Can I use a card to pay for taxis in Croatia, or should I carry local cash?
Spent a month traveling around Croatia and used taxis occasionally, mostly in Zagreb and Split. In Zagreb, I used my Mastercard through Uber and Bolt without problems. In Split though, two of the regular street cabs I flagged down didn’t accept card. One had a terminal but said it was out of service. Since then I always asked before starting the ride. I kept a small amount of cash just for this. Also noticed that some drivers add a surcharge if you pay by card, even if it's not official, so carrying a little cash helped avoid surprises.
We were in Rovinj for ten days and only used taxis twice, both from the same local number our hotel gave us. Neither of them accepted card. The drivers were polite about it but said their machines weren’t reliable. I had some euros from earlier in the trip and that worked fine. We mostly walked or rented bikes anyway. Croatia is modern in a lot of ways, but when it comes to taxis, especially in smaller places, cash is still the safest bet unless you're booking through an app like Bolt.
Just finished a road trip through Dubrovnik, Zadar and Zagreb. Used taxis a few times and it really depended on the company. In Zagreb I booked a cab through the Cammeo app and paid with my Visa, no issues. But in smaller towns or around the coast, it was hit and miss. One driver told me their terminal didn’t connect without strong mobile signal. I’d recommend always asking before you get in, or stick with app-based services where you can choose card in advance. Still a good idea to carry a bit of cash for flexibility.
I was in Split a few weeks ago and honestly, most taxi drivers still prefer cash. I tried using my card at the ferry port taxi stand and the driver told me their machine wasn’t working. This happened more than once. You can sometimes pay with card through apps like Bolt or Uber, but if you're hailing a cab on the street or grabbing one at a taxi rank, you're better off having some kuna or euros on hand. I kept about 200 kuna with me daily just for rides and small shops.