BASICS
Costs

At present date, little can be said with certainty about exchange rates, and regulations on changing money. Earlier a black market spread around the whole country offered up to three times better exchange rates than the banks, and everyone entering the country had to change 1000 dinars (approx. US$18) at the border. There were rules on having to offer receipts when buying tickets, while many hotels preferred to be paid in foreign currencies.
What the situation is like today is unclear. Little suggests that the black market has disappeared, and probably are the advantages with using it even more evident (heavy inflation have not changed the official exchange rates much).
Algeria today offers more ease for those travelling with cash, and the value of having a credit card at hand must not be overrated. These things will change soon after a real armistice is reached between the fighting parts in the civil war.