Before arriving in Uzbekistan, I spent more time than necessary thinking about cash.
Other travelers kept using the word "bankomat", which is how ATMs are commonly referred to across Central Asia. The advice I heard sounded specific: ordinary bankomats were convenient, but withdrawing money through banks could sometimes avoid transaction charges.
So I tried both.
The funny part is that the ordinary bankomats were never the problem for me.
My successful withdrawals happened through ordinary bankomats. They were available in the cities I passed through, the fees were small enough that I did not feel they were worth over-optimizing, and the process was simple once I stopped overthinking it.
The only failed attempts I remember were not really ordinary ATM failures. They happened when I followed advice and tried using machines at bank counters. For reasons still not fully clear to me, my card did not work there.
Looking back, I suspect the difference may have been the card setup. Some travelers recommending bank counters were using forex-focused cards like Niyo or similar options. I was using a different card setup, and what worked for others did not automatically work for me.
The practical lesson was simple: I did not need to chase the theoretically best withdrawal method. The ordinary bankomats were easy enough.
| Where | Machine / Network | Amount | Fee | What I learned |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| City not clearly visible on receipt | UZCARD ATM | 800,000 UZS | 8,000 UZS | Ordinary bankomats worked fine for my card. |
| Nukus | BRB / HUMO ATM | 900,000 UZS | 13,500 UZS | Cash access was possible even outside the most obvious tourist cities. |
The failed attempts happened when I tried the bank-counter route rather than the ordinary bankomat route.
That distinction matters. I do not want to make it sound like Uzbekistan's ATMs were unreliable for me. They were not. The issue was more specific: a method recommended by other travelers did not work with my own card setup.
I would use ordinary bankomats confidently.
I would still carry more than one card, and I would still keep some backup cash, especially before heading into longer travel stretches. But I would not waste time trying to save tiny transaction fees if the working option is already in front of me.
For my trip, the bankomat was not the problem. Overthinking was.
The ATM story is one small part of a wider practical-and-human journey across Uzbekistan.
Need a second pair of eyes?
If you are planning a trip and already have a rough route, I can review your itinerary, transport choices, budget assumptions, and practical risks before you book everything. Uzbekistan is where I can currently help most, because I travelled across the country and documented the details closely.
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