Capital One Foreign Currency Exchange and Better Alternatives

Capital One Financial Corporation does offer currency exchange services that allow you to hold foreign cash. It also has a digital cross-border payment platform for making payments in foreign currencies and for saving foreign-denominated bank notes. However, these solutions are primarily designed for business clients and customers who want to risk investing their wealth in foreign currencies.

Banks use weak exchange rates and often charge commission fees. Capital One currency exchange will not be your best option for currency exchange when you need foreign currency for your travels abroad and for sending money abroad. Even for business clients, better international business solutions exist for you.

In this guide, we will show you cheaper, faster, and more user-friendly currency exchange services like Wise for virtual travel cards, cash exchange, international money transfers, and business payments. Compare provider exchange rates with our live comparison engine 👈

Foreign Currency For Travel in 2024

If you are a retail customer who wants to hold foreign cash for your travels, then we highly recommend you avoid using Capital One currency exchange services. Large American banks and credit unions like Capital One charge two very large fees, one that is transparent and another that is hidden:

• Bank Fee: This is a transparent fee that banks charge for the service. Capital One charges $40 for transfers sent in foreign currency.
• Exchange Rate Margin: While some banks may waive their flat fee, all of them will levy this hidden fee. At any given moment, there is a live mid-market rate between two currencies. Capital One does not transparently publish their exchange rates, but will exchange your currency at a weaker rate (averaging between 4-7%) and pocket the difference.

A multi-currency account from a financial technology platform like Wise can be a convenient way to access foreign currency digitally. Wise offers competitive exchange rates on 50+ currencies through its smartphone app and travel debit card.

Wise's exchange rate is the same as the real exchange rate margin (i.e., the one you see on Google), and you only get charged a minute percentage fee for each currency conversion.

The Wise debit card provides multi-currency debit card access upon account sign-up. Standard delivery times apply. For travel needs, planning currency exchange ahead when possible allows utilizing preferable rates:

• Link bank account,
• Add desired currency amount,
• Make any exchanges,
• Conversion fees from Wise may be very low depending on currency, limits and timing,
• Mid-market exchange rates offered up to free allowance amounts,
• Use the card for overseas purchases.

Monito Currency Exchange Travel Tips

The above-mentioned digital multi-currency accounts are excellent options for buying foreign currency. To make your money go as far as it can, keep these additional travel tips in mind.

1. Use Debit Cards at ATMs:
   We recommend using travel debit cards at ATMs abroad because the exchange rate used by MasterCard, Visa, and others will be stronger than Capital One currency exchange, airport kiosks, and credit unions.
2. Use Cards That Waive Foreign Transaction Fees:
   Two of the best on the market are Wise and Revolut.
3. Don't Use Credit Cards at ATMs:
   Feel free to rack up those credit card points at point-of-sale transactions. Just avoid using credit cards at ATMs because cash advances accrue a higher interest.
4. Pay in the Local Currency:
   If prompted by a payment machine, always choose the local currency (i.e. USD in the US, EUR in the EU, GBP in the UK, etc). Learn more about how to avoid dynamic currency conversions.
5. Avoid Airport Bureaux de Change and ATMs in Tourist Areas:
   Instead, find a trustworthy Allpoint ATM or a Global ATM Alliance bank for free withdrawals. As a general principle, withdraw cash from ATMs connected to a legit bank and pay the fixed $2 to $5 fee instead of using a machine on a street corner.

Sending Money Abroad

You can also use Capital One foreign currency exchange to send money abroad via international wire transfers. If you have an account with Capital One, then you can go to your local banker to enact a wire transfer.

Capital One Exchange Rate

Just the like the cash exchange services, Capital One will charge you two expensive fees for sending wire transfers by SWIFT:

1. Bank fee: 40;
2. Hidden exchange rate margin: Mark-ups typically range from 4%-7%.

Online money transfer services are cheaper, faster, safer, and more transparent alternatives to Capital One currency exchange online, which is why we recommend them without reservation. The ones we list below are excellent options for online payments abroad or sending remittances to family members overseas.

On Monito's comparison engine from Wed Jun 01 2022 00:00:00 GMT+0200 (Central European Summer Time) to Mon Jun 19 2023 00:00:00 GMT+0200 (Central European Summer Time), Remitly ranked as the overall cheapest for transfers from the United States.

While Wise ranked second overall and WorldRemit ranked third overall for transfers from the USA, rates often vary by destination. And since fee schedules change all the time, we recommend using Monito's comparison engine to find the cheapest exchange rates in real-time:

Business Payments

Big American banks, like Capital One, have access to global capital markets. You can also get credit, loans, and other debt instruments for important corporate activities. To do so, you will need to contact a Capital One representative directly to get a quote for Capital One's FX solutions and wealth management services.

For other business owners, Capital One might not be the best option for you. Neobanks (also called challenger banks) offer some of the easiest-to-use and lowest-cost international business bank accounts on the market today. Their accounts will help you do business with suppliers overseas and transact with your customer base abroad.

International Business Alternatives to Capital One

All the neobanks we review on Monito are fully regulated and manage segregated bank accounts with licensed partner banks. Read our full article on the best international business account solutions to learn more about these providers:

1. Revolut Business — 🏆 Best Overall for International Business Finance
2. Payoneer — Best for E-Commerce
3. Wise Business — Most Bank Account Details
4. Novo — Best All-Rounder in the USA
5. Starling Bank — Best Business Bank in the UK