Everything you need to know about international money transfer rates
Exchange rates and fees are the two levers that decide how much of your money actually arrives. These guides explain how they work, so the comparison you read next makes sense.
What is the mid-market exchange rate?
The rate you see on Google is not the rate you'll get. Here's why, and what to do about it.
How to calculate the true cost of a transfer
Fee + rate margin = real cost. Most people only check the fee — and miss the bigger charge.
When is the best time to send money internationally?
Exchange rates fluctuate constantly. Here's how to time your transfers (and when it's not worth the effort).
Bank vs. specialist transfer service: what's cheaper?
Banks typically charge 2–5% above the mid-market rate. Specialist services often charge less than 1%.
How exchange rate margins work
A 1% margin on a $1,000 transfer costs you $10. On $10,000 it costs $100. Know what you're paying.
Mobile money vs. bank deposit: which is faster?
For many corridors, mobile money delivers in minutes. Bank deposits can take 1–3 days. Here's the trade-off.
What is the mid-market exchange rate?
The mid-market rate (also called the interbank rate or the "real" exchange rate) is the midpoint between the buying and selling price of a currency. It's the rate you see on Google, XE.com, or your phone's currency app.
This rate represents the true value of one currency against another at that moment in time.
The problem: almost no money transfer service gives you the mid-market rate. Instead, they add a "margin" — a small percentage on top — to make their profit on the exchange. This margin is often invisible in their marketing ("no fees!") but always present in the rate.
For example, if the mid-market rate is 1 USD = 800 NGN (Nigerian Naira), a provider with a 2% margin would give you 1 USD = 784 NGN. On a $500 transfer that's 8,000 NGN less in your recipient's pocket.
How to check: use a currency converter (XE.com is reliable) to find the mid-market rate for your corridor, then compare it to the rate the provider is offering you. The difference, expressed as a percentage, is the exchange rate margin.
How to calculate the true cost of a transfer
The real cost of a money transfer has two parts: the transfer fee and the exchange rate margin. Many providers advertise "no fee" transfers while quietly applying a larger rate margin than competitors who charge a flat fee.
Step 1: Find the mid-market rate for your currency pair (use XE.com).
Step 2: Get a quote from the provider for your transfer amount.
Step 3: Calculate what your recipient would receive if you used the mid-market rate.
Step 4: Subtract the actual amount your recipient will receive from the mid-market amount. Add the transfer fee. This is the total true cost.
Example: Sending $500 USD to the UK (GBP) • Mid-market rate: 1 USD = 0.800 GBP → recipient gets £400.00 • Provider A (no fee, 1.5% margin): 1 USD = 0.788 GBP → recipient gets £394.00 → cost $7.60 • Provider B ($3 fee, 0.3% margin): 1 USD = 0.798 GBP → recipient gets £398.80 minus $3 → cost ~$4.60
Provider B is cheaper despite having a visible fee. Always compare total cost, not just the advertised fee.
Bank vs. specialist transfer service: which is cheaper?
For international money transfers, specialist services (Wise, Remitly, WorldRemit, and others) almost always beat your bank on both rate and fee.
Banks typically add 2.5%–5% to the mid-market exchange rate, plus a flat wire transfer fee ($25–$45 in the US). On a $1,000 transfer, that can mean $50–$90 in real cost.
Specialist services typically charge: • Rate margin: 0.3%–1.5% • Fee: $0–$5 for standard bank debit
The exception is if you're sending very large amounts. Some banks offer negotiated rates for transfers above $10,000–$50,000, and specialist services sometimes have higher transfer limits that make them more suitable. See our guide on large international transfers for more on this.
The one advantage of a bank: they are deeply familiar to recipients. Some older recipients or those without mobile phones may prefer a direct bank transfer, even if it's slower and more expensive.
Ready to compare?
See what your recipient actually gets
Fees, exchange-rate margins and what arrives — checked corridor by corridor, and never reordered for money.
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