Best Alternatives to PayPal for International Transfers: Top Options Compared for 2024

Wise is one of the top PayPal alternatives for sending and receiving money. It offers free online domestic payments, transparent fees, and generous transfer limits.

With Wise, you can open a multi-currency bank account capable of holding nine different currencies at once. You can also buy the Wise card, which allows you to spend like a local wherever you are, provided you have the right currency in your account. Using PayPal while abroad is considerably more expensive, as they charge a fee and a markup on the exchange rate.

A key benefit of Wise over PayPal is its mid-market exchange rate on currency transfers. When you exchange money using Wise, they don’t add any markup, so you’ll get exactly what your money’s worth. However, they do still charge a fee, but it’s lower than the average fees on international PayPal transfers.

Payoneer is a great alternative to PayPal if you’re managing your own business. The Payoneer fee structure is layered, with different withdrawal and payment fees for different occasions. For a full breakdown, check out our Payoneer review.

You can set up a number of receiving accounts with Payoneer, denominated in either EUR, GBP, JPY, AUD, CAD, or MXN. Accepting payments to these accounts in their respective currencies is free, but there’s a small exchange fee for getting paid in a different currency. You can receive payments in USD, EUR, GBP, and JPY for free from other Payoneer users.

Payoneer has a wide country coverage of over 190 countries, so international business payments won’t be a problem. However, their fees are higher than some competitors, and you need to manage lots of payments to make it worth your while.

If you’re after cheap PayPal alternatives for making bank transfers, Zelle has what you need. With the Zelle app, you can make free transfers between US bank accounts. To do this, at least one of the banks involved in the transfer must be part of the Zelle network.

Zelle also boasts faster speeds than a lot of other transfer apps, easily keeping pace with the likes of PayPal. You’re also guaranteed strong security protocols.

However, Zelle is only available in the US, so if you need to send money overseas, you’ll need to use a different provider. As an interbank P2P transfer app, Zelle will only accept payments online via bank transfer.

With availability in over 200 countries, XE is a great PayPal alternative for international transactions. You can send up to $535,000 with XE, with most payments processed within 24 hours. They also charge no fees for sending amounts over $500, so it’s a much cheaper alternative to sending large amounts overseas with PayPal.

Despite wide country coverage overall, XE services less Asian and African countries than some other providers. It’s a good idea to check XE can send money where it needs to go before you download it as a PayPal alternative for your international transactions.

Sending small amounts with XE is also more expensive than some providers like Wise and Currencies Direct, but still beats PayPal on costs overall.

Cash App is a peer to peer (P2P) payment app available in the US and the UK. They pride themselves on their easy-to-use app, and boast fast transfers domestically and between the US and the UK.

PayPal has more international capabilities than Cash App, with the latter only available in the US and the UK. But, if you’re looking for cheap domestic payments, this is a great alternative. You also don’t need a bank account to use Cash App; you can load money by depositing paychecks, tax returns, and even cash from one of their supported retailers.

Like Wise, Cash App has a debit card, called the Cash Card, which can be used to make payments directly from your Cash App account. It’s compatible with Google Pay and Apple Pay, and you can use it anywhere Visa is accepted, both online and in stores.

Using MoneyGram, you can easily arrange a transfer to people without a bank account. You can arrange for your recipient to pick up money from a registered MoneyGram location, or even send cash to their home using the MoneyGram cash delivery service.

The MoneyGram app allows you to make transfers on the go, like PayPal. Or, if you prefer to make transactions in person, you can go to a MoneyGram-owned store, or another MoneyGram agent. Generally, transferred funds will be available within 24 hours, with some taking under an hour.

MoneyGram fees and rates are higher than some other providers, but their overseas transfers are still cheaper than PayPal.

Currencies Direct are a much cheaper option for international transfers than PayPal. They charge no fees for transfers, plus no monthly or annual fees, but they do add a markup of 0.7% - 1.7% to the exchange rate of overseas transfers. You can send money to over 120 countries, so it’s no surprise they rate highly in customer reviews.

However, there’s no cancellation policy with Currencies Direct, so you need to make sure everything is correct before you send. They’re also only able to make international transactions, so if you need to send money domestically, other apps like Wise and Cash App will suit you better.

If you’re a fan of the PayPal operating system, Xoom is managed by the same company and works in a very similar way. With over 131 countries serviced, Xoom is a viable PayPal alternative. They allow you to send and receive international payments with no monthly fees.

Despite being owned by the same company, Xoom and PayPal have quite different fees. Some transfers with Xoom are free, depending on the payment method and transaction amount. However, both Xoom and PayPal charge a markup on exchange rates, so you’ll get a better deal if you use a cheaper provider like Wise or Currencies Direct.

If you’re based in South America and you need to make easy, affordable transfers, Global66 could be the app for you. With no fees and a small markup to international transfers, they act as a great alternative to PayPal.

You can make P2P payments within the app instantly, with domestic payments to other Global66 users available free of charge. You can also make payments directly into your recipient’s bank account, but this will incur a small fee.

Global66 specializes in the South American market. It's only available to users based in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, or Peru. There have also been reports of some glitches while using the app.

If you need to send a lot of money overseas at once, PayPal is very expensive. OFX is a much better alternative, with no fees and reasonable exchange rates. They add a markup to the mid market rate, which changes depending on how much you send, but this is still usually below the average PayPal markup.

As a platform designed for large transfers, OFX has a large minimum send requirement of $1,000 (or currency equivalent). Exchange rates are also higher than average.

If you’re an Android user looking for an alternative to PaPal, Google Pay is a great option. You can make big or small payments online either directly from your bank card, or from your Google Pay account.

If you’re making payments online in the US, Google Pay is the obvious alternative to PayPal. You can pay instantly by logging into your account and making your payment online. You can also use the Google Pay app.

Google Pay is one of the most popular payment methods in the US, for good reason. You can make quick and easy domestic payments at the click of a button. However, if you need to make international payments or convert currency, things get more complicated.

Your Google Pay account balance can only be used for domestic payments, while international payments will use your loaded debit cards. These are the same as making payments directly from your local bank account, which will come with high fees and large exchange rate markups.

TorFX rules the roost when it comes to customer service. When you register with them, you’re assigned a dedicated account manager. They can help you manage your transfers, navigate the app, and even talk you through some of the best rates available.

If you’d like to send money overseas with an app like PayPal, TorFX could be the best alternative for you. While you won’t be able to make domestic transfers with TorFX, they do allow you to set alerts for better exchange rates if you’re sending money internationally.

You’ll also find the exchange rate is higher than usual for small transfers, but larger amounts come with a better rate. There’s also no transfer fees, giving them the edge on PayPal again.

Instarem is a great app for sending money abroad. It uses a streamlined P2P payment system allowing you to send money instantly to other app users. Plus, its multi-layered security system lets you send and receive money across international borders safely and securely.

One of the key benefits of Instarem is their reward system, ‘Instapoints’. You can earn Instapoints every time you make an international payment of $500 or more. These can then be redeemed for discounts on transfers or cashback, credited to your amaze wallet.

On other factors, Instarem is an average alternative to PayPal. Transfer fees are higher than some competitors, and unlike Wise, they add a markup to the mid market exchange rate. Transfer speeds are also middle of the road, taking around a day to process, on average.

If you need to transfer money internationally, Atlantic Money is a great alternative that’s easy to use. Transfers are streamlined and the app is easy to navigate. They also charge a fixed fee of £3 or €3 for transfers, with no monthly fee for holding an account. Because of this, you’ll always know exactly how much your transfer will cost, regardless of how much you’re sending.

This makes Atlantic Money cheaper than some competitors like Wise for large transfers.

It falls down on its range of services. It’s only available for people living in the UK or the EU, services 29 countries and 10 currencies, and it will only accept payments by bank transfer.

Key Currency is a currency broker, focusing on helping you make large international transactions through their customer support team. If you’re looking to make a large transfer overseas and you like speaking to a person rather than using an app, Key Currency is a great option.

There’s no maximum limit on how much you can send with Key Currency, but transfers can take a little longer than payment apps like PayPal. They specialize in payments from the UK, but they’ve recently partnered with Currencycloud, which allows them to service US clients. They also service a smaller than average amount of countries, at only just over 50 countries.

If you prefer dealing with cash, Western Union is a safe money transfer service for sending it. You can arrange a cash transfer with Western Union online via their website, via their app, or in person at a Western Union branch or ‘agent location’.

One of the key advantages of Western Union is their ability to securely send cash. This lets you transfer money to people without a bank account; a key feature of PayPal that you may not find with many other providers. If you arrange a cash transfer with Western Union, your recipient only needs to show their ID at the designated pickup location to collect the money.

What it gains in convenience, Western Union loses in cost and speed. It’s one of the slowest providers we’ve reviewed, taking an average of three to five business days to process transfers. Their fees are also fairly high, with rates starting at $4.99 per transfer, and a markup on the exchange rates of between 0.5% and 4%.