Currency and money of the Philippines

The currency of the Philippines is the peso (piso). It is denoted by the international symbol ₱, pronounced "piso". One peso consists of 100 centimos (formerly called centavos), but in practice it is rarely used, for tourists all prices are rounded to whole pesos or even tens. By the way, old centavo coins are also legally in circulation, which are equated to centimos. If you come across such a coin, it's better to keep it as a souvenir.

In circulation there are coins of 1, 5 and 10 pesos, and banknotes of 20, 50, 100, 200, 500 and 1000 pesos. When exchanging cash foreign currency, amounts are given in thousand peso bills, and this is a big problem, as there is usually no change in stores, cafes, and at entrance to attractions. Therefore, if possible, when exchanging, ask to be given small bills, i.e., say: "small bills" or "exchange".

Transactions are conducted in local currency, but in tourist places you can pay for goods and services with cash dollars, they are even indicated in price lists and on price tags. But the conversion rate when purchasing is often unfavorable for tourists, and the price is rounded up, so in any case payment in local money is more profitable and reliable.

In the Philippines, you can exchange many world currencies, at least: US dollar, euro, Thai baht, Malaysian ringgit, Hong Kong and Taiwan dollars, yuan and many others. But the most favorable rate for cash currency in the Philippines is for dollars, euros, and pounds, these are the best to take on a trip. Moreover, currencies other than the three listed can be exchanged far from everywhere.

As for the choice between dollar or euro, the dollar is better because the rate for it is more favorable and their exchange is more widespread. Moreover, in some cases, dollars can even be paid directly without exchange. On the other hand, if you already have euros in hand, then there is no need to change them for dollars at home, you will lose more on double conversion. Also, it should be taken into account that there is a difference for large and small bills. For example, in one exchange office the rate for 50 and 100 dollar bills is 51.61, and 50.50 for smaller ones. When exchanging 100 dollars in small bills you will lose 111 pesos (1.8 USD).

You can take Russian rubles to the Philippines perhaps only as a souvenir; you won't be able to exchange them.

You can exchange cash at airports, banks, authorized exchange offices, hotels. The most favorable rate can be found in authorized exchange offices in large shopping malls or tourist areas. We (the site authors) found the most favorable rate in exchange offices operating under the signs of money transfer and microcredit systems Lhuiller, Western Union, Forex. Exchanging currency in banks can be problematic because they may refuse service to non-clients of the bank.

Exchange at airports (except Manila airport) and hotels is not recommended, the rate is undervalued. For example, on one day the rate at Cebu airport was 47 pesos per dollar, while at exchange offices in the city it was 50.8 pesos, i.e., when exchanging 100 dollars you would lose 308 pesos (4.99 USD). The only exception to this is Manila airport, where the rate is quite decent, and if you are heading from Manila airport to small island resorts bypassing large cities, it is best to exchange all the necessary amount for the trip right here.

There are also private individuals who exchange at tourist areas or shopping malls at a favorable rate, but you need to be very careful with them so as not to fall for a "scam".

The operating hours of exchange offices at major airports are 24/7. At least in Manila and Cebu this is the case. Banks work until 4-5 pm, Saturday and Sunday are days off. Exchange offices operate on their own schedule, usually without days off and late, sometimes even 24/7.

In order to exchange currency legally (not from private individuals) at exchange offices or banks, you will need any identity document with a photo, even Russian driver's licenses are accepted. You will need to fill out a form, which includes the document data, as well as the denomination and serial numbers of the bills you are exchanging.

Cards "Mir", Mastercard and Visa from any Russian banks do not work at all in the Philippines due to sanctions.

As for Unionpay cards, in principle this payment system is present in the Philippines, but not as widely as Mastercard and Visa. That is, in principle, you can pay with Unionpay or withdraw money almost everywhere.

Among the large Russian banks, there is only one working option for Unionpay cards - this is RSKhB (Rosselkhozbank). There is also ATB, but it is not widely represented. All other Unionpay cards issued earlier, including Gazprombank, Russian Standard, Tinkoff, etc., no longer work.

If you have a card in rubles, then with each transaction there will be two conversions to recalculate the rate from pesos to yuan, and then from yuan to rubles, and accordingly more losses. Therefore, it is more profitable to open a card in yuan currency, and top it up at the bank's internal rate or even open a brokerage account and buy yuan there with a minimum commission, and withdraw to the card.

And don't forget about fees from the Russian bank for withdrawing cash at third-party ATMs. You can find out this information only in the detailed description of the tariff specifically for your card, and you also need to take into account connected options.

For example, at the moment (2026) for the most popular tariff "Your Card" in RSKhB, the fee at other ATMs will not be charged only if you had expenses on the card last month of more than 30,000 rubles. In other cases, the fee will be 3% of the amount and not less than 17 Chinese yuan for yuan cards, and 1% and not less than 199 for ruble cards. So study the tariffs specifically for your card and before each trip, as they can also be changed by banks unilaterally without personal notification.

Here is a comparison of Unionpay cards as of 2026:

GCash is an electronic wallet linked to a mobile phone number in the Philippines, something like an analogue of the familiar YooMoney (Yandex.Money) or Qiwi. GCash allows you to pay in Philippine stores using a QR code on your smartphone, pay for online purchases, pay for taxis. In addition to it, you can issue a physical GKard card, and then you can even withdraw money from the wallet or pay for purchases with the card in stores without internet.

GCash is opened for free through the GCash app (available for download in Appstore and GooglePlay), but to do this you first need to buy a local SIM card and connect internet to it. We talk in detail about local SIM cards here. The physical GKard card is issued optionally, costs 250-400 pesos.

This is a fairly convenient means of payment and is becoming increasingly popular among tourists, especially from Russia. Many people, hearing about this wallet, think that it will completely replace a bank card, since all Russian cards are blocked. However, you should not rush to apply for it. In our opinion, for short tourist trips up to one month it is not particularly needed or convenient, and it also comes with certain costs.

You will still have to top up GCash with cash, which you will first need to buy for dollars, euros or other currency (but not USD). So you will still have to bring cash currency from home, and still lose money on conversion. But if you have a cryptocurrency wallet, you can buy pesos online in the app, and this is perhaps its only convenience.

You should not store large amounts in this wallet, because it is not the same as a protected bank account. There have been cases where the wallet was simply blocked, and to unblock it you had to spend a lot of time. As a result, you may leave the country without spending the money in the wallet. Therefore, you will still have to travel with a wad of cash, and top up the wallet from time to time with small amounts.

You cannot withdraw already deposited money from the app; for this you will have to apply for a GKard card again for a fee. Card issuance and delivery takes up to 10 days, and this is another inconvenience for travelers, because you will then have to stay in one place and wait for its delivery.

So we advise you to carefully weigh everything and study it before applying for this fashionable, but in our opinion useless for tourists and travelers, means of payment.