I have been using PayPal for all of my international buying transactions and have noticed recently that their exchange rate has become really bad. This is a hidden fee to the buyer. Today, through PayPal, I opted to use my Visa exchange rate and it was better, but the vendor was still charged a 4.5% fee.
Has anyone found a better way to send vendors money internationally, with better exchange rates, and lower fees for vendors?
Exchange Rates & Banking Fees: Buying Internationally
Cryptocurrency? Only partially joking. Transferwise is also a good method. For larger payments, wire transfers are far better than Paypal since it is a fixed fee instead of a %.Victoria wrote: ↑Wed Mar 28, 2018 1:03 pmI have been using PayPal for all of my international buying transactions and have noticed recently that their exchange rate has become really bad. This is a hidden fee to the buyer. Today, through PayPal, I opted to use my Visa exchange rate and it was better, but the vendor was still charged a 4.5% fee.
Has anyone found a better way to send vendors money internationally, with better exchange rates, and lower fees for vendors?
Paypal always charges ~4% to the seller, which is why the rates usually "look" good for the buyer.
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Ethan Kurland
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If you will be making a lot of purchases in a particular country, you might want to open a bank account there. Deposit enough $ to cover a year's worth or purchases or whatever; then, transfer via computer in that country's currency. (I have not done this myself as I planned on doing all purchases in person, but I did have one order shipped & also was dismayed by the exchange rate of Paypal.)
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OldWaysTea
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At times that I've needed to send rather large amounts to China, I've done a wire transfer to a trusted family member in China. We got the best exchange rate by sending it as USD and having the Chinese bank do the conversion. The Chinese bank's rate was much better than the US bank. If I remember correctly, the total cost was about 1.5%.
My Amazon Chase Visa has no international transaction fees (and unlike a wire transfer you're protected). Might be an idea to shop around for the best no-fee card.