How to send money from PayPal to Wise
Wondering if you can send money from PayPal to Wise? In this article, we'll cover the possibilities.
In this guide, we’ll give you the lowdown on the banks that exchange foreign currency for free.
Plus, we'll also cover alternatives such as Wise, which could save you money on converting currency - no standing in line or paying high fees to get your money delivered.
Banks have a reputation for being expensive places to convert currency. But there are a handful of major and regional US banks that buck this trend, and offer low cost or even free foreign exchange services.
You can order foreign currency with Bank of America as long as you are an existing customer with a checking or savings account. There’s no fee, although you will pay $7.50 for delivery if your order is less than $1,000 (or the currency equivalent).¹
So order more than $1,000, and you’ll get delivery right to your door for no fee. You can order up to $10,000 every 30 days.¹
The bank offers special exchange rates to Bank of America Preferred Rewards clients. As well as a discount on the published exchange rate, you’ll also get standard shipping for no fee.²
Currency can be ordered via online or mobile banking.
Citi’s World Wallet Foreign Exchange Service gives you access to over 50 currencies, as long as you’re an existing customer.
There’s no fee if you’re a Citigold client or have a Citi Priority Account Package. For all other account holders, there’s a $5 fee for orders under $1,000 (or currency equivalent).³
Delivery is free to a local Citibank branch of your choice, and free to your home or work address if you’re a Citigold or Citi Priority customer. Otherwise, delivery fees start from $10 for a standard overnight service.³
You’ll need to call to order currency, and the amount will be debited from your Citi checking or savings account.
If you have an account with PNC Bank (which operates in around 27 states), you can call your local branch to order currency. There are no transaction fees, and PNC claims it has competitive exchange rates.⁴
Once you’ve placed your order, it’ll be delivered to your local branch within 24-48 hours.
If you’re a U.S. Bank account holder, you can order foreign currency in advance simply by logging into your online banking. Alternatively, you can pop into a local branch to buy currency ready for an upcoming trip.
U.S. Bank offers delivery to the local branch of your choice, with the money arriving the next business day (if you order before 2pm). There’s a $10 exchange fee if you order $250 or less, but there’s no charge if you order more.⁵
Before you head straight into your local bank branch to buy currency, it could be worth checking out a few alternatives.
Banks tend to add a margin to what is known as the mid-market or interbank exchange rate. This means they make money from the transaction, but it makes it more costly for you. Ultimately, you get less currency in exchange for your dollars.
Let’s take a look at other options.
To get a better exchange rate when spending and withdrawing cash overseas, you might want to consider opening a multi-currency account. These typically don’t have foreign transaction fees, along with better rates.
Here are a couple of options.
Wise is a Money Transmitter specializing in low-cost currency conversion, international payments and multi-currency accounts you can operate with just your phone.
Open a Wise account, and you’ll have a choice of ways to spend in the local currency worldwide.
You’ll get a Wise card (for a one-time fee of $9) which:
The Wise account isn’t a bank account, but it offers many useful banking features. So you can use it year-round, not just during your overseas trip.
Along with a debit card, the account lets you manage your money in 40 currencies, make easy international payments and get local account details, so you can receive money from overseas.
See how much you can save with Wise:
Please see Terms of Use for your region or visit Wise Fees & Pricing: Only Pay for What You Use for the most up-to-date pricing and fee information.
Wise will not charge you for these withdrawals, but some additional charges may occur from independent ATM networks.
The money app Revolut offers a number of travel-friendly features. Depending on whether you go for a free or paid plan, this includes:¹⁰
To benefit from the most lucrative travel benefits, though, you’ll need to pay a monthly charge. These range from $9.99 to $16.99 a month.¹⁰
💡 See our Revolut vs. Wise comparison here: Revolut vs Wise: Which is better. |
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One way to get hold of foreign currency is simply to withdraw it from an ATM once you arrive at your destination.
But you’ll need to be very careful. This is because some banks charge high foreign ATM withdrawal fees on their debit or credit cards. So check before you go, to make sure you won’t be hit with any unexpected fees. You should also keep an eye out for fees charged by the ATM operator.
When withdrawing from foreign ATMs, a rule of thumb to remember is to always choose the local currency. The ATM may offer to do the conversion for you, but this means it gets to choose the exchange rate. Select the local currency and your bank or card provider will do the conversion, which could give you a slightly better exchange rate.
If you bank elsewhere, you may not be able to access the fee-free currency exchange services offered by the above banks.
So, here’s our pick of the best of the rest. These are banks which offer foreign exchange, but for a fee. This should help you to see how your own bank stacks up compared to others, and whether it’s worth using it to order currency.
Bank | Existing customers only? | Fee for currency exchange |
---|---|---|
America First Credit Union⁶ | Yes | $10 Additional $10 for orders under $300 |
Huntington Bank⁷ | Yes | $8 flat fee |
TD Bank⁸ | No | $7.50 for TD Bank account holders $10 for non-account holders |
Service Credit Union⁹ | Yes | $15 for orders under $500 |
Banks such as Chase, Citizens Bank, First Citizens Bank and First Horizon Bank also offer currency exchange services.
However, they don’t make details of their fees available, so you’ll need to contact each bank to find out how much it costs.
When you get back from your trip, you might have some currency left over. You could save it for a future trip, but what if you won’t be going back to that particular country? Or what if you need the money back to cover everyday expenses?
The solution is to convert currency back into US dollars. Bear in mind that you may lose some to the bank’s chosen exchange rate, and there may be fees involved depending on your bank.
Two banks offer fee-free exchanges of foreign currency back to US dollars, but only if you change more than $1,000. These are Bank of America and Citibank. If you’re exchanging less than this, which is quite likely, there’s a $7.50 fee to pay with BoA¹ and a $5 fee with Citi.³
PNC Bank will also buy back your currency for US dollars on the spot, with no transaction fees.⁴
It’s worth bearing in mind that you’ll only be able to exchange notes, rather than coins. So, you might have to hang onto any loose change after your trip.
So, which bank is best for currency exchange? Ultimately, it’ll come down to which bank you already have an account with. This is because most of the banks on our list restrict foreign currency exchange services to existing customers only.
If you’re super organized, though, you could potentially switch banks to take advantage of fee-free exchange services like those offered by Citibank, Bank of America and PNC Bank. But this could be more hassle than it’s worth.
A better option could be to open a multi-currency account, which lets you spend and withdraw cash in lots of different currencies worldwide.
You can open a Wise account and card easily online, and keep it alongside your everyday checking account if you like. But when you travel, you’ll already have a low-cost, convenient solution all set up and ready to go. This certainly beats standing in line at the bank or paying high fees to get currency delivered.
Sources used for this article:
Sources checked on 03-Jul-2023.
*Please see terms of use and product availability for your region or visit Wise fees and pricing for the most up to date pricing and fee information.
This publication is provided for general information purposes and does not constitute legal, tax or other professional advice from Wise Payments Limited or its subsidiaries and its affiliates, and it is not intended as a substitute for obtaining advice from a financial advisor or any other professional.
We make no representations, warranties or guarantees, whether expressed or implied, that the content in the publication is accurate, complete or up to date.
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