7 best international money transfer apps for businesses

If you’re paying a supplier in Shenzhen or Guangzhou every month, you already know the real cost of an international transfer rarely matches the number your bank quotes you.

Between the FX margin buried in the exchange rate and the flat wire fee on top, a single £10,000 payment can quietly lose you hundreds of pounds before your supplier even confirms dispatch.

Traditional high-street banks typically charge 2.5% to 4% in FX margin plus £15 to £30 in wire fees per international payment, according to Business Expert’s analysis of money transfer services.

Specialist fintech providers compress that margin to roughly 0.3% to 1.0%, and cross-border B2B payment volumes are projected to exceed $35 trillion by 2028 as more SMEs shift away from bank wires, per SendMoneyCompare’s 2026 FX fee guide.

This listicle compares seven apps and platforms UK importers use for international payments, so you can match the right one to your supplier corridor, transfer size and reconciliation needs.

Key takeaways:

• FX margin can outweigh the transfer fee: even a small difference in the exchange rate can add up quickly on regular high-value supplier payments
• China payment capability differs by provider: direct CNH settlement and integrations such as 1688.com can make a real difference for importers sourcing from China
• Mobile apps do not always cover every feature: tools such as forward contracts, user permissions and more complex account management may still require a web portal
• Marketplace integrations matter for sellers as well as importers: connecting Amazon, Shopify or PayPal can make it easier to reconcile collections against supplier payments
• Total cost should drive the comparison: fixed charges, FX margins and any intermediary fees all affect how much a transfer actually costs
• WorldFirst is built for recurring cross-border trade: UK businesses can manage multi-currency balances, pay suppliers in CNH and other currencies, and connect marketplace collections from one account

Open a World Account to see live FX rates and fees for your China or Asia supplier payments before you commit to a provider.

How we assessed these apps

We compared each provider against the factors that matter most for UK businesses making regular international payments:

• FX margin: the markup added to the underlying exchange rate
• Fixed transfer fees: any separate charge applied when sending money
• China and Asia payment capability: support for direct supplier payments, including CNH where available
• Marketplace integrations: connections with platforms such as Amazon, Shopify and PayPal
• Accounting integrations: support for tools such as Xero or NetSuite
• FX management tools: access to forward contracts, rate alerts and other tools for planned payments
• App functionality: which features work in the mobile app and which still require the web portal

Price alone did not determine the ranking. A lower FX margin carries less value if the provider cannot support your main supplier corridor or fit into your existing accounting workflow.

7 best International money transfer apps

The table below compares seven international money transfer apps by their best use case, main strength and key limitation:

Table checked against provider and third-party sources current as of early 2026.

1. WorldFirst

Best for: established UK importers with recurring China or Asia supplier payments.

WorldFirst was founded in London in 2004 and has since supported more than 1.5 million businesses, moving over $500 billion worldwide. It’s also been named a Top Global Fintech Company by CNBC and Statista.

Key features include:

• Low, upfront FX margin: new customers get a promotional 0.3% FX fee, with an ongoing rate of up to 0.50%, quoted as interbank rate plus a single markup with no hidden fees
• Direct China settlement: the platform settles directly to 150,000+ Chinese suppliers in CNH, avoiding the double conversion (GBP to USD to CNH) that adds cost and delay through a bank. It’s worth remembering that suppliers invoice you onshore in CNY, while your international payment actually settles offshore in CNH
• 1688.com World Pay integration lets you pay Chinese suppliers directly without needing a mainland Chinese bank account, useful if you’re sourcing through Alibaba-affiliated marketplaces
• Marketplace and accounting reach: over 130 marketplace and payment gateway integrations (Amazon, Shopify, PayPal among them) plus Xero and NetSuite integration for reconciliation
• Cash-flow tools: forward contracts locking a rate up to 24 months ahead, live rate alerts, firm orders that auto-convert at a target rate, and batch payments up to 200 at once

Pricing:

No setup, monthly or minimum balance fees. Local payments in GBP, EUR or USD cost £0.30; international payments cost £4.00; cross-currency payments above £5,000 are free; receiving funds is free; holding balances across 20+ currencies is free. The World Card offers up to 1.2% uncapped cashback and zero FX fees in 15 currencies.

Trade-offs:

WorldFirst isn’t a bank. It’s authorised and regulated by the FCA as an Electronic Money Institution (Firm Reference 900508), and client funds are safeguarded rather than covered by the FSCS, unlike a deposit at a UK bank.

2. Wise Business

Best for: importers who want the mid-market rate with a fully transparent, published fee on top.

Wise Business built its reputation on showing the real mid-market exchange rate rather than marking it up invisibly. It serves 15 million+ customers and moves over £9 billion a month.

The main features include:

• Transparent pricing: mid-market rate plus a published fee of roughly 0.33% to 0.81% depending on currency route
• Wide reach: send and hold in 40+ currencies across 140+ countries, with local receiving account details in several major currencies
• Deep accounting integration: 12 accounting software integrations including Xero and QuickBooks, useful for importers reconciling multiple supplier invoices monthly
• Batch payments: up to 1,000 payouts in one batch, and a virtual and physical debit card offering 0.5% cashback

Pricing:

The Essential plan is free but doesn’t include receiving accounts; the Advanced plan carries a one-off £50 setup fee to unlock local receiving details. Wise holds a 4.3 Trustpilot rating and a 9.4 Finder Score, and won Best Money Transfer App at the Good Money Guide Awards.

Trade-offs:

Wise doesn’t offer the same depth of direct China supplier settlement or 1688.com integration that a China-corridor specialist provides, so if most of your spend goes to mainland Chinese suppliers, you may still face intermediary routing on some payments.

3. Airwallex

Best for: importers who also want multi-currency card spending alongside supplier payments.

Airwallex has grown quickly as a multi-currency account aimed at scaling online businesses.

Key features to compare include:

• Competitive FX on majors: roughly 0.5% on major currency pairs, rising to around 1% on minor currencies
• Multi-currency Visa cards: useful if your team spends internationally as well as pays suppliers
• Xero integration and payment links for invoicing and reconciliation
• Broad reach: payments to 150+ countries, with SWIFT payments costing roughly £10 to £20 when a local payment rail isn’t available

Pricing:

Free if you maintain a £10,000 balance, otherwise £19 a month

Trade-offs:

The monthly fee (unless you maintain a substantial balance) makes Airwallex less attractive for smaller or seasonal importers, and its supplier-network depth in China is not as clearly documented as a specialist provider’s.

4. Revolut Business

Best for: importers who want everyday banking-style features alongside FX.

Revolut Business has evolved from a card-first app into a broader account with 70 million+ global customers and, notably, is now a fully licensed UK bank.

The account includes:

• Interbank rate within a monthly allowance, then a markup of roughly 0.4% to 0.6% (rising to around 1% on weekends)
• Plan tiers: roughly £10 (Basic), £30 (Grow) and £90 (Scale) a month
• Card issuance: up to 200 virtual cards per employee, alongside invoicing and expense management tools
• Currency reach: 25+ currencies across 140+ countries

Pricing:

Monthly subscription tiers rather than per-transfer fees, so cost predictability depends on your plan and transfer volume.

Trade-offs:

The weekend FX markup and monthly subscription cost can add up for importers making frequent large supplier payments, and Revolut’s strength lies more in domestic banking breadth than in specialist China-corridor settlement.

Read more:

• Revolut review

• Revolut alternatives

5. OFX

Best for: established importers moving larger sums who want a dedicated dealer relationship.

OFX has built its model around personal account management rather than a purely self-serve app.

Key features include:

• Volume-based margin: pricing tightens the more you transfer, with no fixed per-transfer fee
• Forward contracts available for locking future rates
• Dedicated account manager or dealer for larger or recurring transfers

Pricing:

Margin-based rather than published as a flat percentage, so it’s worth requesting a quote for your typical transfer size before committing.

Trade-offs:

Without a fixed, published fee structure, it’s harder to compare OFX like-for-like against apps with transparent pricing, and the model suits larger, less frequent transfers better than high-volume small supplier payments.

6. Xe

Best for: importers needing fast transfers to a wide range of destinations, including cash pickup options.

Xe brings over 30 years of currency exchange experience to its transfer app.

The main features include:

• Flat transfer fee: around £2 per bank transfer payment
• FX markup range: roughly 0.3% to 2.1% depending on currency and route
• Reach: 200 countries and 100 currencies, plus cash pickup at over 500,000 locations worldwide
• Forward contracts available for businesses wanting rate certainty

Pricing:

Low flat fee, but the wider FX markup range means the total cost can vary more than with a tightly banded specialist provider.

Trade-offs:

The upper end of that markup range (up to 2.1%) can rival bank-level costs on certain routes, so it’s worth checking the quoted rate for your specific corridor before assuming Xe is cheaper.

7. TorFX

Best for: larger, less frequent transfers where personalised phone-based support adds value.

TorFX positions itself around dedicated account management rather than app-first self-service.

Key features to note include:

• No transfer fees, with an FX markup of roughly 0.4% to 1.5%
• Dedicated account manager for every client
• No maximum transfer limit, making it suited to large one-off payments such as property or capital equipment purchases

Pricing:

No fixed fee, margin-based, generally most competitive at higher transfer values (£10,000+).

Trade-offs:

The model is built for occasional large transfers rather than the frequent, smaller supplier payments typical of an ongoing import relationship, so it’s less suited to monthly China sourcing cycles.

Make international supplier payments work around your cash flow

Choosing an app is only useful if it fits the way money actually moves through your business. For an importer paying a £30,000 supplier invoice in China, the bigger question is how much control you have between receiving revenue, choosing when to convert it and releasing the supplier payment.

A business that collects part of its revenue in USD, pays operating costs in GBP and settles supplier invoices in CNH can lose margin if every balance is converted back to sterling first. Keeping those flows separate can reduce unnecessary conversions and make it easier to match incoming revenue with upcoming supplier commitments.

WorldFirst can support that workflow alongside your existing bank account, giving you a place to manage international collections and supplier payments without changing how you handle domestic banking.

WorldFirst isn’t a bank. World First UK Limited is authorised by the FCA as an Electronic Money Institution under the Electronic Money Regulations 2011, FRN 900508. Client funds are safeguarded rather than protected by the FSCS.

Open a World Account to manage international revenue and supplier payments around the currencies your business already uses.

FAQs

1. Which international money transfer app is best?

For UK importers paying China or Asia suppliers regularly, WorldFirst stands out for its 0.3% new-customer FX rate, direct CNH settlement to over 150,000 Chinese suppliers, and 130+ marketplace integrations. If your priority is pure fee transparency on the mid-market rate, Wise Business is a strong alternative, and Airwallex suits businesses that want multi-currency card spending alongside transfers.

2. What is the best app for international currency transfers?

It depends on your transfer size and corridor. WorldFirst fits established importers making frequent China or Asia supplier payments. Wise suits businesses that want the mid-market rate with a clearly published fee. OFX and TorFX suit larger, less frequent transfers where a dedicated dealer relationship adds value.

3. What is the best platform for international money transfer?

For an ongoing import business, a multi-currency account platform such as WorldFirst, Wise or Airwallex generally beats a single-transfer app, because it lets you hold, receive and pay in multiple currencies from one place, cutting out repeated conversions between GBP, USD and CNH.

4. Which app is best for international transactions?

If your transactions centre on China or Asia supplier payments and marketplace collections, WorldFirst is built around exactly that workflow, from CNH settlement to Amazon and Shopify integrations. If your transactions are more general international transfers with no specific supplier corridor, Wise’s transparent pricing or Revolut’s all-in-one banking features may suit you better.

Sources:

1. https://sendmoneycompare.com/guides/lowest-fx-fees-business-payments-2026
2. https://goodmoneyguide.com/fx/money-transfers/
3. https://www.businessexpert.co.uk/money-transfer/best-money-transfer-services/