Payoneer vs Airwallex: compare on fees, features and benefits

If you run a growing business, you’ll need a payment platform that will allow you to open local accounts in several currencies, seamlessly accept payments from international customers, and send money across borders without excessive fees.

Both Payoneer and Airwallex offer these services, but which solution is right for your business? Read on to find out how Airwallex compares against Payoneer on price, features and benefits.

What is Payoneer? 

Payoneer is a payment platform that enables businesses to collect, hold and payout funds in multiple currencies. It also offers prepaid debit cards, and integrates with popular marketplaces.

Payoneer’s transaction and FX fees are relatively cheap when receiving and paying funds from another Payoneer account. However, fees are considerably higher for transactions to and from other accounts.

What is Airwallex? 

Airwallex is a multi-currency business account and payment solution allowing businesses to receive, hold and send funds in multiple currencies. Unlike Payoneer there are no transaction or withdrawal fees, plus Airwallex boasts highly-competitive FX rates.  

Both have the ability to open multiple foreign currency accounts, exchange currencies, and transfer and accept payments internationally.

Compare Payoneer vs Airwallex

Payoneer fees explained

Transaction fees: Payoneer offers free transactions to and from other Payoneer accounts. For all other transactions, they charge a fee of 2% fee or 3% if paying via a credit card.² 

Withdrawal fees: Payoneer will charge users to withdraw funds from their account into an external account like a business bank account. Users pay this fee in addition to the FX rate. 

FX & Transfer fees: Payoneer charges a currency exchange fee of 0.5 - 3% above the mid-market rate. 

Card fees: Payoneer charges an annual fee of $29.95 for their prepaid MasterCard debit cards and additional ATM withdrawal and balance enquiry fees.²

Additional fees: Payoneer charges a 0.5% fee to move funds between currency balances, on top of the FX fee. If a users account is inactive for 12 months, they will be charged a $29.95 fee¹.

Airwallex fees explained

Transaction fees: Airwallex doesn’t charge transaction fees to the 110+ countries where we have access to local payment networks so you can collect, hold and send multiple currencies at no or low cost. 

Withdrawal fees: None - meaning users can move funds from their Airwallex accounts to another bank account for free. 

FX rate: Airwallex charges 0.5 - 1% above the interbank rate for currency exchange.

Card fees: Airwallex Employee Cards are free for the first 2 cardholders, then come at a cost of $15 per month for each additional card holder.  Employee Cards allows admins to easily track, approve and reconcile expenses online. 

Users can create Airwallex virtual cards to spend in multiple currencies at home and abroad with 0% transaction fees.

Compare additional features between Payoneer and Airwallex

Currency accounts: Airwallex allows users to open local accounts in 23+ currencies whereas Payoneer offers 9 currencies. 

Transfers & FX: Airwallex allows users to transfer to 150+ countries without transaction fees to 110+ of them with an FX rate of 0.5 -1%. Payoneer can transfer to 195 countries with a 3% transaction fee and FX rate of 0.5-3%. Airwallex allows Batch Payments of up to 1000 at once. 

Payment acceptance: Airwallex has more competitive rates than Payoneer for multi-currency payments (see pricing here). Both platforms integrate seamlessly with popular payment systems and eCommerce platforms. 

Cards: Virtual and physical borderless visa debit cards are available on Airwallex’s most accessible pricing tier, “Explore”, which costs $29 a month (or $0 if users meet the fee waiver requirements). Payoneer offers a prepaid MasterCard debit card with an annual fee of $29.95 and 3.5% FX fee for currency conversion. Payoneer has additional cross-border, withdrawal, balance enquiry and card replacement fees.

Accounting software integration: Airwallex integrates with Xero, NetSuite and Quickbooks.

Choose Airwallex for your business' end-to-end financial operations

Payoneer offers its customers good value transfers and FX rates when sending and receiving money from another Payoneer account. But when dealing with clients and suppliers who don’t use Payoneer, things can quickly get expensive. 

Airwallex offers competitive FX rates and zero transaction fees no matter where you're sending or receiving money from, along with a range of additional benefits that can help you manage your business’ money efficiently across borders.

Airwallex could be a more cost-effective option, with generally lower fees and more extensive integrations than Payoneer. 

Sources:

1. https://www.payoneer.com/about/pricing/

2. https://www.payoneer.com/commercial-card/

Disclaimer: We wrote this article in Q3 2024. The information was based on our own online research and we were not able to manually test each tool or provider. The information is provided for educational purposes only and a reader should consider the specific requirements of their business when evaluating providers. This research is reviewed every six months. If you would like to request an update, feel free to contact us at [email protected].

This information doesn’t take into account your objectives, financial situation, or needs. If you are a customer of Airwallex Pty Ltd (AFSL No. 487221) it is important for you to read the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) for the Direct Services, which is available here.