Western Union vs Revolut: Fees & Reviews Compared

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

Below we compare them on their fees and reviews.

Fees

	Western Union	Revolut
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.	No fee for transferring to other Revolut users Card transfers: 0.7% (if you’re in Europe), 2.3% (outside Europe) Bank transfers: fees can range between 0.35% and 1%
Average Exchange Rate Markup	1% – 5%	0.5% – 2%
Minimum Transfer Amount	$1	$1
Maximum Transfer Amount	Depending on the sender’s country: $50,000 if identity verified $3,000 if identity isn’t verified	Depends on the selected plan, the sending country, and the recipient country.

Reviews

	Western Union	Revolut
Trustpilot Rating	3.9	4.3
Number of Trustpilot Reviews	50,800	138,000
iOS App Rating	4.8	4.7
Number of iOS App Reviews	630,000	37,000
Android App Rating	4.6	4.5
Number of Android App Reviews	28,000	2,400,000

Features

	Western Union	Revolut
App Transfers	Yes	Yes
Online Transfers	Yes	Yes
Phone Transfers	Yes	No
In-person Transfers	Yes	No
Available Countries	200	200
Number of Currencies	130	29
Payment Methods	Bank account Debit card Credit card Cash	Bank account Debit card Credit card
Receiving Methods	Online wallet Bank account Cash pickup Home delivery	Bank account Debit card
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, German, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Dutch, Italian, Japanese, Chinese, Croatian, Greek, Czech, Danish, Russian, Hungarian, Polish, Slovak, Romanian, Swedish, Bulgarian, Latvian, and Lithuanian
Transfer Speed	Within minutes for cash or debit card transfers 1-3 days for transfers between bank accounts	Instant for Revolut users 1-2 days for the rest
Dedicated Dealer	No	No
Instant Custom Quote	Yes	Yes
Business Features	N/A	Forwards contracts Stop-loss orders Limit orders Analytics Payroll automation Spending management Digital multi-currency wallet Rate alerts API integration
Debit Card	Western Union® Netspend® Prepaid Mastercard	Many including: Standard, Plus, Premium, Metal, Ultra, Business and Revolut <18
Cancellation Policy	Cancellations are possible as long as the money hasn’t been claimed by the recipient.	Cancellation is available as long as the transfer hasn’t been completed. Refunds may take up to 10 days.
Suitability	Small money transfers	Small money transfers

Company Comparison

	Western Union	Revolut
Year Founded	1851	2015
Headquarters	Denver, CO, United States	London, UK
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.	Berlin (Germany), Dublin (Ireland), Krakow and Silesia (Poland), Madrid (Spain), Mexico City (Mexico), Porto (Portugal), São Paulo (Brazil), Bangalore, Chennai, Gurgaon, Indore, and Mumbai (India), Singapore, Tokyo (Japan), and Vilnius (Lithuania)
Annual Trading Volume	$300 billion	$140 billion
Number of Employees	10500	8000
Number of Clients	150 million	30 million personal users 500,000 business users
Regulatory Institutions	State licensing in the USA FINTRAC in Canada FCA in the UK AUSTRAC in Australia	FCA in the UK ASIC in Australia The Bank of Lithuania in the EU MAS in Singapore Kanto Local Finance Bureau in Japan
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)	Top Startups (LinkedIn, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022) Fintech Company of the Year (City AM Awards, 2018) Europe’s Allstar Company (Investor Allstars Awards, 2018) Top 10 Fastest Growing Startups To Work For (Otta, 2019) Top 10 Companies Hiring Like Crazy (Glassdoor, 2019) Top Spot at Deloitte’s Tech Fast 50 (Deloitte, 2019, 2020) Top Spot at The Startups 100 (Startups, 2019) Top 10 in Tech Track 100 Companies (The Sunday Times, 2019) Featured in The Best London Startups to Work (Rocket List, 2020) Lithuania’s TOP Employers (CV Online, 2020) Innovation of The Year (British Bank Awards, 2020) Featured in Best Startups To Watch (Seedtable, 2020, 2023) Best Talent Acquisition Team (LinkedIn Talent Awards, 2021) Featured in 150 Fastest Growing Companies to Work for in America (Otta, 2021) Best FinTech Employer of the Year (SFF Global FinTech Awards, 2021) Featured in Employer Branding Stars (EBstars Awards, 2022, 2023)

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

Revolut Pros & Cons

Revolut Pros

• Offers a full range of banking features
• Exceptional customer support
• User-friendly debit card services
• Zero transfer fees for smaller transfers
• Attractive foreign exchange rates
• Comprehensive suite of business-oriented features
• Option to trade in cryptocurrencies
• Virtual cards for secure online transactions
• Broad coverage of services globally
• Wide range of supported currencies for travelers
• Fast money transfers

Revolut Cons

• Not designed for large-scale money transfers
• Complex fee structure
• Limited scope of in-app currency support
• No cash pickup options
• A relative newcomer in the financial industry

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