With so many remittance platforms to choose from, it becomes harder and harder to find the best way to send money online. However, there are some things that you should keep in mind when looking for the cheapest money transfer, as the companies often trick their users to pay more. Here are five tips, which can help you send your international money transfer much cheaper.
[1] Check Exchange Rates. The most common trick used by remittance platforms is to offer very cheap transfer fees on international transfers, while putting a high markup on the exchange rates. That way, the transfer seems to cost little, but because of unfavorable exchange rate your recipient will get significantly less money. That’s why it’s important to check what exchange rates does the platform use. Rarely, do we see mid-market rates or the ones, which you can check for example on Google.
[2] Try Different Currency Pairs. There are lots of factors which contribute to the final price of the transfer. Your location, your recipient’s location, payment method and the currency pairs that you want to exchange. Sometimes it may be significantly cheaper to issue the transfer with GBP instead of USD, depending on which currency your platform supports better. Try out few combinations and check how much do the costs vary.
[3] Compare the Competition. As there are thousands of different offers on the market, it is essential to compare them with each other. There are multiple online tools, which can help you to do this. For example, you can use Wirly.com, which specializes in researching and analyzing various remittance services. You can put there your transfer details and the platform will display how much will your transfer cost in all of the popular remittance companies. Moreover, you can also read there detailed reviews and breakdown of the fees.
It’s also important to research the comments and reviews made by the customers of the remittance company. Google’s review section or Trustpilot’s platform may be the best places to find real comments and opinions about the services. That way you can make sure the platform is reliable and there are other people who have successfully sent money with them.
[4] Look for Discounts and Promo Codes. Many platforms offer first transfer for free, so it may be good to try out few new platforms and benefit from the welcoming discounts. There are also promo codes, which may grant you a cheaper transfer.
[5] Don’t be Afraid of New Technologies. With the rapidly developing world, the global finances can also benefit from emerging technologies and advancements. Sending money internationally shouldn’t be as expensive as it is now, especially when it comes to bank wires. On average it costs around $25 to issue an international money transfer with popular mainstream banks. Meanwhile, there is a technology called blockchain, which makes it possible to do the same thing for a few cents.
You may have already heard about blockchain, especially if you came across a digital coin called Bitcoin. The currency itself has earned its place on first pages of many financial news sites, because of the innovation, controversies and violent price fluctuations. Putting aside the unsteady market of cryptocurrencies, because that’s how these digital coins are called, the technology itself grants amazing opportunities.
Let’s take a look at Ethereum, which is the 2nd largest cryptocurrency project right now. Sending ETH from one wallet to another costs around $0.2. Moreover, the transfer is delivered in a matter of seconds. While the coin itself is still susceptible to price changes and may not be reliable way to store your wealth, it shows how cheap and fast it can be to send money worldwide.
Some remittance platforms already use blockchain technology to make their transfers faster and more secure. It may be worth researching projects, which introduce new technologies to their offer.
