The three limits that affect your cash

The machine limit applies to each separate withdrawal. You can usually make another withdrawal straight away, but you'll pay the Thai fee again. The daily limit is set by your UK bank and caps the total cash you can take out in a day, wherever you are. And some cards have monthly rules on top — either a total monthly cap on cash abroad, like Chase's £1,500, or a free allowance after which fees start, like Monzo's or Revolut's.

These three limits interact. A Krungsri machine might allow ฿30,000 in one go, but if your UK card's daily limit is £300 — about ฿13,000 — that's the most you'll get. Equally, a generous daily limit doesn't help at a machine that stops at ฿20,000.

Thai ATM limits for UK cards, by bank

These are the typical maximum amounts per withdrawal for a foreign card at the main Thai ATM networks in 2026. They vary between machines and change from time to time, so the screen always has the final word:

Don't confuse these with the daily limits on Thai bank cards, which you'll often see quoted online — figures like ฿50,000 a day at UOB or ฿30,000 at CIMB. Those apply to Thai account holders using Thai cards, not to visitors withdrawing with a UK card.

UK banks' daily cash limits

Your UK bank's daily cash limit usually applies abroad as well as at home. These are the standard daily ATM limits on common UK current accounts, as compiled in September 2026, converted to baht at ฿44.27 to the pound. Limits can differ by account and can sometimes be changed — check yours in your app.

Daily limits as compiled by Londoner.news (7 September 2026); Chase and Kroo from their own published terms. Monzo, Wise and First Direct set limits per customer — check your app. A high limit doesn't mean fee-free: check the fees in our Thai ATM fees guide.

How the limits combine in practice

Here's what a typical day's cash looks like on different cards, assuming you want ฿40,000 — about £900 — for a week of cash spending:

The pattern is clear. A daily limit of around £500 lets you take a full ฿20,000 at once, which is where most of the savings come from. Below that, you pay noticeably more in Thai fees. Above it, the extra limit mainly saves you time rather than money — and a high limit on a card that charges a non-sterling fee will still cost you more overall than a fee-free card with a lower limit.

The ideal is a fee-free card with a daily limit of at least £500. Chase fits that exactly. Starling's lower daily limit is offset by having no monthly cap, which matters more on long stays.

When your daily limit resets — and the time difference

UK banks reset daily limits in one of two ways: at midnight UK time, or on a rolling 24 hours from your last withdrawal. Either way, the clock isn't Thai time.

Thailand is seven hours ahead of the UK in winter and six hours ahead during British Summer Time. So if your bank resets at midnight UK time, your new "day" starts at around 6am or 7am in Thailand — not at midnight Thai time. Withdraw late in the evening in Bangkok and again the next morning, and you may find you're still within the same UK day.

If you hit your limit unexpectedly, wait until the next reset rather than trying again and again — repeated declined attempts can trigger your bank's fraud checks.

How to raise your cash limit before you go

Many UK banks let you change your daily cash limit, at least within a range. Barclays, for example, lets you adjust its standard £300 default up to £500. Others allow requests in the app or by phone.

1. Check your current limit in your banking app, usually under card settings or account limits.
2. Look for a limit setting you can change yourself — many apps let you raise or lower it instantly.
3. Request an increase through the app's chat or by phone if there's no setting.
4. Do it before you fly, so security checks and codes reach your UK number at home.
5. Choose a sensible level — enough for ฿20,000 at once (about £460 plus fees), not the maximum possible.
6. Lower it again after your trip if you don't need it at home.

A very high limit isn't always a good thing. If your card is stolen or cloned, the daily limit is also the most a thief can take out in a day. A limit of around £500 to £600 on your travel card is a sensible balance for Thailand.

Limits vs free allowances: don't confuse them

Several cards popular with travellers have generous daily limits but only a small free allowance each month. Go over the allowance and you can still withdraw cash — you just start paying a fee on top of the Thai ATM fee:

Revolut's £3,000 daily limit, for example, is far more than anyone needs in Thailand, but on the Standard plan only the first £200 a month is free of Revolut's own fee. For most travellers, a card with no allowance at all — Starling or Kroo — or Chase's generous £1,500 monthly cap is simpler.

Credit card cash limits, couples and long stays

Credit cards have a separate cash limit. Most UK credit cards set a cash limit that's lower than your overall credit limit, and the daily ATM limit can be lower again. More importantly, cash withdrawn on a credit card usually attracts interest from the day you take it, and many cards add a cash fee of around 3%. A high credit card cash limit is useful as an emergency backup, not as your plan for holiday cash.

Travelling as a couple doubles your options. Each card has its own daily limit, so two travellers with a fee-free card each can take out twice as much in a day — and you each have a backup if one card is lost or blocked. If you share an account, check whether the limit applies per card or per account.

On a long stay, monthly limits matter more than daily ones. Over a winter in Thailand, a daily limit mainly decides how many ฿220 fees you pay. A monthly cap or allowance decides whether you can keep using the card fee-free at all. Chase's £1,500 a month abroad is plenty for a fortnight but may not cover a month of cash for a couple; Starling's lack of a monthly cap is the reason many long-stay visitors use it. Beyond a few months, most people find a Thai bank account — with free withdrawals at their own bank — easier than living within UK card limits.

The best cards for Thai cash limits

Four UK cards compared on the limits that matter in Thailand.

When you need more than your limit

ATM limits are fine for spending money. They're not designed for a car deposit, a year's rent up front, a condo reservation or a visa deposit. For larger sums, other routes are faster, cheaper and safer:

For the largest amounts — a property purchase, a retirement visa deposit of ฿800,000, or moving savings or a pension — the exchange rate and timing can make a difference of thousands of pounds, and there may be tax considerations on both sides. That's worth planning properly rather than doing piecemeal through ATMs.