Need to know
- Wise and Revolut are financial platforms that provide debit cards, currency exchange and money transfer services
- Despite their similarities, they differ slightly in their core offerings, as well as in rates and fees
- Wise’s strengths are currency transfer and exchange, while Revolut is preferable for everyday spending and travel
If you’ve done any research into travel money cards, currency exchange or sending money overseas recently, you’ve probably come across Wise or Revolut.
Both of these UK-based digital-only financial institutions promise to help Australians conveniently and cheaply send and spend money internationally and convert between currencies.
But their similar sales pitches conceal some differences. We’ve dug into the fine print to explain what Wise and Revolut do and compare some of their core offerings to see which could work best for you.
On this page:
What is Wise?
Formerly known as TransferWise, Wise has had a presence in Australia since 2016, with a core business of currency transfers and exchange.
Accessed through its website or app, Wise lets you send money to people in other countries in different currencies.
Funds can be sent directly to another person’s bank account, meaning they don’t have to be a Wise user to receive money.
If you do have a Wise profile, you can also set up a transaction account on the platform.
You can then get a linked debit card which you can use in Australia and overseas to spend and withdraw the funds held in your account.
This account is a multi-currency product, meaning you can hold money in different currencies at the same time, ensuring the Wise debit card can be used as a travel money card.
Wise also lets you set up different “account details” for over 20 foreign currencies.
Wise lets you set up different ‘account details’ for over 20 foreign currencies
Setting one of these up allows you to “get paid like a local” and receive money into your Wise account in that currency as if you had a transaction account in the country where that currency is used.
This can allow you to avoid the fees that can come with receiving money from overseas via the traditional transfer systems, such as SWIFT.
What is Revolut?
Revolut is another, albeit newer, digital-only platform offering currency transfers and exchanges, as well as multi-currency accounts and spending solutions. It’s been available in Australia since 2019.
But it’s less focused than Wise on foreign exchange and transfers, with a core offering more similar to that of a bank; namely a transaction account that can be used domestically and internationally.
You can use the Revolut Account to send and receive money domestically and overseas and to convert and hold money in different currencies.
Customers can also get a Revolut debit card linked to this account to use for purchases and withdrawals domestically and overseas.
Revolut is similar to a bank in that it also offers joint accounts, products for children, and features to assist with budgeting, but is unique in having tiered plans based on how much you want to exchange and withdraw.
Revolut is similar to a bank in that it also offers joint accounts, products for children, and features to assist with budgeting
Users with a free Standard Account will get access to most of the platform’s features and services, including opportunities to invest in stocks and commodities through the platform, but fees can apply.
Those who sign up to Revolut’s paid “Premium” and “Metal” tiers are charged lower fees for certain actions and get access to more products and features.
Wise also provides investment products to some of its overseas users, but these features are currently in the testing stage on its Australian platform and only available to select customers.
In any case, a Standard Revolut Account is similar to Wise in that it’s a digital-only product that lets you send and spend domestically and overseas in different currencies.
As with Wise, using Revolut to send money to people who aren’t users of the platform comes with charges, but Revolut makes transfers to fellow users free.
Unlike Wise, Revolut doesn’t let you get unique account details for particular foreign currencies, meaning receiving money from overseas is more likely to come with fees if it’s not being sent by another Revolut user.
The Standard Revolut Account can also hold and convert between multiple currencies, although slightly fewer than Wise.
The linked debit cards you can get with either product come with different access fees, but can be used in many of the same places.
You can use your Wise or Revolut debit card to spend different currencies loaded in your account when you travel overseas.
Which currencies and countries do they support?
| Wise | Revolut | |
| Countries and territories you can send money to | 80+, but some transfers may not be able to be done in the destination’s local currency. For example, transfers to Taiwan can only be in US dollars. | |
| Currencies you can hold in your account | 47 | 34 |
| Countries you can spend/withdraw in with a linked debit card | The card will be affiliated with either Visa or Mastercard, so can be used for purchases and withdrawals in most places around the world. | |
What exchange rates do they use?
Wise and Revolut use different exchange rates when you convert one currency into another on their platforms.
Wise quotes a “mid-market” rate for exchanging the currencies it offers, one it says is similar to the exchange rate you’ll see following a quick search on Google.
A mid-market rate is meant to be the midpoint between the buying and selling prices of two currencies in the foreign exchange market.
This rate should be determined solely by supply and demand and free of any built-in fees or markups.
Revolut claims to exchange currencies at the “market rate” with no hidden costs.
While the rates quoted by both platforms are usually better than those offered by traditional travel money cards, we’ve observed Wise to have slightly better offers than Revolut on most popular currencies.
What fees do they charge?
Note on the table below: Dollar value fees are in AUD. % charges are levied against the size of the transaction.
| Wise | Revolut (Standard Account) | |
| Sending money overseas | >0.65%. Depends on the size of the transaction, source and destination currencies and countries and how you choose to pay, among other factors. A dynamic charge may also apply during times of exchange market volatility or if you’re converting a less-used currency. Exchange fees may also apply. |
Free to other Revolut users.
Otherwise, 0.15%. |
| Receiving money into your account from overseas | Free if using local account details and for some transfers on the SWIFT system (third parties may put their own fees on SWIFT transfers).
Wise also puts its own fees on some other SWIFT and wire transfers. |
Third-party fees for SWIFT or other transactions may apply. |
| Exchanging money into a different currency in your account | >0.65%. Depends on the size of the transaction and the source and destination currencies.
A dynamic charge may also apply during times of exchange market volatility or if you’re converting a less-used currency. |
Exchanges performed at certain times of day are free, but others are charged at 1% of transaction value.
After you’ve exchanged $2000 or more in a month, all exchanges will be charged at 0.5–1.5% for the rest of the month. |
| Adding AUD to your account | 0.37% if using a debit card, 1.38% if using a credit card. Other methods including bank transfer are free. | 1% if using a credit card. Other methods including debit card and bank transfer are free. |
| Card access | A virtual card is free, but a physical card costs $10. | A virtual card is free, but a delivery fee of $4.99 applies when ordering a physical card. |
| ATM withdrawals | Free if you only make two withdrawals worth less than $350 combined in a month. If you go beyond this, each withdrawal for the rest of the month is charged at 1.75% + $1.50. ATM operator fees may apply at any time. |
Free if you only make five withdrawals worth less than $350 combined in a month. If you go beyond this, each withdrawal for the rest of the month is charged at 2% or $1.50 per, whichever is greater. ATM operator fees may apply at any time. |
Are they safe?
Neither Wise nor Revolut are banks, but they do have an established presence in Australia with over one and a half million local personal and business customers between them.
They’re also regulated by Australian government agencies such as the Australian Securities and Investments Commission and are members of our national independent dispute resolution service, the Australian Financial Complaints Authority.
Tom Abourizk, head of policy at CHOICE, says this means they have to treat customers fairly.
“As financial service providers, Wise and Revolut owe very similar obligations to their customers to look after their money as a bank would if they were providing a similar service,” he explains.
Which is better: Wise or Revolut?
Wise and Revolut are both complex platforms with different offerings, but we’ve compared them in a few key areas to see which is better in different situations.
Note: We’re only comparing Wise’s product to the Revolut Standard Account. Dollar amounts are in AUD.
Best for spending overseas – Revolut, but compare with other options.
Revolut’s lower fees for exchanging currencies and getting a physical card, as well as letting you make more, albeit relatively small, ATM withdrawals means it’s worth considering if you’re looking for something to spend with overseas.
However, look at what your local Australian bank card and other travel money cards offer in terms of exchange fees and ATM withdrawals, as these might suit your situation better.
Best for sending and exchanging money – Revolut for smaller amounts ($100), Wise for larger ($10,000). But consider Revolut for sending to other users and Wise for a wider choice of currencies.
We used Wise and Revolut’s online calculators to get quotes on using the bank transfer function on their platforms to send different amounts of money to different countries and have them exchanged to arrive in the destination’s currency.
We then compared the platforms on the exchange rates, fees and transfer times they quoted us on these transactions.
While Wise usually had marginally better exchange rates, the comparison became more complex when we took account of fees and transfer times. Here, clearer differences emerged between the two platforms.
Both platforms’ transfer fees are deducted from the amount you’re sending, so the one with lower fees will end up delivering more money to the recipient (providing both platforms’ quote similar exchange rates).
When we were only sending $100, Revolut was usually the better option … but when we asked for quotes on sending $10,000, Wise had lower fees and delivered more money to the recipient
When we were only sending $100, Revolut was usually the better option.
It charged noticeably lower fees, meaning a better overall final exchange outcome, delivering more money to the pocket of the recipient than Wise. It also promised shorter transfer times.
But when we asked for quotes on sending $10,000, Wise had lower fees and delivered more money to the recipient. Its estimated transfer times were shorter or equal to Revolut’s in most cases.
However, it’s also worth remembering that Revolut doesn’t charge for transfers to fellow users of the platform (but exchange fees may apply), so this makes it worth considering if the person you’re transferring to also uses this service.
Another thing to consider is where you want to send money to, as Wise allows you to transfer funds to more countries in their local currencies than Revolut does.
For example, Wise lets you send money to China in its currency, but this isn’t possible via Revolut, which only lets you send US dollars.
Therefore, make sure you use a platform that allows you to deliver the right money to your recipient.
Do your own comparison by visiting the international transfer pages of Wise and Revolut.
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Stock images: Getty, unless otherwise stated.
