Lviv currency exchange – How to exchange money in Lviv

Finding a good Lviv currency exchange is an important matter when you visit the city. Although some companies accept foreign currencies as a payment in Lviv, the National Bank of Ukraine requires all transactions to be completed in Ukrainian Hryvnia (UAH) only. For this matter it is important to obtain UAH in the right places. In another article we have described already where you can withdraw money from an ATM without any extra fees from the Ukrainian banks, which can save you quite some money if you do this.

Lviv currency exchange – Where to exchange fair

Generally, all official currency exchanges in Ukraine have to have an official license and can never overcharge tourists. None of them require a fee and all are required to display their exchange rates publicly. In many cities, for example in Poland, currency exchanges are sometimes expensive. In Ukraine, it is not too bad. Exceptions can be especially the currency exchanges in Lviv airport and the money exchanges in Lviv train station. The fees there can be slightly higher than elsewhere.

Tips to exchange money in Lviv

In Lviv currency exchange scams are practically non-existent. We as a tour company meet many people on our Lviv Free Walking Tours but we haven’t really hard any stories about bad rip-offs in currency exchanges in Lviv. However it’s better to be safe than sorry, that’s why we recommend to keep a couple simple rules to avoid an overcharge.

• Don’t exchange at the airport or train station – The rates in both places are usually the highest in Lviv. That’s why we recommend to rather wait and exchange money in the center where you can find better exchange rates. If you still need money for a taxi in Lviv, then we can recommend to just exchange what you need for the first hours of your stay. We recommend to maybe get only 500 or 1000 UAH to get to the center and then exchange money on your first walk of Lviv.
• Compare the exchange rates – We always go to several exchanges or look when passing by and then usually remember where the best rate was. That can save you up to 50 Kopek (0.5 UAH) per Dollar. If you exchange 100 USD for example, it will save you 50 UAH, which is around 2 USD. That is already a piece of delicious Lviv Cheesecake in one of the great cafes in Lviv.
• Notice the price difference between Buy and Sell – When you go to exchange money, people usually only look at the exchange rates for Buying. That is a big mistake. Because looking at both actually tells you, if the currency exchange parlour is trying to rip you off. The smaller the difference between the two numbers, the more honest the currency exchange is. For an exchange from Euro to UAH we recommend to look for exchange offices where the exchange rate difference between the Buy and the Sell price is no bigger than 30 Kopek (0.3 UAH). Everything more than 50 Kopek (0.5 UAH) is expensive and you should not exchange there. For Dollars we can recommend about the same price difference or a bit lower (25 Kopek difference).
• Use an app to compare – There are many currency exchange apps that show you the current exchange rates from different currencies to one another. This gives you an additional way to check, whether the rate is good.
• Do not exchange with strangers – Some people might offer you to exchange money without an official exchange, but those guys probably won’t help you. You might want to ask locals that you have met already, if they are interested in exchanging. It’s technically not allowed but many Ukrainians go on holidays to Europe and other countries and therefore often need Euro, USD or Polish Zloty and therefore often have the same problem as you do.

If you follow those rules it should be very hard for you to get ripped off.

Good currency exchange places in Lviv that we use

We often help people find a good exchange for them to pay us and therefore by now know some really good exchange offices that give honest and good rates. Please check those to get a good deal. We will simply write the addresses as currency exchanges don’t usually have a name.

Lviv currency exchanges with fair rates near Rynok Square

• Rynok 12, inside the souvenir shop
• Ruska Street 3
• Currency exchanges on Rynok 24

Lviv currency exchanges with fair rates around Svobody Avenue

• Rabobank, Hnatyuka Street 16
• Currency exchange inside Kryva Lypa passage
• TAS Bank, Halytska Square 15