Most of the cost is in the rate, not the fee

When you send money internationally, the advertised fee is only a fraction of what you lose. This page compares the live mid-market FX rate against what typical transfer providers actually quote you, showing the rate gap as real money alongside the fee. The margin baked into the exchange rate almost always costs more than the visible fee.

• A 2.5% rate markup on a $10,000 transfer costs $250 — five to ten times the wire fee.
• The mid-market rate is the fair price; every provider adds a hidden margin on top of it.
• Online services like Wise and OFX mark up by under 1%, while banks and PayPal often exceed 3%.
• The gap between what you should receive and what you actually get can exceed $300 on a single transfer.