How does the currency exchange work in Cuba in 2024? CUP and MLC

How can it be that in a country, some establishments do not accept their own currency?

This question is just one of the questions that demonstrate that the issue of Money in Cuba is a very complex issue.

For those of us who travel, the issue of money is very important. It is necessary to know the local currency and the main tips so that our money goes as far as possible.

After traveling to Cuba we have discovered that it is a topic that even Cubans themselves find difficult to understand.

So much so that it is not easy to answer key questions such as… How much is the change in Cuba? Is it expensive to travel to Cuba?

Depending on the change you make in a trip to cuba It can be expensive or cheap, things can cost you up to 4 times more.

But the issue of money is closely linked to the country's economy and the general situation of Cuba.

Before we leave you some practical articles that can also help you on your trip.

• Guide to traveling to Cuba
• 14 Cities to see in Cuba
• How to have internet in Cuba?
• What to see in Havana
• What to see in Trinidad

Now let's go with the great madness of the money that exists in Cuba

What is the currency used in Cuba?

Understanding how money is functional in Cuba is like making a puzzle in which the economy, politics and the day-to-day situation in the country are mixed.

We have done a 15 day trip traveling the entire island and it took us many days to understand it well.

We are going to give you a summary trying to tell it in the simplest way we can, so that if you are thinking travel to Cuba have everything very clear.

Currency of Cuba, Cuban peso CUP

Ok, the first thing you need to know is what currency is used in Cuba, and here the madness begins, because in Cuba there is not 1 currency but 2.

And this is something that greatly complicates the lives of Cubans and to a certain extent that of tourists.

Although to be honest, the problem is much bigger for the Cuban who lives on the island than for the tourist.

The local currency is the so-called CUP, known as the Cuban peso. It is the daily currency of the people, of Cubans, and with which daily life takes place.

Tourists in most cases use the currency, except in some places where the state requires the use of a credit card.

And although When paying by credit card the charge is in CUP, in practice it is much more complex than that.

But we will clarify that later, for now stay with the fact that the local currency is the so-called CUP

MLC (Freely Convertible Currency) in Cuba

On the other hand is the MLC (freely convertible currency), a currency that replaced in 2021 to the old CUC (Cuban convertible peso).

It is a currency fixed at the price of the dollar 1/1, one MLC is equivalent to 1 dollar.

It is a virtual currency with which you can buy certain products.

It is not physical, it is not printed and it is used through wallet cards, which are recharged and when they arrive at the airport they offer it to all tourists.

Mainly it is possible to obtain MLC If you arrive with euros, Canadian dollars, pounds and some other main currencies such as the Japanese yen.

And here comes the first advice if you travel to Cuba, do not change your currency to MLC, for tourists it is absurd to have it, because what you would pay with MLC, we tourists can also pay with credit cards, as long as they are not American cards.

How much is the change in Cuba?

Once we know that there are two currencies and that in reality the most used currency and with which the local economy moves is the CUPWhat you need to know is how much the exchange rate is in Cuba.

This is where the madness begins.

When we asked what the conversion to the euro was, the answer was, It depends. How does it depend?

In the exchange houses called cadecas, the change has a price that is the official one and is the same one they give you in hotels.

But that change is not fixed to anything, it is a standard change that is not based on any pattern.
It is not a question of global supply and demand as the rest of the world's currencies work.

Currencies normally work with supply and demand, if all the people who have dollars, for example, want to buy euros, the euro rises in value and the dollar falls. Well, that doesn't work like that here.
The state makes an official change that is not based on anything and don't talk anymore.

In fact The exchange can only be made in one direction, exchanging euros for CUP, but not the other way around.. The banks or cadecas are not going to give you Euros if you arrive with CUP.

That is why you have to change what you are going to need and if you need it, change more, it is better to fall short than go overboard.

Change in the black market

This has generated a black market in Cuba and terrible inflation.

In February 2022 the exchange rate on the street was 1 euro 100 CUP and only a year later it is more than 200 CUP for every euro and almost two years later it is close to 300 CUP per Euro.

How is there such a need to have foreign currencies, everyone wants to exchange them, from restaurant employees, hotel employees, guides...

Cubans need euros to be able to get MLC to buy things, but we will explain that to you later.

Why are there two currencies in Cuba?

Of course, then the first question that comes to mind is what is the point of having two coins?

With the daily local currency, CUP, you cannot buy whatever you want in the country.

Here the political and economic problems of Cuba are mixed.

That local currency (CUP) Other countries do not accept it due to the blockade that the island suffers.

Therefore, its use is limited to everyday life and with nuances.

Since you cannot use your currency outside of Cuban territory, you need another currency to be able to buy things in other countries.

Cuba It produces a certain number of things, but those that do not, it needs to buy abroad, and for that it needs foreign currency.

That is why the MLC, I remind you that their value is fixed to the dollar and they can only be obtained by exchanging them with foreign currencies and curiously with many currencies except the dollar itself.

It is prohibited to use the dollar in Cuba

In practice, the MLC is simply a way for the state to collect currencies from other countries with which to buy abroad..

Thus the state is getting euros to buy things from other countries and in theory sell them later in its stores.

What can you buy with each coin?

To understand the topic a little more we have to talk about something that we have not yet mentioned anything about.

In Cuba there are 3 types of businesses, private, public and mixed, although in practice there are two: Businesses with or without state intervention.

Until about 8 years ago in Cuba there were only public businesses, everything was public, but recently the economy has begun to open up.

It is a great advance for the country towards the future, but the question is knowing how this affects the use of the currency.

It must be clear that any business that has some type of state intervention has the obligation to comply with state regulations, logically.

So to the question of what can be bought with each coin there are several nuances.

In all private establishments payment is in CUP and in All those with state intervention, payment is with MLC or with a credit card with bad change.

I'm going to give an example that happened to us at the beginning of 2022.

There were two restaurants on the beach, what we were going to order cost us approximately 1000 CUP in both, but in one it was mandatory to stop with MLC or credit card and in another with CUP.

We had gotten the CUPs at 1 euro 100 CUP by exchanging our euros on the street, while the official exchange rate at that time was 1 euro 25 CUP.

So if we ate where they forced us to pay with a credit card converted into euros, the food cost 40 euros and where they accepted CUP with our exchange made on the street, the same meal cost us 10 euros.

This makes all businesses with state intervention or that force you to pay by credit card up to 4 times more expensive.

Buy in supermarkets in Cuba

This is perhaps the most striking part.

In Cuba the markets or supermarkets are all public and there are only two types.

Some are those that only accept payment in CUP and others are those that only accept payments in MLC or foreign credit card.

The meaning of this is supposed to be that the state guarantees basic products for the people in the supermarkets where they pay in CUP and in those where they pay in MLC they are for non-essential products brought from abroad.

But the reality is different.

As the virus has caused tourism to decline, the state has less and less money to buy basic products and take them to stores.

Everyday products such as some foods, deodorants, soaps or all these things are not always possible to buy in stores that accept CUP, which is the currency that people have.

Rather, they are intended for this other type in which MLC can only be used so that the state continues to collect more foreign currency with which to continue buying abroad.
What the local currency stores are allocated are small quotas, which sell out quickly as we were able to experience in person when they brought soy yogurt and people crowded around to get it because it runs out quickly.

And when this happens, the only option left is to look for them in the MLC that have more variety (and not always), thus forcing the people to collect the currency that can only be obtained with euros.

But if you don't have euros, then how do you buy those things?

Well the answer is that you simply cannot.

You need euros anyway to buy basic products that already They are only in MLC stores or have relatives abroad who can top up their cards with other currencies.
Since this is not always possible, it means that people on the street offer you much better changes than what the bank gives you.

Because even if they lose money in that exchange, it allows them to access this other market that is only accessible with foreign currency.

This creates a huge economic problem for the population of Cuba and inflation increases every day.
Since there is so much need for euros, people are increasingly willing to offer you more CUP for fewer euros because they are vital to being able to buy.

And then we go back to the beginning, for someone who visits the country it is very difficult to know the price of things, because it depends on what price you got the local currency.

Summary and Tips for Changing Money in Cuba

As you can see, when you travel around the country you enter a little the problem of money in Cuba, but to be honest Tourists have it much easier.

Let's summarize it.

What currency do tourists use?

We tourists arrive and exchange our euros for CUP, no need to get MLC because by paying with our credit cards we access the same as Cubans with MLC.

Forget about MCLs, a tourist has to only use CUP, the local currency and if in a place you can only use MLC, you pay with a card and the problem is solved even if it is more expensive.

Currency exchange

The official exchange rate since the modification of August 4, 2022 is 1 euro/125 CUP in cadecas, banks and hotels, but if you change people on the street they give you more without a problem and you also do them a favor because they need euros.

And they can only get them if they have relatives abroad who can give them to them or by exchanging tourists.

In general, prices can be much more expensive for a tourist if they change at official exchange offices than if they change it on the street.

Of course, keep one thing in mind, if you agree to exchange euros for CUP on the street there is the possibility of being scammed, in practice it has not happened to us, nor do we know anyone who has happened to it but it is possible.

Cuba is a super safe country and the people are very honest. but in every country there is that possibility.

There is no country in which the possibility of tourists being deceived is not on the table.

The only 100% safe way to change is to pay with a card or change at exchange offices or hotels, but the change is much worse than on the street.

Here we tell you how things are, then you are the ones who decide what to do.

And of course, keep in mind that if you have CUP left over when you return, no one is going to exchange those CUP for Euros, you would be in the same situation as the Cubans themselves.

Shopping in restaurants and stores

The ideal is to ask first what payment method they accept, so that you are clear and can evaluate the prices.

As long as you can pay in CUP, if you have made a good exchange rate it will be much cheaper than if you pay by card.

A good example is gasoline, you can always pay in CUP or with a credit card, it works out better if you pay in CUP, unless you have changed your euros at the bank then it will not matter to you.

In stores you will have to pay with a credit card because in practice where there are things is in the MLC and in restaurants it will depend on the property.

You pay for the vast majority of restaurants in the local currency CUP.