Looking for the best way to send money from Canada to family, friends or businesses in Europe (or even to your own overseas bank account)?
Don’t head straight to your Canadian bank – compare specialist money transfer services instead. They nearly always offer better EUR exchange rates and lower fees, so for the same amount of Canadian dollars you send, your recipient will receive more euros.
Of the companies we’ve compared, RemitBee is among the cheapest, with competitive exchange rates and low starting fees. Need a really fast transfer? Wise can get money to your recipient in Europe within hours.
Here are 9 options for how to send money to Europe from Canada:
RemitBee provides cross-border money transfers and currency exchange, including from Canada to Europe. It is regulated by the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC), headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario and has been in business since 2015.
Wise is one of the most affordable money transfer options for sending money to Europe, because unlike most other transfer services, it offers the mid-market exchange rate – which is considered the fairest exchange rate. Wise was founded in the UK in 2011, and has since expanded to operate in 15 countries around the world and has become one of the most popular money transfer companies in the world.
Remitly offers international transfers to over 170 countries around the world, including those that use euros. It lets you send money to a bank account, mobile wallet or for cash pickup, depending on where your recipient is based. This provider has been in business since 2011, is listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange and has a highly rated app.
Instarem is great for small transfers to more than 30 currenices around the world. It offers very competitive exchange rates and is licensed in 11 countries. Another perk of using Instarem for money transfers to Europe is the option for instant or same-day transfers.
OFX (also known as Forex) has been in business for over 20 years helping people transfer money in currencies, including EUR. It has offices in Canada, Australia, the US and five other countries across the world. A nice perk of opting for OFX is that it offers advanced tools to help you get the best exchange rate. Most OFX money transfers to Europe take 1-2 business days to be delivered.
Having been in business for over 80 years, MoneyGram has become one of the most well-known brands in the money transfer space. It allows you to send money to more than 200 countries, including in Europe. With a minimum transfer cutoff of only $1, MoneyGram lets you send small transfers. Plus, with the help of its 430,000+ locations worldwide, MoneyGram supports cash pickup transfers, bank account transfers, mobile wallet deposits and even home delivery.
Since its founding in 2010, WorldRemit has helped more than 5.5 million customers around the world send money internationally. It has one of the largest selection of destination countries and accepts a variety of payment options. WorldRemit provides 24/7 customer support in 6 different languages to help you troubleshoot any issues.
XE was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Ontario. It enables money transfers to 200+ countries in 100+ different currencies, including EUR.
Having been in business for 100+ years, Western Union is a well-established money transfer brand operating in over 200 countries around the world. It offers multiple transfer options and accepts multiple payment options. That said, Western Union may charge higher fees and weaker exchange rates compared to other dedicated money transfer services.
| Transfer service | Fee for bank transfer | Transfer amount | Fastest transfer speed |
|---|---|---|---|
| RemitBee | From $0 | $10 – $200,000 | Within minutes |
| Wise | From $0 | $1 – $1,500,000 | 24 hours |
| Remitly | From $0 | $1 – $999 | Within minutes |
| Instarem | From $0 | $1 – $3,000 | Within minutes |
| OFX | From $0 | $200 – Unlimited | 24 hours |
| MoneyGram | From $0 | $1 – Not specified | Within minutes |
| WorldRemit | From $0 | $1 – $40,000 | Within minutes |
| Xe | $0 | $1 – $560,000 online (no max offline) | Within minutes |
| Western Union | From $0 | $1 – $7,500 | Within minutes |
Canadian banks tend to have a higher overall cost when it comes to sending money to Europe. Money transfer services that specialize in sending funds internationally tend to offer lower fees and smaller exchange rate markups compared to banks.
We found that banks tend to charge exchange rate markups from less than 1% to over 3%, depending on the destination currency. Bank international money transfers tend be slower than money transfer services, taking 1-5 business days to complete compared to a few minutes by some transfer services.
Also keep in mind that even if a bank may offer lower fees compared to alternative transfer services, you’ll need to have an account with the bank in order to send funds – and that account will likely come with a monthly fee of its own.
Here’s a look at some of the fees you may see when using a bank in Canada to send money to Europe.
RemitBee and Wise (formerly TransferWise) have some of the lowest bank transfer fees of the brands we’ve compared. Bank transfers are typically the cheapest way to get your money to Europe.
When you’re hunting down the cheapest ways to send money to Europe, it’s more important to look at the overall cost of your transfer. This has a couple of elements:
Some providers may charge the mid-market rate but add fees on top. Others may have very low fees but apply a markup on the exchange rate. This means it is important to compare exactly how many euros your recipient will end up with.
Some of the fastest average transfer speeds to Europe are offered by RemitBee (within minutes), MoneyGram (within minutes) and Wise (within hours).
Although many online providers can offer transfers to Europe within minutes, you’re likely to pay a premium for the convenience. Actual transfer times from Canada to Europe can depend on several different factors including transfer amount, payment method and currency.
The safest way to send money to Europe is to use a provider registered with Canada’s industry regulator, the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada. All of the companies we’ve compiled in our list are overseen by a local regulator and comply with the relevant laws and regulations in both Canada and Europe.
A great way to dive deeper is by reading our extended reviews of each transfer service and researching first-hand customer feedback on Trustpilot and similar platforms.
To send money to Europe, you’ll need the necessary documentation, your recipient’s details and a way to pay. Follow these steps to send money from Canada to Europe.
Each money transfer service will accept its own unique list of payment options for your money transfer to Europe. Still, you can expect most providers to accept transfer payments from at least debit cards, credit cards and bank transfers.
Many transfer services also allow direct debits, online bill payments, Interac Online and Interac e-Transfers. Some companies, like WorldRemit, may even allow you to pay for your money transfer using Apple Pay.
There are a few options if you want to send money to Europe. The various methods differ by the payment method, how you want the money to be received and how fast you need it to arrive.
If you need to make a sizable money transfer to Europe, consider using a provider such as RemitBee or OFX to benefit from its expertise in handling larger transfer amounts.
Using a large transfer specialist can have the following advantages:
John is working in Canada as a film producer and he stays in regular contact with his elderly parents back home in Europe. His parents need some funds to help pay off a mortgage, so John plans to send them $2,000 from Canada.
He decides to compare a bank and a money transfer specialist to see which one can save the most money on his transaction.
| Bank | Money transfer company | |
|---|---|---|
| Exchange rate | 1 CAD = 0.66 EUR | 1 CAD = 0.67 EUR |
| Transfer fee | $10 | $2.50 |
| Transfer method | Bank account deposit | Bank account deposit |
| Processing time | 2 – 5 working days | Next day |
| Amount received | 1,322.98 EUR | 1,345.55 EUR |
The money transfer company enables John to send an extra €22.57 straight to his parents’ account.
When choosing a money transfer provider to send money from Canada to Europe, it’s important to consider the cost, how you want your recipient to receive the funds and the turnaround time. Here are other features to review:
Use our table to compare the best money transfer companies to send money to Europe. You can compare deposit and receiving options, fees and transfer speeds, then click the “Go to site” button when you’ve found the best one to get your money to Europe.
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