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Wise vs Revolut: Fees, Terms, and Service Compared for 2024

Wise and Revolut are two of the most well-known transfer providers on the market. They both offer banking through multi-currency accounts, and access to a payment card that lets you spend like a local wherever you are.

Both have their benefits, but on balance, Wise takes the crown. Read on to find the main areas where Wise is better.

Frank Day
Author 
Frank Day
9 minutes
May 3rd, 2024
Visit Wise

Wise vs Revolut - At a glance

Wise
Fees & Rates
9.4
Transfer Speed
9.0
Safety & Trust
9.5
Product Offering
8.8
Transfer Limits
9.5
Ease of Use
10.0
Customer Feedback
8.5
9.2
Overall
Revolut
Fees & Rates
9.6
Transfer Speed
7.0
Safety & Trust
8.5
Product Offering
8.3
Transfer Limits
9.5
Ease of Use
9.0
Customer Feedback
8.5
8.6
Overall

Key differences between Wise and Revolut

The main differences between Wise and Revolut are speed, cost, and the number of currencies offered. Wise is faster, can exchange more currencies, and offers better exchange rates than Revolut. But Revolut has no transfer limits, and they offer more additional features than Wise.

Pros and cons

Wise

Wise is one of the most well-known money transfer providers in the business. They offer low fees, the mid-market exchange rate, fast transfers, and a multi-currency account.

  • Mid market exchange rates

  • Faster transfers

  • Exchange more currencies

Revolut

Revolut started as a prepaid money card. Since entering the market in 2015, Revolut has expanded to offer a range of products, including virtual multi-currency bank accounts and tiered membership plans for both personal users and businesses.

  • Higher transfer limits

  • More additional features

  • Higher performance in customer reviews

Alternatives to Wise & Revolut

You should consider a few other top companies for digital banking and sending money abroad.

I recommend two of our most popular guides: Top 10 Money Transfer Companies and Best Multi-Currency Accounts - these will give you the full picture of how Wise and Revolut compare to their rivals.

Cost

Fees
0.1% - 2.6%
Fees
0.3% - 1%
Exchange Rate Markup
0%
Exchange Rate Markup
0.1% - 0.6%
VisitVisit

Revolut just pulls ahead when it comes to costs, but Wise has more fee consistency. Revolut offers one free account type (Basic) and four additional ones that come with a monthly fee (Plus, Premium, Metal, and Ultra). Picking any of the paid plans will get you access to additional budgeting tools and cheaper transfers.

One point to consider when using a Revolut account to buy or sell foreign currencies, is that they charge a fee of 1% for any transactions requested outside business hours (Monday-Friday). The exchange rate offered by Revolut also changes outside business hours, with at most a 0.5% markup on weekdays and a 1% markup at weekends. For a full fee breakdown of Revolut transfers, check out our Revolut review.

Whenever you transfer with Wise, you’ll always get the mid market exchange rate. Their fee structure varies depending on your payment method, the amount you’re sending, and your target destination.

Speed

Transfer Speed
Minutes - 24 hours
Transfer Speed
Minutes - 5 days
VisitVisit

Wise offers faster transfers than Revolut in most cases. On average, Revolut transfers within the US take around 2-3 business days, with the average international payment taking 3-5 business days. Wise transfers are often instant, depending on your payment method and the transfer destination.

Transfer limits

Max. Send Amount
100000
Max. Send Amount
VisitVisit

It's close, but Revolut has no limit for most currency transfers, bringing it the win. Wise allows transfers up to $1 million by wire transfer, but other payment methods have stricter limits. There is no minimum transfer amount for either provider.

Product offering

Key Features
  • Over 16 million customers
  • Multi-currency account available
  • No hidden fees
Key Features
  • 40+ million worldwide customers
  • Card transfers arrive in less than 30 mins
Business Support
Yes
Business Support
No
Supports Domestic Payments
Yes
Supports Domestic Payments
No
Currencies Supported
40
Currencies Supported
29
VisitVisit

Overall, Wise offers a better product than Revolut. With Wise, you can send money via ACH transfer, wire transfer, debit card, or credit card. You can also make domestic and international payments between Wise accounts. Revolut only supports bank transfers, but offers free transfers to other Revolut accounts.

Wise is available in over 40 countries, and they can exchange over 50 currencies, whereas Revolut can exchange just over 25.

Despite this, Revolut has the edge when it comes to the countries it services. You can transfer to over 150 countries with Revolut, while Wise only services just over 70.

Additional perks

Revolut allows you to access extensive account features. They offer a wide range of other services, including insurance, open banking, and investment opportunities. They also offer extras for paid premium members through their tiered subscriptions Plus, Premium, Metal, and Ultra. Each comes with monthly fees.

Wise offers the option to ‘turn on interest’, investing your money with the goal to earn you more. Aside from this, Wise doesn’t offer any add-on features that can compete with Revolut.

Ease of use

Mobile Support
Android, iOS, Web App
Mobile Support
Android, iOS
Customer Support Options
Phone
Customer Support Options
Live Chat, Phone
Personal account manager
No
Personal account manager
No
VisitVisit

With its much simpler product offering, Wise is the easiest app to use. You can see your account balance clearly, split by currency, with your transaction history available in one tap.

The range of extra features available on Revolut, along with the tiered membership system, make it slightly more complicated to navigate - although the update released in November 2023 made the app a lot easier to use.

Customer experience

With a live chat feature, call center helpline, and email support, Wise has a wider customer support base than Revolut. While all Revolut customers can access the live chat feature, you’ll need to pay for premium membership to access priority support.

Safety and trust

Security
2FA, Biometrics
Security
2FA, Biometrics, PIN
No. of Regulators
5
No. of Regulators
2
VisitVisit

Both providers are safe and secure, but Wise is more transparent with its fee structure. Both Wise and Revolut are fully regulated and authorized to make international transfers. Where security is concerned, both Wise and Revolut use encryption to protect your money, and multi-factor authentication to make sure only you can log in to your account.

Check your provider is regulated

You should only ever use regulated providers to transfer money. If a provider is not regulated, it’s likely to be a scam.

Remember: We will only ever recommend regulated financial institutions.

Customer feedback

It's very close here, but Revolut sneaks ahead. On Trustpilot and the App Store, Revolut scores higher, with over 30,000 user reviews on each platform. Wise is ahead on Google Play, with 4.7 stars compared to Revolut’s 4.4.

Trustpilot

App Store

Google Play

Wise

4.2

4.5

4.7

Revolut

4.3

4.7

4.4

Wise user feedback

Would you recommend Wise?

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

No, I don't recommend
14th November 2024

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!

I'm not sure
7th November 2024

Gerd

Die Karte kann man in Kuba nicht benutzen, weil die Bank sich an den willkürlichen Sanktionen der USA gegen Kuba beteiligt.

No, I don't recommend
6th November 2024
Showing 3 out of 12 reviews

Revolut user feedback

Would you recommend Revolut?

Comments

Gigani

Excellent service

Yes, I recommend
15th November 2024

Essafiani

Les frais de transfert sont importants

No, I don't recommend
30th October 2024

Eric

Does not support transactions for people resident in Indonesia

No, I don't recommend
28th October 2024
Showing 3 out of 6 reviews

Key features

Wise and Revolut don’t just provide money transfer services. As online banks, they allow you to bank, invest, and store money in a multi-currency account. They also have payment cards that allow you to spend like a local overseas, and withdraw money from in-network ATMs wherever you are.

Multi-currency accounts

Revolut has a better multi-currency account

The multi-currency bank accounts allow you to store money in multiple currencies in one account. With the Wise bank, you can store up to 9 currencies at once. Revolut allows you to hold up to 28 currencies at once, so if you often use lots of currencies at once, Revolut might be the better option.

The Wise and Revolut cards

Wise is better for card payments, but Revolut offers more from ATMs

The physical Wise debit card is $9, while the Revolut card is free, you just have to pay postage. Wise has the best card for frequent travelers. It allows unlimited free debit card transactions overseas, so long as you have the local currency in your account. Revolut charges a fee of up to 1% per transaction.

Revolut allows free ATM withdrawals from any in-network ATMs globally. The amount you can withdraw depends on your membership tier. You can withdraw up to:

  • $400 a month with a standard account

  • $800 a month with a premium account

  • $1,200 a month with a metal account

from out-of-network ATMs fee-free, with a 2% charge for anything extra. Limits for other accounts With Wise, you get two free ATM withdrawals a month, up to a total of $100. After that, they charge a fixed fee of $1.50 and a variable fee of 2%.

Replacing lost cards costs $9 from Wise and $5 from Revolut.

Currency exchange

Wise offers the best exchange rates

If you need to make a currency exchange for your travels, Wise offers the better deal. Revolut exchange rates are higher, and the fee structure will often, but not always, leave you spending more. Wise can also notify you when the exchange rates have improved, so you’ll never miss out on a deal. You can work out how much your exchange will cost using the Wise transfer fees calculator.

Business accounts

A Revolut account is better for business customers

Both Wise and Revolut offer personal and business accounts. Like Wise personal accounts, the Wise business account lets you make international payments in over 70 countries. Wise business accounts are also compatible with accounting apps like Xero, QuickBooks, and FreeAgent.

The Revolut business account gives you multi user access to the company accounts, allows you to track your team’s spending, and manage wider business expenses. Both personal and business customers get a tiered subscription offer, starting with a free account under the basic plan, ranging to Grow, Scale, and Enterprise accounts.

Revolut business plan monthly account fees

Account plan

Monthly fee

Basic

Free

Grow

From $30 per month

Scale

From $119 per month

Enterprise

Custom amount

How to make an international money transfer with Revolut and Wise

Sending money abroad is easy with both Revolut and Wise. You can set up a payment through the Revolut app, by logging in to the Wise website, or via the Wise app.

Making international payments with Wise

Choose where you want to send money from
Choose your transfer type
Type the amount
Enter the account details
Check the details
Choose your payment method

Making international payments with Revolut

Tap 'Payments'
Select ‘Friends’ or ‘Bank accounts’
Enter the country and currency
Enter the amount and a reference

Other banks

Wise and Revolut aren’t the only well known online-only banks in the US. Find out about some of the others and how they compare.

Monzo

Monzo has partnered with Wise to allow you to make international money transfers affordably. You can transfer money directly from your Monzo account by choosing ‘Transfer Internationally’. You’ll then get a full breakdown of the transfer fees.

N26

In 2022, N26 closed its US bank accounts to focus on its European business. If you had money in an N26 account at this time, a paper check for the account total was sent to your home address.

FAQs

Which is better, Wise or Revolut?
Is Revolut cheaper than Wise?
Are there better providers than Wise and Revolut?
Does Wise or Revolut have better exchange rates?
What’s the Wise maximum balance?
What’s the difference between Wise, TransferWise, and Revolut?
Are Wise and Revolut compatible with Google Pay?
Are Wise and Revolut compatible with Apple Pay?

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Contributors

Frank Day
Author
Frank Day
Based in London, Frank is a dedicated writer and editor specializing in personal finance, boasting over five years of experience in the field. Frank's professional journey began in the pensions industry, where he developed a keen expertise in this area. He has crafted content for notable organizations like the Teachers’ Pension Scheme, the Environment Agency, and Direct Line.