Xoom vs Western Union: Which one is cheaper and faster?

Looking to make an international transfer? There are a few different ways to do it, including using your bank.

Among the most popular of these are Xoom (a PayPal service) and Western Union.

But which is better? To help you decide, we’ve put together a guide to Xoom vs. Western Union. We’ll compare cost and speed – and we'll also introduce an alternative, Wise, but more on this later.

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Xoom vs. Western Union - transfer fees compared

Let’s start by answering the first crucial question - which is the cheapest to use, Xoom or Western Union?

Both Xoom and Western Union charge an upfront transfer fee. This varies depending on how much you send, the currency, destination and payment/delivery methods.

You’ll be able to see how much you’ll pay before sending your transfer. Each provider offers a useful calculator tool.

You can use this to enter your chosen amount and destination, to see how much the fees will be (as well as the live exchange rate). So, you can compare the cost of sending X amount with Xoom vs Western Union to India, the UK, Australia or wherever your recipient lives.

Western Union¹ and Xoom² have comparable fees, to each other and to similar services. They start from $0 for certain transfers. Generally speaking, paying with a credit card will usually work out to be the most expensive option.

But just as important as the upfront fee is the exchange rate, which we’ll look at next.

Exchange rates

Alongside the transfer fee, you should also take a close look at exchange rates. The rate you’re offered when sending money internationally can make a big difference to the overall cost of the transfer.

Both Xoom² and Western Union¹ add a margin to what is known as the mid-market exchange rate, or interbank rate. This is considered to be one of the fairest rates you can get.

By adding their own margin to this rate, the provider can make money from the transfer. But unfortunately, it means you get a worse rate and less of your money will reach your recipient.

💡 This is why providers such as Wise are such a good money-saving option. You can send money worldwide with Wise for low, transparent fees. And best of all, Wise only ever uses mid-market exchange rates with no expensive margin added on top. So, more of your money gets to its destination.

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.

So, which is cheaper - Xoom, Western Union or Wise?

To illustrate just how much the exchange rate matters in overseas transfers, let’s do a quick example. Let’s imagine you want to send $500 to a family member in France (EUR).

Here’s how much it’ll cost you with Xoom, Western Union and Wise too, with both fees and rates taken into account. For this example, we’ve selected bank transfer as both the payment and delivery method.

Provider	Transfer fee	Exchange rate	Recipient receives
Xoom³	$4.99	0.878127	€434.68
Western Union³	$0	0.895858	€447.93
Wise³	$3.73	0.911250 - mid-market rate	€452.23

(05/01/2023)

So as you can see, the exchange rate makes all the difference here.

Even though Western Union charges no fee at all, Wise still comes out on top when it comes to how much money your recipient gets.

And it’s all down to that great exchange rate. It means that less of your hard-earned cash is lost to currency conversion as it wings its way across the world, so that more of it gets to your recipient.

Get a Wise Account today

Xoom vs. Western Union - countries

When choosing a money transfer service, you’ll want to know that your chosen destination (and its home currency) is covered.

Xoom supports transfers to 159 countries worldwide,⁴ while Western Union lets you send to over 200.⁵

As well as having a much longer list of destinations you can send to, Western Union also has the edge due to its large number of agent locations.

Payment and delivery methods

How do you want to pay for your transfer, and what’s the most convenient way for your recipient to receive it? It’s an important thing to take note of, as it gives you more options and more flexibility when setting up your transfer. For example, it can be useful to have the option of cash pickup available if your recipient doesn’t have a bank account.

Let’s take a look at the payment and delivery methods available with both Xoom and Western Union.

Another key thing to bear in mind is that both Xoom and Western Union charge different fees for their payment and delivery methods. Credit cards tend to be the most expensive way to pay on either platform.

Don’t really mind how you pay, and just looking for the cheapest option? You can use each site’s calculator tool to experiment with mixing and matching payment and delivery methods. This should help you find the cheapest combination.

Provider	Payment methods	Delivery methods (depending on destination)
Western Union⁵	Bank transfer Debit card Credit card Cash in person - at one of 57,000+ WU locations in the US	Bank deposits Cash pickup Mobile wallets
Xoom	Bank transfer Debit card Credit card PayPal⁶	Bank deposit Direct to debit card Mobile wallets Cash pickup Home delivery⁷

Western Union vs. Xoom - transfer times

Now we come to the other thing that really matters - speed. If you need your money to land in your recipient’s account fast, you’ll need to choose your transfer service carefully.

So, how quickly will a payment arrive with both Xoom and Western Union?

Xoom states that many of its money transfers arrive in a matter of minutes. However, it can potentially take up to a few days depending on the destination, payment and delivery method chosen.⁸

As for Western Union, transfer times also vary depending on delivery and payment methods. It can range from a few minutes to a few working days.

Western Union also has a few service types, each with their own guideline delivery times. Let’s take a look: ⁹

• Direct to bank deposit - takes 2-5 working days
• Money in Minutes service for pickup at an agent location - within minutes
• Next day service for pickup at an agent location - next working day
• Mobile money transfer - within minutes.

Xoom vs. Western Union - security

Your top priorities when making an international transfer may be speed and cost. However, it’s also a good idea to think about security when sending money internationally.

This is especially important if you’re sending large sums online. You need to be sure that your money and your personal details are protected, or the consequences could be disastrous.

The good news is that both Xoom and Western Union seem to take security seriously.

Xoom is a PayPal service, so you’ll enjoy the full power of the payment giant’s impressive security measures. This includes 128-bit data security encryption, fraud monitoring and 2-factor authentication.⁴

Xoom also offers a money-back guarantee. This ensures that you receive a full refund if your transfer doesn’t arrive at the designated account.²

In comparison, Western Union protects your money with encrypted transfers and active anti-fraud measures. It also makes advice and information available on how to protect yourself from fraud.

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Bottom line – Xoom vs Western Union: Which one is cheaper and faster?

So in the battle of Xoom vs. Western Union, which one is cheaper and faster? It really comes down to your choice of payment and delivery methods.

But in the example we outlined earlier, of sending $500 to France, Western Union was cheaper for a bank to bank transfer. It had no upfront fee, and a slightly better exchange rate than Xoom.

However, both providers were still beaten by Wise in this case thanks to the combination of a low fee and great exchange rate.

In terms of speed, there isn’t much to choose between Xoom and Western Union. Both have options to receive money in minutes, especially if you opt for cash pick-up.

Remember that Xoom and Western Union aren’t the only money transfer providers out there. There are lots of other alternatives, including MoneyGram and UK-based services such as Remitly.

So before hitting ‘send’, it’s always worth doing a quick comparison of Xoom vs. Remitly vs. Western Union, or even Xoom vs. Western Union vs. MoneyGram.

And of course, you could save money by sending international transfers with Wise.

Learn more about 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.

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Sources used for this article:

1. Western Union - Send Money
2. Xoom - Send Money
3. Wise - Send Money
4. MoneyTransfers - Ria Money Transfer vs. Xoom
5. Western Union - Home
6. Xoom - Help - How can I pay?
7. Xoom - Help - What is Xoom and how does it work?
8. Xoom - Help - When will my money get there?
9. Western Union - When will my receiver get the money?

Sources checked on 01-May-2023.