Wise (TransferWise) Review: Money Transfers & Rates

Wise is a payment platform known for its global reach, ease of use, and reasonable pricing. But, just like any other platform, it presents several challenges, especially for Indian businesses.

If you use Wise for international payments or are considering using it, it's prudent to understand what it offers, where it stands in the larger scheme of things, and if there is a better alternative out there that might be better suited for your business needs.

We answer those questions and more in this Wise review, touching upon everything – from its features and pricing to benefits, limitations, and real customer feedback. 

Wise (earlier known as TransferWise) is a fintech company that offers businesses a multi-currency payment platform. Wise began in 2011 as a P2P transaction platform and later expanded to B2B payment processing as well, allowing transactions between businesses. 

A significant thing to note about Wise is that it uses mid-market rates for currency conversion, charges a small upfront fee, without adding any hidden markup, making it favorable for many businesses. 

Equally important is the fact that Indian businesses can use Wise only for receiving business payments and not to send them, and the Wise Debit Card, which is a common feature of the Wise platform, is not available for use in India. 

1. Multi-currency accounts

With Wise, you can receive money in major currencies, all in one account. This means you can get paid in whatever currency you need, without opening different local bank accounts.

2. Local account details

You can actually get your own local bank details, like an account number, sort code, or routing number, in 9+ currencies (USD, EUR, GBP, AUD, and more). That means clients can pay you as if you’re a local, and you don’t get hit with those annoying international receiving fees.

3. Multi-currency debit card

Wise also offers a multi-currency debit card that makes it easy to spend in different countries without worrying about hidden markups. It’s great for frequent travelers, global shoppers, or businesses paying for international services. That said, this card isn’t yet available for use in India.

4. Batch payments

If you’re sending money to multiple people, Wise’s Batch Payments (or Bulk Payments) lets you upload a file with all the recipients and send all payments in one go.

5. Safeguarding

Wise doesn’t treat your money like theirs. Your funds are kept separate from Wise’s operational funds and held in secure, regulated accounts or liquid assets. This “safeguarding” ensures that even if Wise faces financial troubles, your money is still protected and available to you.

For Indian businesses and freelancers, Wise is mainly about receiving international payments quickly. As mentioned before, some of its global features aren’t fully available yet in India.

Here is a breakdown of how Wise works for businesses in India:

1. You’ll need to create a Wise Business account, which requires verification for both you and your business. 

2. For that, you’ll have to show your business documents, like a valid business PAN and your registration certificate. After that, you’ll have to complete a quick KYC check using your Aadhaar and PAN details.

3. The bank account you use to link with this Wise business account should be in your business’s registered name. Wise will only send funds to an account that exactly matches your business entity.

4. Once registered, Wise lets you create local account details in over 9 major currencies. This means your clients can pay you as if they’re sending money locally.

5. Simply share your Wise account details with your international clients. When they pay (for example, USD into your Wise USD account), Wise automatically converts it to INR at the mid-market rate and sends it straight to your verified Indian bank account.

Quick note: Wise allows four types of businesses to accept payments from abroad: Sole trader or freelancer, sole proprietorship (sole owner of your business), privately held and legally-recognized business entity, and limited liability partnership firms. 

Wise is designed to make the payment process more transparent, efficient, and flexible for businesses. Let’s have a look at the benefits you can expect while using Wise. 

1. Wise clearly discloses its fees upfront and uses mid-market rates for conversion, without any hidden markups. 

2. Settlement is relatively fast; INR payments can be received in your linked bank account within 1-2 business days. 

3. The multi-currency accounts allow you to hold, manage, and convert several currencies from just one account.

4. The platform is licensed and regulated in all regions where it operates. In addition, safeguarding keeps customer money segregated from company funds.

5. You get to receive money through diverse payment methods, using local bank details. 

The fees that Wise charges its customers are a mix of a small fixed amount, which is always shown upfront before you commit to a transfer. For currency conversion, it uses mid-market exchange rates, which means there is no extra charge added as forex markup, which usually happens with banks. 

We can divide the total fees charged under these frames to better understand the pricing. 

Setup fee: There’s a one-time setup fee, which changes regionally, to open the business account and unlock all its features. After that, you won’t be charged any monthly subscription fees.

Currency conversion fee: For major currencies like USD, GBP, AUD, and EUR, the conversion fee is roughly around 1.78% of the money you’re transferring. This value also changes regionally. 

For receiving money: The platform will charge you 1.7%-1.8% of the transaction amount. Beyond this, you’ll also have to pay a fee for eFIRA generation. 

Here’s an example to help you understand: 

Let’s say you’re receiving a payment of €1,000 from a client in Europe through Wise. The transfer is calculated at the real mid-market exchange rate, which, as of September 25, 2025, is 103.781. That brings the total before deductions to about ₹1,03,781.

Wise then applies its transfer fee, which in this case would be roughly €18.01, along with a small FIRA fee of around €2.14 when funds are settled in India. To this, €3.63 of GST is also subtracted. 

So, after these deductions, the actual amount you’d receive is closer to ₹1,01,313.09.

Here is a quick comparison table that overviews how Wise fares against its key competitors in terms of its offerings, use cases, and pricing. It includes Xflow, a modern payment platform for businesses to receive hassle-free cross-border payments, as well as PayPal, Payoneer, and Stripe. 

From the table, we can easily deduce the following:

• Xflow offers the best value with a flat 1% fee, 0% FX markup, and a comprehensive suite of features specifically designed for Indian businesses. Additionally, it comes with the top rating on G2, clearly showing that users prefer it over other platforms. 

• Wise provides the comprehensive global solution with true mid-market rates and extensive currency support. But it comes with many restrictions for Indian businesses. 

• PayPal is best for e-commerce but has the highest costs.

• Payoneer works well for freelancers but has complex, potentially high fee structures.

• Stripe offers many advanced business tools, but its invite-only access and premium pricing are a hindrance for Indian businesses. 

The true measure of any platform can be taken from the experiences of those who use it daily, which we'll get from Wise money transfer reviews left by its customers.

Most users praise Wise for its ease of use, user-friendly interface, relatively faster settlements, and multi-currency support. Have a look at these Wise (Transferwise) reviews on G2 and Capterra:

However, there are some negative reviews as well. Consider this Wise review of a user regarding customer support:

Some users also find issues with transfer limits:

Wise is a convenient solution for receiving international payments, but it comes with several limitations, especially for Indian businesses. Here’s what you need to know before choosing it:

1. Limited outward remittances: New users in India generally cannot send money abroad. Only previously verified users who used to send payments abroad are allowed to retain this ability. 

2. No foreign currency holding: You cannot hold foreign currencies in your Wise account. All incoming payments are automatically converted to INR and sent to your registered Indian bank account.

3. Debit card unavailable: The Wise multi-currency debit card isn’t offered to Indian business or personal accounts.

4. Fees for e-FIRC: While Wise automatically generates Foreign Inward Remittance Certificates (e-FIRC) for regulatory and tax purposes, it charges a small fee for this, usually around $2.50 per certificate. 

5. Transaction limits: There are maximum and minimum limits for receiving payments, for example, a maximum of roughly $29,000 per transaction and a minimum of around $5 or equivalent per transaction.

Wise can be a handy financial tool for anyone who regularly deals with multiple currencies or needs to move money across international borders. Precisely, the following categories of people benefit most from using Wise:

• Digital nomads & remote workers: They can receive payments from their clients directly into local currency accounts (USD, EUR, GBP, and more) that are provided by Wise.

• Expats & immigrants: Those living abroad need to send money back home on a regular basis, be it for savings, family support, or bills. Wise makes this simple.

• International students: Wise also lets students receive money from family or make payments overseas.

• Frequent travelers: For those who are constantly on the move can hold multiple currencies in their account and use the card abroad without worrying about hidden markups or high ATM fees.

• SMBs, startups, and e-commerce sellers: Wise Business is also pretty suitable for SMEs, startups, and online sellers who deal with international clients or suppliers. 

Wise makes receiving international payments easier, but it comes with some notable limitations. You can’t make outward transfers, face account holding restrictions, and have limited card access and transaction caps. Xflow fills these gaps with its more robust, flexible, and business-friendly solution.

Why Xflow makes more sense than Wise for Indian businesses:

• Multi-currency virtual accounts: You can receive and hold funds in over 25+ currencies from 140+ countries, without forced immediate conversion.

• Instant settlements: Your funds get settled quickly within 24 hours to your local bank account, minimizing delays that are quite common with other platforms.

• Automated compliance support: Xflow generates digital FIRAs automatically without charging you any additional cost.

• Professional payment tools: You can quickly create branded invoices, shareable payment links, and even process very large single transactions with ease.

• Transparent and competitive pricing: Fees are flat, linked to the mid-market FX rate, with no hidden charges or surprise markups.

• White-label APIs for fintechs and platforms: Integrate payments directly into your systems without any setup issues.

• AI-powered insights: Using the FX AI analyst, you can forecast currency trends, plan for any fluctuations, and make decisions backed by real data for international payments.

• Seamless integrations: Works smoothly with accounting tools like Zoho Books, Xero, and others.

• Security and compliance: Sticks to ISO 27001 and SOC 2 standards, giving you peace of mind about the security of your funds and data.

From extensive features and transparent pricing to regulatory support and fast settlements, it’s clear why Xflow offers a smarter, more flexible alternative to Wise for Indian businesses, freelancers, and startups managing global payments.