Western Union vs OFX: Fees & Reviews Compared

Both Western Union and OFX are popular international money transfer services. But which one is better?

Below we compare them on their fees and reviews.

Fees

	Western Union	OFX
Homepage
Transfer Fee	Based on the sender’s location, transfer amount, and payment method. Usually, there’s a fee that’s as low as $0-$15, but some can be as high as $100 if sending to an exotic location or paying by credit card.	AU$15.00 under $10,000 (Australia) CAD $15.00 under $10,000 (Canada) HK $60.00 under $50,000 (Hong Kong) NZD $15.00 under $10,000 (New Zealand) No fee for the rest of the world.
Average Exchange Rate Markup	1% – 5%	0.4% – 1.9%
Minimum Transfer Amount	$1	$1000 in the US £100 in the UK €2 in the EU $150 in Hong Kong and Singapore AU$250 and its currency equivalent in the rest of the world.
Maximum Transfer Amount	Depending on the sender’s country: $50,000 if identity verified $3,000 if identity isn’t verified	No limit

Reviews

	Western Union	OFX
Trustpilot Rating	3.9	4.3
Number of Trustpilot Reviews	50,800	6,200
iOS App Rating	4.8	4.9
Number of iOS App Reviews	630,000	2,400
Android App Rating	4.6	4.5
Number of Android App Reviews	28,000	3,700

Features

	Western Union	OFX
App Transfers	Yes	Yes
Online Transfers	Yes	Yes
Phone Transfers	Yes	No
In-person Transfers	Yes	No
Available Countries	200	190
Number of Currencies	130	55
Payment Methods	Bank account Debit card Credit card Cash	Bank account
Receiving Methods	Online wallet Bank account Cash pickup Home delivery	Bank account
Cash Pickup Option	Yes	No
Payments Flexibility	Web platform Mobile app Phone In person	Web platform Mobile app
Supported Languages	English, Spanish, French, Danish, Norwegian, Turkish, German, Italian, Russian, Swedish, Chinese, Dutch, Polish, Ukrainian, Portuguese, Japanese, and Finnish	English
Transfer Speed	Within minutes for cash or debit card transfers 1-3 days for transfers between bank accounts	1-4 days
Dedicated Dealer	No	Yes
Instant Custom Quote	Yes	No
Business Features	N/A	Spot contracts Forwards contracts Limit orders Rate alerts Risk calculator
Debit Card	Western Union® Netspend® Prepaid Mastercard	None
Cancellation Policy	Cancellations are possible as long as the money hasn’t been claimed by the recipient.	Each individual transfer’s cancellation can be discussed upon contacting an OFX representative.
Suitability	Small money transfers	Large money transfers

Company Comparison

	Western Union	OFX
Year Founded	1851	1998
Headquarters	Denver, CO, United States	Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Other Office Locations	Brazil, Sweden, Australia, New Zealand, Poland, Austria, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, China, Japan, Malaysia, Malta, Singapore, Switzerland, South Korea, United Kingdom, etc.	London (UK), Dublin (Ireland), Auckland (New Zealand), Hong Kong, Singapore, Toronto (Canada), and San Francisco (USA)
Annual Trading Volume	$300 billion	$21.5 billion
Number of Employees	10500	650
Number of Clients	150 million	1 million
Regulatory Institutions	State licensing in the USA FINTRAC in Canada FCA in the UK AUSTRAC in Australia	FinCEN in the USA FINTRAC in Canada FCA in the UK ASIC and AUSTRAC in Australia Central Bank of Ireland in EU MAS in Singapore CED in Hong Kong DIA in New Zealand
Awards	Digital Edge 25 Awards (2016) Payments Innovation of the Year (2016) Candidate Experience Award (Talent Board, 2017, 2018) “Way to Go” Champion Award (Denver Regional Council of Governments, 2019) Regional Partner Award (Education for Employment, 2019) Humanitarian Logistics Award (American Logistics Aid Network, 2020) Consumer Payments Innovation Award (FinTech Breakthrough Awards, 2021)	Named one of the Fast 50 (Deloitte, 2005 – 2011) Named one of the Fast 500 Asia Pacific (Deloitte, 2005 – 2011) Named one of the BRW Fast 100 (The Australian Financial Review, 2005) Becoming a New Investors Award Finalist (UK Trade and Investment International Business Awards, 2006) Receiving the Australian Growth Company of the Year award (Australian Growth Company Awards, 2013) Receiving the Fraud Prevention Award (Digital Identity Summit, 2016) Scoring Outstanding Value in Money Transfers (Canstar, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019) Decorated as an Excellent Brand of Forex Services (Hong Kong Leader’s Choice Award, 2021) Proclaimed the Best International Money Transfer Provider (Finder Customer Satisfaction Awards, 2021/2022)

Western Union Pros & Cons

Western Union Pros

• Diverse payment methods
• Availability of cash pickup locations
• High rating on Trustpilot
• Excellent mobile application
• An abundant industry experience
• Comprehensive information repository
• Exceptional convenience
• Worldwide service reach
• Robust currency handling
• Rapid fund transfers
• Fee and rate prediction tool
• Beneficial rewards scheme

Western Union Cons

• Not optimal for substantial money transfers
• High transaction fees
• High markups on exchange rates
• Absence of hedging options for businesses

OFX Pros & Cons

OFX Pros

• Versatile solutions for businesses
• Exceptional customer support
• Quick money transfer process
• Attractive exchange rates
• Option for alerts on exchange rates
• Worldwide service coverage extending to more than 190 countries.
• Robust currency support with over 55 currencies and counting
• Lenient cancellation policy
• Comprehensive knowledgebase
• Highly rated mobile app

OFX Cons

• Not ideal for transferring small amounts of money
• Limited choices for funding transactions
• Transfer fees
• No real-time custom quotes option

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