Cheapest International Money Transfer
I have recently moved from the United Kingdom to Germany and after a few months I realized I would like my savings to move with me (especially considering the messy Brexit coming up soon). I looked into the traditional methods and some of the more recent fintech offers and I was surprised to see how expensive everything was, despite the flashy marketing of "no fees" or "mid-market exchange rate".
Here's a brief comparison of the different exchange rates and fees I found:
Provider |
GBP |
EUR |
rate |
fees |
Interactive Investors |
500 |
542.68 |
1.0853 |
NA |
HSBC |
50,000 |
53,760 |
1.0752 |
NA |
Transferwise |
50,000 |
54,946 |
1.1030 |
£184.58 |
Revolut free |
50,000 |
54,891 |
1.1030 |
€259 |
Revolut Premium |
50,000 |
55,068 |
1.1030 |
€82 |
To summarize the table a bit:
- Your banks won't charge a fee, but they will give you a horrible exchange rate and they will cash in the difference between the real exchange rate and the one they offer you
- Transferwise offers a market exchange rate, but the fees they charge are still huge
- I found that Revolut Premium is the cheapest option for an annual €82 fee. You'll get unlimited free transfers and free currency exchange at market rates (among other benefits).
P.S. For transparency's sake: I do not get any commission or in any other ways profit from any of the providers mentioned in this post. It is based purely on my own experience and calculations!
Post a Comment