When comparing exchange counters, ask how many Korean won you will receive after all fees for the same amount of foreign cash. A large advertised discount alone does not tell you which offer is better.
Compare the same transaction
Write down the currency you are exchanging, the amount you will hand over, any separate fee and the final won payout. A quote for selling foreign banknotes is not interchangeable with a card purchase, an international transfer or a quote for buying foreign currency. Keep comparisons close together in time because the underlying rate can move.
The simplest comparison is “same money paid, final won received.” If a counter quotes a fee separately, ask whether the displayed payout already includes it. Counting the fee twice can make a perfectly ordinary quote look expensive.
A small example, without a live-rate prediction
Imagine two hypothetical offers for the same foreign-currency amount. Counter A offers ₩270,000 after all fees. Counter B offers ₩272,000 after all fees. B leaves you ₩2,000 more. If reaching B would create an additional ₩3,000 transport expense solely for the exchange, the detour costs more than the extra won received.
These hypothetical figures are not current rates or a recommendation to exchange at a particular time. If you were already going past B, the transport comparison would be different. Use the extra cost caused by the decision, rather than adding the cost of an unrelated journey.
Read a percentage discount carefully
In its official exchange-rate coupon explanation, Woori Bank defines the preferential percentage in relation to the difference between its reference and customer rates. It is not a discount on the entire value of the currency. Eligibility, currencies and channels still need checking with the provider.
Our Korean-language explanation of exchange-rate discounts works through that distinction with a hypothetical foreign-currency purchase. The direction of that example differs from a visitor selling foreign cash for won, but the practical lesson carries over: compare the final transaction amount, not a percentage headline.
Keep the receipt with your budget
Record the foreign cash paid and the won received as an exchange between two balances. Do not also label the whole won payout as new income. Keep separately identifiable fees in your expense record, and avoid photographing passport details into a shared travel spreadsheet.
For the next step, read our guide to cards, cash and transit-card payments in Korea. This article is a comparison method, not a promise that one payment method or exchange provider will always be cheapest.