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Western Union is the longest-running money transfer provider still operating today, and one of the largest. It covers international transfers to over 200 locations globally and has over 500,000 agent locations to make sending money more convenient and accessible for more people.
Western Union also has a large and loyal customer base, with a number of different payment and payout options including bank deposits and cash pickups.
Quick Summary: Western Union has a bigger coverage, but both are fairly equal
MoneyGram and Western Union are two of the biggest money transfer providers operating today, with decades of experience to back up their services. The two operators are very similar in many ways. Between Western Union vs MoneyGram, both operate in a wide range of countries worldwide with hundreds of thousands of agent locations to make transfers more convenient (although MoneyGram's 350,000 locations is a little less wide-spread as Western Union's 500,000 locations), and both operators have made steps to modernise their services with apps in recent years.
With that said, however, their fee structure and exchange rate margins remain largely behind when compared with newer, digitally-led money transfer providers. For this reason, we'd always recommend comparing all the options available to you first.
Which brand has lower fees?
Moneygram’s fee structure is dependent on a number of factors, including:
The location you are sending funds to
The type of payment you opt for
The amount you are sending
Whether you are sending in a single or multiple currencies
As an example, let’s look at the fees for a couple of examples.
If you were to send $200 to Singapore, the fees would be $4.99 for a cash pickup paid for by debit or credit card or by bank transfer. Paying by cash at an agent location, however, returns a ‘fees variable’ note on the Moneygram website, so it’s unclear whether you would pay more or less in person.
As another example, sending $500 to Australia would have a fee of $4.99 for a cash pickup paid for by an online bank account, while paying with your credit or debit card would incur a fee of $9.99.
✅ Verdict: It averages out to be a tie
While MoneyGram has more favourable fees when we look specifically at credit card payments, between Western Union vs MoneyGram, the two operators’ fee structure balances out when we look at the overall picture. Western Union has cheaper fees for debit cards and bank transfers and also provides the option for the recipient to receive their payment either as cash or as a bank deposit, something that the MoneyGram website doesn’t always provide.
Which brand offers better exchange rates?
Similarly to fees, the exchange rate margins MoneyGram charges really depends on the currency pair you are transferring between, as well as other variables such as the amount you are sending.
Typically, the provider charges relatively high exchange rate margins compared to other money transfer providers. If you were sending from GBP to EUR, for example, you could expect to be charged around 5.05% above the mid-market rate, while sending to AUD would have margins about 4.23% above the mid-market rate.
✅ Verdict: It’s a tie
The exchange rate between Western Union vs MoneyGram can vary massively depending on a number of factors for both providers, so it’s difficult to say for definite if one provider has better rates than the other.
Which brand covers more locations?
MoneyGram supports international transfers to over 200 countries around the globe, with over 70 of those countries now digitally enabled for more convenient transfer options. Additionally, MoneyGram has around 350,000 agent locations worldwide.
✅ Verdict: It’s close, but Western Union covers more locations
Western Union has more physical agent locations across the globe than MoneyGram, but it also supports more countries for online transfers too.
Which is faster?
Money sent with MoneyGram is typically ready for cash pickup within minutes after the transfer has been successfully completed. When using a bank account to pay for your transfer (often the most cost-effective method), your transfer can take up to 5 working days, which is fairly typical for bank transfers.
✅ Verdict: It’s a tie
Comparing Western Union vs MoneyGram, both transfer providers are well-known for providing fast international transfers around the globe within minutes, although organising your transfer to be paid for via a bank account will delay your transfer by several working days.
Which brand offers more transfer & payment options?
MoneyGram allows you to pay for online transfers using a bank account (US only) or with a credit or debit card. You can also pay for your transfer by cash if visiting an agent location directly.
Transfer options are dependent on the country you are sending to. Where allowed, you can decide to transfer the funds to your recipient’s bank account, mobile wallet, prepaid card, or organise a cash pickup.
✅ Verdict: It’s a tie
Both providers offer a fairly similar range of payment and payout options, so other factors may be the decider in your decision.
What do users have to say about each brand?
MoneyGram UK has over 1,400 reviews on Trustpilot with an overall ‘Great’ rating of 4.2 out of 5. The US version, MoneyGram US, has over 3,800 reviews on Trustpilot with an overall ‘Great’ rating of 4 out of 5.
Amongst the positive reviews, MoneyGram is praised for its:
Affordability
Fast transfer times
Convenience
Good customer service
However, this money transfer giant does have its fair share of negative reviews, too. These include criticism for transfer times taking longer than expected, negative experiences with customer service, and account closures.
✅ Verdict: MoneyGram has better reviews - but Western Union has more
MoneyGram has marginally better user reviews than Western Union overall, but it does have considerably fewer reviews than Western Union. Both providers have a broad mix of reviews from previous users, with equal praise for their transfer times and efficiency as well a number of reviews criticising the service of both operators.
What brand offers a better ease of use, accessibility & security?
The MoneyGram international app supports English, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish, and is available on both iOS and Android. In terms of support, the only contact option on the website is to fill out a contact form or to use the service’s help centre. However, MoneyGram does also have many agent locations where you may be able to get assistance face to face.
MoneyGram does authenticate your identity in order for you to be able to send money with them. You can do this by uploading a photo of your passport or other identity documents (such as your driving license) on the app.
As one of the largest money transfer companies in the world, MoneyGram is subjected to a number of regulations to ensure it is capable of keeping your money secure. MoneyGram is licensed as an Authorised Payment Institution in the UK and is also licensed in all 50 US states.
✅ Verdict: Both providers have a wide range of accessibility features and security
Between MoneyGram vs Western Union, both are industry giants, and as such have the security procedures in place to guarantee they can keep your account and your money secure when initiating money transfers with them.
Both operators have made considerable steps in recent years to modernise their offerings to compete with digital transfer startups, and this can be seen in the convenience of their apps to make international transfers easier on the go.
Additional features
MoneyGram has a Plus Rewards program that gives users the opportunity to earn rewards every time they send money online. Rewards include a 20% discount off your second transfer, 40% of the fee of your transfer after every 5th money transfer, and exclusive ‘members-only’ promotions.
Case study: sending a variety of amounts
In this case study of Western Union vs MoneyGram, we'll look at the fees, rates, and transfer times of both providers when sending a variety of amounts between the US and Singapore.
Sending $200
At the time of writing, sending this sum to Singapore would have an exchange rate of 1.0000 USD = 1.3350 SGD with MoneyGram. The transfer would incur a fee of $4.99 whether you were paying by card or bank account, with the delivery method as a cash pickup. Transfer times would be minutes with a card payment, or up to 3 - 4 working days with a bank transfer. The total amount received would be 267.01 SGD.
Sending $1,000
Sending this sum would have the same exchange rate as listed above, but the fees change slightly. You would still incur a $4.99 fee when paying by bank account, whereas a credit or debit card payment would be $14.99 for a cash pickup within minutes. Total received would be 1335.05 SGD.
Sending $20,000
The provider has a limit of $10,000 USD for online transactions within a 30 day period, so you would not be able to send this amount using the website or app. You might, however, be able to send additional funds if you visited a MoneyGram agent location directly.
✅ Verdict: MoneyGram has more favourable rates for smaller transfers, while Western Union is best for larger sums
From Western Union vs MoneyGram case studies, we can see that MoneyGram has a more favourable exchange rate margin and fees for a smaller transfer of $200. However, this then changes in Western Union’s favour for a large fee of $1,000, while MoneyGram is unable to actually support a transfer over $10,000 at all, making Western Union the obvious choice out of the two.
Final verdict: MoneyGram or Western Union?
Comparing MoneyGram vs Western Union, both providers are very similar in terms of the way they operate. Both are two of the most long-standing names in the money transfers space, and as such, offer secure and convenient ways to send your money to a wide range of destinations across the globe.
MoneyGram is perhaps the better option when it comes to fast transfers, while Western Union takes the win for larger sums. However, these two operators aside, you will often find more favourable fees and exchange rates with a newer money transfer provider. For this reason, we’d highly recommend comparing all providers with our comparison tool which you can find at the top of this page to make sure you’re getting the best option for you.
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