Wise vs Remitly: Fees, exchange rate and features

Both Wise and Remitly offer customers in Ireland ways to send payments overseas, which you can arrange online or in app. However, the selection of services offered by Remitly vs Wise do vary in key ways.

Remitly has a focus on people sending personal remittances to loved ones, while Wise offers a broader selection of financial services including a multi-currency account and business payments.

So, of Wise or Remitly, which is better for you? Read on to find out.

Remitly vs Wise: Quick comparison

Let’s quickly compare Wise and Remitly on a few key features so you can decide if a Remitly money transfer, or a payment through Wise may be a better fit. We’ve got more on the features and fees of Wise vs Remitly right after.

*Details correct at time of research - 8th June 2026

Wise or Remitly: Key features in Ireland

Wise and Remitly both support personal payments to banks overseas, but beyond that their services can look pretty different.

Remitly has a broader range of payout methods including cash collection and even home delivery in some countries, while Wise has higher payment limits and supports business transfers as well as personal payments.

Wise features include:

• Transfer money to 140+ countries with ways to send up to 20 million EUR per payment
• Payments are available for personal and business reasons
• Wise uses the mid-market exchange rate and low, transparent fees
• Hold 40+ currencies and receive payments in 20+ currencies in a Wise Account
• Debit card connected to the multi-currency account.

Remitly features include:

• Send money digitally to 175+ countries and pay by card, Apple Pay or Google Pay
• Transfers are optimised for personal remittances; most business payments are not allowed
• Payments can be received to bank and mobile money accounts, for cash collection or even home delivery
• New customers may benefit from promotional fees and exchange rates.

Does Remitly offer a card in Ireland?

No. Remitly does not offer a holding account or a debit card in Ireland. If you’re looking for an all round platform to hold, send and spend money, check out the Wise account which offers a linked Wise card you can use for spending and cash withdrawals.

Discover the Wise card 💳

Sending money with Remitly vs Wise

At first glance, Wise and Remitly look like identical digital money transfer providers, but they calculate the final cost of your transfer in entirely different ways.

We explain the math behind both platforms so you can avoid unnecessary fees and get the most currency for your money.

Sending money with Wise

If you decide to send money with Wise you’ll need to first create an account and get verified by uploading an image of your ID document.* This verification can be done with just your phone, and is an important step in keeping your account and transfers safe.

Once you have a Wise account you can set up your transfer online, using the Wise website or the Wise app. Wise offers the possibility to send large transfers, where you can send up to 20 million EUR from your Wise account.

Here’s how to send money with Wise:

1. Create a Wise account online or in the Wise app - upload an image of your ID document for verification*
2. Tap ‘Send Money’ and enter the transfer details and currency
3. You’ll see the fees and exchange rate available - the Wise rate is the live mid-market rate at the point of payment
4. To confirm, tap and enter your recipient’s banking details - you’ll be prompted to pay using your preferred method.

*Wise may request additional documents to verify a customer's identity.

Wise transfer speed

When sending money with Wise you’ll be able to track and see the progress of your transfer. But here are some general numbers:

• 75% of transfers are completed in under 20 seconds
• 88% of transfers take less than an hour to be completed.
• 96% arrive in under 24 hours

Transaction speed claimed depends on individual circumstances and may not be available for all transactions.

Sending money with Remitly

With Remitly you’ll also be prompted to create an account if you want to make a payment. You can upload an image of a photo ID like your passport or two suitable secondary ID documents to secure your account.

Make your Remitly payment via website or in-app, and pay using your card, Apple Pay or Google Pay. Remitly allows transfers of up to 85,000 EUR⁴ and is intended for personal payments only. Few commercial or business payments are permitted.

When you set up your Remitly transfer you can select the pay out method, including deposit to a bank or mobile money account, or having your recipient claim their payment in cash though a Remitly agent.

Here’s how to send money with Remitly:

1. Create your Remitly account via website or in app using your passport or two secondary ID documents
2. Enter the amount and currency you are sending, and select the delivery method
3. Check the fees and exchange rate - the Remitly exchange rate may include a markup - and select how to pay for your transfer
4. Complete the payment and stay on the screen while it is processing in case Remitly needs any more information from you

Remitly transfer speed

To check how long your Remitly transfer will take you’ll need to start to set up the payment online or in the Remitly app. This will generate payment quotes, and delivery estimates.

You may find that there are different ways to pay - and different available receive methods - which have their own delivery times. Use the payment modelling tool to check the options for your specific payment and select the one which best fits your needs.

Remitly vs Wise: Fees and exchange rates

Costs are a key factor when picking a transfer provider. So, is Remitly cheaper than Wise? And how does the Remitly exchange rate compare with the rate you’ll get from Wise?

Remitly has variable transfer fees and exchange rates. Remitly exchange rates may include a markup, which is a percentage fee added to the mid-market exchange rate.

You won’t see this split out as a separate item in your bill but you can compare your Remitly rate to the mid-market rate using a currency converter to check if a markup has been added for your particular payment.

Remitly does also offer promotional offers and new customer discounts which can mean you get an exclusive deal on your first few payments.

Wise doesn’t add any markup to the exchange rate. The Wise exchange rate is the mid-market rate for your currency at the time you make your transfer, with no additional fees on top of that. All transfer fees are split out for transparency, and start from 0.57%.

Receiving money with Wise vs Remitly: How does it work?

If you’re receiving money with Remitly in Ireland you’ll have a couple of choices: receive the payment to your bank, or collect your money in euros from a Remitly agent.

There’s no Remitly fee for the recipient of a transfer, although your bank might charge an incoming payment fee if you choose to get paid by bank deposit.

If you’re receiving a Remitly payment to your bank account you’ll need to give the sender your bank account information, usually your full name and IBAN. If you’re receiving a payment in cash you’ll have to make sure the sender knows your full name as shown on your government issued ID. The sender will give you a transaction reference number which you can take, along with your ID document, to an agent to collect your payment.

The Wise Account offers local account information in 8+ currencies, which can be handy if you’d prefer to get paid in a different currency like British pounds or US dollars instead of euros. The sender can transfer your payment just like they would when paying someone locally, which often means no or low fees for them, and no Wise fee for you.

If you need to receive payments in additional currencies, Wise offers the possibility to receive money in +20 currencies via Swift system, and in this case fees can vary.

There are also several ways to use Wise to receive money without sharing your Wise account details:

• If the sender also uses Wise you can get paid by: giving them your email address, phone number or your sharing your Wisetag
• You can also create a payment request link or share your Wise card details (the 16-digit card number).

Open your Wise Account
for free 🚀

Wise Business vs Remitly Business

Remitly does not offer business accounts or services for customers in Ireland. Remitly customers in the UK, US and Canada may have the option of opening a business account, but this has yet to roll out to Ireland.⁵

If you’re looking for a business solution, a Wise Business multi-currency account might be a good fit. You can hold and exchange 40+ currencies with the mid-market rate, send money to 140+ countries, and receive foreign currency payments in 20+ currencies.

Discover Wise Business 💼

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Customer service: What do Wise and Remitly offer?

Wise customer service is available via the Help Center, or in the Wise app get help via e-mail, and 24/7 help in English via chat or phone.

You can chat with Remitly support staff 24/7 in app, with 18 supported languages. Or you can call on +353 1800 816 808 - international calling rates may apply.

Which is better, Remitly or Wise?

Both Remitly and Wise offer secure and simple payment options to a good range of countries and currencies. Wise has a broader selection of complementary features like a multi-currency account and card, while Remitly supports more pay out methods which can suit recipients without access to a bank account.

Here’s a quick summary to help you pick the best provider when you make your next payment:

*Details correct at time of research - 8th June 2026

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Sources used:

1. Remitly Ireland
2. Trustpilot Wise
3. Trustpilot Remitly
4. Remitly limits
5. Remitly blog - Remitly Business availability

Sources last checked on: 08th of June, 2026