Sendwave is a smartphone app designed to offer quick and affordable money transfers to Africa, while WorldRemit is an online transfer service that allows you to send funds to more than 140 countries.
How do the two companies compare and which one offers better value for money? To find out, let’s compare WorldRemit and Sendwave in terms of fees, exchange rates and transfer times.
The fees and rates used in this comparison are accurate as of 11 February 2019.
WorldRemit’s transfer fees vary depending on where you’re sending money, how much you’re transferring and the type of transfer you send. Bank transfers incur a $3.99 fee in many cases. However, because there are several variables that can affect the fee you’ll have to pay, make sure to use WorldRemit’s online calculator to work out the total cost of your specific transaction.
Sendwave
Sendwave does not charge any fees on international money transfers and instead makes money by offering an exchange rate that’s lower than the mid-market rate.
Winner: Sendwave
The absence of transaction fees makes Sendwave the winner in this category.
However, it’s important to note that this doesn’t necessarily mean that Sendwave offers cheaper transfers, as you’ll also need to consider the exchange rate on offer when comparing the two services.
Let’s crunch the numbers: Sending $500 to Nigeria
Let’s take a closer look at how WorldRemit and Sendwave compare in a hypothetical example of transferring $500 to Nigeria.
Sending $500 to Nigeria
WorldRemit
Sendwave
Transfer fee
$12.99
$0
Transaction cost
$512.99
$500
Exchange rate
$1 CAD = 267.77 NGN
$1 CAD = 271.02 NGN
Transfer speed
Instant
Instant
Total received (in NGN)
133,885 NGN
135,510 NGN
As you can see, Sendwave’s slightly higher exchange rate means that your recipient will get an extra 1625 NGN (approx $6) and you’ll save $12.99 on fees.
Which offers better exchange rates?
WorldRemit
The exchange rate WorldRemit gives you when you send money overseas is different to the mid-market rate listed on Google. This is because WorldRemit, like many other transfer providers, makes money on the margin, which is the difference between the exchange rate at which they buy and sell currency. WorldRemit’s margin differs across all currencies, but when sending to the destinations supported by Sendwave (Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania and Uganda), it typically sits between 2% and 5.5%. For example, if you wanted to send a transfer from Canada to Uganda:
If the mid-market rate is 1 CAD = 2,795.51 UGX
WorldRemit’s rate might be 1 CAD = 2,692 UGX
Sendwave
Sendwave also adds a margin on top of the mid-market exchange rate. With the exception of the Tanzanian shilling (TZS), for which Sendwave offers a margin of just 0.5%, our research found that the margin usually ranges anywhere from 2% to 5.5%.
Winner: Tie
When we compared CAD exchange rates for the five countries to which Sendwave offers transfers, WorldRemit and Sendwave were tied, offering similar exchange rates on all except the Tanzanian shilling which Sendwave offered much better rates for.
Which is faster
WorldRemit
WorldRemit’s transfer times vary according to the type of transaction you send.
Bank transfers: Instant processing to some banks, but a transaction time of 1-3 business days in other cases
Cash pick-up transfers: Instant
Mobile money transfers: Instant or near-instant
Airtime top-ups: Instant or near-instant
Home delivery transfers: 1-7 days
Sendwave
Sendwave allows you to transfer funds from your smartphone to your recipient’s mobile wallet within 30 seconds.
Winner: Tie
WorldRemit and Sendwave both offer fast transfer options if you need to send money to an overseas recipient as soon as possible.
General features
Payment methods
Minimum and maximum transfers
Delivery methods
Transfer speeds
Countries and currencies
WorldRemit
Bank transfer
Credit card
Debit card
Android Pay
Apple Pay
Minimum: $0
Maximum: $40,000
Bank transfer
Mobile wallet
Cash pick-up
Airtime top-up
Door-to-door delivery
Within minutes
145+ countries
Sendwave
Debit card
Minimum: $1
Maximum: $999 per-day (or $2,999 per day if you provide photo ID
Mobile money
30 seconds
Ghana
Kenya
Nigeria
Tanzania
Uganda
WorldRemit
WorldRemit is an online transfer service that allows you to send several transfer types. To make a transfer, sign up for a free account online and provide your recipient’s details, the currency you want to send and the transfer amount. You can then pay for your transaction via bank account transfer, credit card, debit card, Android Pay or Apple Pay.
Sendwave is a smartphone app that allows users with a Canadian, US, or UK bank account to send money to Africa. After downloading the Android or iOS app and registering for a free account, you can send a transfer by choosing a currency and transfer amount then entering your recipient’s name and phone number.
If you need to send money to Africa, it’s well worth comparing WorldRemit and Sendwave to find out who will offer a better deal for your transaction. Transaction costs are fairly similar in many cases (though Sendwave offered a much better exchange rate for transfers to Tanzania when we checked), so it’s worth getting quotes from both providers.
If you’re looking to send funds to somewhere other than Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania or Uganda, Sendwave currently doesn’t offer transfers to those countries, so you’ll need to consider using an alternative like WorldRemit.
Our table below lets you compare services you can use to send money abroad. Compare fees, exchange rates and discounts from different money transfer services, and when you have made your choice, click Go to site.
Tim Falk is a freelance writer for Finder. Over the course of his 15-year writing career, he has reported on a wide range of personal finance topics. Whether you're investing in stocks and ETFs, comparing savings accounts or choosing a credit card, Tim wants to make it easier for you to understand. When he’s not staring at his computer, you can usually find him exploring the great outdoors.
If you’re looking for a secure way to send money overseas, an international bank draft could be for you — but if speed is important, consider using a money transfer service instead.
How likely would you be to recommend finder to a friend or colleague?
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Very UnlikelyExtremely Likely
Required
Thank you for your feedback.
Our goal is to create the best possible product, and your thoughts, ideas and suggestions play a major role in helping us identify opportunities to improve.
Advertiser Disclosure
finder.com is an independent comparison platform and information service that aims to provide you with the tools you need to make better decisions. While we are independent, the offers that appear on this site are from companies from which finder.com receives compensation. We may receive compensation from our partners for placement of their products or services. We may also receive compensation if you click on certain links posted on our site. While compensation arrangements may affect the order, position or placement of product information, it doesn't influence our assessment of those products. Please don't interpret the order in which products appear on our Site as any endorsement or recommendation from us. finder.com compares a wide range of products, providers and services but we don't provide information on all available products, providers or services. Please appreciate that there may be other options available to you than the products, providers or services covered by our service.
We update our data regularly, but information can change between updates. Confirm details with the provider you're interested in before making a decision.
