Wise vs Payoneer for freelancers: fees to get paid by foreign clients

Wise vs Payoneer comes down to who pays you and where your money ends up. Wise charges nothing to receive local bank transfers in nine currencies, including USD, EUR and GBP, then a conversion fee from 0.23% at the mid-market rate. Payoneer is free when a client pays into an account in your own local currency, but it charges 1% for receiving in another currency, up to 4% on some withdrawals, and a 29.95 USD annual fee if less than 6,000 USD comes in over 12 months.

This guide compares the two for freelancers and solo businesses paid by clients in other countries: what each charges to receive, convert and withdraw, how long money takes, which clients can pay you, and how each company is regulated. Every fee below comes from Wise’s and Payoneer’s own pricing and help pages.

How we checked this

We read Wise’s and Payoneer’s published pricing pages, help center articles and regulatory disclosures, plus Payoneer’s annual report filed with the SEC. Fees are shown as each company publishes them, mostly for US-based accounts; both companies say prices differ by country, so the app shows the figure that applies to you before you confirm. Facts checked on October 3, 2026.

This guide sits in our Money without borders section. If you also need to set up invoices in two currencies, read How to invoice in a foreign currency as a freelancer.

Wise vs Payoneer at a glance

Sources: Wise pricing, Wise receive pricing (US), Wise Business receive pricing (US), Payoneer fees, Payoneer receiving accounts FAQ.

What each one actually is

Wise offers an account that holds and converts more than 40 currencies. Wise says there are “no fees for holding over 40+ currencies” (Wise Help). A personal account is free to open. A freelancer can use a personal account or open Wise Business, which costs 31 USD in the US for business account details (Wise Business pricing) and 50 GBP in the UK (Wise UK Business pricing).

Payoneer is built around cross-border business payments: marketplaces, platforms and business clients paying sellers and freelancers. Its card page states plainly that “Payoneer is for businesses only” (Payoneer card), and its receiving accounts accept only business payments, a point that matters a lot for freelancers (see below). Payoneer says it serves small and medium businesses in “more than 190 countries and territories” (Payoneer 10-K).

Neither company is a bank. Both hold your balance as a licensed payment or e-money company, which we cover in the safety section.

Fees to receive money from a foreign client

This is the cost most freelancers care about first, and it is where the two differ most.

Wise: free for local transfers, a fixed fee for wires

With Wise, you get account details in 22 currencies, for example a US routing and account number, a EUR IBAN and a UK sort code. When a client pays into those details with a domestic transfer, Wise charges nothing in AUD, CAD, EUR, GBP, HUF, NZD, PHP, SGD and USD (Wise receive pricing).

Wire and Swift payments carry a fixed fee per payment:

• USD wire or Swift: 6.11 USD
• EUR Swift: 2.39 EUR
• GBP Swift: 2.16 GBP
• Swift in 19 other currencies: a fixed fee set for each currency (Wise Help: Swift fees)

Wise also notes that on Swift payments, “correspondent bank fees may apply” (Wise Help: EUR details). Those are taken by banks between your client and Wise, not by Wise. ACH payments in USD “are free to receive” (Wise Help: receiving fees and limits), with an exception for businesses based in Canada or the Netherlands (Wise Help: USD details).

What this means in practice: ask a US client to pay by ACH rather than wire and a European client to pay by SEPA rather than Swift, and receiving costs you nothing.

Payoneer: free only in your own currency

Payoneer’s fee page, last updated January 1, 2026, lists these receiving fees (Payoneer fees):

• Into a receiving account in your local currency: free
• Into a receiving account in a currency that is not your local currency: 1% (minimum fee of 1.00 USD or equivalent)
• From another Payoneer customer’s balance: free
• From marketplaces and platforms: “Varies by marketplace”
• From a client paying by credit card: up to 3.99% + 0.49 USD
• From a client paying by ACH bank debit (US only): 1%
• From a client paying from an EU or UK bank account: 1%
• From a client paying with PayPal (US only): up to 3.99% + 0.49 USD

The key line is the second one. A freelancer in Spain who gives a US client Payoneer’s USD receiving account pays 1% on every invoice, because USD is not the freelancer’s local currency. On a 3,000 USD invoice that is 30 USD before any conversion. A freelancer in the US receiving USD from a US client pays nothing on the same payment.

Payoneer does not list its own fee for incoming wires, but its receiving accounts FAQ warns of an “Average of 20-30 USD” in fees charged by banks along the way on Swift wires (Payoneer FAQ).

Which clients can pay you: the business-only rule

Payoneer’s receiving accounts come with a restriction that Wise’s account details do not state: “Payments from personal bank accounts will be declined,” and “Only payments for business transactions from business accounts are supported” (Payoneer FAQ).

If some of your clients are individuals paying from their personal checking account, for example a private tutoring client or a homeowner who hired you for a design, a payment into a Payoneer receiving account will bounce. Payoneer’s payment request feature lets such clients pay by card or bank debit instead, at the percentage fees above. Wise publishes no such restriction for its account details.

Fees to convert and withdraw

Most freelancers paid by foreign clients end up converting at least part of their income into the currency they spend.

Wise: mid-market rate plus a visible fee

Wise converts at “the mid-market rate — the one you can check on Google” and charges a conversion fee that starts “From 0.23%” and “varies by currency” (Wise pricing). The fee is shown as a separate line before you confirm, so the rate you see is not marked up. Sending money from your Wise balance to a bank account also has a fee that “varies by currency,” which Wise’s calculator shows before you send.

With Wise you can also hold the money in the currency you were paid in and convert later, or never, since you can also spend it with the Wise card or pay bills from the balance.

Payoneer: 0.5% between balances, 1.2%–4% on many withdrawals

Payoneer’s fee page lists (Payoneer fees):

• Moving funds between your Payoneer balances (converting USD to EUR inside your account): 0.50%
• Withdrawing to a bank account in your own country, in your local currency: 1.50 USD
• Withdrawing to a bank account in the recipient’s local currency, without conversion: 1.2%–4%
• Withdrawing in a non-local currency, with conversion: 1.2%–4%

For certain US customers, depending on when they registered, Payoneer charges “a fixed fee of 1.50 USD” per withdrawal or payment up to 50,000 USD a month (Payoneer fees). Payoneer’s withdrawal FAQ explains that on a converted withdrawal “the fee is included in the conversion rate” (Payoneer Help), so it does not appear as a separate line the way Wise’s fee does.

The order of steps matters with Payoneer. Converting inside your account first (0.5%) and then withdrawing in your local currency to a bank in your own country (1.50 USD) is a different price from a single withdrawal with conversion (1.2%–4%). The app shows what each route costs before you confirm.

Worked example: a 3,000 USD invoice for a freelancer in Spain

Here is how the published fees stack up for one common case: a designer living in Spain, paid 3,000 USD by a US company that pays by ACH, who wants euros in a Spanish bank account.

With Wise (personal account):

1. Receive 3,000 USD by ACH into Wise USD account details: free.
2. Convert USD to EUR at the mid-market rate: a fee from 0.23% that varies by currency. At 0.23% that would be 6.90 USD; Wise shows the actual USD-to-EUR fee before you convert.
3. Send EUR to your Spanish bank: a fee that varies by currency, shown before you send. Or keep the euros in Wise and spend them.

With Payoneer:

1. Receive 3,000 USD by ACH into a Payoneer USD receiving account: 1%, because USD is not local for a Spain-based account. That is 30 USD.
2. Either convert USD to EUR inside Payoneer (0.5%, about 14.85 USD on the remaining 2,970 USD) and withdraw EUR to your Spanish bank (listed at 1.50 USD for a local-currency withdrawal in your own country), or withdraw straight to your bank with conversion at 1.2%–4% (about 36–119 USD on top of the 30 USD).

On these published rates the Payoneer route costs roughly 46 USD at best, and the Wise route costs the conversion fee plus Wise’s payout fee. Two cases change the picture:

• A US-based freelancer paid in USD. Payoneer receiving is free in local currency and withdrawals cost 1.50 USD; Wise ACH receiving is free too. The gap mostly disappears.
• A client who can only pay through a marketplace or platform that pays out to Payoneer. Then the marketplace’s own payout terms decide the cost, not the table above.

Your country and account type can change these figures; both apps show the fee before you confirm.

How long the money takes

Sources: Wise Help: how long to receive, Wise Help: USD transfers, Payoneer receiving accounts FAQ, Payoneer withdrawals FAQ.

For the wider picture on transfer times, see How long does an international money transfer take?

Currencies and countries

Wise gives account details in 22 currencies, among them USD, EUR, GBP, CAD, AUD, JPY, SGD and NZD (Wise receive pricing), and lets you hold more than 40.

Payoneer offers local receiving accounts in 10 currencies: USD, EUR, GBP, JPY, AUD, CAD, HKD, SGD, AED and MXN. Some other currencies can be received only by Swift wire (Payoneer FAQ). Payoneer says it lets you withdraw “in over 70 currencies” and serves customers in “190+ countries and territories” (Payoneer account).

Payoneer’s stated coverage is wider, and its fee page lists payouts from marketplaces and integrated platforms as a receiving method. If you live in a country Wise fully supports and your clients pay by bank transfer, Wise’s local account details cover the most common client currencies.

Annual fees, plans and other charges

Wise lists no annual or monthly account fee on its US and UK pricing pages. You pay per use: conversions, some incoming wires, sending, and card ATM withdrawals above the free allowance.

Payoneer charges an annual account fee of 29.95 USD. Since February 23, 2026, in most countries, it applies “if 12 months pass and you have received less than 6,000.00 USD (or equivalent) in payments”; in the remaining countries it applies if 12 months pass with no transaction at all (Payoneer Help: annual fee). Payoneer’s fee page adds that “certain account types in specific regions require an Annual Plan” (Payoneer fees).

For a freelancer with a few small foreign clients, the 6,000 USD threshold is the number to watch. Someone billing 400 USD a month abroad receives 4,800 USD a year and would pay the annual fee.

Cards for spending the balance

Wise card (US): ordering the card costs 9 USD. Wise does not charge an ATM fee in a calendar month “as long as the total combined amount withdrawn does not exceed 250 USD”; after that, “1.95 USD + 1.95%” applies to each withdrawal. Spending converts at the mid-market rate with Wise’s conversion fee (Wise card fees).

Payoneer card: an annual card fee of 29.95 USD. Purchases cost up to 1.8% without conversion and up to 3.5% with conversion. ATM withdrawals cost 3.15 USD (or 2.50 EUR, 1.95 GBP) plus up to 1.8%, or up to 3.5% with conversion. You qualify after receiving at least 100 USD in the last six months. Payoneer no longer issues cards to customers with an address in Russia or India (Payoneer card).

Getting paid by card or payment link

Sometimes a client wants to pay by card. Both offer a way, at very different prices.

Wise Business payment links let a client pay by Wise, bank transfer or card. Wise-to-Wise payments are free, and bank transfers are free “in most cases” (Wise Help: payment links). Card acceptance costs 2.9% + 0.30 USD for a US domestic consumer card and 4.2% + 0.30 USD for international and business cards; in the UK and EEA it is 1% for domestic consumer cards and 2.9% for others. Wise says this card feature “is currently unavailable to new Wise Business customers” (Wise Help: card payments).

Payoneer payment requests let a client pay by card at up to 3.99% + 0.49 USD, by US ACH debit at 1%, or from an EU or UK bank account at 1% (Payoneer fees).

Marketplaces: Upwork, Fiverr and others

Payoneer lists payments “from marketplaces and integrated platforms” as a receiving method, with a fee that “Varies by marketplace” (Payoneer fees). Wise works with marketplaces that pay to a bank account. For Upwork, Wise’s help center says to add your Wise USD details as “Direct to US Bank (USD)” and recommends getting paid in USD and converting in Wise, because if you choose another currency, Upwork converts “at an exchange rate decided by Upwork.” Upwork may send one or two microdeposits to verify the account, which can take 1–3 days (Wise Help: Upwork).

Check the marketplace’s own payout page too: the platform’s withdrawal fee comes on top of whatever Wise or Payoneer charges.

Is your money safe with Wise and Payoneer?

Neither is a bank, and neither balance is covered by deposit insurance by default.

Wise. In the US, Wise US Inc. is registered with FinCEN, licensed as a money transmitter and supervised by the CFPB. Customer money is held as cash at commercial banks, mainly JPMorgan Chase, and in short-dated government bonds. Wise says: “We are not a bank.” The exception is its Interest feature, which offers “up to $250,000 in FDIC pass-through insurance on your USD via our Program Bank” (Wise Help: US entity). In the UK, Wise Payments Ltd is an FCA-authorised e-money institution and its services “are not subject to the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS)” (Wise Help: UK entity). In the EU, Wise Europe SA is “an authorised payment institution supervised by the National Bank of Belgium” (Wise Help: EU entity).

Payoneer. Payoneer Inc. “is a Money Services Business registered with the U.S. Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN)” and “a licensed money transmitter under the laws of all U.S. states where such license is necessary.” In Europe, “Payoneer Europe Limited is an Electronic Money Institution authorized by the Central Bank of Ireland,” and in the UK, Payoneer Payment Services (UK) Limited is an e-money institution authorized by the FCA. Payoneer says it holds “eligible liquid assets equal to at least 100% of the aggregate amount of all customer funds held by our licensed entities” (Payoneer 10-K).

Wise keeps customer money separate from its operating funds, and Payoneer says it holds, and in certain jurisdictions segregates, assets covering customer funds. If you keep large balances for long periods, a bank account with deposit insurance is the place for savings; payment accounts are built for money in motion.

Opening an account: what you need

Both companies verify your identity before you can receive money. Payoneer asks individuals for a government-issued ID, proof of address and a bank verification document, and businesses for registration and tax documents (Payoneer Help: verification). Approval of a Payoneer receiving account can take “up to several minutes to up to 3 business days” (Payoneer FAQ).

With Wise, account details for a personal account are free, while some business accounts pay a one-time fee for account details, such as 31 USD in the US (Wise Help: account details).

Which one fits which situation

This is not a recommendation, since the cheaper option depends on your country, your clients and how you get paid. The published fees point in clear directions:

• Clients are companies paying by bank transfer in USD, EUR or GBP, and you live outside those currency areas: Wise’s free local receiving avoids Payoneer’s 1% non-local fee.
• Some clients are individuals paying from personal accounts: Payoneer receiving accounts decline those payments; Wise publishes no such rule.
• Most income arrives through a marketplace or platform that pays out to Payoneer: Payoneer may be the simpler route; check the marketplace’s payout fee.
• You receive under 6,000 USD a year in total: Payoneer’s 29.95 USD annual fee is likely to apply in most countries.
• You live where Wise accounts are limited: Payoneer’s 190+ country coverage may be the deciding factor.

Nothing stops you from keeping both: Payoneer for platform payouts and Wise for direct bank transfers from clients. For tax treatment of foreign income, ask a tax adviser in your country of residence.

Go deeper

• How to invoice in a foreign currency as a freelancer (USD and EUR)
• Multi-currency accounts compared: Wise, Revolut and banks
• Wise vs Revolut for expats living in two countries
• How long does an international money transfer take?
• Digital nomad bank accounts in 2026
• All Money without borders guides