AIB exchange rate: How does it work and where to check it?

Whether you love to travel, have family living abroad or business outside of Ireland, there’s no doubt times in your life when you need to convert currency. Whenever you exchange currencies there is a cost that’s usually made up of the fees, charges and exchange rate margin.

Exchange rate margins vary between providers and aren’t always obvious when making a transfer. It's a good idea to check your bank's foreign currency rates so you can compare them and ensure you're receiving the best value for money.

To that end, we're going to take a look at AIB exchange rates, what markups they charge and where to find the current foreign rates.

We’ll also introduce you to Wise and explain how their mid-market rate might be a better option for you.

Wise: Send money to +70 countries
using the mid-market rate 💡

AIB exchange rate for sending money abroad: How does it work?

The exchange rate AIB uses varies depending on a range of factors including the type of transaction, market conditions and currencies involved.¹

Unfortunately, when it comes to sending and receiving payments in foreign currency AIB isn’t clear on where they get the exchange rate data from, what the spread is and if they apply a margin.

So, to give you some context, here's a comparison of the exchange rates on offer from AIB and Wise if you were to send 1000 EUR to a foreign currency account abroad.

Currency (Sell)	AIB¹ exchange rate	Wise mid-market exchange rate
Pound Sterling	0.8688	0.87930
US Dollar	1.0765	1.09170
Australian Dollar	1.5146	1.53393
Canadian Dollar	1.4427	1.46091
Swiss Franc	0.9881	1.00155
Czech Koruna	23.4585	23.7715

Comparison made on the 26th January 2023 in AIB website - Foreign Exchange Rates Sell page using their last published update at 7:30 AM and in Wise website at 9:33AM.

AIB currency exchange rate in branches

AIB offers customers the opportunity to exchange foreign currency notes at a branch.

Again, they aren’t clear about where the exchange rate comes from or the spread and margin, but there are some fees to be aware of.

When you buy or sell foreign currency notes at an AIB branch you’ll pay 1% commission on the euro value of the transaction, with a minimum charge of €1.27 and maximum charge €6.35.²

If you’re curious about cash exchange you can take a look at the indicative Foreign Exchange Calculator on the AIB website.²

For any currencies not on the calculator or for larger amounts you have to speak to AIB directly.

How to check AIB foreign exchange rates today?

To check AIB today’s rates you need to visit the foreign currency exchange page on the AIB website³ that’s relevant to the transaction you’re doing.

🕖 AIB appears to update their exchange rates at 7.30am on business days but you can check the timestamp on the page to see when the last update was done.²

⚠️ It's important to note that the rates AIB publishes are variable and subject to change without notice, at any time. So you won't necessarily get the rates you send them publishing online.

As we mentioned the AIB exchange rate does vary depending on the type of transaction. If you’re using your AIB card abroad there’s a different exchange rate and fees to be aware of.

What is the difference between the AIB exchange rate and the mid-market rate?

AIB doesn’t make the source and markup of their exchange rate obvious but from the table earlier it seems clear that they use a different rate to what Wise uses, for example.

The rate Wise chooses to use in all transactions is the mid-market rate. Wise does not apply any markups on the currency conversion and the date comes from independent sources.

The mid-market rate is determined by finding the midpoint between the reported buy and sell prices, making it a fair way to set an exchange rate.

When the currency market is open prices can rise and fall meaning the buy and sell point change. Wise manages this by updating their currency rates every minute to reflect the changes.

You can check the current exchange rate at any time on the Wise website or using the app.

Wise: Currency exchange without any markup

Aside from providing currency exchanges with no markups or hidden fees, Wise provides additional perks through its Wise Account.

Wise is not a bank, it's an e-money services provider and with it’s Wise Account you can hold and convert over 40 currencies, send money to 160+ countries, and have access to local account details for 9+ currencies including EUR, GBP and USD.

You can also order a Wise debit card to help make daily spending simple. If you have local currency in your account you can spend it with no transaction fees to worry about. If not, the card uses smart technology to automatically convert your balance at the mid market rate, with just a small conversion fee.

If you’re intrigued then try out the Wise account for yourself. You can sign up online⁴ and there are no account maintenance fees to worry about.

Open your Wise Account today 🚀

Please see the Terms of Use for your region or visit Wise fees & pricing for the most up-to-date information on pricing and fees.

🔎 For more details on this provider, you may check our articles:
AIB international transfer AIB Student Account

Sources used:

1. AIB - Standard Foreign Exchange Rates for Outgoing International Payments – AIB Sell
2. AIB - Foreign Exchange Calculator
3. AIB - Foreign currency exchange page
4. Eligibility is subject to verification of customers identity

Sources last checked on date: 26 January 2023