Foreign Exchange Fee Calculator
Find the real cost of a currency exchange from the rate markup plus any fixed and percentage fees.
Foreign Exchange Fee Calculator
In the currency you send.
Units of the receive currency per 1 unit sent.
Same units as the reference rate.
In the currency you send.
Total Cost (receive currency)
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Total Cost (send currency)
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Rate Markup vs Reference
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Effective Total Cost %
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You Receive
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Would Receive at Mid-Market, No Fees
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Where the cost comes from
Cost at Different Amounts
Same rates and fees at 0.1× to 10× your amount. A fixed fee weighs more on smaller transfers.
| Amount sent | You receive | Total cost (receive ccy) | Total cost (send ccy) | Effective cost % |
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Assumptions & method
- Rates are expressed as units of the receive currency per 1 unit of the send currency. Both come from you; nothing is fetched live.
- Fees = fixed fee + amount × percentage fee. If fees are taken out of the amount sent, the converted amount is (amount − fees); if charged on top, you pay amount + fees and convert the full amount.
- You receive = converted amount × quoted rate. Reference value = amount paid × mid-market rate, which is what the same money would give with no markup and no fees.
- Total cost = reference value − you receive. It splits into the rate markup (converted amount × (mid − quoted)) and the fees converted at the mid-market rate. Cost in the send currency = total cost ÷ mid-market rate.
- Rate markup % = (mid − quoted) ÷ mid. Effective total cost % = total cost ÷ reference value.
- Receiving-bank charges, intermediary fees, taxes and rate changes between quote and settlement are not included. A mid-market rate is a reference, and few providers offer it exactly.
Results are estimates based on the figures you enter. They are not guarantees and not financial advice.
What does it really cost to exchange currency?
Providers earn on currency exchange in two places. The visible part is the fee, which can be a fixed charge, a percentage, or both. The hidden part is the markup: the rate you are given is worse than the mid-market rate, the midpoint between buy and sell prices seen on wholesale markets. A transfer advertised as zero fee can still cost several percent through its rate. This calculator compares the two rates, adds the fees and shows the total in both currencies, along with the effective cost as a percentage of what the money was worth at the mid-market rate. Use it to compare providers on equal footing, and notice from the table how a fixed fee makes small transfers proportionally more expensive.