If you need to send money abroad from the Netherlands, your first thought may be to try using your bank card or a bank transfer, only to discover that with the additional fees on top of their exchange rates it costs more than you expected.

Then there are money transfer companies that claim to offer attractive exchange rates or offer fee-free transfers – but in reality, their exchange rates could also be giving you less money to send overseas. We investigated some leading money transfer companies available in the Netherlands for anyone planning to send money abroad by comparing how much it would cost to send and convert 1,000 euros from the Netherlands to British pound sterling to shed some light on how accurate these claims really are. Read on to get into the details of each of the money transfer companies we compared.

How much does it cost to send money abroad from the Netherlands?

Money transfer companies operate by charging an additional margin to the currency market exchange rate, transfer fees or a combination of both. Typically, banks add a margin of between 3% and 6% on top of the mid-market rate. For a more detailed look at sending money abroad and what impacts those costs, check out our guide: Sending money abroad: a guide to international money transfers.

CurrencyFair, on the other hand, charges an average margin of 0.45%. You can access great exchange rates in the Netherlands from any device, at any time, and send and receive international money transfers in over 20 currencies with a CurrencyFair account.

Some providers hide fees and charges in their exchange rate or make information on them difficult to find on their websites. Others use complicated terms and conditions around their fees. At CurrencyFair, our fee is always just �3 (or currency equivalent), regardless of the amount you're sending. We also empower our customers to choose their own exchange rates on our Marketplace.

Money transfer companies in the Netherlands compared:

• ACE Money Transfer

• PayPal

• Small World

• Western Union

• Wise

• World Remit

• XE

• CurrencyFair

Using ACE Money Transfer for money transfers from the Netherlands

Aftab Currency Exchange Limited, trading as ACE Money Transfer, provides remittance services from 23 countries to 106 countries worldwide, including the Netherlands. You can pay for online transfers using ACE Money Transfer with a debit or credit card, or using an online bank transfer. It charges fees based on a percentage of the total amount you're sending.

It offered an introductory exchange rate for new customers of 1 EUR = 0.8361 GBP (11:17, 24 January), with no fees for the first transfer.

After your first transfer, the transfer fee goes up to 10% of your transaction cost and the exchange rate goes down to 1 EUR = 0.8276. To transfer 1,000 EUR, the transfer fee would be 10 EUR. To transfer 1,000 EUR from the Netherlands to British pounds for the first time as a new customer using ACE Money Transfer, the recipient would get 836.10 GBP. To transfer more than 7,500 EUR to the United Kingdom you have to contact its customer service department, which isn't ideal for larger transfers.

At CurrencyFair, our fee is always just �3.00 (or currency equivalent), regardless of the amount you're sending.

Exchange rate and fee accurate as of 11:17, 24 January 2022

Using PayPal for money transfers from the Netherlands

PayPal is a popular digital payment platform that offers money transfers and international payments. Despite its popularity, PayPal is one of the more expensive ways to transfer money abroad.

The PayPal fee structure calculates a currency conversion fee of up to 4% that is adjusted and retained by PayPal in their exchange rates. Then, there is a personal payment fee followed by a small fixed fee for the money transfer. The PayPal personal payment fee depends not only on the country of the recipient but also on the country of the sender. Learn more with our guide: Avoiding PayPal's Currency Conversion Fees.

To transfer 1,000 EUR from the Netherlands to pound sterling it offered an exchange rate of 1 EUR = 0.8065 GBP (15:32, 24 January), meaning the recipient will receive 806.46 GBP.

Exchange rate and fee accurate as of 15:32, 24 January 2022

Using Small World for money transfers from the Netherlands

Small World Financial Services provides online money transfers and in-person transfers from its worldwide agent network of 250,000 locations in 90 countries.

It offered an exchange rate of 1 EUR = 0.8321 GBP (11:29, 24 January), with a 19.99 EUR fee. To transfer 1,000 EUR from the Netherlands to pound sterling using a bank transfer, it adds the fee to the amount you send. So for a total cost of 1,019.99 EUR, the recipient would get 832.06 GBP.

Exchange rate and fee accurate as of 11:29, 24 January 2022

Using Western Union for money transfers from the Netherlands

Western Union is one of the largest remittance companies in the world, with over 500,000 agent locations. Its exchange rate changes depending on the delivery and payment method you choose. Its fees vary depending on a range of factors, such as ​​the destination country you're sending to, the way you pay for your transfer and the way you want your recipient to get the money.

To send 1,000 EUR from the Netherlands to pound sterling it offered an exchange rate of 1 EUR = 0.8283 GBP (11:33, 24 January). If you'd like to pay online by bank transfer and send it to the recipient's bank account, there is a �0.90 fee. So for 1,000.90 EUR, the recipient will get 828.32 GBP, with an estimated delivery time of one to three business days.

Western Union doesn't accept business payments, and you are limited to sending 5,000 EUR per day. When paying for the bigger things in life, such as buying property overseas, paying for education abroad or transferring your savings, this can be at best inconvenient and at worst, unworkable. Breaking up a large transaction over several days is not only annoying, it can also end up a lot more expensive thanks to fees getting incurred every time. With CurrencyFair, you can send up to 97,000,000 EUR per transfer from the Netherlands, and we offer tailored solutions for our business customers.

Why choose CurrencyFair for your business?

Exchange rate and fee accurate as of 11:33, 24 January 2022

UsingWise for money transfers from the Netherlands

Wise is a money transfer provider in Europe. Depending on how quickly you need the funds to reach the recipient, you can opt for different tiers of transfer speed with different costs.

To send 1,000 EUR from the Netherlands into GBP using a debit card it offered an exchange rate of 1 EUR = 0.8387 GBP (11:38, 24 January), with an 8.64 EUR fee. So 991.36 gets exchanged into 831.45, and should be delivered within seconds. However, its fees can snowball when you send larger amounts and can fluctuate depending on which currencies you're converting. The table below demonstrates how these fees can add up, particularly if you're transferring a large amount.

At CurrencyFair, our �3 (or currency equivalent) fee stays the same, whether you're transferring �100 or �1,000,000.

Using WorldRemit for money transfers from the Netherlands

WorldRemit is a remittance company founded in 2010. It's headquartered in London and operates globally in over 150 countries. Its transfer fees and exchange rates vary depending on the country you're sending to, the amount you're sending and the delivery method you choose.
To transfer 1,000 EUR to British pounds, WorldRemit offered an exchange rate of 1 EUR = 0.82841 GBP (11:55, 24 January). If you pay by bank transfer and send into the recipient's bank account, it adds 3.99 EUR in fees. So for 1,003.99 EUR the recipient will receive 828.41 GBP.

Fees accurate as of 11:55, 24 January 2022

Using XE for money transfers from the Netherlands

XE is part of the Euronet Worldwide group and forms the third-largest money transfer business in the world. It offered an exchange rate of 1 EUR = 0.8276 GBP (11:46, 24 January), so sending 1,000 EUR converts to 827.60 GBP.

Under its FAQs, it states that: “Your money will reach its destination quickly, securely, and with no hidden fees”. However, it also states that: “Some money transfers are subject to a small fee”, without specifying what transfers are subject to them, and how much they might be. CurrencyFair's transparent fees are fixed at �3 (or currency equivalent) for transfers from the Netherlands.

Fees accurate as of 11:46, 24 January 2022

Using CurrencyFair for money transfers from the Netherlands

CurrencyFair was founded in 2009 and offers secure money transfers to over 150 countries and over 20 currencies, including the Netherlands. Our exchange rate of 1 EUR = 0.8339 (12:00, 24 January) includes our �3 fee, meaning when you send 1,000 EUR to pound sterling, the recipient will get 831.40 GBP.

Exchange rate and fee accurate as of 12:00, 24 January 2022

You can choose to send money immediately with our quick, low-cost money transfers, or set your own rate on our Marketplace, and wait for the market to meet it — meaning you could even beat the currency market rate that you see on Google.

Join over 170,000 happy customers who have saved millions with CurrencyFair.

If you're sending money abroad from somewhere else in the world, compare the money transfer providers available in the following countries below:

• Money transfer companies compared: Germany

• Money transfer companies compared: Switzerland

• Money transfer companies compared: Thailand

• Money transfer companies compared: Australia

• Money transfer companies compared: Singapore

• Money transfer companies compared: United Kingdom

• Money transfer companies compared: France

• Money transfer companies compared: Indian rupee

• Money transfer companies compared: Poland

This information is correct as of 24 January 2021. This information is not to be relied on in making a decision with regard to an investment. We strongly recommend that you obtain independent financial advice before making any form of investment or significant financial transaction. This article is purely for general information purposes.