Lempira (HNL or L), equal to 100 centavos. In circulation there are banknotes of 500, 100, 50, 20, 10, 5, 2 and 1 lempira, as well as coins of 50, 20, 10, 5, 2 and 1 centavos.

You can often hear the mention of the monetary unit “real” – this is one-eighth of the lempira, denoted only in colloquial speech, since there is no such coin (banknote) in circulation.

Banks usually work from Monday to Friday, from 09:00 to 16:00, on Saturdays – from 09:00 to 12:00-14:00. Some banks are open until 18:00, and exchange offices at bank offices at the airport and on the main streets of Tegucigalpa sometimes work until midnight or even one in the morning. Banks are closed on Sunday.

You can exchange currency at banks, large hotels, airports and exchange offices (casas de cambio). There are usually no difficulties with the exchange, the exchange rate used in hotels, shops and transport agencies differs from the bank rate quite slightly, and in exchange offices it usually coincides with the bank one (but the service here is noticeably faster). US dollars are accepted almost everywhere – in shops, markets and hotels, although the exchange rate offered is often not very favorable. At the same time, most commercial transactions are carried out exclusively in lempira.

In the border areas, many outlets accept Guatemalan quetzals, Salvadoran colóns (US dollars) or Nicaraguan cordobas for payment.

Credit cards and traveler’s checks are accepted in major hotels, shops, restaurants and tourist complexes and are unlikely to be used in the provinces.

Honduran automated teller machines (ATMs) do not usually accept credit cards issued by foreign banks, although many Honduran offices also serve them. Visa Classic and Gold cardholders can only get cash from a few banks, including Banco Atlantida; Mastercard Mass and Gold cards are currently only accepted by Credomatic Bank with branches in Tegucigalpa, San Pedro Sula and La Ceiba. Virtually all debit cards, including Cirrus/Maestro, Visa Electron or Plus, are currently practically useless in Honduras, however, some major banks offer limited service to some of them.

Traveler’s checks can be cashed at branches of the capital’s banks (the best conditions are usually offered by Banco Atlantida, Bancahsa, Banco de Occidente and Ficensa). American Express, Visa and Thomas Cook are the most widely accepted types of checks, the rest can be difficult to cash, especially in remote areas. To avoid additional costs associated with fluctuations in the exchange rate, it is recommended to bring checks in US dollars with you.

Western Union is one of the most popular money transfer systems.