Top 5 Wise alternatives: compare fees, features & benefits

If you run an online business selling to international customers, you'll need a way to easily collect payments in multiple currencies and transfer funds across borders to pay suppliers or staff. 

Whilst Wise may be one of your options, you may like to consider its alternatives to see which one suits your needs best. 

What is Wise?

Wise is a UK-based financial technology company focused on simplifying global money transfers. Its platform is designed to help consumers and businesses send funds overseas easily at a low cost.

For businesses, Wise’s products include:

• Multi-currency accounts

• Virtual debit cards

• Batch international transfers

• Accounting software integrations

With a Wise multi-currency business account, customers can accept and hold payments in nine currencies and transfer funds to over 70 countries. Additional payment options are available for vital markets. 

Best known for supporting consumers and micro-businesses, Wise offers a simple and fast but basic service at low costs. For growing businesses with international vendors, suppliers, and customers, it may be more suitable to look at Wise alternatives. 

The top alternatives to Wise 

Here are the top alternatives to Wise.

• Airwallex: Founded in 2015, Airwallex is a global financial platform to collect, hold, convert, and send multi-currency payments, designed for businesses only.

• HSBC: Established in 1865 in Hong Kong and serves as an international bank which offers business accounts. 

• Payoneer: A payments platform designed for marketplace sellers and freelancers to collect, hold, and send payments.

• PayPal: A well-established payment gateway that’s been operating globally for over 20 years. eCommerce brands use it to process payments from credit cards, debit cards, and bank transfers.

• Revolut: Established in 2015, a UK-based financial technology company offering digital financial services to consumers and businesses.

Compare the top 5 alternatives to Wise

The top Wise alternatives: key features and fees

Airwallex, HSBC, Payoneer, PayPal, and Revolut are all great alternatives to Wise, but each have their unique strengths. Our platform, Airwallex stands out from the rest with our end-to-end financial operations and global reach. It’s a strong option if you’re looking to scale your financial operations domestically or internationally. 

Below, we summarise the key features and fees of each. For full product and fee information, including other charges, please visit each provider’s official website. 

Airwallex

Airwallex is a global payment solution that lets you accept payments in more than 160 payment methods across 180 countries. No-code to fully-customisable integration options make it easy to get started quickly, and you can save your business a tonne of fees with like-for-like settlement into multi-currency accounts. In other words, you can settle payments in the same currency that your customers pay in, saving you on costly exchange rates. 

It’s easy to open an account with local bank details in Airwallex, without having to go to a bank or complete any complicated paperwork. The platform also offers FX and transfer solutions, with competitive interbank fees. Uniquely, our investment product, Yield, allows businesses to earn competitive rates on their idle AUD and USD funds. Other features like virtual cards, accounts payable, and expense management, make it ideal for growing businesses. 

Unlike Wise, Airwallex offers a more comprehensive all-in-one financial solution which makes growing globally easier. 

Airwallex fees: 

Subscription Fees: Airwallex’s ‘Explore’ bundle starts from $29 per month, which can be waived by holding a minimum of $10,000 or depositing $5,000 per month. 

Domestic transactions: Free

International transactions: Free to 120+ countries

Pros

• An all-in-one platform for business financial operations, combining accounts, payments, corporate cards, and more

• Low-cost international transfers 

• Extensive global reach to convert, send, and hold funds

Cons

• No physical branches – digital only platform and service

• Does not serve sole traders

• Physical POS system coming soon

HSBC 

HSBC offers a comprehensive suite of financial services, including international money transfers, account management tools, and investment options. This global bank supports various payment methods, including bank transfers and debit/credit cards, and its global presence makes it reliable for those who value in-person banking. However, this generally leads to their fees being higher compared to some fintechs like Wise and Airwallex. 

HSBC Business Transaction Account fees:

Subscription Fees: $15/month 

Domestic transactions: First 50 transactions per month are free. Any additional transactions incur 50c per transfer. 

International transactions: $4.50 per transaction

Additional fees: Include card fees of $12 annually and $9 per unauthorised overdraft 

Pros 

• Widely accepted globally 

• A long-standing firm with a high level of security 

• Physical branches or online banking is available 

Cons

• High fees for international transfers 

• Longer transfer times compared to fintechs like WIse and Airwallex 

• No digital payments or expense management tools available

Payoneer

Payoneer is used amongst freelancers and businesses due to its focus on cross-border transactions. The platform offers an intuitive interface, supporting multiple payment methods such as bank transfers and debit/credit cards. Payoneer also provides a prepaid Mastercard at $29.95 annually, which can be used for online and in-store purchases. Whilst they offer payment processing services for marketplaces and platforms, fees are higher for international transfers, which may become costly. 

Payoneer fees: 

Subscription fees: Free account. Prepaid Mastercard costs $29.95 per year.

Domestic transactions: Free for transactions between Payoneer accounts. All other transactions cost 2% or 3% per transaction if paying via credit card

International transactions: 0.5% transfer fee

Pros

• Supports multi-currency accounts and currency conversion 

• Serves both individuals and businesses

• Free transactions between Payoneer accounts

Cons

• Transfer limits of $15,000USD per credit card transaction, which may be limiting for larger businesses 

• Primarily a payments product, with no multi-currency accounts or corporate cards

• Users may need another platform to manage other financial operations

PayPal 

PayPal supports a variety of payment methods, including credit and debit cards, bank transfers, and PayPal balances. The platform also offers invoicing, subscription payments, and mobile payments. 

PayPal’s widespread acceptance is available for personal and business use. However, PayPal is likely to incur higher fees for business transactions, which in the long-term may affect a business’ bottom line. 

PayPal Fees: 

Subscription Fees: Free account

Domestic transactions: 2.6% plus fixed fee 

International transactions: 3.6% plus fixed fee

Pros 

• Wide-spread acceptance and various payment methods

• Suitable for physical and digital stores

• Offers buyer and seller protection

Cons

• Higher fees for international transactions

• Whilst it may be easy to use, there are limited customisations available 

• Doesn’t hold multi-currency funds

Revolut

Revolut is a digital bank that services individuals and businesses. It is best known for its personal use cases, allowing individuals to convert between currencies when travelling. For businesses, Revolut offers multi-currency accounts that allow businesses to hold and manage multiple currencies in one place. Revolut also accepts borderless payments and provides a modern interface in their website and mobile app. Whilst Revolut offers various pricing models, some basic features require extra fees, such as international transfers beyond set limits. Markups on exchange rates may also apply on weekends and with certain currencies. 

Fees

Subscription fees: start at $21/month 

Domestic transactions: 200 free‌. Additional transfers cost 20c per transaction. 

International transactions: Five free‌. Additional transfers cost $10 per transaction. 

Pros 

• Offers customisable corporate cards 

• Supports multi-currency accounts and currency conversion 

• Serves both individuals and businesses, so those who already have a personal account may find it easier to pick up 

Cons

• Additional transaction fees outside the free transaction allowance may be costly 

• User can't earn interest or returns on idle funds

• No physical branches - digital only platform and service

Why choose Airwallex over Wise?

What questions should I ask when choosing alternative providers to Wise?

Here are the top 10 most important questions for you to consider when choosing an alternative to Wise. Use these as a handy guide when doing your research.

• What are the transaction fees?

• What is the currency exchange markup?

• Are there any account set up or management fees?

• How extensive is the geographical coverage?

• What currencies can be held in your business account?

• What funds management services do you provide?

• What security measures do you have in place?

• What integration capabilities do you offer?

• Do you provide dedicated account management support?

• Do you offer corporate and employee cards?

Final thoughts on alternatives to Wise

Airwallex and Wise are both known for offering competitive cross-border money solutions for businesses. 

For global reach, Airwallex is hard to beat. With a multi-currency business account, businesses can accept and hold 23 currencies and handle transactions to 150+ countries. With Airwallex, customers enjoy 0% international transaction fees to 110+ countries using our local payment rails.⁶  Wise only supports holding 23 currencies and global payout coverage to 50 countries with fee charges for international payments. 

Airwallex includes account management services, Payment Links and plugins, and Expense Management capabilities. For accounts payable solutions, Wise offers a basic suite, integrating with a few software providers.⁶

Airwallex also offers businesses earnings on their idle AUD and USD funds through Yield.  That way, you can save more and invest those funds to grow your business.

Our verdict? Wise offers simple, easy, low-cost global money transfers for consumers and smaller businesses, but larger enterprises may struggle.

Consider Airwallex for an end-to-end financial solution built to solve all kinds of cross-border payment challenges. 

Sources & references

1. https://www.business.hsbc.com.au/en-au 

2. https://www.payoneer.com/about/pricing/#pay-your-supplier

3. https://www.paypal.com/au/enterprise/payment-methods

4. https://www.paypal.com/au/webapps/mpp/merchant-fees

5. https://www.revolut.com/business/accept-payments/

6. https://wise.com/au/pricing/business

7. https://wise.com/au/pricing/business/send-money

8. https://wise.com/au/pricing/business/receive

Disclaimer: The information in this article is based on our own online research. Airwallex was 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 annually. If you would like to request an update, feel free to contact us at [support@airwallex.com]. 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.

The Airwallex Yield Liquidity Fund (Yield) is issued by K2 Asset Management Limited (K2) (ABN 95 085 445 094, AFSL No 244393), a wholly owned subsidiary of K2 Asset Management Holdings Limited. This information doesn’t take into account your objectives, financial situation, or needs. Read the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and Financial Services Guide (FSG) for Yield, available at www.airwallex.com.au/terms from Airwallex Capital Pty Ltd (ABN 37 609 653 312, AFSL No. 549026). All investments carry risk. *Target returns are net of fees as at 1 April 2025 (AEDT) and indicate past 1-day annualised returns of the relevant underlying JPMorgan Liquidity Funds.