Nowadays, sending money overseas is a common practice. For example, you might have employees you need to pay in Sweden, or you might have relatives living there.
Popular options for sending money are bank services and money transfer services like Western Union and although each service have their own policies for money transfers, one thing is always the same – the charges that you have to pay for a money transfer. Worse case scenario, you may be charged with hefty fees in the form of unfavorable currency exchange rates.
It can get tricky but is there anything you can do about it?
The following tables cover all charges that you’ll pay for sending money to Sweden from different parts of the world and depending on the service you choose.
| Transfer method | Fees to send £1000 GBP | Hidden conversion cost | Total fees | Time for the transfer to arrive |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wise, formerly TransferWise | £5 | £0 | £5 | 1-2 days |
| Azimo | £1 | £5 | £6 | 1-3 days |
| CurrencyFair* | £3 | £4 | £7 | 1-3 days |
| OFX* | £0 | £7.5 | £7.5 | 1-2 days |
| Orbit Remit | £0 | £11 | £11 | 1-3 days |
| WorldRemit | £3 | £10 | £13 | 1-3 days |
| Western Union (slow) | £3 | £10 | £13 | 3 days |
| Western Union (fast) | £5 | £10 | £15 | Minutes |
| TransferGo | £1 | £15 | £16 | 1 day |
| Tranzfers | £7 | £16 | £23 | 3-5 days |
| Exchange4free | £0 | £25 | £25 | 3-5 days |
| Aftab Currency | £23 | £6 | £29 | Minutes |
| Easy Exchange | £6 | £23 | £29 | 3-5 days |
| Paysera | £3 | £29 | £32 | 1 day |
| Small World FS | £5 | £30 | £35 | 3-5 days |
| 1st Contact Forex | £15 | £21 | £36 | 1-3 days |
| GlobalWebPay | £5 | £32 | £37 | 1 day |
| Xpress Money | £20 | £17 | £37 | 3-5 days |
| Travelex | £0 | £38 | £38 | 3-5 days |
| Skrill | £8 | £40 | £48 | 3-5 days |
| Wire transfer | £15-25 | £10-30 | £25-55 | 3-5 days |
| MoneyGram | £25 | £49 | £74 | Minutes |
| Transfer method | Fees to send $1000 CAD | Hidden conversion cost | Total fees | Time for the transfer to arrive |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OFX* | $0 | $7.5 | $7.5 | 1-2 days |
| Wise, formerly TransferWise | $12 | $0 | $12 | 1-2 days |
| CurrencyFair* | $5 | $7 | $12 | 3-5 days |
| WorldRemit* | $4 | $15 | $19 | 1-3 days |
| 1st Contact Forex | $5 | $28 | $33 | 1-3 days |
| Paysera | $5 | $34 | $39 | 1-3 days |
| Exchange4free | $0 | $45 | $45 | 3-5 days |
| Xpress Money | $16 | $31 | $47 | 3-5 days |
| Skrill | $29 | $40 | $69 | 3-5 days |
| Western Union | $40 | $34 | $74 | Minutes |
| Wire transfer | $25-40 | $20-30 | $45-75 | 3-5 days |
| MoneyGram | $50 | $51 | $101 | Minutes |
| Travelex | $0 | $105 | $105 | 3-5 days |
Note:
- Worldremit can only send 995 CAD from Canada to Sweden.
- Minimum transfer of $500 for OFX.
- Five free transfers with CurrencyFair.
| Transfer method | Fees to send €1000 EUR | Hidden conversion cost | Total fees | Time for the transfer to arrive |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wise, formerly TransferWise | €5 | €0 | €5 | 1-2 days |
| CurrencyFair* | €3 | €3 | €6 | 1-3 days |
| OFX* | €0 | €7.5 | €7.5 | 1-2 days |
| Azimo | €3 | €6 | €9 | 1-3 days |
| WorldRemit | €4 | €11 | €15 | 1-3 days |
| Paysera | €3 | €13 | €16 | 1-3 days |
| TransferGo | €1 | €16 | €17 | 1 day |
| 1st Contact Forex | €5 | €20 | €25 | 1-3 days |
| Western Union (slow) | €0 | €29 | €29 | 1 day |
| Tranzfers | €10 | €19 | €29 | 3-5 days |
| Exchange4free | €0 | €35 | €35 | 3-5 days |
| Aftab Currency | €30 | €9 | €39 | Minutes |
| Small World FS | €12 | €32 | €44 | 3-5 days |
| Skrill | €10 | €40 | €50 | 3-5 days |
| Travelex | €0 | €54 | €54 | 3-5 days |
| MoneyGram | €5 | €50 | €55 | Minutes |
| Xpress Money | €40 | €19 | €59 | 3-5 days |
| Wire transfer | €20-35 | €20-40 | €40-75 | 3-5 days |
| Western Union (fast) | €43 | €47 | €90 | Minutes |
Note:
- Minimum transfer of €500 for OFX
- Five free transfers with CurrencyFair
Note:
- Minimum transfer of $500 for OFX (previously OzForex)
- Five free transfers with CurrencyFair
Rob Rawson is a co-founder of Time Doctor which is software to improve work productivity and help keep track of what your team is working on, even when working remotely.