Zing International Money Transfer Review: Save on Fees and Rates

Zing is a very young transfer provider based in the UK. It’s owned by well-known banking giant HSBC, in an attempt to rival the big players in the remittance market. The app is easy to use and offers a lot of features, but strict transfer limits and availability to UK customers only hurt its wider strong performance.

Our analysis focuses on the positives and negatives of Zing, so you know whether it’s the best option for you in 2024. Check out our full review for details about cost, limits, safety, and ease of use.

Fees and exchange rates

Zing highlights its many free features, including free access to a multi-currency account, a free debit card, and free domestic payments. However - these are also free with a lot of Zing’s competitors, so don’t be taken in by this alone.

Transfer fees

The cost of using Zing comes from two main areas:

• Conversion charge - a percentage charged when converting between currencies

• Exchange rates - how good a rate you get on a pair of currencies

There are no transfer fees on outgoing international payments. Domestic transfers are also free.

There's a conversion charge of 0.2% on currency conversions between Zing wallets, and with payments involving currency exchange.

They promote a calculator on their website and in-app that you can use to work out how much you’ll be charged for your transfers. This shows you the live exchange rates for your transfers.

There are no transfer fees for sending money to other Zing members, although currency conversion fees may apply if you’re making a currency exchange.

If you use your card to make a payment in a currency you don't have in your Zing multi-currency account, there's a 0.2% charge, on top of the Visa rate. Domestic ATM withdrawals in GBP are free.

A word on Zing's exchange rates

Initial analysis of Zing exchange rates show them to be very competitive. The mark-up on the mid market rate is very small, which is great for consumers. Zing's rates didn't quite match Wise, who claim to offer the true mid-market rate.

Transfer limits

If you need to move large amounts of money, you’re quite limited with Zing. They have fairly strict transfer limits of up to £40,000 per transaction, putting them on a lower score than some competitors like Wise and OFX. However, there’s no minimum transfer limit, so smaller, more regular payments are easier to manage.

Transfer speeds

We funded our Zing GBP wallet using the "Quick bank transfer" option. This allowed us to instantly move money from our traditional high street banking app into our Zing account. Very slick indeed.

Next we went about converting our GBP balance to EUR. The transfer details said the funds would arrive 'shortly'. To our pleasant surprise, the euro balance was available immediately.

Finally, we set up a payment to an external euro account. The speed was described as 'next day', although this was only a modest <100€ payment.

Product offering

Zing’s product offering should be looked at in two different ways - the amount you can do with the app, and the availability of it.

What the app can do

The Zing app allows you to hold multiple currencies in one account, like Wise. In fact, it performs slightly better than Wise here as it allows you to store 10 currencies at once, rather than Wise’s limit of 9, and it allows you to order your first Zing debit card for free, while Wise charges £7 (or $9) for your first, and any replacement cards.

Currencies available with Zing

Zing also lets you spend like a local in over 200 countries worldwide using either your physical or digital Zing card. However, you can only exchange up to around 30 currencies with Zing’s international transfers, giving it below the average amount of transfer corridors.

As Zing is part of the HSBC group, you also have the option to use Zing as your primary banking app. You can make domestic payments using your physical card or digital wallet for free, but local ATM transactions cost £2 per withdrawal. Your first international ATM withdrawal in a calendar month is free, with possible conversion rates applied where necessary. Any further withdrawals in a month cost £2, or currency equivalent.

The maximum wallet balance you can hold (per currency) is £40,000 or equivalent.

App availability

This is where Zing falls short. Currently, you can only access Zing if you’re a UK resident.

Ease of use

The app is easy to use, with sign-up completed in minutes. But the limited features currently available make things more difficult than they could be. The overall interface of the app is very clear and easy to navigate, with your balance per currency clearly shown at the top of the home screen, and easy-to-find navigation buttons for adding money, sending money, and viewing your account details.

Customer service

The ‘Get Help’ section of the Zing website is clear and to the point, promoting that their customer service team (ZingCare) is available 24/7. The FAQs are brief, but cover all the main queries you may have when using the app, and the app includes its own chatbot feature.

If you’re struggling to access the Zing app, you can submit a request form on the Zing website and get help that way. You can also email the team directly. Unfortunately, there’s no option to phone customer service, but they can arrange callbacks if you request this via email.

Email: [email protected]

Safety and trust

As a new app on the market, analyzing Zing’s trustworthiness can be complicated. But, they’re part of the well-known, highly respected banking group HSBC, which gives you the peace of mind that they’re not new to the remittance market.

Zing is fully regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), and legally allowed to supply financial services to UK customers. You can also enjoy multi-factor authentication with the Zing app, including email verification, mobile verification, and biometric security.

Customer feedback

As a new app with only just over 100 downloads from Google Play, there are no customer reviews for Zing yet.

How to sign up for Zing

The signup process for Zing is very quick and easier than a lot of other money transfer providers on the market.

Zing - new player, strong competitor

Zing is very new to the remittance market, but its owners HSBC are not. You can tell this as you go through their app; they offer lots of services not covered by the wider remittance market, and they know what you need if you’re transferring money.

Their overall product offering is very good, and their app is easy to use, but their limited availability to UK customers and strict transfer limits put them below some of their rivals like Wise and OFX.