Remitly vs. Wise (TransferWise)

Remitly tends to offer lower fees, but Wise uses the mid-market exchange rate on all transfers. Both Remitly and Wise offers fast transfers, but Remitly’s cash delivery options make it a bit more diverse of a service. Overall, which company is best depends on the size of your transfer and your delivery needs.

The fees and rates used in this comparison are accurate as of July 29, 2019.

Quick verdict

Lower fees:
Remitly

Exchange rates:
Wise

Fast transfers:
Tie

Which has lower fees?

Remitly

Fees with Remitly depend on the currency, country, how much you’re transferring and if you want an economy or an express transfer. The faster express transfers will always cost more and can range from $3 to $99.99, while the slower economy option often only costs $2 to $4.

Wise

Wise charges two fees – a percentage of the transfer and a small flat fee that’s normally only a few dollars. The percentage fee ranges from 0.45% to 1.5% and can make the fee add up on larger transfers.

Winner: Remitly

Although it’s a close call, Remitly’s transfers tend to be cheaper across the board, especially for economy transfers. This doesn’t necessarily mean your transfer will be cheaper with Remitly – each provider offers different exchange rates, which we’ll go into below.

Which offers better exchange rates?

Remitly

Remitly doesn’t have a standard rate rule, meaning its exchange rates can vary a lot. The margin normally ends up being 1% to 2% added to the exchange rate. For example, these are the rates for a transfer to Argentina:

• Mid-market rate: 1 USD = 43.7451 ARS
• Remitly’s exchange rate: 1 USD = 43.23 ARS

This is a margin of 1.93%.

Wise

Wise converts money at the mid-market rate, meaning it never adds an additional margin on top. This means that, using the same example, if the mid-market rate is 1 USD =43.7451 ARS, that’s the rate you’ll get.

• What's the mid-market rate?

  The mid-market is what banks and transfer services use when they trade among themselves and measures what your money’s actually worth on the global market.

  It should be used as a baseline to make sure you’re getting the best rate. Compare the rates given to you to the mid-market rate, which you can find on Google, and you’ll be able to see how much the provider is making off that transfer.

Winner: Wise

Both Wise and Remitly offer competitive exchange rates, but Wise guarantees the mid-market rate on all currencies. Remitly’s exchange rates vary currency to currency.

Remitly frequently offers deals for first-time users with exchange rates that are slightly better than the mid-market rate, so it’s good to keep an eye out for that. In general, however, Wise has the best exchange rates. That won’t necessarily mean it’s best overall – fees have to be considered too.

Which is faster?

Remitly

Remitly offers two transfer options: economy or express. Express gets your transfer there on the same day, often in a matter of minutes, but you pay a higher fee. Economy transfers typically take two to five business days, but it’s cheaper.

Wise

The speed of Wise transfers depends heavily on the currency and the payment method. If you pay with a card, your money often arrives immediately. However, if transferring via a bank transfer, it can take up to four business days.

Winner: Tie

There isn’t a clear winner as there are too many variables. Both services can get your money there within hours, depending on the payment method and the fees you’re willing to pay.

General features

	Payment methods	Receiving options	Maximum and minimum transfers	Transfer speeds	Currencies
Remitly	Bank transfer, debit card, credit card	Bank account, cash pickup	Minimum: $10 Maximum: $20,000	Within minutes	30+ currencies
Wise	Bank transfer, ACH transfer, debit card, credit card	Bank account	Minimum: $1 Maximum: $1,000,000	Within minutes	20+ currencies

Remitly

Once you’ve signed up for a free account, you simply enter the amount you want to send, your recipient’s information and your payment information. You can do all of this using either the website or the Remitly app.

Wise

Wise also has a simple process. After you’ve created a free account, you input the transfer amount, send Wise the money, then Wise converts it and sends it to the recipient’s bank account.

Read review: Remitly
Read review: Wise

Bottom line

Remitly and Wise are neck and neck in most categories, with Wise winning out when it comes to exchange rates, while Remitly has slightly lower fees. It’s always worth checking both providers, and depending on the currency, the fees and the amount, you may want to use either.

But be aware that the currencies Remitly offer are more exotic than most transfer services, so check whether Remitly has the currency you need.

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