Who Wise Business suits
Freelancers and small businesses whose clients can pay by bank transfer. You get local account details in several currencies, so a US client pays you like a domestic supplier and you convert at the mid-market rate with an explicit fee.
On the calculator's two reference payments, Wise Business takes 0.29% of $5,000.00 from a US client to a Spanish business, and 0% of €1,000.00 between Germany and Spain, where there is no currency to convert.
What to watch out for
- This site models Wise for bank transfers only. If your client insists on paying by card, you need a card processor as well.
- Receiving account details cost a one-off fee to set up.
- Wires (as opposed to local transfers such as ACH) can carry their own receiving fee; check it before giving out the details for SWIFT payments.
How to pay less with Wise Business
- Put the local account details on the invoice itself, with ACH named as the preferred method for US clients.
- Keep money in the currency you will spend it in, and convert the rest in one go rather than invoice by invoice.
- Compare the quoted conversion fee on large amounts: Wise publishes the fee before you convert, so there is nothing to guess.