Best currency for Mexico, Mexican Peso or US Dollar?

Depends on where you are. As you travel further into the interior, you'll have to exchange your dollars for pesos. I'd say at the border states (especially Baja Norte, Chihuahua, Nuevo Leon, and Tamaulipas), you could use dollars in many transactions, but the further south, forget.

I live in Irapuato, Guanajuato (center of the country) and dollars are useless for daily shopping. However, people will glady take dollars for big transactions (such as rent, buying a car, etc.).

Marci is on track. :Harty is right. Bad advise from the travel agent. Take a small amount of US dollars for use in the airport when you get home and use your ATM card. You will get a MUCH better rate of exchange. You can spend dollars in hotels and shops in some resort areas but you will get a horrible rate of exchange.

From what I have heard, most shops and restaurants use 10 pesos to the dollar because it is easily done in your head and that was the exchange rate until about a year ago. Now it is in the 13 to 14 pesos to a dollar range. What that means is that if something cost 100 pesos and you gave the clerk $10 US you get no change. If you give the clerk 100 pesos you would only be spending $7.55 US at today's exchange rate.

ADD: Remember to tell your bank that you will be going to Mexico, the location and dates or they may turn down the transaction. Also Bank of America has agreements with several banks, I think it is ScotiaBank and Santander Bank for free or low cost ATM fees.

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My addition would be Call the CREDIT CARD 24/7 number and advise them that your going and to which city(s) and you will be using your card at some ATMs, give them a ballpark of maximum daily you may try to withdraw. I pay a 7.50 peso transaction fee to get pesos from BanaMex ATM. Write the Credit card phone number on something and keep it separatete from your card. You want to be able to call and report any problem, like a lost card. Do not carry more cash on yu than you can comfortably lose, for whatever reason. The recession is hitting Mexico hard as well and desperate people sometimes do desperate things.

Harty is right. Bad advise from the travel agent. Take a small amount of US dollars for use in the airport when you get home and use your ATM card. You will get a MUCH better rate of exchange. You can spend dollars in hotels and shops in some resort areas but you will get a horrible rate of exchange.

From what I have heard, most shops and restaurants use 10 pesos to the dollar because it is easily done in your head and that was the exchange rate until about a year ago. Now it is in the 13 to 14 pesos to a dollar range. What that means is that if something cost 100 pesos and you gave the clerk $10 US you get no change. If you give the clerk 100 pesos you would only be spending $7.55 US at today's exchange rate.

ADD: Remember to tell your bank that you will be going to Mexico, the location and dates or they may turn down the transaction. Also Bank of America has agreements with several banks, I think it is ScotiaBank and Santander Bank for free or low cost ATM fees.

No offence but that is like asking"I am going to England should I take Pounds or us dollars" from Mexico. Mexico is not too influenced by the US and the Peso is the currency. Take your debit card and withdraw pesos as needed. There are fees so take what you think you will need for a few days at least. The monthly limit of us dollars is $1500.00 and all transactions are kept at a federal database. The drug money going into Mexico is estimated to be between 13 and 60 Billion dollars annually and the gov. is tracking it because it is fuelling the War on drugs.

You can TAKE the U.S. dollar with you, but I would go the the nearest bank for the best rate and transfer over to the Peso before going shopping. That is a bit of a hassle, so I would not do it but one time if possible. Will you be staying in one place of a week or longer? Then by all means use the Peso. You will be at the mercy of the shopkeepers as to what your dollar will be worth and you will get change in Pesos anyway, so why not just use the peso.

I LIVE IN BAJA and Wyatt is absolutely incorrect. You absolutely do not take your peso to the Mexican bank now. You will only get 13.2 on the dollar. (current exchange rate). BEST TO GO TO A CAMBIO HOUSE and you'll see these all over with the red flashing lights. Youll see 2 flasing figures - buying and selling rates. You get way better rates there. Check out the informative website below to understand better why you lose when you change dollars to pesos right now in this economy. Go the "dollars-pesos" page.

If it is a tourist place like Cancun dollars, euros, and pounds are as good as pesos. If not, exchange houses are everywhere, even in small towns in the middle of nowhere and charge between 1 and 2 percent. Visa is accepted at most big stores, restaurants and tour guides and they have never charged me an exchange fee. I usually take dollars and change 1 or 2 hundred at a time.

Hola. In any resort town in Mexico, US dollars are as accepted as the Peso, so really its up to you. When you get farther out of the resort towns, then it really is more necessary to deal in pesos.

Just know your exchange rate really good, because most will attempt to give you a different rate or perhaps even at par, which it isn't!!

I personally never take cash with me. I use my debt card and my credit cards, and I usually get the best exchange rate...even better than the cambios or banks.

Take some USD to tide you over until you can get to an Bank ATM.

To use an ATM in Mexico you request for funds in pesos and receive them in pesos. There is usually a maximum daily withdrawl of 3000 or 4000 pesos (11 pesos to a USD). The ATM give you the best exchange rate.

There is usually a charge to use this service by your bank unless you happen to to have a Canadian Scotia Bank card and use a Scotia Bank ATM in Mexico.

I take some travellers cheques (Canadian or USD accepted by banks) in case of an emergency but refund them on my return to Canada