Send Money from Australia to United Kingdom

Measured on the full cost — the transfer fee plus the exchange-rate margin — Remitly is cheapest on this corridor at A$1,000, across the 2 providers we hold checked figures for. Western Union advertises no transfer fee here, which looks cheaper and often is not: a provider with no fee recovers it in the rate, and the margin is usually the larger of the two costs. The cheapest provider also changes with the amount you send, so compare the final sum that arrives in pound sterlings rather than the headline fee.

At A$1,000, Remitly is the cheapest of the 2 providers priced at that amount on this corridor: about A$4.09 all in, or 0.41% of the amount sent. Western Union is next at about A$14.59. That is the fee plus the exchange-rate margin that applied to a transfer of that size — priced at A$1,000 specifically, not worked out from a measurement taken at some other amount. It covers a bank transfer; cash pickup and mobile wallet payouts are priced separately. The margins were measured by Wise's comparison service rather than published by the providers themselves, and other providers here may be cheaper and are not priced this way.

Delivery ranges from minutes to a few business days depending on the provider and payout method. Western Union can deliver within minutes when you pay by debit card. Bank-funded and economy transfers typically take one to three business days but usually cost less. Transfers sent outside banking hours or over a weekend may not settle until the next working day.

Across the providers we compare, the available payout methods are cash pickup. The most widely used options in the United Kingdom are bank deposit over Faster Payments. Faster Payments clears sterling in seconds to minutes, so on this corridor a provider's fee and exchange-rate margin — not payment-rail speed — is what actually separates the cheap options from the expensive ones. Not every provider supports every method, so check the table above before you commit.

No. Remitly and Western Union offer cash pickup in the United Kingdom, so your recipient can collect the funds with valid photo ID and the transfer reference number. That said, bank deposit over Faster Payments generally cost less than cash collection.

Providers rarely give you the mid-market rate — the reference rate you see on Google or Reuters. Instead they add a margin, typically between 0.4% and 4%, and keep the difference. That margin is often larger than the visible transfer fee, which is why a "no fee" service can still be more expensive overall. For AUD to GBP, compare the quoted rate against the mid-market rate to see the real spread you are paying.

Yes, provided you use a licensed provider. Every service listed on this page is regulated in Australia under AUSTRAC, which requires safeguarding of customer funds and identity verification. Send only to people you know personally, keep your transfer reference private, and be sceptical of anyone pressuring you to send money urgently to someone you have not met.

Yes. Each provider sets its own transfer limits, which vary by how much identity verification you have completed and how you pay. Larger transfers may require additional documentation such as proof of source of funds. For transfers above roughly A$10,000, a specialist foreign-exchange broker will often beat an app on rate.

If your recipient banks with Monzo or Starling rather than a high-street bank, Remitly is the only service here that names them. Digital-only banks are not always reachable by services built around branch networks. Wise carries no row here and the reason is ours, not theirs. Its page for this corridor returned a 404 on the address pattern we tried — the same thing happened on Canada to the United Kingdom, so it appears to be how that provider addresses this destination rather than a gap in its service. It certainly converts Australian dollars to pounds; check it directly, because on most corridors it is the cheapest option when funded from an account.