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Our video review of Wise
Wise review
Fees & Rates
While Wise’s fees are hard to pin down, their full transparency and mid-market exchange rate get them a very good score.
Service
Ease of Use
Safety & Trust
Customer Feedback
"Wise are one of the strongest providers on the market, with a simple app, great customer service, and fully transparent fees. We found it easy to sign up and send money, and their support team were helpful with all of our enquiries - an overall great experience."Mehdi Punjwani
Why do we like Wise?
Their transparency: All of Wise’s fees are shown up front so you know how it costs to use their service
Their rates: Wise offer the mid-market rate on money transfers - they don’t charge a markup
Their app: Wise’s app is easy to use and makes sending money straightforward and quick
Their currency support: While their number of supported countries and currencies is respectable, it’s not as high as other major providers
Their transfer speeds: While some Wise transfers are completed in seconds or minutes, many bank transfers can take one or two days to complete
Their delivery methods: You can only receive money in your account with Wise, there is no option for cash pickup
Fees and exchange rates
This is how we rated Wise based on their fees and exchange rates. Find the best rates for your specific transfer with our comparison tool.
Compare providers
Wise charges a percentage of the total amount being transferred, plus a separate fixed fee - but crucially, they provide all transfers at the mid-market exchange rate. The overall cost of your transfer will depend on:
The amount you’re sending: As Wise charge a percentage of the total amount, large transfers will cost more in fees - but transfers over $100,000 may qualify for a lower fee
The country and currency you choose: Different destination countries and currencies will have different fees that apply - these will all be shown up front when you set up your transfer
Your payment method: When sending money from the US, Wise allow you to pay for your transfer via credit card, debit card, wire transfer, ACH debit, a Wise account transfer, or a bill payment
Transfer fees
It’s hard to pin down Wise’s transfer fees as they vary depending on so many different factors. For example, sending $1,000 from the USA to the UK by bank transfer incurs a total fee of $7.40 - broken down into a Wise fee of $5.40 and a bank transfer fee of $2.
But a credit card payment incurs a total fee of $46.44 - broken down into a $5.21 fee to Wise and a credit card fee of $41.23.
A $1,000 bank transfer to Canada costs $7.56 in total, which is made up of a $2 bank transfer fee and a $5.56 fee to Wise. But using your credit card for the same transfer means paying $5.37 to Wise and $41.23 as a credit card fee.
Sending local currencies out of their region with Wise
You can use Wise to send GBP to bank accounts outside of the UK - so long as they’re denominated in GBP and have an IBAN. However these transfers are carried out over the SWIFT network, so you’ll be charged an extra £3.95 on top of the Wise fee.
You can also use Wise to send EUR to banks outside of SEPA, but these transfers are also carried out over the SWIFT network, so there is an extra charge of €3.55 on top of the Wise fee.
Exchange rates
Wise always offers the mid-market rate for international money transfers - which we appreciate, as there are no hidden costs when it comes to sending money abroad. It means you’ll get the true exchange rate for your currency exchange - and Wise won’t take any money aside from the previously mentioned fees.
Money transfer providers usually charge either an exchange rate markup, a transfer fee, or a combination of both to make money. Wise only charge a fee, but other providers, like TorFX and Instarem do the opposite - they don’t charge a transfer fee at all, just an exchange rate markup.
As such it’s not always easy to know which provider offers the cheapest deal - which is why comparing options with MoneyTransfers.com is so important. This way you can see which deals work out the best for you, so you can ensure you get value for your money.
"While it's frustrating that Wise's fees have so many variables, we appreciate that we can see up front what those fees will be before making a transfer. Being given the true mid-market rate is always a plus, too."
Speed of transfers
Wise is one of the fastest providers on the market, with most transfers completed in minutes.
Compare transfer speeds
Despite generally fast speeds, a money transfer with Wise can take anywhere from seconds to days - it depends on the country and currency you choose as well as the payment method. While this isn’t ideal, as you can’t depend on it to be fast or consistent for any transfer you need to make, it’s worth checking out to see if it offers a good speed for your circumstances.
Transfer limits
Wise has higher limits than most competitors, with $1.2 million able to be sent by wire transfer.
Compare transfer limits
Wise have their own transfer limits, and they vary depending on your payment type:
You’ll be able to send up to $1.2 million per wire transfer, with no daily or weekly limits
You can send a maximum of $15,000 per transfer or per day by ACH bank debit
You can send up to $2,000 per transfer or per day via debit/credit card (and a maximum of $8,000 a week)
If you have a Wise multi-currency account, you will be able to send up to $6 million from your account. You’ll also be able to add up to $6 million to your Wise account balance.
How good is Wise’s money transfer service?
Here's how we rated Wise based on the overall quality of service it provides. They’re on our list of top money transfer companies for their service - alongside other providers like WorldRemit.
Provider
Wise offers a powerful and well-rounded money transfer service, popular with millions across the world. We’ve taken a closer look at their transfers and analyzed different routes and methods to determine the bigger picture.
Type of transfers available
When you transfer money with Wise, you’ll generally be able to pay for your transfer through one of the following methods:
ACH bank transfers
Wire transfers
Debit card payments
Credit card payments
Where you can transfer money
Wise allows you to send money to over 70 destinations from over 40 origin countries, and they support over 50 currencies from major to more exotic. These are fairly high numbers, certainly higher than some other providers - so if you’re looking for a provider that can cover lots of bases then Wise is a good shout.
However other providers like XE do offer a wider range of supported countries - so it’s always useful to compare your options for the transfer you need.
Customer service
Wise’s customer support options are supposedly excellent, offering 24/7 customer support via phone and live chat, as well as an informative and helpful FAQ section. We tried using their customer service options to solve some issues we were having.
Phone
Availability | 24/7 |
Response time | Minutes |
Languages | English, Hungarian, Spanish, German, Italian, French and Portuguese |
We had to answer some automated questions to get to the right person but this was pretty quick - and they answered in seconds. We were asked to quote our membership number but ‘for some reason this wasn’t coming up’.
They still answered our general questions, and the person who we spoke to took the team to explain all their fees, payment methods and transfer methods. They did take time to point out how their fees were generally lower than competitors, but in general they answered all our questions clearly and helpfully.
It’s worth noting you must be logged in to Wise to be able to call up or email.
Availability | 24/7 |
Response time | Within an hour |
Languages | English, Hungarian, Spanish, German, Italian, French and Portuguese |
They claim to respond in one day. We emailed to inquire about the future availability of certain currencies, and they responded within the hour with helpful directions to their ‘currency wishes’ page where you can register for currency availability alerts.
Help center FAQs
Availability | 24/7 |
Languages | German, English, Spanish, French, Italian, Indonesian, Magyar, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Turkish, Russian, Chinese (Traditional and Simplified) |
Their help articles are generally quite detailed and easy to understand, with lots of straightforward instructions to help you do what you need to do. For example, their page on adding money to your balance through Wise gives a clear 5-step walk through with links to their currency page and a note about what currencies you can’t currently add. You can tell them whether you found the article helpful, and you’ll be able to find related articles below.
At time of writing this was unavailable - which was unfortunate. There was no explanation either - so we’re docking some points for this. Overall we were quite impressed with their responses to our questions, so we’ll score them well. However keep in mind that this can be different by region and even time of day.
"Our experience with Wise's customer service representative was pretty positive overall. They were helpful and patient, and it was easy to get through to them."
Additional services
Wise offers a global bank account, also known as a multi-currency account, that allows you to spend 50 currencies in 170 countries with one card. This account is rated as one of our best online bank accounts in the UK. You’ll also be able to receive money using account details and IBANs for 10 currencies, fee-free.
You can also take out a Wise debit card, which they call ‘the most international debit card in the world’. It allows you to spend abroad at the mid-market exchange rate, with no transaction fees.
These are potentially very useful tools for frequent travelers, expats, and anyone else who makes use of different currencies.
Ease of use
This score is based on how simple and straightforward it is to open an account and send money with Wise. It's on our list of top providers for ease of use, with other providers like Atlantic Money and WorldRemit.
Compare ease of use
Wise is quite easy to use - after using it to open an account and make an international money transfer, our team found their app straightforward and helpful. Their recent rebranding has give their app a new look and feel, and it works well.
We’ve gone through both processes of signing up and sending money, and below we review them in detail:
Signing up with Wise
Signing up to Wise should only take a few minutes - so let’s start at their homepage.
Register
Choose account
Select country
Verify number
Create password
This was an easy and straightforward process, no complaints on our side.
Sending money with Wise
To actually send money with Wise requires a bit more time - for us, it took around 20 minutes from start to finish. Here’s how we did it:
Initiate transfer
Add transfer details
Add recipient information
Add recipient bank details
Verify identity
Answer security questions
Review transfer details
Pay for your transfer
Finalize your transfer
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We found the sending money process with Wise to be pretty straightforward. The steps were simple and easy to follow, and we finished everything on our side without any hitches. Remember it’s crucial to do your part too - entering your details correctly and verifying your identity with clear photos ensures it goes as fast as possible.
Is Wise safe?
This is how we scored Wise based on its transparency, safety and security. They rank high on our list of top providers for safety and trust, ahead of XE, TorFX and Currencies Direct.
Compare trustworthiness
Wise claims over 15 million people use their service to send money abroad online, and being one of the biggest money transfer providers in the industry shows that Wise is a safe and trustworthy brand. It’s also worth noting that MoneyTransfers.com ensures all providers on our panel are fully reputable and credible.
We’ve investigated how trustworthy Wise really are, looking at their regulation and authorization credentials as well as their security features and overall transparency.
Is Wise authorized to provide money transfers?
Wise is authorized and regulated by all the relevant authorities and bureaus in the countries they operate. This means it is registered with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) in the USA and renews their registration every year. Wise is also supervised by regulatory authorities in all states it is licensed to operate in, by 48 separate state regulators.
They’re registered with the Financial Conduct Authority in the UK, the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada, the National Bank of Belgium for the EEA, and many more outlined here.
This is as you would expect for a major financial institution, so it gets a high score. After all, you wouldn’t just let anyone handle your money.
Security
Wise is licensed to hold money for their customers, and must follow strict rules to keep it safe and secure. This means Wise safeguards your money - a practice that involves ensuring its safety by separating it from Wise’s own funds, and keeping it available to you all the time.
In the USA, Wise follows US state obligations by protecting customers' money in a mix of banks and investments, mostly government bonds. On their website, they outline that customer money in the US is kept in cash deposits with Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase and Wells Fargo, as well as a US Government bond.
Additionally, Wise offer two-step login and two-factor authentication, and their website makes use of advanced security measures and protocols. Look for the ‘https’ in the URL as a sign of website security.
This is again exactly what you want from a company that provides financial services - security is paramount to Wise, so it’s safe to trust them with your money. While it’s important to note that some customer reviews highlight that their funds are inaccessible or ‘trapped’, these seem to be isolated instances where in some cases users have not correctly entered details or verified themselves.
Fee transparency
Wise is fully transparent and upfront with all the fees they charge - and you’ll be able to see exactly how much that will be when filling out the details of your transfer. There are no hidden charges.
What’s more is that Wise does not charge a markup on the exchange rate - the mid-market rate you see is what you get, and you can guarantee it for a set period of time. This is an especially useful feature as it ensures you know exactly what you’re getting for your money.
"Being one of the biggest money transfer providers on the market, Wise adheres to the highest standards of security and verification. This is the same with all providers on our panel, so you can trust every deal you find on MoneyTransfers.com."
Customer feedback and user reviews
This is how we rated Wise based on the feedback Wise has received from its customers, both on Trustpilot and both mobile app stores. It comes high on our list of top providers for customer feedback, alongside OFX and Atlantic Money.
Provider
Wise has helped millions of people send money abroad, offering rates that beat banks and stay competitive with other providers. It’s always useful to see what those people say about Wise - so we’ve looked at their customer reviews from Trustpilot as well as the App Store and Play Store.
Trustpilot
Wise is rated ‘Excellent’ on Trustpilot with a score of 4.4 from over 180,000 reviews at the time of writing. 84% of ratings are 5-stars. This is a very impressive score, given the high number of reviews - the most reviews out of any money transfer service on Trustpilot by over 100,000.
According to Trustpilot, Wise replies to over a third of all negative reviews, and it usually takes them under two weeks to reply to negative reviews.
The App Store
Wise has two versions on the App Store, one in the UK store and one in the US. They both have excellent scores, however - in the UK store the Wise app is rated 4.7 based on over 45k ratings, and in the US it’s rated 4.6 based on over 27k ratings.
Many users praise the app’s efficiency and intuitiveness, with particular attention given to their money transfer service’s low fees and rates compared to banks. There is also a lot of appreciation for Wise’s multi-currency account and debit card giving users a global banking experience.
However, there are a few reviews that complain about a downgraded service, funds being held up and refunds taking a long time to go through. There are also some comments on customer service not always being helpful.
Google Play
Wise’s score on the Google Play Store is slightly lower than on the App store, rated at 4.2 stars based on 254k reviews. It’s been downloaded over 10 million times, and has an ‘Editors’ choice’ badge for what it’s worth.
A common theme in reviews for Wise’s Android app is how easy and intuitive it is to use, with a range of useful features and a transparent approach to fees. However, some have said the app can be buggy with frequent error messages - and again there are more complaints about customer service. More details can be found on our best money transfer apps page.
“Wise have been around for years, and have handled millions of transactions for a reason. They’re reliable, cheap and safe - and they offer more than just money transfers. Their multi-currency account and debit card make it so much easier to handle money globally, so they’re an excellent choice for travelers, expats and people with family spread across the world.”Jonathan Merry
Wise - The best provider overall
We rate Wise very highly - in fact, it's our number one provider. With affordable fees, true mid-market rates and a powerful and flexible money transfer service, in our opinion it's the best money transfer provider out there. However, it might not be for everyone, which is why we're here - with our comparison table you'll be able to find the best provider offering the best deal for the specific transfer you need to make. Take a look at the ratings for some of our other providers , read their reviews, and see which one is right for you.
FAQs
Do I need an account to receive money with Wise?
Do I need a bank account to join Wise?
Is Wise legal to use?
Who owns Wise?
Can I open a Wise account in any country?
Compare Wise to our other providers
Fees & Rates9.4Transfer Speed9.0Safety & Trust9.5Product Offering8.8Transfer Limits9.5Ease of Use10.0Customer Feedback8.5Overall
Fees & Rates9.8Transfer Speed9.0Safety & Trust9.0Product Offering8.0Transfer Limits9.0Ease of Use9.0Customer Feedback8.4Overall
Fees & Rates9.3Transfer Speed9.0Safety & Trust9.0Product Offering8.0Transfer Limits9.0Ease of Use9.0Customer Feedback8.7Overall
Fees & Rates9.1Transfer Speed8.0Safety & Trust9.0Product Offering9.0Transfer Limits8.0Ease of Use9.0Customer Feedback9.0Overall
Fees & Rates9.4Transfer Speed8.0Safety & Trust8.5Product Offering8.8Transfer Limits9.5Ease of Use8.2Customer Feedback8.3Overall
Fees & Rates9.0Transfer Speed8.9Safety & Trust8.5Product Offering8.0Transfer Limits8.8Ease of Use8.5Customer Feedback8.8Overall
Fees & Rates8.5Transfer Speed7.0Safety & Trust9.5Product Offering8.8Transfer Limits9.0Ease of Use9.5Customer Feedback8.0Overall
Fees & Rates8.9Transfer Speed9.0Safety & Trust8.8Product Offering8.5Transfer Limits6.5Ease of Use8.0Customer Feedback8.8Overall
Fees & Rates9.3Transfer Speed7.0Safety & Trust8.5Product Offering6.5Transfer Limits9.0Ease of Use9.5Customer Feedback8.7Overall
Fees & Rates9.1Transfer Speed9.0Safety & Trust8.0Product Offering8.0Transfer Limits7.0Ease of Use9.0Customer Feedback8.3Overall
Wise user feedback
Comments
Tristan
Beware: Wise's Unethical Policies and Unresponsive Support Cost My Business
I am sharing my experience with Wise to warn fellow business owners about the serious risks and unacceptable practices you may encounter if you choose to use their services.
My business, is a legally registered travel agency in the UK, and I relied on Wise to manage payments for my photography and cultural tours, primarily in South America. Things took a turn for the worse when Wise froze my account and accused my business of violating their Acceptable Use Policy, citing my once-a-year humanitarian trip to Cuba.
Despite explaining multiple times that:
No Cuba-related transactions were ever processed through Wise (I use a separate European bank for this purpose),
My tours comply with the “Support for Cuban People” category authorized by OFAC, designed to help Cuban citizens outside state control,
Wise completely ignored the facts. Their customer support team responded with automated messages, refused to engage in any meaningful dialogue, and even lied, claiming they didn't monitor my emails—despite clear evidence to the contrary. After days of chasing them and providing thorough documentation, they chose to close my account without justification.
The Consequences:
Wise left my business in chaos, disrupting essential transactions and client arrangements.
Their rigid policies align with sanctions widely condemned by the global community, and in doing so, they indirectly support humanitarian suffering.
The Bottom Line:
Wise is unreliable, unresponsive, and unethical. If your business has any complexity or humanitarian focus, beware: Wise will shut you down without notice or explanation, and customer support will abandon you. Their actions have serious real-world consequences.
Avoid Wise if you value your business stability or require ethical and accountable financial services. There are far better alternatives out there that won’t put your livelihood at risk Beware: Wise's Unethical Policies and Unresponsive Support Cost My Business
Anonymous
I have been a customer for a few years. Yes I love the instant deposits as I make around $1K. However as many non US entities Wise uses a bank out of New York. Therefore the TRANSFER and DEPOSIT from an account transfer can take 4 to 6 days. What this means is that you will not able to make another ACH transfer during this time. This is frustrating if you have to make a follow up transfer in a few days. All in all don't plan to make more than 4 transfer in a month because it may not fo through, Not sure if other transfer companies operate the same way but I am about to find out as I will try Revolute. Bottom linw will require you to use ANOTHER payment method like credit card or some other method. Understand this: YOU MAY HAVE THE MONEY IN YOUR ACCOUNT but they WILL NOT TRY TO VERIFY IT WITHIN THE THE PERIOD IT WILL TAKE THEM TO DEPOSIT IT IN YOUR ACCOUNT. To add insult to injury I called in and the agent siad that they can see that they got paid but the computer takes time to update/reconcille I guess! It is a slow system!
Anonymous
The service is decent, nothing more. I have had security issues that are not quickly resolved. Call center personnel are average. The app is not, in general, user friendly. You should definitely do research on a variety of service providers before making a choice. Do not take the reviews at face value. I chose Wise based on positive reviews but now regret not doing more research on other companies.
Anonymous
So far so good
Daniel
I checked to see if Wise even sends money to Colombia. Colombia is not even in their list of countries. Why is it even advertising for Colombia?
