Which is better for your business — Wise or Revolut?
Choosing the right cross-border payment provider isn’t always straightforward. It depends on the size of your business, how often you make international payments, the amounts being exchanged, sent and received, and what you value most from a provider.
In this comparison, we'll break down what Wise and Revolut's business accounts have to offer, how their pricing models work and the types of businesses they suit best. We’ll also explore whether the best path for growing small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) that trade internationally may in fact be an alternative to Wise and Revolut.
What Wise and Revolut's business accounts actually offer
Launched in 2011 and 2015 respectively, Wise and Revolut are prominent fintech brands that started as B2C products before adding business accounts later.
When it comes to international business transactions, both Wise and Revolut offer multi-currency accounts that let you hold, send and receive funds across multiple currencies. And both can save you a lot of time and money compared to traditional banks.
Wise supports 40+ currencies and provides local account details in 9 of them ( including GBP, USD and EUR). For all other currencies, you can send and receive payments using SWIFT account details.
Revolut supports 25+ currencies and offers local account details in GBP, USD and EUR. For all other currency accounts, you use SWIFT account details for international transfers.
While on the surface, both providers may appear much the same, Revolut’s functionality extends further than Wise’s. Revolut clients can set up fixed and flexible forward exchange contracts and access advanced expense management tools. Merchant accounts and payment processing options enable business clients to accept payments through online gateways, e-commerce integrations and contactless QR codes.
Integrations with accounting tools and your financial ecosystem
When it comes to connecting to other tools in your financial ecosystem, Wise keeps it simple with accounting software integrations like Xero, QuickBooks and Sage for daily transaction syncing. All of these integrations come standard with every account.
As with its product, Revolut offers a broader set of integrations outside of just the accounting world. The usual suspects are there (including Xero, QuickBooks and Sage), but Revolut also integrates with HR platforms like Personio and Sage HR. However, most of these integrations are only available on paid plans.
Both providers also offer APIs for custom integrations, but there's a key difference: Wise gives every business account API access for free, while Revolut restricts API access to the Grow, Scale, and Enterprise plans. If you're planning to build custom connections, that's worth keeping in mind.
Physical and virtual debit cards
Both providers offer business cards to help manage company spending.
Wise business cards link directly to the account balance in your chosen currency and come with basic expense management tools.
Revolut provides more advanced features through its expense management tools like built-in spending controls, real-time transaction notifications, and the ability to freeze and unfreeze cards. Physical cards are free with paid plans, while virtual cards are available across all tiers.
Pricing and fee structures compared
Let's talk pricing. Both providers structure their international payment and currency exchange fees differently — and the costs can add up in different ways depending on how you use the tools.
Here's what you need to know about fees.
Wise Business Pricing
Wise’s pricing is clear and simple. There's no monthly fee, just a one-time account opening fee of €50. After that, you only pay for what you use. They offer currency conversions at the mid-market exchange rate with a percentage-based fee added. There are no hidden markups or fees.
For international payments, you'll pay a transfer fee typically between 0.33% and 1.0% of the payment amount, which varies based on the currency.
In short, there are very few surprises when it comes to Wise’s pricing. However, those per-transaction fees can start to add up as your cross-border payment volumes climb and depending on the currencies you use.
Revolut Business Pricing
Revolut takes a different approach. There's no initial setup fee. Instead, they use tiered monthly fees. Here's how it breaks down:
- Basic: €10 per month, limited features
- Grow: From €30 per month, exchange up to €15,000 monthly at the interbank rate
- Scale: From €90 per month, exchange up to €60,000 monthly at the interbank rate
- Enterprise: Custom pricing with specialised account management
Revolut uses the interbank exchange rate during market hours but charges additional fees for weekend exchanges. Each plan comes with a limited number of no-fee international payments, after which additional percentage-based fees kick in.
While the Basic plan may sound tempting and could be a good fit for some smaller businesses just getting started with international trade, most growing SMBs will need a paid account to make use of some of the more advanced features.
Limitations: What you need to know
When you're running an international business, you need more than just basic money movement features. Let's look at some critical gaps across both providers that might impact your operations.
Multiple user types
Because Wise and Revolut cater to personal and business users, each with different needs and use cases, their focus isn’t always on developing business-specific tools — and more importantly, SMB-specific tools.
This split focus becomes especially noticeable for SMBs that handle larger transaction volumes or need more specialised features. You may be better off finding a provider that’s dedicated to serving SMBs rather than one trying to balance the different needs of multiple users.
Lack of dedicated human support
Another important consideration is client support. With Wise, personalised support is only available for select high-value clients, leaving most businesses without direct, hands-on assistance when they need it most.
And unless you’re on the “Enterprise” tier, you don’t get a dedicated account manager with Revolut either. The paid plans do include "priority support," but that just means faster response times, not a dedicated person who knows your business inside and out.
For companies moving serious money across borders with time-sensitive challenges, this approach to client support isn't ideal, to say the least!
Limited FX risk management capabilities
When it comes to managing currency exchange risks, Wise doesn't offer any FX risk management tools. For freelancers and micro-businesses just getting started on the international stage, this isn’t a big deal. But for SMBs moving higher volumes of foreign currencies, this gap could significantly impact your bottom line when markets shift.
Revolut does offer fixed and flexible forward contracts, although you can’t benefit from favourable FX market movements in the same way as you would with a dynamic forward contract.
Limited payment tracking features
With Wise and Revolut, tracking international payments leaves a lot to be desired. Both providers give you basic status updates notifying you when the funds leave your account and when they land. But everything in between becomes opaque.
Want to know exactly where your money is in real time, which intermediary banks are involved, and when it'll arrive? Or share tracking links with your suppliers and beneficiaries? You're better off looking beyond Wise and Revolut.
When Wise Business makes sense
A Wise business account works well for freelancers, digital nomads and smaller businesses that occasionally need to send or receive payments from overseas partners, suppliers and customers.
So if you want a no-fuss way to make payments and convert currencies and don't need the more complex features like FX forwards, Wise might be all you need. The straightforward pricing and functionality work best when handling occasional international payments. But if your business is growing and your transactions are becoming more frequent, Wise may not be able to keep up.
When Revolut Business fits best
Revolut Business offers a broader range of features that can be appealing to freelancers, SMBs and even enterprise-level businesses. That said, the tiered pricing structure can lead to overpaying for features that SMBs don’t actually need.
So, if you’re looking for a more versatile platform with a broader range of tools for things like expense management — and don’t mind paying for more than you need — Revolut could be a good fit.
But there are alternatives to Wise and Revolut...
What’s the alternative?
Wise and Revolut can be great tools for certain businesses and use cases. But if you're tired of...
- Percentage-based fees cutting into your profits
- Limited insight into the progress of your international payments
- Managing foreign exchange risks all on your own
...Then it might be time to look for an alternative built specifically for businesses like yours that have higher volumes of international payments and more complex needs.
A different approach: iBanFirst
Meet iBanFirst — the cross-border payments provider built specifically for SMBs.
When you open an iBanFirst account, you have access to a multi-currency account with 25+ currencies available. From one simple yet powerful platform, you can manage cross-border payments and FX risk and access our advanced payment tracking tool. You’ll also have a dedicated — and very human — account manager with FX expertise who understands your business and can help you effectively manage foreign currency risk.
How iBanFirst differs from Wise and Revolut for businesses
Let’s take a closer look at why 10,000+ global businesses chose iBanFirst.
Designed for SMBs like you
Unlike Wise and Revolut, which started with personal accounts and later added business accounts, iBanFirst was built specifically for international businesses from day one. We focus on providing a specialised, hands-on service designed to meet the specific cross-border payment needs of SMBs like yours.
Zero account fees and transparent prices
An iBanFirst account will cost you €0 to set up and €0 every month to maintain.
Instead of charging percentage-based fees on every transaction that vary from one currency pair to the next, we take a simpler, more SMB-friendly approach. With iBanFirst, you’ll never get hit with surprise transfer fees or hidden rate markups. Costs are clearly displayed upfront, including the exchange rate and a full breakdown of fees for complete transparency.
Detailed international payment tracking
After you send a payment with Wise or Revolut, you'll receive confirmation when the money leaves your account and when it lands — but that's essentially it as far as your visibility goes.
With iBanFirst, you get a detailed overview of your payments that shows you a time-stamped breakdown of every step of the payment journey — just like tracking a parcel!
Plus, you can share a tracking link with your partner or supplier so they can track the payment status too. They'll no longer have to ask for updates or chase payments, saving you both time — a true win-win! This level of transparency can transform your supplier relationships.
Support from real humans with FX expertise
While Wise and Revolut only offer general client support, iBanFirst gives you direct access to real people who understand your business and needs. And here's where it gets really interesting...
Rather than trying to navigate the complexities of currency risks, FX forwards and hedging strategies on your own, you get support from our FX experts who live and breathe this stuff and can help you build the right strategy or find the right solution for your business.
Integrations via the iBanFirst API
Using the iBanFirst API, you can integrate your account with other third-party platforms in your financial ecosystem, creating a seamless experience. Our API is for everyone, not just high-paying clients.
Get started with iBanFirst today
Ready to work with a partner that does more than just move your money around? When you open an iBanFirst account, you can:
- Send funds in 140+ currencies to 180+ countries
- Track your payments in detail with the iBanFirst Payment Tracker
- Set up forward contracts and get expert help managing FX risk from our in-house team
Getting started takes just a few minutes. Request an account today and we'll show you how iBanFirst can help your business handle international payments more effectively.
