How to calculate foreign exchange fees - Etimes (2024)

Last Updated on December 9, 2023 by admin

Being an exchange platform or broker isn’t easy. They need to pay for a lot of infrastructure and tech to match buyers and sellers in vast quantities, all whilst keeping transactions safe, reliable, and speedy. To raise revenue for this, they charge a spread, fee, and or commission. Here is a breakdown of each. It’s also important to bear in mind that bank transfer rates are often the worst.

Spread

The natural difference between the buy and sell price is called the spread. If a currency was somehow under-priced with a low bid price, people would buy it (potentially for an arbitrage strategy) and it would cause the demand to rise, thus the price would rise, and we would be back into equilibrium.

In a theoretically perfect market where liquidity (amount of buying/selling) is extremely high with zero friction, the spread would be minimal. However, high volatility and low liquidity can cause a larger spread.

Another reason for a spread though is that the exchange will often pocket the difference, thus creating an artificially larger spread. This is one key way for them to make money (often without stating it clearly). Some opt for a fixed spread and some offer a variable (floating) spread. If a platform claims they’re offering you the inte-rbanking rate (the foreign exchange rate that banks get their hands on) then this is a suggestion that there is no significant spread.

Commission

Fees and commission are very similar and there is an argument that they overlap – making this about semantics. However, to keep things simple in your mind, there are two ways that a broker can profit from your exchange beyond the spread: Charging a flat fee or commission.

One example of commission is Wise’s 0.5% charge (for most customers and for common currency routes) – as well as Revolut’s claim to charge 0.5% when having exceeded the free exchange monthly allowance.

These forms of commission are applied to the transfer amount. Thus, the amount you pay rises along with your transaction amount. A $1,000 exchange would cost $5 whilst a $10,000 exchange would cost $50.

This keeps things proportional and seemingly fair. Small, frequent exchanges aren’t unfairly punished, and the costs of your future costs are easy to remember.

Fees

There are different types of fees and such, but we can generally think of these as being a fixed cost, not variable. This isn’t everyone’s definition, but it’s important to understand the differences between fixed and variable costs.

An example of such a (fixed) fee is when sending money overseas using a high street bank. They will often charge a margin (another name for spread) of around 3%-5%, which is exportation in and of itself, but on top of that there may be a $/£ 30 flat fee.

This is applied regardless of the transaction amount. So if you send $30 to a EUR bank account, you’re charged $30 for doing so, rendering small transactions costly or even redundant

How to Calculate Forex Costs

So first and foremost, it’s important to understand standard Forex pricing. In the news and on many platforms, the standard way of stating the currency rate is by saying “EUR-USD 1.09”.

This means that to buy one Euro, you need 1.09 USD – it’s important to get this the right way around. As a side note, if you see in the news that “EUR-USD change is -8%” then it means that you’re getting 8% less USD per 1 Euro. This would be described as a strengthening of the Dollar and a depreciation of the Euro. In other words, it’s probably a good time to buy Euros and an expensive time to buy Dollars.

Back to the calculation. If the bank or broker is claiming it will cost you 1.12 USD but Google is saying the real rate is 1.09, then you have enough information to calculate the markup. Simply take the difference between the rates (it will be a positive number) and divide it by the real rate that you found on Google. So, 0.03 is the difference between 1.12 and 1.09, meaning the calculation is 0.03/1.09 = 0.02752. Take this number and multiply it by 100 to get the %.

The number you end up with is 2.75%. This means that 2.75% of the amount you want to send is what it will cost to send. Any fees that are on top of this markup should be denoted clearly as another percentage (i.e. 0.5% commission) or a flat fee (i.e. $30).

You can divide the flat fee by the total amount you wish to send to convert it to a percentage, in which case you can then add up all the percentages to have a final figure of what it will cost.

To get the best currency rate, look for an fx rate of around 1% or under.

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How to calculate foreign exchange fees - Etimes (2024)

FAQs

How do you calculate exchange fees? ›

Work out the extra amount you could be paying by comparing the market exchange rate with the rate your bank or currency exchange service gives you. Take the difference between the two exchange rates and divide this figure by the market exchange rate. Then, times this amount by 100 to get the total percentage mark-up.

How is foreign transaction fee calculated? ›

How Much Are Foreign Transaction Fees. In Canada, foreign transaction fees are typically around 2.5%. A foreign transaction fee is typically calculated by adding the predetermined fee percentage charged by your credit card issuer to a purchase made with a foreign merchant to the cost of the original purchase.

How is foreign exchange rate calculated? ›

Current international exchange rates are determined by a managed floating exchange rate. A managed floating exchange rate means that each currency's value is affected by the economic actions of its government or central bank.

What is the formula for calculating foreign currency? ›

If you don't know the exchange rate, you can use the following simple currency conversion calculation to find it: take your starting amount (original currency) and divide it by ending amount (new currency) = exchange rate.

What is the formula for exchange? ›

Fisher's equation of exchange is MV=PT, where M = money supply, V = velocity of money, P = price level, and T = transactions.

What are foreign exchange rate fees? ›

One is the currency conversion fee (also called a “network fee”), and the other is an issuer fee. The network fee is charged by the credit card company itself, because it facilitates the currency conversion. It is usually 1%. The company will then add the issuer fee, which is usually 2%.

How do I find foreign transaction fees? ›

You'll commonly see this fee listed on your card statement as a separate charge. This means that if you spend $100 at a restaurant in another country, you might pay an extra $3 as a foreign transaction fee.

Is 3% foreign transaction fee a lot? ›

Foreign transaction fees generally range from 1 percent to 3 percent and tend to average around 3 percent of each transaction. Paying around $3 per $100 you spend may not sound that expensive, but these fees can add up if you're making a lot of purchases with your credit card.

How is transaction fee calculated? ›

Transaction fees are typically calculated based on a percentage of your transaction amount or a flat fee per transaction. The exact fee structure depends on the payment service provider and the type of transaction you're doing.

How do you solve foreign exchange rates? ›

If you are going from the “1” to the other currency then multiply. If you are going to the “1” from the other currency then divide. Multiply or divide the given currency by the exchange rate. State your final answer with the correct currency symbol.

What is foreign exchange rate for dummies? ›

The exchange rate gives the relative value of one currency against another currency. An exchange rate GBP/USD of two, for example, indicates that one pound will buy two U.S. dollars.

How to calculate exchange rate in math? ›

Multiply the money you've budgeted by the exchange rate. The answer is how much money you'll have after the exchange. If "a" is the money you have in one currency and "b" is the exchange rate, then "c" is how much money you'll have after the exchange. So a * b = c, and a = c/b.

How do you calculate commission on currency exchange? ›

In order to calculate commission, the basic formula to use is commission rate x sales value. We can calculate commission using proportions and also by moving the decimal place of the commission rate to the left.

How to calculate average exchange rate? ›

This method calculates the average exchange rate for these transactions as a result of dividing total amount of all earlier transactions in the foreign currency by total amount of all earlier transactions in the accounting currency. The resulting exchange rate is then assigned to outgoing transaction.

How to calculate currency exchange rate in Excel? ›

Use the Currencies data type to calculate exchange rates

Enter the currency pair in a cell using this format: From Currency / To Currency with the ISO currency codes. For example, enter "USD/EUR" to get the exchange rate from one United States Dollar to Euros. Select the cells and then select Insert > Table.

How do you determine the exchange price? ›

Currency prices are determined in two ways: fixed rates and floating rates. Fixed rates are pegged to a currency while floating rates move freely with market demand. Nations attempt to manipulate their currencies so that they remain strong and so that the demand for their currency is high in foreign exchange markets.

How do you calculate exchange commission? ›

In order to calculate commission, the basic formula to use is commission rate x sales value. We can calculate commission using proportions and also by moving the decimal place of the commission rate to the left.

How much are exchange fees? ›

A foreign transaction (FX) fee is a surcharge on your credit card bill that appears when you make a purchase that either passes through a foreign bank or is in a currency other than the U.S. dollar (USD). This fee is charged by many credit card issuers, typically ranging from 1% to 3% of the transaction.

What is the percentage of the money exchange fee? ›

What are the fees for currency exchange? Currency conversion costs are typically 1% of the transaction price. It is assessed by the ATM network or credit card processing company and is often added to the foreign transaction fee that you pay.

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