Corridor USD → GBP · US dollar to British pound
What does it cost to send US dollars to United Kingdom?
On 15 October 2026, the most a recipient in United Kingdom got for 1,000 USD was 751.68 GBP via Remitly: a true cost of 2.41 USD (0.24%) including fee and rate markup. The last of 9 quotes cost 4.61%.
Transfer cost receipt · USD → GBP
Most to the recipient: Remitly transfer service
- You send
- 1,000.00 USD
- Upfront fee
- 0.00 USD
- Amount converted
- 1,000.00 USD
- Rate given
- 0.751677
- Mid-market when quoted
- 0.753494
- Exchange-rate markup inside the rate
- 2.41 USD 0.24%
- True total cost
- 2.41 USD 0.24%
- Recipient gets
- 751.68 GBP
Picking the last quote in this ledger (PayPal) instead would leave the recipient 32.93 GBP short.
Snapshot indicative quotes retrieved 15 Oct 2026, 14:55 UTC. Quote collected 15 Oct 2026, 14:44 UTC. Source: Wise public comparison data.
Plain link to the provider's official site. No commission.
Every quote for 1,000 USD → GBP
Sorted by what the recipient gets. “True cost” adds the upfront fee to the money lost in the exchange rate versus the mid-market rate at the time each quote was collected.
| Provider | Upfront fee | Rate markup | True cost | Cost % | Recipient gets | vs best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Remitlyservice | 0.00 USD | 0.24% | 2.41 USD | 0.24% | 751.68 GBP | best |
| 2. Instaremservice | 0.00 USD | 0.71% | 7.05 USD | 0.71% | 748.18 GBP | −3.50 GBP |
| 3. Wiseservice | 10.29 USD | 0.00% | 10.29 USD | 1.03% | 746.70 GBP | −4.98 GBP |
| 4. Western Unionservice | 0.99 USD | 1.47% | 15.65 USD | 1.57% | 741.70 GBP | −9.98 GBP |
| 5. OFXservice | 5.00 USD | 1.93% | 24.16 USD | 2.42% | 735.29 GBP | −16.39 GBP |
| 6. WorldRemitservice 2d old | 1.99 USD | 2.77% | 29.59 USD | 2.96% | 731.20 GBP | −20.48 GBP |
| 7. Wells Fargobank 2d old | 0.00 USD | 3.04% | 30.41 USD | 3.04% | 730.58 GBP | −21.10 GBP |
| 8. Chase (US)bank 2d old | 5.00 USD | 2.90% | 33.85 USD | 3.39% | 727.99 GBP | −23.69 GBP |
| 9. PayPalservice | 4.99 USD | 4.13% | 46.11 USD | 4.61% | 718.75 GBP | −32.93 GBP |
Does the cheapest option change with the amount?
| You send | Most to recipient | Best cost | Worst cost | Recipient gets (best) | Gap best vs worst | Quotes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 200 USD | Remitly | 0.24% | 6.52% | 150.34 GBP | 9.47 GBP | 9 |
| 1,000 USD | Remitly | 0.24% | 4.61% | 751.68 GBP | 32.93 GBP | 9 |
| 5,000 USD | Remitly | 0.07% | 4.23% | 3,764.88 GBP | 156.70 GBP | 9 |
What the USD → GBP numbers show
- Remitly delivered the most at every snapshot amount (200.00 USD, 1,000.00 USD, 5,000.00 USD).
- At 200.00 USD, true cost ranged from 0.24% (Remitly) to 6.52% (PayPal); the recipient would get 9.47 GBP less with the last quote than with the first.
- Banks listed for this corridor averaged 3.21% in true cost at 1,000.00 USD, against 1.93% for non-bank transfer services; on average 93% of the banks' cost sat inside the exchange rate rather than in a stated fee.
- 2 of 9 quotes at 1,000.00 USD charged no upfront fee but priced in a rate markup above 0.5%, so “no fee” did not mean free.
How does the quoted mid-market rate compare with the ECB reference?
The European Central Bank reference rate for USD/GBP on 15 October 2026 was 0.754910. The mid-market rate implied by the top quote at its collection time was 0.753494, a difference of −0.19%. ECB rates are published once per working day around 16:00 CET, so they drift from live market rates during the day; RateRunner uses them only as a cross-check, never to rank providers.
Every quote for 200 USD → GBP
| Provider | Upfront fee | Rate markup | True cost | Cost % | Recipient gets | vs best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Remitlyservice | 0.00 USD | 0.24% | 0.48 USD | 0.24% | 150.34 GBP | best |
| 2. Instaremservice | 0.00 USD | 0.71% | 1.41 USD | 0.71% | 149.64 GBP | −0.70 GBP |
| 3. Western Unionservice | 0.99 USD | 1.47% | 3.91 USD | 1.96% | 147.75 GBP | −2.59 GBP |
| 4. Wells Fargobank 2d old | 0.00 USD | 3.04% | 6.08 USD | 3.04% | 146.12 GBP | −4.22 GBP |
| 5. Wiseservice | 7.66 USD | 0.00% | 7.66 USD | 3.83% | 145.11 GBP | −5.23 GBP |
| 6. WorldRemitservice 2d old | 1.99 USD | 2.77% | 7.47 USD | 3.73% | 145.07 GBP | −5.27 GBP |
| 7. OFXservice | 5.00 USD | 1.93% | 8.75 USD | 4.38% | 144.10 GBP | −6.24 GBP |
| 8. Chase (US)bank 2d old | 5.00 USD | 2.90% | 10.65 USD | 5.33% | 142.67 GBP | −7.67 GBP |
| 9. PayPalservice | 4.99 USD | 4.13% | 13.05 USD | 6.52% | 140.87 GBP | −9.47 GBP |
Every quote for 5,000 USD → GBP
| Provider | Upfront fee | Rate markup | True cost | Cost % | Recipient gets | vs best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Remitlyservice | 0.00 USD | 0.07% | 3.44 USD | 0.07% | 3,764.88 GBP | best |
| 2. Wiseservice | 23.45 USD | 0.00% | 23.45 USD | 0.47% | 3,754.61 GBP | −10.27 GBP |
| 3. Instaremservice | 0.00 USD | 0.64% | 31.95 USD | 0.64% | 3,743.39 GBP | −21.49 GBP |
| 4. OFXservice | 0.00 USD | 0.97% | 48.53 USD | 0.97% | 3,730.91 GBP | −33.97 GBP |
| 5. Western Unionservice | 0.99 USD | 1.47% | 74.36 USD | 1.49% | 3,711.44 GBP | −53.44 GBP |
| 6. Chase (US)bank 2d old | 0.00 USD | 2.42% | 121.13 USD | 2.42% | 3,676.20 GBP | −88.68 GBP |
| 7. WorldRemitservice 2d old | 1.99 USD | 2.77% | 140.21 USD | 2.80% | 3,661.82 GBP | −103.06 GBP |
| 8. Wells Fargobank 2d old | 0.00 USD | 3.05% | 152.74 USD | 3.05% | 3,652.38 GBP | −112.50 GBP |
| 9. PayPalservice | 4.99 USD | 4.13% | 211.40 USD | 4.23% | 3,608.18 GBP | −156.70 GBP |
What to check before paying out in United Kingdom
Pounds paid out locally in the UK usually arrive over Faster Payments using a sort code and account number. A provider with a UK payout account avoids the SWIFT charges a recipient bank may deduct from an incoming international wire. Source: Pay.UK: Faster Payment System.
Read next
- How can freelancers get paid from abroad without losing 5%?
- SWIFT wire or local payout: which costs less to receive?
- What do banks really charge for an international transfer?
- How do exchange-rate markups work, and how big are they?
- What is the mid-market rate and where can you check it?
- Check the hidden markup on a rate you were offered
- How RateRunner calculates true cost
Questions people ask
- Which provider gave the most for 1,000 USD sent to United Kingdom?
- Remitly, with 751.68 GBP delivered, in the snapshot retrieved 15 Oct 2026, 14:55 UTC. Its upfront fee was 0.00 USD and its rate markup 0.24%.
- How much of the cost of sending USD to GBP is hidden in the exchange rate?
- For the 9 quotes on 1,000 USD, rate markups ranged from 0.00% to 4.13% of the amount converted. 2 quotes charged no upfront fee but still had a markup above 0.5%.
- How current are these USD to GBP quotes?
- RateRunner retrieved them on 15 Oct 2026, 14:55 UTC. Each provider quote also carries its own collection time, shown in the tables, and quotes older than 24 hours are flagged. They are indicative; the price you are offered at checkout can differ.
Related corridors
Sources
- Indicative provider quotes: Wise public comparison data (retrieved 15 Oct 2026, 14:55 UTC). Wise collects quotes from listed banks and services and is itself listed.
- Reference rate: European Central Bank euro reference rates via Frankfurter (15 October 2026).
- Raw data for this page: usd-to-gbp.json