The age of Internet technology has made significant adjustments in many areas of our lives. Changes have also affected international money transfers, making them a fast, cheap and convenient tool. However, the large number of money transfer providers often baffles the user and makes the choice extremely difficult. In this review, we are going to compare two money transfer giants, TransferWise and Payoneer.
Comparing TransferWise and Payoneer is quite difficult, because these are completely different online payment systems, unique in functionality and target audience. A more correct approach would be to compare TransferWise and Payoneer payment cards, their functionality, service costs and conversion rates.
Payoneer is online payment solution that lets you make payments with no fees. Payoneer only allows transfers to other Payoneer accounts. Additionally, private clients cannot transfer money on the platform, only withdraw it. Payoneer’s main purpose is B2B payments, cashing of checks and currency conversion. Payoneer services are oriented mainly for business owners, freelancers, sellers on marketplaces like Amazon, Google, Airbnb, etc. The service covers such industries as e-commerce, advertising, stock photography. Payoneer supports payments in 150 currencies in more than 200 countries.
TransferWise – is a leader for cheap and fast money transfers between the bank accounts of individuals and corporate clients. The main advantage that distinguishes the company from the competition is the conversion of currencies at the average market rate without the company’s margin. Most users use the service exclusively for interbank payments from one currency to another.
Number of active users of TransferWise is 8 million users, and company’s monthly turnover exceeds 8 billion dollars.
Our recommendation: If you need send money abroad as cheaply as possible, Transferwise will always be cheaper than Payoneer. But if you need to receive regular payments from employers abroad, or you are a freelancer who works with well-known marketplaces, Payoneer – is a good solution
Based on the Monisaver.com rankings, TransferWise wins with 98/100 versus 74/10 for Payoneer.
Based on customer preferences and their experience with both companies, TransferWise is clearly the leader. On the Trustpilot website, where users can leave a feedback after using the service, Payoneer scored 4.7 points out of 5. However, TransferWise works better – 4.8 points.
| | Winner |
What we like about Payoneer
| What we like about TransferWise
|
What we don't like about Payoneer
| What we don't like about TransferWise
|
TransferWise lets us to send money from 59 countries and allows you to get a transfer to 60 countries around the world. Both the recipient and the sender of the transfer must have a bank account.
Payoneer is a solution for freelancers and online businesses. Private clients cannot transfer money on the platform, only recieve a payments and withdraw it. You can recieve transfer in U.S. dollars, Canadian dollars, GB pounds, euro, MXN, AUD, JPY and CNY.
Payoneer
Payoneer is not an ordinary money transfer service. Payoneer’s main function is to receive payments from business customers and use the account to withdraw cash and pay for goods and services. Your Payoneer account is tied to your bank account.
With your Payoneer account you get a Mastercard, which you can use as a regular debit card. Max daily withdrawal limit is $2,500. When withdrawing cash in ATM, you will pay a commission of $3.15 / €2.50 / £1.95 + 1% for conversion.
Unlike companies like PayPal and TransferWise, customers cannot top up and transfer money to their own account, but only withdraw it. International remittances work only unilaterally – for receiving payments. You can also request payment use Global Payment Service from users in Australia, Europe, China, Canada, the US and Japan.
The service charges a exchanges currency fee of 2% to 2.75% in some countries
TransferWise
TransferWise works as follow: you pay for the transfer with your bank account, debit or credit card and send the money directly to the recipient’s bank account. Options for payment methods vary by country of sending and country of receipt. For example, for transfers from the USA you can pay from your bank account via ACH (Automated Clearing House). For transfers from most European countries – you can make a SOFORT transfer.
TransferWise exchange rates are clearly transparent correspond to average market rates, and commissions are transparent and based on the really mid-market rate without adding a margin!
You can pay for the transfer from your bank account, with a debit or credit card. The funds go directly to the recipient’s bank account. Payment methods may vary slightly depending on the route of the transfer.
For example, when you send a transfer from Europe to Asia, you can direct debit your bank account or pay with a bank card. You can use the translation system SOFORT or IDEAL to transfer between European countries. Conversion rates and commission size will be automatically calculated by the system before the transfer is sent.
Payoneer | TransferWise | |
|---|---|---|
| Type of account | Private | Borderless Account |
| Fees | $29.95 per year замена карты $12.95 | €0/£0 |
| ATM withdraw fees | Withdraw USD, EUR & GBP - 1,5$ Withdraw any currencies 3,15$ +1,8% | 0% for first €200 per month, 2% - above |
| Exhcange currency fees | 2-3,5% | 0.35%-2.85% depends on currency |
| International money transfer fee | privat clients can't send money transfer
| 0.35%-2.85% depends on currency |
| Card issue | $29.95 | €0/£0 |
| Time of delivery | 10-14 days | 4-8 дней |
| Express доставка карты | - | - |
| Заказать карту |
Payoneer
Payoneer has a complex fee structure that depends on the type of transaction you make:
TransferWise
TransferWise charges a percentage fee which depends on the transfer amount. Fee varies and can range from approximately 0.6% to 1% (depending on the combination of currencies).
When you paying for a transfer directly from a bank account, there are no additional fees, when paying with ACH, an additional fee of 0.15% is charged, and when paying directly from a debit or credit card, an additional fee of 0.3% to 2% is charged.
Estimated commission rates:
TransferWise
TransferWise commissions are transparent and clear and in most cases much more profitable than Payoneer fees
The exchange rate is one of the most important parameters to consider when choosing a company to send an international transfer. After all, it depends on the exchang rate, how much money the recipient will get a result
Payoneer
Payoneer adds margin to the mid-market exchange rate. Typical exchange rate at Payoneer could be up to 2% to 3.5% above the mid-market rate, depending on the currency combination
TransferWise
TransferWise is one of few money transfer providers that offers their customers real mid-market exchange rates. The company does not add margin to mid-market rate currency exchange, as the vast majority of competitors do.
Consider an example: We need to send $ 1,000 from US to Singapur from a bank account.
Sending $ 1000 to Singapur by bank transfer
| Transfer fee | $0.00 | $3.41 |
| exchange rates | $= 1.3295SGD | $= 1.3495 SGD |
| Transfer speed | 1-5 days | 1 hour – 1 day |
| Receiver gets ( SGD) | 1,329.50 | $1,336.90 |
TransferWise
TransferWise, which offers an average market rate for currency conversion, is the clear winner in this setting.
Payoneer
Most transfers from Payoneer to a bank account will take 2-3 working days. However, during public holidays (local and international) transfers can be delayed for a day or two. Payoneer transfers from online platforms are instant. Transfers between Payoneer accounts are also processed instantly
TransferWise
Within TransferWise, most transfers between European countries are processed within 5 minutes, but no longer than 48 hours. As a rule, transfers sent in U.S. dollars are processed within one business day. Depending on payment method, the deadlines are:
TransferWise
TransferWise wins because Payoneer can take up to 5 days for some transfers.
Payoneer
Pioneer is available in over 200 countries, including remote regions such as the Mayotte Archipelago.
TransferWise
TransferWise currently offers to send money abroad from 59 countries and receiving money in 140 countries.
Payoneer
Payoneer can clearly offer a wider reach of countries and destinations to send money. TransferWise still will have to invest more to open up new markets.
TransferWise offers extremely favorable conditions for international money transfer, which are difficult to compete with. Payoneer is more business-oriented company.
TransferWise is the best solution for transferring small amounts, as Payoneer has a minimum charge of $50.
TransferWise is also better suited for large transactions worth up to $1 million, as Payoneer has a $5,000 card spending limit and a $10,000 limit on bank transfers.
On the other hand, Payoneer has more options for B2B payments compared to TransferWise and significantly more coverage.
Our recommendation. For private transfers, the best solution is TransferWise, Payoneer - an excellent payment gateway for companies and individuals working with large Western companies, freelancers.
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