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Compared to most banks, Wise and CurrencyFair both offer favourable exchange rates and low fees. But which one is better for you?
The fees and rates used in this comparison are accurate as of 16 November 2018.
Wise charges a percentage of your transfer, which changes based on which currencies you’re exchanging, as well as a small flat fee. This flat fee is often only a few dollars, but can get higher in some circumstances. Sending to China, for example, will add on a $10 flat fee.
The percentage fee typically ranges from 0.45–1.5% of your money transfer.
CurrencyFair charges fees in a similar way to Wise – a percentage of the transaction, as well as a small flat fee. The flat fee is always €3. The percentage, on the other hand, ranges from 0.25–0.6% of the transfer.
Winner: CurrencyFair
CurrencyFair wins out on fees, charging a smaller flat fee and percentage. However, keep in mind that this won't necessarily make a transfer with CurrencyFair cheaper. Exchange rates can make a big difference. We'll go into why below.
To make this a bit easier to understand, let's take a look at how Wise and CurrencyFair compare when sending money to Poland. Keep in mind that transferring to other currencies will have different fees and transfer times.
In our imaginary scenario, we'll be using a bank transfer.
Wise | CurrencyFair | |
---|---|---|
Transfer fee | $5.97 | PLN10 |
Exchange rate | 1 AUD = 2.753 PLN | 1 AUD = 2.737 PLN |
Transfer speed | 2 business days | 4 business days |
Total Polish zloty received | PLN2,736.66 | PLN2727 |
Receiver gets | PLN9.66 more | PLN9.66 less |
Wise | CurrencyFair | |
---|---|---|
Transfer fee | $50.75 | PLN10 |
Exchange rate | 1 AUD = 2.753 PLN | 1 AUD = 2.737 PLN |
Transfer speed | 2 business days | 4 business days |
Total Polish zloty received | PLN27,389.29 | PLN27,360 |
Receiver gets | PLN29.29 more | PLN29.29 less |
For both transfers, Wise ends up on top. With the $1,000 transfer, the receiver gets almost PLN10 more. This works out even bigger on the $10,000 transfer, with Wise netting you almost PLN30 more than CurrencyFair.
Wise exchanges money at the mid-market rate. That’s a great deal compared to most other money transfer services, who add a margin on top, though you should still keep an eye on the site’s percentage fee.
CurrencyFair adds a margin onto the mid-market rate, meaning the exchange rates offered aren't as good as those Wise does. The margin is different for every currency, but generally ranges between 0.5% and 1% of the transfer.
Winner: Wise
Any provider offering the mid-market rate is going to offer better exchange rates. In this case, wins.
It can take up to four days to send money using Wise, depending on which method you use. Paying by card will get your money there immediately, while a bank transfer will be longer.
A transfer with CurrencyFair should take between one and six days, depending on which currency you're sending to. If you want to send to US dollars, for example, it'll take you around three days. Hong Kong dollars, on the other hand, can take up to six days.
Winner: Wise
Both CurrencyFair and Wise offer similar times for bank transfers, but Wise's instant credit or debit card transfers puts it in the lead.
Payment methods | Minimum and maximum transfers | Transfer speeds | Currencies | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Wise | Bank transfer, credit card, debit card | Minimum: $1 Maximum: $1,800,000 | 1 - 2 days | 45+ currencies |
CurrencyFair | Bank transfer | Minimum: $5 Maximum: $10,000,000 | 1 - 2 days | 15+ currencies |
With Wise, enter how much money you want to transfer, then send your funds to Wise. Wise will convert the currency and send it to your recipient’s bank account.
CurrencyFair works similarly. After creating your account, you can set up your transfer and send the money to CurrencyFair's local bank account. Once CurrencyFair exchanges your money, it is sent to your recipient. You can also request the exchange rate you want and CurrencyFair will exchange your money when that's reached.
Although both are quite similar, Wise pulls ahead with its mid-market exchange rate and faster transfers. Still, you’ll want to compare your options to find a service that’s best for your situation.
The calculator and table below lets you compare the fees and exchange rates of some of the other popular money transfer providers available.
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