Best Place to Exchange Money in Jeddah

Where to change money in Jeddah

Foreign cash is changed by banks and by exchange centres licensed by SAMA, the central bank, which makes every licensed centre offer the service. An unofficial airport guide names one exchange firm in the terminals, but with no second, independent source we name no business here.

• SAMA-licensed exchange centres across Jeddah - Show valid ID for anything under SAR 5,000. From SAR 5,000 to SAR 50,000 a visitor's passport is copied along with its entry stamp and visa details; bigger sums need a membership with the exchanger. The receipt must carry the firm's name, the rate, both amounts and when the deal was done.
• Banks - Amounts beyond the exchange centres' limits go to local banks. Branch hours, and whether non-customers are served, were not confirmed.

Changing money at the airport

King Abdulaziz International Airport's main building, Terminal 1, opened in 2019, and Arab News reported in June 2020 that all flights were moving there from the old south terminal. A shuttle bus links it with the North Terminal, so check your ticket. We could not open an official page naming exchange desks or ATMs there, so arrive with a working card.

Saudi airport taxis are green and licensed, with their own bays at the arrival halls, but no fare is published, so agree the price first. Saudi Gazette reported in February 2023 that an express bus run by the Jeddah Transport Company with SAPTCO links both terminals with the Corniche station in Al Balad, via Flamingo Mall, Prince Majed Street, for SR20, with tickets from airport sales points or the SAPTCO app; check it still runs.

ATMs and cards in Jeddah

Cards are the norm. Speaking to Arab News in October 2024, a Visa regional president said contactless had climbed from 4 per cent of Saudi in-person payments in 2017 to 98 per cent. A May 2025 Arab News report put electronic payments at 70 per cent of 2023 retail spending, naming Apple Pay, stc pay and Mada Pay as leading wallets.

Our sources do not prove that a UK Visa or Mastercard works at every till alongside the local mada debit network, so bring two cards and some riyals. No Saudi bank fee for foreign cards at cash machines was found, so check your own bank's charge. When a terminal offers pounds, stay with riyals: Which? says your card network, not the shop, then sets the rate.

Paying for transport in Jeddah

We found no city metro in service, so most visitors rely on taxis or the on-demand cars the airport advertises.

The Haramain high-speed railway has a station inside the airport's main terminal, open 06:30 to 00:30 daily, and a city station at Al-Sulimaniyah in An Nassim district, about 20 km away, open 07:30 to 23:30. Book on the railway's website or app, or at station ticket offices and machines; a full refund is due only if the railway cancels. We could not open the fare table, so check prices when booking, and check who may visit Makkah before choosing a destination.

Good to know

• Entry for British citizens, per the FCDO: a tourist eVisa (up to 90 days over a year, health insurance included), an ETA (electronic travel authorisation), or the online visa waiver sought 48 hours or more before flying. You need six months of passport validity on arrival.
• Around Hajj, the FCDO says non-pilgrims have been barred from flights into Jeddah and a Hajj visa may be needed to board, so check with your airline if your dates are close.
• The FCDO warns against travel only in the Yemen border area in the far south, but names Jeddah as one of several cities under a heightened threat to airports, ports and similar sites, so check its latest version before travelling.
• Al Balad, the old town, has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2014, known for coral-stone tower houses with wooden roshan balconies and souks that grew up around the pilgrims' harbour.