From £3.75
Fees (Pay by Bank Transfer)
£1
Minimum Transfer Amount
| Product Name | Wise (TransferWise) |
|---|---|
| Minimum Transfer Amount | £1 |
| Pay By | Credit card, Debit card, Bank transfer |
| Receiving Options | Bank account |
| Customer Service | Phone, Email |
| Available Currencies | AUD, BRL, CAD, CHF, CZK, DKK, EUR, GBP, HKD, HRK, HUF, JPY, NOK, NZD, PLN, RON, SEK, SGD, TRY, USD |
| Bank Account Required? | Yes |
| Personal Account Manager? | No |
Review by
Zak Killermann is a writer at Finder. He’s ghostwritten hundreds of articles on fintech, finding his love for publication at St. Cloud State University. Traveling internationally for nearly half his life — and getting burned once by an OTC money exchange — Zak's vowed not to settle for anything short of the mid-market rate again.
Wise, unlike a lot of its competitors, makes it crystal clear how much you are paying in fees before you transfer. Money transfer companies can often try to hide fees and exchange rate markups from the user, making Wise a breath of fresh air. Wise offers accounts for both standard users sending to other individuals as well as business accounts with extra features like Xero integration.
When it comes to online transfers, I would be surprised to see big names like MoneyGram and Western Union offering better rates, but keep in mind that other online-specific companies may offer better deals than Wise. If you find yourself traveling overseas frequently or receiving payment in foreign currencies, be sure to look into the Wise Borderless account to see if it fits your needs.
As TransferWise has expanded beyond international money transfers, the company has changed its name to Wise. As a user, not much will change for you – you’ll be redirected to Wise and can still access your account the same way as normal.
As long as you are sending pound sterling, Wise’s fees are the same no matter what country you are sending to from the UK. Fees are determined by the following:
The fee is made up of a percentage of the transfer amount, plus a small fixed fee which varies according to whether you opt for a fast transfer, paying with your debit or credit card, or a low-cost transfer, paying via your bank account.
To give this more context, here is what sending EUR 1,000 to Germany through Wise looks like on on 2 March 2021:
| Fixed fee | Variable fee | Total fees | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fast transfer | £0.26 | £6.66 (0.67%) | £6.92 |
| Low-cost transfer | £0.26 | £3.69 (0.37%) | £3.95 |
And here’s what you’d pay if you wanted to send INR 1,000 to India:
| Fixed fee | Variable fee | Total fees | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fast transfer | £0.31 | £8.15 (0.82%) | £8.46 |
| Low-cost transfer | £0.31 | £5.17 (0.52%) | £5.48 |
Wise’s fees are transparent and always visible when you’re calculating or making a transfer, so you won’t be surprised by hidden fees.
Wise uses the mid-market rate for transfers. Its rates are updated multiple times a day, but Wise also allows you to lock in a rate for a day or more to complete your transfer.
Sometimes called the interbank rate, the mid-market rate is what your money’s actually worth on the global market compared to another currency. It’s the midpoint between worldwide supply and demand for that currency – and the rate banks and transfer services use when they trade among themselves. When we checked Wise’s rates against the mid-market rate on Google and XE, they were similar.
Choose your currency and desired transfer amount. Exchange rates change frequently, so visit Wise’s site to get a final quote.
Check if there are any Wise promo codes available
Wise transfer speeds are dependent on how much you are willing to pay in fees and when you send your transfer.
Wise offers money transfers to over 50 different currencies from all states in the UK. You can check out the full list of the currencies above, but the following are some of the more popular ones:
Wise was founded in 2010 and serves millions of customers a year. Wise is fully registered and accredited by many global agencies, using the following global standards to protect your money:
Reviews accurate as of 2 March 2021.
| Trustpilot | 4.7 out of 5 – based on 113,915 customer reviews |
| Monito | 8.8 out of 10 – based on staff reviews |
Wise’s reviews are moderately positive overall, with 86% of reviews on Trustpilot ranking it as Excellent, which is better than many competing money transfer companies. Overall, Wise’s clear fee structure and transparent rates make it easy to trust, but that doesn’t mean it is perfect. Customers often complain about slow customer service and turnaround times as well as the fact that missing a dash in your transfer account number can heavily delay your transfer.
UK customers can pay using the following methods:
The funds are deposited directly into your recipient’s bank account once Wise receives your payment. Wise allows you to make secure one-off transfers to a range of destinations around the globe. However, there currently is no option to set up recurring transfers.
Follow these six steps to have money sent in as little as a few minutes:
Wise offers support in two ways:
To contact Wise by email, visit the Contact Us page and enter your email address, select the topic of the question and provide as much detail as possible about your problem.
Wise provides phone support in 12 regions, including the UK. Both standard users and Wise Business users can contact support during business hours.
Wise has a mobile app on both the Google Play and Apple App stores. The app makes it possible to do the following:
| Ratings accurate as of 2 March 2021 | |
|---|---|
| Google Play Store | 4.5 out of 5 – based on 109,019 customer ratings |
| Apple App Store | 4.8 out of 5 – based on 38,400 customer ratings |
More on the best money transfer apps
Find out other alternatives to Wise
Wise is a straightforward company that presents fees and exchange rates alongside your transfer. Given that you can lock-in your transfer rate for many hours after first seeing it, it’s worth checking Wise’s prices first before exploring the competition. If you are ready to make your transfer with Wise now, head on over to get started by creating your free account.
Yes, you can set up a business profile with Wise to begin saving on business payments. Or, if you’re interested in Wise for your e-commerce store, read our review on the features on offer.
Yes, Wise has a debit card in the UK, which lets you spend any currency on your card and use it to withdraw money across the world for free (up to EUR€250 a month). You can find out more about our experience with it in the video below.
In your account, go to the pending transfer and there’ll be a button called Cancel transfer. This will work if the money is still being sent to Wise or if it’s being converted. However, once Wise pays your recipient, there’s no way to get it back. If the details are incorrect, the money will usually bounce. Wise will let you know in this case, so you’ll have the opportunity to update the details or cancel the transaction entirely.
Always make sure you trust the business or person you’re sending a money transfer to.
Our Top Pick
Wise (TransferWise)
