This is a very brief one-topic post but I thought it was worth adding as it relates to a discussion one often reads about. I will repeat a recent post I made to my Facebook page rather than rewrite the same thing and here it is:
One of the regular topics that pops up on every expat forum from time to time is the best way to transfer money from one’s ‘home’ country to Thailand.
Recently Ken Coates recommended TransferWise as a better option than the banks so I thought I would test the theory, which I have yet to see anyone else bothering with; although I don’t widely read expat forums. If you knew that my last Australian job was in a senior finance position you’d roll your eyes and wait for the spreadsheet – and I won’t disappoint 
I had a small amount of money to transfer this week so on Monday I sent equal amounts using my Commonwealth Bank international transfer option with the conversion to happen this end (never use the home bank rate which is woeful), and TransferWise. The fees for both (Commonwealth a flat A$22.00 and TransferWise 0.6% + A$3.75) were deducted from the gross withdrawal amounts of $1,350. Both of the transfer exchange rates were locked in on the same day so I think this is a realistic comparison.
WARNING: Of interest only to other finance types…TransferWise calculate their fees based on the gross amount ($1,350 in this example) less fees based on that gross amount ($11.85) resulting in a net $1,338.15 and then recalculate the actual fees applied based on this lower amount, which equals $11.78 not the original $11.85. Normal people wouldn’t care about the $0.07 difference I couldn’t sleep wondering why the discrepancy 
😂
🤣
😴😴😴😴😴
The spreadsheet below (YES – oh joy) details my understanding of how the comparison should work and it shows TransferWise ahead in all instances. In my situation I got an extra $754 baht – hardly world shattering but it is a case of beer and a large bottle of lao khao! Had I transferred $20,000 I would be ahead by around 5,500 baht.
On the matter of timing my bank transfer arrived yesterday and Transferwise say theirs will arrive today but it hasn’t yet. My bank here is Bangkok Bank, who are reputed to have one of the best exchange rates for farang.
Isn’t it pretty! Do let me know if I have stuffed up somewhere. It’s been a while 🙂
I can provide anyone who wants it a ‘live’ version of my spreadsheet. Exciting times indeed.
Please leave feedback in the comments section on your solution to the topic because others will find them very useful. I am sure there are many alternatives but do back it up with facts. In my case I didn’t just take the online declarations that TransferWise were better but actually did the comparison. Obviously my example is very limited being one Australian Bank and TransferWise but maybe it sets the bar for others to replicate using whatever combination of financial institutions they prefer.
Thanks for reading.
Tony.
Again an interesting and pertinent article..
Question
Did BK bank charge any fees to receive the money.?
I have been waiting to try Transfer wise once I get back in 3 weeks so your article is bang on good timing..
Keep it up mate..
By the way, anything smallish I can bring over for you?
Cheers
Derek
Hi Derek, yes they do, I think it is a standard 200 Baht fee. That’s what they took out of a 13,650 transfer from my account yesterday.
Cheers
Brian.
I didn’t see a fee on my online statement but I know that it isn’t a true representation of what’s happening on the account when I get my passbook updated. If there is a fee, in my case, they didn’t take it from the transferred amount, which was the same as advised by TransferWise.
Brian says yes but I wasn’t charged a fee within the transfer amount, which was exactly as advised by TransferWise. There maybe a separate fee but that doesn’t show on my online statement. I will advise once I update my passbook at some stage.
Thank you for the offer to bring something over. Apart from a container of decent wine, which may not fall under the ‘smallish’ category, we are pretty right for farang essentials 🙂
Tony
Tony, good aus wine I can get from Cambodia ,thru trade contacts… Will discuss if we get to catch up this trip over… Which I hope we do..
Cheers
I can obviously get Aussie wine here. It’s just the concept of paying $28.00 for an $8.00 bottle of Jacob’s Creek that really gets up my nose. I couldn’t afford that sort of money for everyday drinking wine when I was employed let alone now 🙁 I look forward to that chat if we hopefully meet up this time.
Thanks mate.
Hi Tony and others
Yes, we grey nomads are always interested in efficient and cost saving services.
Like you and many others here in Thailand, am on the Aus pension, which has fallen in value related to the Baht over the last few years. Three years ago, we were getting about 26.3 Baht to AU $ it’s now about 22.6 , about 14% drop.
I have been using OFX, or as it was before AUSFOREX, for years. I have been given a zero fee account because there were ongoing problems and inefficiencies, (which have still not been resolved)!
I did a quick comparison last night, even with the fees charged by TRANSFWERWISE, I would be better off.
Later this month I will transfer 30,000 € from the sale of my house in France to here, the difference I will get here is about 6,850 Baht in favor of TRANSFWERWISE.
Please send me your ‘live’ spreadsheet and I will add the column for OFX and send it back for you to publish if you wish.
Thank you for all your posts and must say again, you garden is ‘paradise’ in the making!
Cheers Brian.
The Pacific peso just keeps on declining. It was 29 baht to the dollar when I came here in 2013. Thankfully most of my house construction costs were made in the 28/27 baht range. A 20-25% decline to a pretty modest income to start with certainly focusses one’s attention on saving even small amounts of money like with this example of using TransferWise. If I was back in Australia I would be looking forward to the oldies Tuesday roast special at the local club!!!!!
I will send you the spreadsheet separately.
The garden continues to be a real joy and just gets better almost every day. Thank you for that.
Tony
Very good info, thanks again Tony.
Always a bit of “smoke and mirrors” with the big banks and wire transfers. I worked for a French bank in Paris and it was eye watering to see the interest they made just by sitting on transfers for an extra day.
I will try Tranferwise later this month. I am wary of unknowns and advertising claims but good to see the comments from you and other on here.
( I can see there may be a new Forum for expats in Thailand called “Tony’s Tips” ? )
Yes, smoke and mirrors describes so much of life these days not just banking! If we could only make ‘virtual’ transfers using all the available avenues we could make an informed decision. I paid double fees splitting this transfer but thought it was worth the minor cost to test the case that TransferWise was a better option. I will be transferring a large amount sometime this year so I will get a payback later.
I will actually be publishing a post soon called Tips & Tricks, which will include all the recommendations I have made over time. Should be fun.
Cheers Geoff.
I’ve been using Transferwise for the last 10 months,lowest rates and quickest deposit in my Thai bank account, has never been a problem, I’ve even sent emails to them praising their service, I’d always receive a personal thank you email in return….the trouble I have with my Australian bank is unbelievable….thanks Tony.
Again thank you for the comment Shane. The general feedback has been totally positive on the use of TransferWise both here and on Facebook, where I originally published this post. They will become my standard from now on.
Tony