Wise Card Review: Pros and Cons, Fees, and is Wise Debit Card Safe?

The Wise Debit card (formerly known as TransferWise card) is linked with the Wise multi-currency account that allows you to spend the balance in 50+ currencies at a mid-market exchange rate and low fees. Read the full Wise Card Review for more info

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What is Wise Card (Formerly TransferWise Card)?

Wise Virtual Card

The Wise virtual card (also known as the Wise digital card) is similar to a normal Wise card, that can be simply added to your digital wallets such as Apple Pay and Google Pay. You can make contactless payments to stores and pay online with card details.

Wise Virtual Card is also linked to your Wise multi-currency account and can be accessed instantly after making a Wise account. You can add up to 3 virtual cards at one time in your Wise account.

Each virtual card is a unique debit card (with different card details) that you can freeze, unfreeze, or remove at any time (to add an extra layer of security). You can also replace your Wise visual card instantly.

With the Wise virtual card, you don’t have to wait for the physical card delivery. Just simply create a Wise account, order a physical Wise debit card, and start paying with your Wise virtual card instantly.

Wise Card Review: Pros and Cons

Wise Card Review: Fees and Limits

Wise Card Fees

Here is a quick breakdown of Wise card fees and cost 

Service	Wise card Fees
Card ordering	One time fee of 5 GBP
Express delivery (optional)	From 17 GBP (get Wise card in 1 – 2 days)
Virtual Wise card	Free
Order a new card	3 GBP
Replace an expiring card	Free
Spending in currencies that you hold	Free
Spend in currencies that you don’t hold	Auto convert at mid-market exchange rate 0.24% – 2% conversion fees
Free ATM withdrawals (monthly)	2 times (up to the value of 200 GBP in total)
Additional withdrawals (monthly)	0.50 GBP per withdrawal
ATM withdrawals limits	200 GBP/month
Additional withdrawals (over the value of 200 GBP/month)	1.75% of the withdrawal value

Wise Debit Card Spending Limits

The Wise debit card comes with daily and monthly limits. Your Wise travel card always comes with the default limits but you can always change it within the maximum limits.

The daily limits are refreshed at every midnight and the monthly limits are refreshed on the first day of the new calendar month. If you’re not satisfied with the default limits of your Wise travel card, you can simply change them based on your needs from your Wise app or desktop site.

First, here’s a quick overview of the transaction limits of Wise debit card (personal users):

Transaction type	Single transaction	Daily limit	Monthly limit
Chip/PIN	£10,000	£10,000	£30,000
Apple Pay	£10,000	£10,000	£30,000
ATM*	£1,000	£1,500	£4,000
Contactless	£500	£1,000	£4,000
Magnetic	£1,200	£1,200	£6,000
Online	£10,000	£10,000	£30,000

Remember that the Wise debit cards work a little differently for Wise personal and Wise business users in terms of the way the limits are applied.

Wise Debit Card Exchange Rate

Wise (formerly TransferWise) has a mission of making currency conversion transparent and cheaper. Therefore, every time you are converting a currency, you get the mid-market exchange rate (which is the real rate that you see on Google and other trusted sources).

The best part about the Wise travel card is that, you can hold 54 currencies so you don’t have to worry about high conversion fees because you can pay directly with zero fees.

If you need to convert your holding currency to any local currency, Wise only charge a small conversion fee and no other hidden markup, whenever you pay with your Wise debit card.

It is the same when you are sending money overseas with your Wise account. You only pay a small transfer fee and send money at the actual exchange rate. 

This is quite different to traditional banks or other travel debit cards. When you get a travel debit card or prepaid travel card, you need to load currencies in the debit card by converting your home currency at the exchange rate offered by the bank or the provider. Typically, the exchange rate you get from these providers has a hidden markup or the “profit margin” on the exchange rate when you “buy” the currency from them. You still may end up paying some extra fees on ATM withdrawals or if you spend above the limits. 

In order to avoid these hidden fees, use the Wise card to get the mid-market exchange rate every time you pay in a different currency. The wise app sends you a notification with a detailed receipt of the exchange rate and the cost of currency conversion for total transparency. 

If you decide to switch the currency in advance (to hold on to your Wise account), Wise offers the total cost to convert the currency before conversion. And if you decide to pay directly with your Wise debit card, you can get all the details and the cost on the app.

Who is the Wise debit card for?

The Wise debit card is available for both personal and business users which allows you to cut the cost of exchange rates and transaction fees on personal and business transactions. 

The Wise debit card is often called the Wise travel card because the Wise card is well suited for frequent travelers looking for contactless payments in local currencies.

The Wise card is also perfect for:

• If you receive money in multiple currencies
• If you want a low-cost debit card linked to multiple currencies
• Withdraw cash cheaply from local ATMs during your vacations or holidays
• Shop locally or online with international retailers
• International payments in foreign currencies (personal and business transactions)
• Business owners who want international debit cards for their team members (with budget controls and easy card management)

How does the Wise card work?

The Wise debit card can be easily compared to a regular debit card. The only difference is that the Wise card allows you to use your available balance in different currencies.

The Wise debit card is linked to your Wise multi-currency account that allows you to hold, manage and spend your money in 50+ currencies (from one single debit card). 

It is totally free to spend the currency you hold in your Wise account. 

If you don’t hold the currency you are paying in, Wise will auto-convert your holding currency to the paying currency at the mid-market rate and small conversion fees. 

You also don’t have to worry about the conversion fees because Wise will pick the currency that has the cheapest conversion cost. This means you can spend in 200+ local currencies without thinking about converting money and finding the best rates every time you plan your travels. 

You can spend money via contactless payments, online payments, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and ATM withdrawals using your Wise card. (please read the fees and limits section for more details)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0ugE5KI9qE

Wise Card Reviews (From Users)

The Wise card or the Wise Travel money Card is perfectly suited for frequent travelers and removes the headache of dealing with currency conversions, exchange rates and fees.

Most of the customers talk about how easy it is to switch currencies with the Wise card and the transparent fees. And how easy it is to convert their home currency to the local currency every time they visit a new country. On top of that, they don’t have to carry a load of cash with them throughout the trip.

The most common complaints from the Wise users were about the delays to receive the Wise debit card, along with delays in customer support — although these negative reviews contribute only 7% of the total Wise card reviews.

There are many travel cards offered by traditional high-street banks, but they charge huge fees for currency exchange and offer high fees for spending overseas. The bank fees are even much higher when you want to withdraw cash from ATMs.

However, with the Wise travel money card you can pay in 55+ local currencies totally free (if you are holding them on the Wise card) or auto-convert your holding currency to the local currency at low fees and mid-market exchange rate.

How To Order the Wise Card

It is quite straightforward to get your Wise debit card. Please go through the following steps

Create a Wise account

You have to sign up for a Wise multi-currency account and get it verified. The verification process takes only a few hours to complete. You can start your account with only one currency. You can also add more currency by converting your existing currency (or holding currency) or making a bank transfer using the bank details that you get with the Wise account. 

Once you have added the currencies to your bank account, you are ready to order the Wise travel money card.

Place an order for your Wise card

You can order the Wise debit card via the Wise app or the Wise website. You have to go to the “card” section and go to the “order a Wise card” section. You need to provide personal information such as your name and address for the delivery of your Wise travel debit card.

Activate your Wise debit card

Once you receive your Wise card, you have to activate it in order to start using it. If you get a Wise Mastercard, then you can activate it by entering the 6-digit code (that can be found on your debit card). If you get a Wise Visa debit card, you can simply activate your card using your PIN from the Wise app or the website.

Start spending

Once you activate your Wise card, you can spend money locally or almost anywhere around the world. You can also add your card to your Apple Pay or Google Pay and start spending from your mobile. 

Wise Card Review: Is the Wise card safe?

Wise (formerly TransferWise) is a credible company with 12 million users across the world. Wise is a regulated company that is registered with many financial institutions and local government authorities in the countries they operate. 

Wise (ex TransferWise) is licenced under the (FCA) Financial Conduct Authority in the UK and The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) in the United States. 

Wise is also registered in the following countries

• Financial Customs and Excise Department (Hong Kong)
• National Bank of Belgium (Europe) as an Authorised Payment Institution.
• Wise is regulated by the (ASIC) Australian Securities and Investments Commission (Australia)
• Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) is a Money Service Business (MSB) with registration number M15193392. 
• In India, Wise works under the guidelines laid by the RBI (Reserve Bank of India). 
• Wise is also regulated in Malaysia, Singapore, UAE, Japan, New Zealand, and Singapore.

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Wise Card Review: Is the Wise card worth it?

In this Wise card review, we compared the Wise travel money card with all the other top travel cards. We found that Wise debit card can be up to 80% cheaper than the traditional banks and other travel cards in the market

If you are a frequent traveller or shop in international stores, the Wise debit card can make your life so much easier. This is why the Wise travel card is the best card for international payments.

If you have a business where you need to make many international payments or require your team members to travel, the Wise business card is the best choice. It allows you to create virtual cards for your team members with budget control to manage spending with your Wise card

The biggest advantage of using a Wise card to pay internationally in local currencies is the mid-market exchange rate. You get to exchange your holding currencies at the “real” FX rates that you see on Google and other trusted places. Wise only charge a conversion fee that is around 80% cheaper than the top traditional banks. 

With the auto-convert feature on your Wise travel card, you don’t even have to worry about converting currency in advance. You can just pay directly with your holding currency at the actual rates and Wise gives you a detailed receipt of the conversion fees. 

If you hold multiple currencies in your account, Wise automatically choose the cheapest currency that has the lowest possible conversion cost and the best exchange rate. 

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Wise Card Review: FAQs