Santander is a Spanish bank with over 125 million customers worldwide. Many Santander account holders use the bank for international transfers.

But is it worth sending money abroad with Santander rather than with a dedicated online money transfer company that could be faster, cheaper and more convenient?

This blog will help you discover the pros and cons of sending money abroad with Santander, so you can decide whether it’s right for you.

How to send money abroad with Santander

With Santander, you can choose to either go in-branch to make a transfer with the help of a cashier, or you can use their online banking service to send money abroad. You should remember that you’ll need to have a bank account with Santander if you want to send money internationally with them.

What are the pros and cons of Santander Money Transfer?

There are plenty of money transfer options to choose from, so how do you know if Santander is right for you?

Here are some of the pros and cons of using Santander for your money transfers, based on cost, speed and simplicity:

Pros:

• It’s a useful service if you already bank with Santander, as you won’t need to set up a new account
• You can send money to either a person or company overseas
• Santander supports 147 different currencies

Cons:

• Santander charges an average of 5% above the mid-market rate for transfers involving a currency conversion - much higher than many money transfer providers
• Standard overseas transfers cost a flat fee of £25 (or equivalent) for non-SEPA transfers
• With transfers of less than £5,000, fees are calculated as a percentage - so you may end up paying a lot
• Transfers can take up to four working days to arrive
• You need to have a bank account with Santander to use the service

Is there another option to Santander?

Overall, costs for Santander transfers can often be much higher than using a specialist money transfer provider - although you can split the payment between yourself and the recipient.

Santander money transfers might not be the best option if you’re looking to reduce fees for you and your recipient. It’s a good idea to take a look at all of the options available before making your decision about which platform you use.

Paysend is a fast, affordable and hassle-free money transfer app and web browser platform that lets you send money abroad to over 100 countries.

Paysend transfers cost just £1, €1.5 or $2 (or equivalent amount), no matter how much you want to send. Paysend uses excellent, competitive exchange rates, so if you send money with Paysend you might save yourself some money!

On the Paysend homepage you can find a useful tool to help you find out if your money transfers with Paysend are cheaper than with Santander. Click here to visit the homepage and get started.

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