Personal Finance Money transfer

Remitly fees and transfer costs to India: full guide [2025]

Alexis Konovodoff

09.05.25

Read time 4 minutes

Remitly® is a digital money transfer app you can use to send money to 150 countries, including easy transfers to India.¹

Let’s take a look at how much Remitly charges for transfers from the US to India, including up-to-date exchange rate costs, transfer limits, and transaction fees.

We’ll also look at Wise – your international transfer alternative. Use the Wise app to send money to India at the fair mid-market exchange rate. Let’s dive in!

Table of contents
How much does Remitly charge to send money to India? Understanding exchange rates and hidden fees Remitly exchange rate: USD to INR Economy vs Express Remitly transfers Remitly vs Wise exchange rates Make fast, secure and low cost transfers to India with Wise What is Remitly’s transfer limit to India?

How much does Remitly charge to send money to India?

You can use Remitly to send money to India, but you’ll pay a flat transaction fee of 3.99 USD for Remitly USD to INR transfers.

You’ll also pay Remitly’s exchange rate to convert your US dollars to Indian rupees. This may include a significant markup on the fair mid-market exchange rate.

If you want to use Remitly to send over 1000 USD to India, you won’t pay a transaction fee for the transfer.²

You also won’t pay a transaction fee and will get a lower exchange rate markup for your first transfer, as you can access a first-time promotional rate.

However, this is a limited-time offer. You’ll pay Remitly’s regular fees for future transfers to India, and existing customers can’t access this discount. The special rate only applies to your first 2999 USD to India.²

Understanding exchange rates and hidden fees

When you send money to India, your provider will use an exchange rate to work out how much your USD transfer is worth in Indian rupees.

However, many banks charge an exchange rate spread when converting your US dollars. This is the difference in the buy and sell rate of different foreign currencies – and it’s often added to your transaction as a markup.

This is how most banks and money transfer providers make a profit, but these inflated rates can significantly add to the cost of your transfer.

Look out for the standard mid-market exchange rate. This is the only ‘fair’ rate out there, without added fees, markups, or profit margins.

Remitly markets itself as charging “no hidden fees” for USD to INR transfers, but that’s not strictly true. Remitly’s biggest fees are hidden in their exchange rates.

The promotional USD to INR conversion rate that Remitly advertises only applies to first-time customers, and it doesn’t reflect the Remitly exchange rate used for future USD to INR transfers.² This can be a little misleading — more on this below.

Remitly exchange rate: USD to INR

Wise’s currency conversion experts reviewed Remitly’s exchange rates and found that their FX spread falls between roughly 0.4% and 1.4% for the USD to INR route.

This markup may sound tiny, but it can really add up, meaning your recipient receives less money.

For example, if you want to send a 1000 USD transfer to India, Remitly’s exchange rate is 84.5658 (as of 28 April 2025).

This means your recipient will receive 84,565.76 INR via Remitly’s Economy service, which takes up to 5 days. If you want fast delivery like Wise, you’ll need to pay extra for Remitly’s Express service, which has a less favorable exchange rate. More on this later.


If you want to send a larger transfer, such as 5000 USD, your recipient will get 422,828.80 INR with Remitly. When you send your transfer via Wise with the mid-market rate, your recipient will receive 425,044 INR.³ That’s an additional 2,215 INR — quite a difference!

If you want to send a larger transfer, such as 5000 USD, your recipient will get 422,828.80 INR with Remitly.

When you send your transfer via Wise with the mid-market rate, your recipient will receive 425,044 INR.³

That’s an additional 2,215 INR — quite a difference!

💡 Want to get more INR out of your USD? See below how you can save with Wise:

Economy vs Express Remitly transfers

There are 2 types of Remitly transfers: Economy and Express.

Economy transfers use a more favorable exchange rate for currency conversion but may take up to 5 days to reach your recipient.⁴

Express transfers will likely reach your recipient immediately,⁴ but Remitly will apply a much less favorable exchange rate, meaning you pay a big premium for the convenience.⁵

Remitly vs Wise exchange rates

You can send easy money transfers via both Remitly and Wise. Let’s take a closer look at how much it costs to use Remitly vs Wise, including Remitly’s charges for transfers from the USA to India.

Feature	Remitly	Wise
Sending money	3.99 transaction fee for Remitly transfers to India under 1000 USD Remitly doesn’t charge a fee for transfers over 1000 USD, but you’ll still pay the provider’s inflated exchange rate to convert currencies	Send money to India from 0.48% per transfer*
Exchange rate	Remitly’s India exchange rate may have a 0.4% to 1.4% markup for USD to INR transfers This will add a substantial fee to your transfer	Wise uses the mid-market exchange rate for all USD to INR transactions This is the fair rate, without added markups or fees
Speed	Economy – roughly 3 to 5 business days Express – many transfers may be instant, but you’ll pay an extra fee hidden in the exchange rate	Over 60% of Wise transfers are instant, and 95% are under 24 hours**

Feature

Remitly

Wise

Sending money

3.99 transaction fee for Remitly transfers to India under 1000 USD

Remitly doesn’t charge a fee for transfers over 1000 USD, but you’ll still pay the provider’s inflated exchange rate to convert currencies

Send money to India from 0.48% per transfer*

Exchange rate

Remitly’s India exchange rate may have a 0.4% to 1.4% markup for USD to INR transfers

This will add a substantial fee to your transfer

Wise uses the mid-market exchange rate for all USD to INR transactions

This is the fair rate, without added markups or fees

Speed

Economy – roughly 3 to 5 business days

Express – many transfers may be instant, but you’ll pay an extra fee hidden in the exchange rate

Over 60% of Wise transfers are instant, and 95% are under 24 hours**

**Transaction speed claimed depends on individual circumstances and may not be available for all transactions.

Make fast, secure and low cost transfers to India with Wise

Send money to India with the mid-market exchange rate and low, transparent fees with Wise. Set up a free Wise account online or in the Wise app, to transfer money fast with no added markups.

Over 60% of Wise payments arrive instantly** — and all Wise transfers are deposited directly into your recipient's bank account for convenience.

No ongoing fees, no hidden charges and no hassle — just fast, transparent international transfers.

Get started with Wise

What is Remitly’s transfer limit to India?

Remitly’s transfer limit to India from the USA is 30,000 USD. The amount you can send and receive via the Remitly app will depend on where you’re based.⁷

You can use your Remitly account to send money to a range of Indian banks, including:

State Bank of India (SBI)
HDFC Bank
Punjab National Bank
ICICI Bank
Axix Bank
CitiBank⁸

You won’t pay a transaction fee for transfers to India over 1000 USD. However, you’ll still pay Remitly’s USD to INR currency conversion fee. This includes a markup on the standard ‘fair’ mid-market exchange rate.

💡 With Wise, you can send up to 1,000,000 USD per wire transaction to India with the mid-market exchange rate and low, transparent fees.

You can use Remitly to send Express and Economy money transfers to India online, including up to 30,000 USD per transfer to friends and family.

However, you’ll need to look into how much Remitly charges for transfers from the USA to India. Although the provider claims to offer a special exchange rate, this only refers to first-time customers. This is misleading for existing or repeat users.

To send fast, low-fee transfers to 140+ countries worldwide, check out Wise.

Sources:

Remitly - Send money online with Remitly
Remitly - USD to INR exchange rate
Wise - Compare Remitly vs Wise
Money Transfers - Remitly review: Exchange rates, transfer fees and limits
Remitly- Common money transfer terms, explained
Remitly - How much does Remitly cost?
Remitly - How much can I send?
Remitly - Safely send money to India in 5 easy steps

Sources checked 05/09/2025

*Please see terms of use and product availability for your region or visit Wise fees and pricing for the most up to date pricing and fee information.

This publication is provided for general information purposes and does not constitute legal, tax or other professional advice from Wise Payments Limited or its subsidiaries and its affiliates, and it is not intended as a substitute for obtaining advice from a financial advisor or any other professional.

We make no representations, warranties or guarantees, whether expressed or implied, that the content in the publication is accurate, complete or up to date.