly visit the same currency's region, the "keep it for next time" option below may beat changing back. How to use the mid as a ruler to judge whether a place is expensive is covered in more detail in the exchange-timing piece.
cash buy column on the board, the price at which it "buys" the foreign cash in your hand. It's usually lower than the buy rate for non-cash, because handling physical notes costs more. Spot that column first, then hold it against the mid-market rate, and if the gap is absurd, find another branch. Also watch for small print like minimum amount / whole notes only, since many places won't take odd small notes or coins at all.03Small amounts and coins: barely convertible, so what now
The brutal truth: coins barely change back, and changing small notes back isn't worth it either. Bureaux find coins costly to handle and thin on margin, so most simply won't take them. Small notes, even if accepted, fall short of the minimum amount or get whittled down to a sliver by the spread. Rather than pinning hopes on changing back, do this instead:
- Spend it down before you leave. This is the best handling for coins and small notes. Buy a bottle of water at the airport, grab a snack, top up a transit card, clear the change out.
- Drop it in the donation box. Many airports have charity change boxes. Coins you can't change back and can't spend are better donated than left to lose value in a drawer.
- Keep it as a keepsake or for next time. For a country you visit often, keep the coins to use directly next time; for one you rarely visit, treat them as a travel keepsake and stop fretting over their "value".
Hold on to this one rule and you'll start, late in a trip, to spend coins and small notes first on purpose, rather than hoarding a handful to bring home.
04Is keeping it for next time worth it
"Keep it for next time" sounds like skipping a round of exchange, but it depends on the case.
If it's a major, relatively stable currency and you'll most likely return within a year or two, keeping it really does beat changing it round and round, sparing you both the change-back and the change-out spreads. But if it's a currency prone to losing value, or you're not even sure when you'll next go, keeping it is a gamble: the currency depreciates, you forget where you put it, the notes get worn. Any of those can make it worth less the longer you hold it. A simple test: stable currency and a definite return, keep it; unstable or no plan, deal with it while it's still worth something.
05A few ways to digitise or repurpose it
Beyond changing back and keeping it, there are a few more routes to stop foreign cash "losing value in a drawer", depending on what's convenient for you:
- Keep it digital within the trip. Some multi-currency / travel cards let you leave an unspent balance on the card, ready to use directly in the same currency's region next time, sparing you from withdrawing cash you then can't finish. Whether you can and how it works is covered in the multi-currency-card piece, and follows each card's live official page.
- Hand it on / settle it internally. If someone you know is about to visit the same country, pass it to them at the mid-market rate. That's better value for both of you than an exchange counter.
- Spend it down to near zero on the ground. The most painless "handling" is really to spend cash down to a token amount at the tail of the trip, cutting the leftover off at the source. How much cash to carry so you don't end up with leftovers is covered in more detail in the cash-or-card piece.
06How the options compare on value
Lay those routes side by side so you can see at a glance what each suits.
| Option | Rough value | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Change back at a proper branch at home | Medium (watch the spread, not the airport) | Big notes in major currencies |
| Change back at an airport counter | Low (the worst spread) | Only when it's urgent and there's no alternative |
| Spend it down before leaving | High (no second spread) | Coins, small notes, depreciating currencies |
| Keep it for next time | Depends (only worth it for stable currencies) | A definite return, a stable currency |
| Leave a balance on a travel card | Medium-high (saves withdrawing, check card rules) | Travel-card users, frequent visits to the same region |
| Donation box / keepsake | Not for money, for not wasting it | Coins you can't change back or spend |
The value column above is a rough order-of-magnitude illustration; the specifics follow each bank, bureau and card issuer's live board and rules.
07The moves that lose you the most
- Hauling all three piles to an airport counter to change back: the big notes eat a wide spread, the coins get refused.
- Hoarding coins and small notes to bring home, hoping to change them later, only to find they won't convert, depreciate, or go missing.
- Leaving a depreciating, obscure currency untouched, worth less the longer it sits.
- Changing at the airport on both the way out and the way back, so the spread gets eaten twice.
- Keeping it all to bring home and fuss over later when you could have spent it down at the tail of the trip.
08When to just not bother
- You're left with only coins and odd small notes: a change-back will likely be refused or worthless, so spend it down before leaving or drop it in the donation box.
- The change-back board sits a long way off the mid: try another branch, or just keep it for next time (if the currency is stable).
- The amount is tiny to begin with, and the time and effort of a trip cost more than you'd get back: keep it as a keepsake and save the hassle.
- It's a depreciating, obscure currency and you've no plan to return: don't tell yourself "it'll come in handy later", deal with it while it's still worth something.
09Common questions
Can foreign coins be changed back?
Basically no. Bureaux find coins costly to handle, so most simply won't take them. The best moves are to spend them down before leaving, drop them in an airport charity box, or keep them for next time if you visit the country often.
Where's the best value to change leftover currency back at home?
At a proper bank or bureau, compare how far the change-back board (the cash-buy rate) sits from the mid-market rate, and only change where the gap is small. Don't change back on a whim at the arrivals airport, where the spread is usually worst.
Is keeping foreign currency for the next trip worth it?
It depends on the currency and your plans. A stable currency with a definite return within a year or two saves you two spreads. A depreciating one, or no plan to return, is better dealt with while it's still worth something.
How do I end up with less leftover currency in the first place?
Spend cash down to near zero on purpose at the tail of the trip, and don't change too much at the start. How much cash to carry so you don't end up with leftovers is covered in the cash-or-card piece.
10What to read next
If you travel many countries a year and are weighing the stablecoin path
For people who cross many currency zones, some use stablecoins to cut down on repeated exchanges and handling loose change, as one supplement alongside cash and cards. We don't decide for you. If you want to look into it, first understand the extra steps and risks it adds, then verify your account, the fees and whether your region is supported on the exchange's official page.
Once you understand, verify on the official pageUpdate note: First published 2026-06-19. The value ratings and handling suggestions here are illustrative aids to understanding; whether a currency can be changed back, the change-back board, and whether coins are accepted all follow each bank, bureau and card issuer's live rules.
Sources: publicly stated bank cash change-back boards and minimum-amount rules, issuers' multi-currency-card balance documentation, and the author's years of hoarding foreign change, getting burned, and working out how to handle it.