Western Union

[clarkee]

Maybe this question has been answered in another thread but I'll ask it anyway. Has anyone ever used Western Union to send themselves money for pick up or to a bank account in the Philippines by using US debit card?  If so how did it work out for you?

[starrt]

Hi Clarkee,

I have used WU to send myself money directly from my bank to be picked up ata WU counter. My bank, in Canada, allows WU transactions on its web site, so I log into my account and make the transfer.

However, it is not cheap to use and it has limitations. The maximum that can be sent in a 24 hour period from Canada to the Philippines is $999.99 Canadian, and the maximum amoun that can be sent in a 7 day period is $3,000 Canadian.

I have no idea if there are any restrictioons like this for transfers between the USA and the Philippines.

Thomas

[jjcabgou]

I have used WU exclusively for the last 5 plus years.  It is best to send in dollars and have them pay you out in pesos.  Also, not all WU offices have the same exchange rate, so look around to see which exchange rate is best.   It might not add up to much initially, but over time it will safe you some money.    You can also accumulate points with WU and reduce or eliminate the fee on your transactions. 

[bigrod]

I am lazy I use Transferwise.  I get the going XE rate at time of transaction and have it debited from my BoA account and deposited in my BDO php account.  Never have to leave my house.  If the exchange rate is great and total charge is about 1% and going lower starting 8 Mar.

Chuck

[RUFUS]

I have been using Xoom for years and it is fairly cheap.
US$50 exchanged costs me $1.99 to send directly to our Landbank account.
If you transfer $200 exchanged to your bank or more there is no fee, but I believe there are fees if you send cash.
The Piso exchange is not the greatest, but I enjoy the point-click-ship ability
Xoom is now linked with PayPal and it has become very fast.
You can send Pisos or dollars.

Here are the money send limits limits
https://help.xoom.com/s/article/how-much-money-can-i-send?language=en_US