Do UnionPay cards work in Istanbul ATMs and stores?
Based on 1 discussion with 2 participants · Last activity: 4 days ago
TL;DR
UnionPay cards are unreliable in Istanbul — most ATMs and supermarkets don't accept them, though they may work in some cafes and at Istanbul Card top-up terminals.
What the community said
Over the past few days, UnionPay worked fine at larger supermarkets, a pharmacy, for topping up the Istanbul Card, and at the Archaeological Museum and Chora Monastery. It's theoretically possible to pay for the Theodosius Cistern with UnionPay (they have a terminal), but it's unreliable. A street metro terminal rejected paying for 2 tickets at once — it only worked when paying for one ticket at a time (the second ticket still failed after 12 attempts).
20 days ago Archaeological Museum, Chora Monastery, Theodosius Cistern — success/unreliable; street metro terminal — one ticket at a time only
UnionPay worked successfully today multiple times for topping up the Istanbul Card and buying coffee at a kiosk, but the card was declined at Mavi, Wikiki, and Makrocenter stores.
19 days ago Mavi, Wikiki, Makrocenter — declined; coffee kiosk — accepted
An RSHB UnionPay card worked for topping up an Istanbul Card (public transport card) and at a cafe near Yoros Castle, but was declined at Migros and Şok supermarkets. Results are inconsistent — carry cash as backup.
4 days ago Migros, Şok — declined; cafe near Yoros Castle — accepted
RSHB UnionPay cards are not being read by ATMs across Istanbul, and QR payments are also failing for multiple travelers simultaneously. This appears to be a widespread issue, not an isolated case.
4 days ago
Local shopkeepers in Istanbul have confirmed there are general problems with UnionPay acceptance in the city. Cards that worked in multiple other countries, including Egypt, stopped functioning immediately upon arrival in Istanbul.
4 days ago UnionPay — city-wide acceptance issues in Istanbul