A Guide to the Cheapest Way to Send Money to Australia

Sending money to Australia is one of the easiest processes if you have a bank account in the country. You can use a bank transfer, online money transfer service provider, or forex company.

However, not all options will get you the most money in Australia. In fact, some are a lot more expensive than others depending on how much you send.

It’s always a great idea to check Monito to find out which method will save you the most money. It’s easy to use and will give you a bird’s eye view of your best choices.

With that, this guide will show you which options you have when sending money to Australia, the common fees you’ll pay, and which method is best depending on where you’re from.

 

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What to Watch Out for When Sending Money to Australia

In all honestly, there are not many pitfalls with sending money to Australia, but if you haven’t already, I would suggest opening a bank account to make life easier.

Most Australian banks make opening a bank account in the country very simple for foreigners if you have all of the required documents.

Currency Exchange

As we all know, exchange rates fluctuate. So it is best to get a good idea of what the correct currency is.

You can check XE for the latest currency rates but don’t expect the exchange rate you get through a bank or online money transfer service to be the same as XE. You should just us XE a baseline.

XE rates are based on the Forex market and do not reflect the rates that you will get through Western Union, or banks. Wise does offer mid-market exchange rates, however.

Transfer Fees

Depending on which provider you choose and which nation you transfer from, the cost of sending money to Australia varies.

Some service provider may promise free transfers but hide expenses in exchange rates. Others, like Wise, make the transfer charges clear up front.

With that said, it doesn’t mean using Wise will always be cheaper or yield more money on the receiving end.

The cost of sending money to Australia will always differs depending on which service you use and how much money you send.

Transfer Speeds

When sending money to Australia using online services such as Western Union or Wise, the money might take anywhere from minutes to hours to days to arrive.

If you use a bank-to-bank transfer, speeds may vary. Commonwealth, for example, has been faster than Bankwest.

Keep in mind that faster transfer times may result in greater costs.

ATM Fees

If you use an ATM in Australia with a debit card at a well-known bank (avoid independent ATMs as they usually charge higher fees), you can typically expect to pay around a 2–3 percent foreign transaction fee on the amount you withdraw, plus an ATM fee of around AUD$2 to AUD$3 depending on the bank.

However, if you use a credit card at an ATM, the costs can be significantly higher. If you withdraw the equivalent of £100, you may pay a foreign transaction fee of around £3, plus a cash advance fee that is often around £3 or more. On top of that, the ATM operator may still charge a fee of around AUD$2 to AUD$3. Interest on credit card cash advances also usually starts immediately, which can make the withdrawal even more expensive.

Money Transfer Options

Transferring money into Australia is fairly straight forward. Once you open an account with any of the high street banks, it could come down to just a few clicks on your phone.

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Here are some of the major banks in Australia:

• Commonwealth Bank  
• Westpac  
• Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ)  
• National Australia Bank (NAB)  
• Macquarie Bank

Here are a few more banks to choose from.

Once you open your account, you can then start sending money to Australia. Let’s look at your choices.

Wise

Wise is another online money transfer service provider who’s fees compare to other companies.

For instance, if you wish to send £1000 to your Australian account, the fee is just around £3.88. This is one of the cheapest ways to send money to Australia right now.

WorldRemit

WorldRemit is a cross-border digital payments firm that offers money transfer and remittance services in over 130 countries and 70 currencies.

You can send money through WorldRemit using a debit card, credit card, banker transfer, ApplePay, and more.

You’ll get exchange rates that are fairly competitive, ranging from 1 percent to 1.5 percent. If using a bank transfer option, expect to pay more than twice as much as this percentage, as well as significantly higher transfer costs.

Moreover, transfer speeds with WorldRemit are fairly quick, ranging from one to three days when sending from the U.K, the U.S., and Canada.

International Bank Transfers

If you are planning on moving abroad to work or retire, I would suggest that you keep your home country bank account open, otherwise it can get tricky and expensive when receiving money in Australia from abroad.

Assuming you have a bank account in Australia, you will need to get both banks’ IBAN and a SWIFT/BIC numbers to make a transfer.

When sending money through HSBC in the U.K. you’ll only pay a small fee of £4.00. You may also send money via telephone banking at a cost of £9.00, but do not expect a mid-market exchange rate in either case.

If you have an HSBC account in both Australia and your home country, your transfer will be free — aside from the exchange rate fee that the bank tacks on.

• transfer of £5,000 – 3.49 percent margin = £174.50 exchange rate costs
• transfer of £10,000 – 3.49 percent margin = £349.00 exchange rate costs
• transfer of £50,000 – 2.43 percent margin = £1,217.03 exchange rate costs

However, if you use Bank of America to send USD$1,000 to USD$5,000 you will be charged a transfer fee of around USD$45.00 and whatever the exchange rates fee is at the time of sending.

Keep in mind that bank exchange rates in general are not as good as rates from online service providers, but if you are sending a large amount, it works out to be the cheaper option.

Western Union

It may not be the most cost-effective way to transfer money these days, but Western Union may be the fastest as it will arrive in minutes, making it an excellent solution if you find yourself in a financial emergency.

Let’s have a look at how much you might pay in fees if you send £1,080 to Australia with Western Union.

If a friend or family member goes into a Western Union store and chooses cash pickup, the fee can be quite high. It is often around £50 or more depending on the location and payout method.

If you choose to pay with a credit card or debit card in the store, the fee is usually lower but can still be around £20 to £30. The exchange rate you receive is also typically weaker than the mid-market rate.

And if you send the money online using a credit card or debit card, Western Union often advertises no transfer fee. However, this usually comes with a poorer exchange rate, which means you still end up paying through the currency conversion.

As you can see from the figures above, Western Union can get pretty expensive.

Bitcoins and Cryptocurrencies

In Australia, cryptocurrency is usually converted into Australian dollars through a cryptocurrency exchange such as CoinSpot, Kraken, Coinbase, or Swyftx. After selling the cryptocurrency on the exchange, you can normally withdraw the funds directly to an Australian bank account.

What is the Best Method to Send Money to Australia?

You may choose between Wise for one-time or recurring payments under £10,000, since they both give almost identical receiving amounts on most transactions. Transfer speeds are roughly the same with each of these service providers as well.

For payment over £10,000, Wise is still one of the cheapest options.

Also, avoid Western Union if you’re not in a financial emergency. It charges the greatest amount of fees and gives the poorest exchange rates.

But to help you further, in the next section I’ll discuss which methods are best for certain countries.

Now, on to You

Now that you know your options when sending money to Australia, you can pick the service that saves you the most money and gets you the most amount on the receiving end.

In some cases bank transfers may be better than online methods, especially for transfers over £10,000, USD$10,000, or CAD10,000.

For anything lower than that, use Wise to save the most money.

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