Compare Jamaican Dollar Exchange Rates in Jamaica

Getting Jamaican dollars for your trip to Jamaica

Jamaica's currency is the Jamaican dollar, and cambios (bureaux de change) need a licence from the central bank, the Bank of Jamaica. According to the tourist board, every resort area has both licensed cambios and banks, and official rates shift from day to day, so it pays to compare.

In MoneySavingExpert's worked example, changing cash at an airport without ordering ahead is the costliest of the routes it prices. Most visitors therefore take a modest sum from a bank cash machine on arrival, or change notes at a licensed cambio, and pay larger bills by card.

The west of the island is still recovering from Hurricane Melissa. The FCDO says every western parish was badly damaged and some communities remain without electricity or piped water, and after the storm NCB reported machines affected by power cuts and poor connections. Carry some cash as a back-up in case the nearest machine is down.

Best ways to pay in Jamaica

Fee-free debit cards

Which? says that abroad you will usually pay both a non-sterling charge and a cash charge, sometimes plus cashpoint fees, so choose a card that waives them and withdraw larger sums less often.

Credit cards

Best kept for purchases where there is a terminal, such as restaurants and Knutsford Express coach tickets (Visa, Mastercard and Discover). The tourist board notes that banks give cash advances on credit cards, but check your issuer's charges first.

Cash machines

The tourist board says most machines accept foreign cards bearing the Visa, Mastercard, Cirrus or Plus logo. Choose machines at bank branches.

US dollars

The tourist board's currency page does not say whether US dollars are taken. Where a business quotes in dollars, ask for the Jamaican-dollar price and compare.

Using cards in Jamaica

Card machines are common in restaurants, and the Jamaica Observer (2023) found that most now offer a digital tipping prompt.

• Restaurants with card terminals, which often prompt for a tip
• Knutsford Express coach tickets, online or at its offices
• Bank branches and their cash machines
• Cambios, for changing cash only

Tips

• Pay in Jamaican dollars: If a terminal offers your bill in pounds, decline: Which? says the shop then sets the rate, and MoneySavingExpert says to pick the local currency.

ATMs in Jamaica

The Jamaican bank fee guides we read are aimed at their own account holders. Scotiabank Jamaica's, from 1 June 2026, shows JMD 60 for its customers' withdrawals at another bank's machine, and none gives a figure for a card issued in the UK. NCB, whose machine list covers much of Montego Bay, said it still had more than 200 machines working across the island in November 2025.

Cash machines to use

• Machines at bank branches, which Which? prefers to stand-alone ones
• Daylight withdrawals, as the FCDO advises

Cash machines to think twice about

• Stand-alone machines that add extra premiums
• Badly lit machines, and big withdrawals in one go

Read the fee on the screen before you accept, and ask your own bank what it adds. MoneySavingExpert cautions that cash machines overseas may levy fees of their own, whatever card you use.

Changing money in Jamaica

Use a cambio on the Bank of Jamaica's register (41 operators at 131 sites as at 30 September 2026), and compare boards at two or three before you hand over cash. At Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay, exchange offices in the arrivals, ticketing and departures areas keep the airport's hours, but this is seldom the cheapest place to change. Banks change travellers cheques, the tourist board says; we could not confirm that branches change notes for non-customers.

Arrivals carrying US$10,000 or more in cash or travellers cheques must declare it on the C5 customs form, says the FCDO, which warns that money not declared may be seized and you may be fined. Arrival and departure taxes are normally part of your ticket price.

Tipping in Jamaica

The Jamaica Observer (2023) reports that some restaurants add a compulsory service charge, so check the bill before adding a tip, and look closely at any tip prompt on the card machine.