The question that moves the most money is not which provider you pick but how your client pays. On the same invoice, card versus bank transfer can change the cost tenfold or more.
The same invoice, two routes
Here is what a $5,000.00 invoice (or its equivalent) costs by the cheapest route of each kind, at published rates:
| Route | Cheapest by card | Cheapest by transfer | Card costs more by |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States → Spain | Paddle: −$250.50 | Wise Business: −$14.50 | $236.00 |
| United Kingdom → Spain | Stripe: −£222.74 | Wise Business: −£16.50 | £206.24 |
| Germany → Spain | Stripe: −€75.25 | Wise Business: €0.00 | €75.25 |
| United States → United States | Whop: −$135.30 | Wise Business: $0.00 | $135.30 |
| Canada → United States | Paddle: −CA$250.50 | Wise Business: −CA$24.00 | CA$226.50 |
- Card fee
- Cross-border
- Conversion
- Payout
Why the gap is so large
An international card payment passes three layers: the card fee, a surcharge because the card is from another region and, if the currency changes, a conversion markup. With Stripe, on the US to Spain payment, those are $75.25, $82.50 and $96.85.
A transfer to an account with local bank details has no card and no border: the client pays by ACH like any domestic supplier. Only the conversion is left, which at Wise is $14.50. Where there is no currency to convert, as from Germany to Spain, a euro transfer costs nothing in this model and the card still costs its percentage.
When a card is worth it
A card is not a mistake; it is an expensive service. It pays for itself when:
- The client is a consumer or the purchase is small: nobody sets up an international transfer for $100.00. At that size the gap is $5.04.
- You bill subscriptions: a recurring card charge is the norm and what the customer expects.
- No card means no sale: a one-off client who will not add a new supplier in their banking.
It does not pay in the most common freelance case: a business paying you invoices of hundreds or thousands every month. There, every percentage point is your money.
What the table does not show
- Disputes. A card payment can be disputed by the cardholder for months, and a dispute has its own cost. A transfer is much harder to reverse.
- Speed. Local transfers (ACH, Faster Payments, SEPA) usually arrive within one or two business days, or instantly; card processors pay out on their own schedule.
- Convenience. A card payment link removes friction and sometimes gets you paid faster. On small invoices that can be worth the difference.
How to move clients to bank transfer
- Open an account that gives you local bank details in your clients' currency (Wise, Revolut Business or Payoneer, for example).
- Print those details on the invoice as the main method and name it: "Pay by ACH".
- Keep the card as a second option behind a link, for whoever really needs it.
- With recurring clients, ask for the switch once there is trust: for them it is as easy as paying any local supplier.
For your own case, drag the pin to where you live on the map and add your clients' countries; the ranking underneath separates card and transfer routes. And for what to print on the invoice, see the guide to invoicing clients abroad.
Every figure in this guide is calculated from the providers' public pricing pages, with the same function as the calculator. See the methodology for what the model includes and leaves out.