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Azimo is no longer trading
Azimo was acquired by Papaya Global in March 2022. Consequently, as of August 31 2022 it no longer provides international money transfers via Azimo or Azimo Business.
If you're looking to send money overseas, we recommend using Wise instead.
Quick overview of Azimo and Wise
Founded in the UK in 2012, Azimo currently serves over 1.5 million customers and supports sending to more than 195 countries in over 80 different currencies. Transfers are strictly online and are delivered anywhere from instant to 3 days. While you can make a transfer with as little as £1, Azimo supports payments only from Europe.
Wise, formerly TransferWise, is a peer to peer platform that has been in operation since 2011. So far, it has grown its customer base to over 8 million customers and transacts more than £4 million monthly. Wise transfers funds at mid-market rates, without applying exchange rate margins. It also has a multi-currency account that handles more than 50 currencies and issues its customers with a debit Mastercard. If you'd like to know more about other account types, check our guide on virtual banks.
Now, let’s get into breaking down the services of Azimo vs Wise.
Which brand has lower fees?
When making an international payment, both Azimo and Wise will apply fees, but the question is which will give you the better deal.
Wise charges a fixed fee and a variable fee, both of which depend on the currency pair. For example, when transferring £1,000 to Kenya, you’ll be charged £9.77, of which £2.05 is a fixed fee and £7.72 is a variable fee.
✅Verdict: Azimo wins
When you consider transfer fees only without bringing in hidden charges arising from variable fees, Azimo wins this one.
Which brand offers better exchange rates?
International transfers mostly involve exchanging one currency for another. Generally, providers charge an exchange rate margin over and above the wholesale rate in order to cover costs and generate profits. Here are the Azimo vs Wise margins.
Wise does not charge any exchange rate margins on currency conversions. All transfers are processed at the mid-market rate.
✅Verdict: Wise wins
Wise emerges as the clear winner with better exchange rates than Azimo.
Which brand covers more locations?
One of the most important things about any money transfer provider is that they allow you to send money to your desired location. Let’s see how Azimo vs Wise covers more of the globe compared to each other.
Wise support 50 currencies and 59 countries to which you can send money.
✅ Verdict: Azimo wins
Azimo supports far more countries than Wise for transfers.
Which is faster?
Sometimes the most important factor in a transfer is how soon the money is delivered. When it comes to Azimo vs Wise, here’s how long a transfer will take.
Wise takes 2-3 business days to deliver funds to your chosen recipient. Delivery times are affected by how you pay for your transfer and the processing speed of the recipient bank. Transfers paid for by card are delivered faster than bank payments. Also, banking hours and security checks can delay payments.
✅ Verdict: Azimo wins
Factoring in all the payout methods and the way they enable users to choose how long their transfer will take, Azimo carries the day here.
Which brand offers more transfer & payment options?
You might be looking to use a specific payment method when sending money abroad, so here’s the coverage you can expect when Wise vs Azimo compares.
Wise allows customers to pay for their transfers using their bank accounts, debit and credit cards, Apple Pay, and Android Pay. Transfer payouts are mainly to bank accounts with select countries like Kenya and Ghana supporting mobile wallet deposits.
✅ Verdict: Azimo wins
While Wise has a slight edge in transfer payment options, Azimo is the overall winner for its long list of payout methods - especially as Wise has no cash payout option.
What do users have to say about each brand?
Expectedly, users have different sentiments based on their unique experiences with both Azimo and Wise. Here is the general feel as captured on Trustpilot, Reddit, Facebook, and Twitter.
Positive
Easy to use platform
No exchange rate margin applied
Transfers are delivered fast
Negative
Accounts may be deactivated without warning if found suspicious
Due diligence can take longer to complete hence delaying transfers
✅ Verdict: Wise wins
Wise has almost twice the number of reviews that Azimo has on Trustpilot, 94% of which are 4 and 5-star, so their services win this round.
What brand offers a better ease of use, accessibility & security?
As a customer looking for a provider that’s easy to use and secure, here is what you need to know about Azimo vs Wise.
Languages available
Wise is available in 12 languages: English, German, Spanish, French, Italian, Turkish, Romanian, Portuguese, Japanese, Russian, Polish, and Hungarian.
Support
The provider connects and supports its customers via phone and email.
Mobile Application
Wise’s mobile app is available as a free download on both the Google Play and App Store.
Payment options
The company allows its customers to pay using bank transfers, cards, Apple Pay, and Android Pay.
Security options
Wise has invested in the latest Transport Layer Security (TLS) and runs regular security scans including External Penetration Tests. The company also uses a 2 Factor Authentication system for enhanced safety.
✅ Verdict: Wise wins
While the two services score similarly in many respects, Wise’s easy-to-use platform, security features, and payment options give the company a much better score overall.
Additional features
Wise offers a range of additional features through its platform. The main examples of these are:
Multi-currency account: This account handles over 50 currencies that you can swap at real exchange rates.
Debit Mastercard: You can get a debit card you can use in stores and make ATM withdrawals.
Regular transfers: If you make recurring transfers, you can set those up on Wise and forget.
✅ Verdict: Wise wins
Wise is an undisputed winner thanks to its variety of additional services.
Case study: sending a variety of amounts
To give you a feel of what it is like to send money using both Azimo and Wise, let us consider the following scenarios when making a transfer from the UK to Spain.
Sending £200
Wise will convert your funds at the mid-market rate. Depending on the transfer method you choose - fast and easy transfer, low-cost transfer or advanced transfer - you’ll pay between £1 and £1.59 in fees.
Sending £1,000
Wise still gives you the same mid-market rate but the transfer method fees will change to between £3.95 and £6.92.
Sending £20,000
Wise will charge you £73.99 in transfer fees and convert your pounds into euro at the mid-market rate given the current exchange rate.
✅ Verdict: Wise wins
Between Wise vs Azimo, both providers look competitive. However, it is important to note that Azimo’s exchange rates include a customer offer for the first two transfers. Thereafter, the rates are marked up by 0.81% thus becoming less attractive. Wise wins this, as their lack of exchange rate margins leaves them coming out on top in the majority of circumstances.
Bottom line - who is better?
Having looked at the head-to-head comparison of Azimo and Wise, it is now time for the verdict - who is better?
Azimo scores really well for small transfers and domestic payments within Europe. However, Wise is much more established and does the heavy lifting in both personal and business payments, facilitating large payments, applying no exchange rate margins, and supporting daily spending using its multi-currency account and debit card products. Therefore, Wise is our overall winner in this head-to-head comparison.
Domestic payments. Wise domestic payments are only allowed within the US.
Overseas payments. The provider supports 65 destinations.
Business payments. Both providers support business payments. Wise supports business payments in addition to enabling them to get paid directly into their bank accounts.
Daily spending. Wise supports daily spending via their Mastercard branded debit card.
Large transactions. The company has an upper limit of $1 million per transfer hence the best for large transactions.
Smaller transactions. Wise doesn’t state the minimum amount it supports.
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