Sending money from South Africa to China
The World Bank surveyed 5 providers on this corridor. On
R1,370 the cheapest costs
16.55% of what you send and the dearest
38.06%. Enter your own amount below —
the ranking changes with it.
Cheapest surveyed
Western Union
R226.76 to send R1,370
(16.55%)
The dearest would cost you
R294.62
more, for the same transfer
Note: the survey priced this corridor at R1,370 and
R3,410. Outside that range these figures are projected from each
provider's fee and margin rather than directly observed.
Every provider, ranked at R1,370
The fee and the exchange-rate margin are shown separately on purpose. A transfer advertised
as "no fee" can still be the expensive one, because the margin is where the cost hides.
| Provider |
Type |
Fee |
FX margin |
Total cost |
% of transfer |
|
Western Union
Less than one hour |
Money Transfer Operator |
R214.02 |
R12.74 |
R226.76 |
16.55% |
|
MoneyGram
2 days |
Money Transfer Operator |
R217.03 |
R27.40 |
R244.43 |
17.84% |
|
Standard Bank
2 days |
Bank |
R259.00 |
R25.48 |
R284.48 |
20.77% |
|
Nedbank
2 days |
Bank |
R420.00 |
R57.40 |
R477.40 |
34.85% |
|
ABSA
2 days |
Bank |
R450.00 |
R71.38 |
R521.38 |
38.06% |
Banks, transfer operators and mobile money
Who you send with matters more than anything else about the transfer. Median cost by
provider type, on R1,370:
- Bank — 34.85%
(3 providers surveyed)
- Money Transfer Operator — 17.20%
(2 providers surveyed)
That ordering is for R1,370 and does not necessarily hold at your
amount. Where a provider charges a flat fee, it is punishing on a small transfer and
forgettable on a large one — which is enough to reverse the order entirely. The ranked table
above is the one computed at your amount; this one is not.
How to read these numbers
The cost of a transfer is the fee plus the margin the provider takes on the exchange rate.
The margin is invisible at the counter: you are quoted a rate, not the difference between
that rate and the interbank one, so a "free" transfer can quietly cost more than one with a
fee attached. Both are separated in the table above.
Percentages fall as the amount rises wherever a provider charges a flat fee, which is why
the same provider can be the cheapest at one amount and not at another. That is exactly what
the calculator is for — the ranking above is computed at your amount, not at a fixed one.
Source: The World Bank, Remittance Prices Worldwide, available at https://remittanceprices.worldbank.org — survey period 2025 Q1, field-collected to
11 March 2025.
Licensed CC BY 4.0. These are surveyed benchmark costs from a dated quarterly study, not live
quotes, and providers change pricing between surveys — check the current cost with the
provider before you send. The World Bank does not endorse this use of its data.
This is general information, not financial advice.
