Relay vs. Wise: Which is better for small business banking?

In fact, businesses across the world make more than 45 million cross-border Swift transactions every single day, showing just how global the economy has become. 

While Wise is known for sending international payments, Relay competes on fees while offering an all-in-one online banking solution for businesses. 

🏦 What is Relay?

Relay (that’s us! 👋) is an online banking and money management platform that makes it easy (and affordable) to do business—especially when international payments are involved.

With Relay, small business owners can open up to 20 individual business checking accounts and 2 savings accounts. You can also issue up 50 virtual and physical debit cards. Together, these features make it easy to stay on top of all your business's cash inflows and outflows.

Relay offers two account options to connect you with the best features for your business. Our free Relay account comes with inexpensive outgoing international wire transfers. Businesses with higher volumes can upgrade to Relay Pro and get unlimited international wire transfers included in your monthly subscription fee. 

Relay Pro also has automated accounts payable features for businesses that want to approve bills in a single dashboard, consolidate vendor payments, and create bill approval rules. 

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Both Relay accounts integrate with popular small business software (like QuickBooks Online and Xero) to streamline your financial operations. You can also open up to 20 free business checking accounts and two savings accounts to keep your money organized. 

Plus, Relay is known for our stellar customer service via phone and email, so you can confidently take advantage of the digital banking features best suited to grow your business. 🙌

💸 What is Wise?

Wise is a “money service business,” not a traditional bank or online banking platform. One of Wise’s main offerings is its business payments platform, which allows companies to pay vendor bills and invoices in over 70 countries.

Wise’s pricing structure varies based on a few different factors: the amount of money you’re sending, how you pay, and the current exchange rate. The starting fee is 0.43% of the transaction amount, but that could increase depending on the currency and other variables. 

In addition to international payments, Wise also offers small business debit and expense cards. It’s not an all-in-one business banking solution, but Wise does offer services that could be beneficial for some businesses, especially those with frequent and high-volume international transactions.

⚖️ Differences between Relay vs. Wise

The main difference between Relay and Wise is that Relay offers comprehensive banking and money management services, while Wise focuses on international payments and debit cards. 

👉 The pricing structure for international payments also differs greatly. Relay has a flat fee structure, while Wise calculates fees based on each transaction. 

Here’s a side-by-side comparison of what each platform offers.

💳 Debit card availability

Relay has comprehensive debit card availability compared to Wise. Customers have access to up to 50 Visa debit cards, which include both physical and virtual card options. You can also set spending limits for different card-holding team members. All Relay customers are eligible for business debit cards.

Wise debit cards, on the other hand, are just available to sole proprietorships and single-member LLCs in the U.S. You can only get virtual debit cards, with no options for a physical card. The first debit card is free, but there is an account setup fee of 50 Euros. 💶 Additional debit cards for team members cost $5 each. 

💵 Number of checking accounts

Business owners can open up to 20 individual checking accounts with Relay.  Plus, you don’t have to worry about any monthly account fees draining your balances—with Relay, there are no minimum balance requirements, overdraft fees, or other hidden fees. And your Relay account balances are FDIC-insured via Thread Bank. 👍

Because Wise isn’t a bank, it doesn’t offer a business checking account. It does, however, offer a business account that lets you send and receive money from across the world. You’re charged transaction fees based on the type of payment coming in or going out. The account funds are held by Wise in a Program Bank account through J.P. Morgan Chase.

You can think about your Wise account like a Venmo account (a platform often used in the US for personal payments). Venmo isn’t a bank, but you can hold money within your account, so it’s easy to access when you need to send a payment to a friend. In the same way, you can hold your business funds in Wise until you need to send an international payment to a contractor or vendor. 

💰Savings account options

Relay customers may open up to two interest-bearing savings accounts. You earn between 1.00% and 3.00% APY depending on your account balance. To maximize your savings, Relay also has auto-transfer rules that analyze your checking account cash flow and sweep excess cash into savings. You can even set your own auto-transfer rules based on income percentages and frequency. This process is based on Profit First principles. 📈

Wise doesn’t have a savings account, but you can opt to earn interest on your general business account (that is, the funds held by Wise in a J.P. Morgan Chase account as mentioned above). The current rate for U.S. businesses is 4.85% APY. However, it’s worth noting that Wise is not a licensed brokerage or bank. It does, however, pass along FDIC insurance from its program banks. 

🌏 International payments with Wise vs. Relay

Both Relay and Wise offer international payments for business customers, but the pay structures vary widely for each one. Here’s what you need to know. 👇

🗺️ International wire transfers

Relay doesn’t charge any fees to receive an international wire transfer. Plus, there are over 30 supported currencies on the platform.

When sending international invoices, it costs $10 per wire with a free Relay account or $0 for Relay Pro customers.  

Wise fees for sending money through wire transfer start at 0.43%. The actual rate depends on the currencies you’re using and your payment method. If you send amounts over 100,000 GBP 🇬🇧 per month, you’ll receive a volume discount for transfers of any size. 

When receiving funds, Wise accepts money in one of 17 currencies. You can convert it into any supported currency once the funds are in your account. It costs $4.14 for each incoming wire transfer. 

💱 Exchange fees

Relay’s exchange rate fees refresh every 60 seconds based on the foreign exchange market. Currency conversion rates start as low as 1% of the transaction amount. Exchange rates use the mid-market rate and currency conversions from Wise start at 0.43%. 

🥁 Verdict: Relay, Wise, or both?

How do you know which business platform is best for you? It depends on your business model, volume, and banking needs. Relay offers comprehensive banking solutions, not just a way to send and receive international payments. Wise does have a strong focus on international solutions, especially if you want to take advantage of the high-volume discount on fees. 

At the same time, Relay’s Pro account customers get free wire transfers, which can provide major savings for businesses with a lot of transfers each month. Plus, Wise’s transfer fees vary on each transaction, making it difficult to understand exactly what you’ll pay. 

🔮 Luckily, you don’t need a crystal ball to understand Relay’s pricing. It’s worth exploring Relay if you’re looking for an online banking solution that has transparent, flat-fee pricing for international payments.Get started entirely online here!