Money, cards and tipping

The currency is the Turkish lira (TRY, written "TL" or ₺). Prices move, so treat every figure you read — here or anywhere — as approximate.

Cards work almost everywhere

Contactless card and phone payments are the norm in Istanbul: restaurants, cafés, supermarkets, museums, most taxis, and even many small shops. You can spend a whole trip barely touching cash.

Where you still want cash: small bazaar stalls, street vendors, some ferry-side simit sellers, tips, and mosque donation boxes.

Always choose to be charged in Turkish lira. When a card machine or an ATM offers to bill you in your own currency, that is dynamic currency conversion and the rate is poor. Decline it. Your own bank's rate will nearly always be better.

ATMs and exchange offices

ATMs ("ATM" or "bankamatik") are everywhere. Use machines attached to a bank branch rather than standalone ones in tourist streets. Turkish banks may charge a withdrawal fee — approximate, but it can be a noticeable fixed amount per withdrawal — so take out larger amounts less often, and check what your home bank adds.

Exchange offices ("döviz") often beat banks and hotels on the rate, and the good ones charge no commission. Look for:

• A clearly displayed buy/sell board.
• No commission (ask: "komisyon var mı?" = is there a commission?).
• A quiet commercial street rather than the middle of a tourist strip. The offices around Grand Bazaar's Nuruosmaniye side and in Sirkeci have a long-standing reputation for competitive rates.

Count what you receive at the counter before you leave, and ask for the final amount before you hand over your money.

Hotel exchange desks and airport counters are convenient and expensive. Change a small amount at the airport if you need it, and the rest in the city.

Tipping

Tipping in Turkey is real but modest. Nobody will chase you down the street.

Situation	Usual
Restaurant, decent service	5–10 percent
Casual café or lokanta	round up, or leave the coins
Taxi	round up to the nearest convenient amount
Hotel porter	a small note per bag
Housekeeping	a small note per day, left in the room
Hairdresser, hammam attendant	roughly 10 percent
Guide or driver on a full-day tour	at your discretion; a note per person is common

Check the bill: some restaurants add a service charge ("servis ücreti"). If it is there, extra is optional. Tips left on the card do not always reach the staff, so cash is kinder.

Haggling: where and where not

Expected: the Grand Bazaar, the Spice Bazaar, souvenir and carpet shops, street markets. Ask the price, take your time, be friendly, and be willing to walk away — that is the whole technique. Remember the Grand Bazaar is closed on Sundays.

Not expected: restaurants and cafés, supermarkets and chain stores, pharmacies, museums, taxis (the meter is the price), and anything with a printed price tag. Trying to bargain there is simply awkward.

Small practicalities

• Keep a mix of small notes; taxi drivers and market stalls often "have no change" for a large one.
• Many places show prices without the lira sign. If a number looks impossibly low or high, ask.
• The perks section in the app lists partner restaurants and shops with a discount for card holders — worth a look before you book dinner.