{"id":160593,"date":"2024-04-20T23:59:44","date_gmt":"2024-04-20T23:59:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/?p=160593"},"modified":"2026-04-08T13:55:45","modified_gmt":"2026-04-08T13:55:45","slug":"should-you-pay-foreign-transaction-fee","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/should-you-pay-foreign-transaction-fee\/","title":{"rendered":"Why I Intentionally Paid a Foreign Transaction Fee While Overseas"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Update: <a data-ccid=\"4048224\" href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/chase-ultimate-rewards\/freedom-flex\/\">Chase Freedom Flex\u2120<\/a> no longer earn 7% cashback on dining purchases. However, it might still make sense for you to use this card overseas if the <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/credit-cards\/chase-ultimate-rewards\/chase-freedom-categories\/\" rel=\"noopener\">current Chase Freedom<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> 5x categories<\/a> align with your international purchases.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Foreign transaction fees can be an obnoxious part of international travel. No one likes to pay an additional ~3% on every transaction just for using a credit card to pay a merchant located outside the United States. Thankfully, there are many <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/credit-cards\/no-foreign-transaction-fee\/\" rel=\"noopener\">cards with no foreign transaction fees<\/a> &#8212; and I have literally dozens such cards.<\/p>\n<p>But this week, I intentionally used a credit card that charged a 3% foreign transaction fee instead of one of the cards in my wallet with no foreign transaction fees. Here's the short story of why.<\/p>\n<div id=\"toc_container\" class=\"toc_light_blue no_bullets\"><p class=\"toc_title\">Page Contents<\/p><ul class=\"toc_list\"><li><a href=\"#What8217s_In_My_Wallet\">What's In My Wallet<\/a><ul><li><a href=\"#Everyday_spending_card_The_World_of_Hyatt_Credit_Card\">Everyday spending card: The World of Hyatt Credit Card<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#Travel_card_Ink_Business_Preferred_Credit_Card\">Travel card: Ink Business Preferred<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> Credit Card<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#Grocery_card_Citi_Strata_Premier_Card\">Grocery card: Citi Strata Premier<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> Card<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#Gas_Wyndham_Rewards_Earner_Business_Card\">Gas: Wyndham Rewards<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> Earner\u2120 Business Card<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#Dining_Chase_Freedom_Flex\">Dining: Chase Freedom Flex\u2120<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li><a href=\"#Why_I_Used_My_Freedom_Flex_Overseas\">Why I Used My Freedom Flex Overseas<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#Bottom_Line\">Bottom Line<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n\n<h2><span id=\"What8217s_In_My_Wallet\">What's In My Wallet<\/span><\/h2>\n<p>At the start of each quarter, I review the <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/credit-cards\/quarterly-bonus-categories\/\" rel=\"noopener\">cards with rotating bonus categories<\/a> to determine what should be in my everyday wallet along with my <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/credit-cards\/charles-schwab-debit-card\/\" rel=\"noopener\">Charles Schwab debit card<\/a>. Here's what made the cut for the April-June 2024 quarter.<\/p>\n<h3><span id=\"Everyday_spending_card_The_World_of_Hyatt_Credit_Card\">Everyday spending card: The World of Hyatt Credit Card<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Ideally, I'll be putting most of my everyday spending on a card where I'm trying to <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/credit-cards\/sign-up-bonus\/\" rel=\"noopener\">earn a welcome bonus<\/a>. As a backup, my wife and I spend on her <a data-ccid=\"4048116\" href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/world-of-hyatt\/chase-hyatt-card\/\">World of Hyatt Card<\/a> to work toward a <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/hotels\/world-of-hyatt\/hyatt-category-4\/\" rel=\"noopener\">Category 1-4 Hyatt free night<\/a> &#8212; plus six Hyatt Elite Night Credits &#8212; for spending $15,000 in a calendar year.<\/p>\n<h3><span id=\"Travel_card_Ink_Business_Preferred_Credit_Card\">Travel card: Ink Business Preferred<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> Credit Card<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>I've written an entire article about <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/credit-cards\/chase-ultimate-rewards\/chase-ink-preferred-benefits\/\" rel=\"noopener\">why the Ink Preferred is my go-to card for everyday travel purchases<\/a>. And since my wife and I <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/travel\/eight-years-as-digital-nomads\/\" rel=\"noopener\">travel the world nonstop as digital nomads<\/a>, we make quite a few travel purchases. Whether buying public transit or paying taxes and fees on award bookings, I always want this card nearby.<\/p>\n<h3><span id=\"Grocery_card_Citi_Strata_Premier_Card\">Grocery card: Citi Strata Premier<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> Card<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Although better known for its other bonus categories, I'm carrying the <a data-ccid=\"520083\" href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/citi-thankyou-rewards\/citi-strata-premier\/\">Citi Strata Premier<\/a> (<a data-ccid=\"520083\" href=\"https:\/\/click.linksynergy.com\/fs-bin\/click?id=a3pDkecFgAg&offerid=1978593.4328&type=3&subid=0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Rates & Fees<\/a>) as my grocery card from April 1 to June 30, 2024. However, it can be a great fallback for several other categories as the card earns 10X points per $1 on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked through CitiTravel.com; 3X points per $1 spent on air travel and other hotel purchases; and 3X points at gas stations, EV charging stations, restaurants, and supermarkets.<\/p>\n<p><div class=\"qs-card\" data-id=\"520083\">\n            <div class=\"qs-data\">\n                <div class=\"qs-view\">\n                    <div class=\"qs-cardname\">Citi Strata Premier<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> Card<\/div>\n                    <div class=\"qs-image\"><img src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nextinsure.com\/imaging\/opt\/11937075.png\" width=\"150\" alt=\"Citi Strata Premier\u00ae Card\" \/ class=\"lazyload\"><\/div>\n                    <div class=\"qs-apply\"><a class=\"qs-learn-more\" data-ccid=\"520083\" href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/citi-thankyou-rewards\/citi-strata-premier\/\">Learn More<\/a><\/div>\n                    <div class=\"qs-rates\"><span class=\"qs-terms\"><a data-ccid=\"520083\" href=\"https:\/\/click.linksynergy.com\/fs-bin\/click?id=a3pDkecFgAg&offerid=1978593.4328&type=3&subid=0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Rates & Fees<\/a><\/span><\/div>\n                    <div class=\"qs-offer\"><strong>Welcome Offer<\/strong>\r\nEarn 60,000 bonus ThankYou<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> Points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months of account opening, redeemable for $600 in gift cards or travel rewards at thankyou.com.<\/div>\n                <\/div>\n                <div class=\"qs-info\">\n                    <strong class=\"qs-cardname\">Citi Strata Premier<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> Card<\/strong>\n                    <div class=\"qs-offer\"><strong>Welcome Offer<\/strong>\r\nEarn 60,000 bonus ThankYou<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> Points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months of account opening, redeemable for $600 in gift cards or travel rewards at thankyou.com.<\/div>\n                    <div class=\"qs-fee\"><strong>Annual Fee:<\/strong><b>$95<\/b><\/div>\n                    <div class=\"qs-tabs\"><a class=\"qs-more\" href=\"#more\">Show more<\/a><a href=\"\" data-tab=\"wwl\">Why We Like It<\/a><a href=\"\" data-tab=\"hl\">Highlights<\/a><a href=\"\" data-tab=\"er\">Earning Rates<\/a><div class=\"qs-tab-wwl\">The Citi Strata Premier<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> Card offers some of the best earning rates of any rewards card with an annual fee under $100. This card offers excellent rewards on an unusually generous list of earning categories, including air travel, hotels, car rentals, groceries, and dining\u2014and it tops our list of the best cards for <a href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/best-credit-cards-for-gas\/\">gas & fuel purchases<\/a>. <\/div><div class=\"qs-tab-hl\"><ul><li>Earn 60,000 bonus ThankYou<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> Points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months of account opening, redeemable for $600 in gift cards or travel rewards at thankyou.com.<\/li><li>Earn 10 Points per $1 spent on Hotels, Car Rentals, and Attractions booked on CitiTravel.com. <\/li><li>Earn 3 Points per $1 on Air Travel and Other Hotel Purchases, at Restaurants, Supermarkets, Gas and EV Charging Stations. <\/li><li>Earn 1 Point per $1 spent on all other purchases.<\/li><li>$100 Annual Hotel Benefit: Once per calendar year, enjoy $100 off a single hotel stay of $500 or more (excluding taxes and fees) when booked through CitiTravel.com. Benefit applied instantly at time of booking. <\/li><li>No expiration and no limit to the amount of points you can earn with this card.<\/li><li>No Foreign Transaction Fees on purchases.<\/ul><\/div><div class=\"qs-tab-er\"><ul>\r\n<li>10X on Hotels, Car Rentals, and Attractions booked through CitiTravel.com<\/li>\r\n<li>3X \u2013 Earn 3 Points per $1 spent on Air Travel and Other Hotel Purchases<\/li>\r\n<li>3X \u2013 Earn 3 Points per $1 spent on Restaurants<\/li>\r\n<li>3X \u2013 Earn 3 Points per $1 spent on Supermarkets<\/li>\r\n<li>3X \u2013 Earn 3 Points per $1 spent on Gas and EV Charging Stations <\/li>\r\n<li>1X \u2013 Earn 1 Point per $1 spent on All Other Purchases<\/li>\r\n<\/ul><\/div><\/div>\n                <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n            <a class=\"qs-share\" href=\"\/find-a-card\/CitiPremier\/\" title=\"copy\"><svg width=\"12\" height=\"16\" viewBox=\"0 0 12 16\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><use href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/themes\/awardwallet\/public\/builds\/icon\/icon-sprite.svg?v2026-4-17fe2c9156#share-square\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/use><\/svg><\/a>\n        <\/div><\/p>\n<h3><span id=\"Gas_Wyndham_Rewards_Earner_Business_Card\">Gas: Wyndham Rewards<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> Earner\u2120 Business Card<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>The <a data-ccid=\"136\" href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/wyndham-rewards\/wyndham-business-credit-card\/\">Wyndham Earner Business Card<\/a> is the hands-down <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/credit-cards\/best-credit-cards-for-gas\/\" rel=\"noopener\">best credit card for gas<\/a>. This card earns a whopping 8X points on gas purchases, making it an easy go-to for gas purchases &#8212; whether that's in rental cars or the RV that my wife and I purchased during the pandemic and still live in between trips.<\/p>\n<h3><span id=\"Dining_Chase_Freedom_Flex\">Dining: Chase Freedom Flex\u2120<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>That's right. Despite still having the no-longer-available <a data-ccid=\"10\" href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/citi-thankyou-rewards\/citi-prestige\/\" =_blank>Citi Prestige<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> Card<\/a> &#8212; a $495 annual fee card that earns 5X Citi ThankYou points at restaurants &#8212; a $0-annual-fee card has taken the dining slot in my wallet from April-June 2024. That's because one of the <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/credit-cards\/chase-ultimate-rewards\/chase-freedom-categories\/\" rel=\"noopener\">5% Chase Freedom Flex&#8216;s rotating bonus categories<\/a> for Q2 2024 is dining.<\/p>\n<p>This bonus works a bit differently than others. That's because the <a data-ccid=\"4048224\" href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/chase-ultimate-rewards\/freedom-flex\/\" =_blank>Freedom Flex<\/a> already earns 3% on dining purchases. So, this bonus is applied as a 4% bonus, meaning the Freedom Flex earns a whopping <strong>7% cash back on dining purchases<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><img data-aspectratio=\"750\/348\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-160960 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Chase-Freedom-Flex-7-cashback-earning-on-dining-300x139.png\" alt=\"Screenshot of Chase Freedom Flex activity showing 7% earning rate on dining purchases\" width=\"750\" height=\"348\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Chase-Freedom-Flex-7-cashback-earning-on-dining-300x139.png 300w, https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Chase-Freedom-Flex-7-cashback-earning-on-dining-1024x475.png 1024w, https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Chase-Freedom-Flex-7-cashback-earning-on-dining-768x356.png 768w, https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Chase-Freedom-Flex-7-cashback-earning-on-dining-1536x712.png 1536w, https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Chase-Freedom-Flex-7-cashback-earning-on-dining.png 1672w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Even better, since I have the <a data-ccid=\"2061159\" href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/chase-ultimate-rewards\/chase-sapphire-preferred\/\">Chase Sapphire Preferred<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> Card<\/a>, I can <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/credit-cards\/chase-ultimate-rewards\/how-to-combine-chase-points\/\" rel=\"noopener\">combine points between my Chase accounts<\/a> to effectively earn <strong>7X Ultimate Rewards points on dining purchases<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Also, you might see where this is going&#8230; The <a data-ccid=\"4048224\" href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/chase-ultimate-rewards\/freedom-flex\/\" =_blank>Freedom Flex<\/a> charges a foreign transaction fee of 3% of each transaction in U.S. dollars.<\/p>\n<h2><span id=\"Why_I_Used_My_Freedom_Flex_Overseas\">Why I Used My Freedom Flex Overseas<\/span><\/h2>\n<p>When it was time to make my first restaurant purchase after arriving in Europe, I looked in my wallet to find just two cards that earned more than 1X points:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a data-ccid=\"4048224\" href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/chase-ultimate-rewards\/freedom-flex\/\" =_blank>Freedom Flex<\/a>: 7% on dining during Q2 2024<\/li>\n<li><a data-ccid=\"520083\" href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/citi-thankyou-rewards\/citi-strata-premier\/\">Citi Strata Premier<\/a>: 3X points on dining<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If it were simply a choice between 4% net cash back (7% earning less 3% foreign transaction fee) vs. 3X ThankYou<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> Points, the <a data-ccid=\"520083\" href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/citi-thankyou-rewards\/citi-strata-premier\/\">Citi Strata Premier<\/a> would be the clear winner. After all, <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/credit-cards\/citi-thankyou-rewards\/\" rel=\"noopener\">Citi ThankYou points<\/a> have provided 2.3\u00a2 per point in value in recent AwardWallet user redemptions.<\/p>\n<p>However, since I have the <a data-ccid=\"2061159\" href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/chase-ultimate-rewards\/chase-sapphire-preferred\/\">Sapphire Preferred<\/a>, the 7% cash back earnings can be converted to 7X <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/credit-cards\/chase-ultimate-rewards\/\" rel=\"noopener\">Chase Ultimate Rewards<\/a> points. And Chase points have been redeemed for an average 2.01\u00a2 per point in recent AwardWallet user redemptions.<\/p>\n<p>Even after factoring in the 3% foreign transaction fee, the net earnings of using the <a data-ccid=\"4048224\" href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/chase-ultimate-rewards\/freedom-flex\/\" =_blank>Freedom Flex<\/a> beat the potential earnings of using the <a data-ccid=\"520083\" href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/citi-thankyou-rewards\/citi-strata-premier\/\">Citi Strata Premier<\/a> &#8212; at least this quarter.<\/p>\n<p>So, that's why I pulled out the <a data-ccid=\"4048224\" href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/credit-cards\/chase-ultimate-rewards\/freedom-flex\/\" =_blank>Freedom Flex<\/a> to pay for an authentic Japanese ramen dinner in Barcelona:<\/p>\n<p><img data-aspectratio=\"750\/335\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-160975 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Chase-Freedom-Flex-purchase-earning-example-300x134.png\" alt=\"Screenshot showing earnings on Chase Freedom Flex card at a restaurant\" width=\"750\" height=\"335\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Chase-Freedom-Flex-purchase-earning-example-300x134.png 300w, https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Chase-Freedom-Flex-purchase-earning-example-1024x458.png 1024w, https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Chase-Freedom-Flex-purchase-earning-example-768x344.png 768w, https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Chase-Freedom-Flex-purchase-earning-example.png 1129w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2><span id=\"Bottom_Line\">Bottom Line<\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Paying foreign transaction fees never makes sense \u2014 or at least that's what I thought before encountering this situation. I never thought I'd intentionally use a card that charges a foreign transaction fee when I had access to several cards that don't charge this fee. But it seems I stumbled into the rare case when the net earnings were so good that it actually made sense to pay this fee.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Foreign transaction fees can be an obnoxious part of international travel. No one likes to pay an additional ~3% on every transaction just for using a credit card outside the United States. But this week, I intentionally used a credit card that charged a foreign transaction fee instead of one of the cards in my wallet with no foreign transaction fees. Here&#8217;s the story why.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":53,"featured_media":107227,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_wpscppro_dont_share_socialmedia":null,"_wpscppro_custom_social_share_image":0,"_facebook_share_type":"default","_twitter_share_type":"default","_linkedin_share_type":"default","_pinterest_share_type":"default","_linkedin_share_type_page":"","_instagram_share_type":"default","_medium_share_type":"default","_threads_share_type":"","_google_business_share_type":"","_selected_social_profile":[],"_wpsp_enable_custom_social_template":false,"_wpsp_social_scheduling":{"enabled":false,"datetime":null,"platforms":[],"status":"template_only","dateOption":"today","timeOption":"now","customDays":"","customHours":"","customDate":"","customTime":"","schedulingType":"absolute"},"_wpsp_active_default_template":true},"categories":[12054],"tags":[12621],"coauthors":[36387],"class_list":["post-160593","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tips","tag-earning-strategy"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/160593","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/53"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=160593"}],"version-history":[{"count":38,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/160593\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":245674,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/160593\/revisions\/245674"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/107227"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=160593"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=160593"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=160593"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=160593"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}