How to Send Money to Colombia Cheap and Fast

Available Options

There are different ways you can send money to Colombia, and each has its advantages (and disadvantages). The following methods are the three main ways you can do so.

Online Bank Transfer

This is the most common way to send money. If your recipient has a bank account in Colombia, you can send money directly through an online banking service offered by their local banks.

However, keep in mind that the recipient will need to have a registered Colombian bank account, a registered ID number, and a verified method of transfer (i.e direct deposit, in-person pick-up, or a bank-specific proprietary method).

Wire Transfer (Traditional Brick-and-Mortar Transfer Services)

This is another way to send money directly from one bank account to another. Wire transfers are often used because of their technological security overseas and the additional degree of verification required. That said, note that most Colombian banks can take up to 2-3 days before receiving funds that arrive through traditional brick-and-mortar wire transfer. Therefore, if it's an urgent cash infusion you're looking for, this might not be the best option.

Money Transfer Apps

There are several popular web applications that now allow you to send money to Colombia without the logistical headaches of old-school bank or wire transfers. For the recipient to collect this transfer at their local bank, they almost always need an identification card and a verified method of transfer.

Money transfer applications have become significantly more popular over the last few years due to the increasing globalization of the market economy. Most senders prefer them to traditional wire transfers as the #1 way to send money to Colombia cheaply, quickly, and safely.

Cheapest Way to Send Money to Colombia

Senders should keep in mind that there are different fees associated with each type of transfer. Sending money through an app is often the cheapest way to do so, primarily because it involves fewer fees. One of the best money transfer applications that provide better conversion rates and lower transaction fees is Wise.

Wire transfers are usually expensive, and, more often than not, they have a maximum amount allowed that someone can send in one transaction. On the other hand, bank transfers send a bulk of the money at once, and senders will get the best deals when sending large amounts. However, for smaller amounts, bank transfers are almost never ideal due to the higher flat fees. International transfer fees from banks usually have an average of between 5-10%, which can make them a costly choice for most senders.

Fastest Ways to Send Money to Colombia 

The fastest way to send money to Colombia is almost always through an online money transfer web application. Since senders can send, calculate fees, and verify receipt of payment in real-time, it eliminates a significant amount of overhead traditionally associated with the process (like bank employees), and allows you to bypass most of the manual verification steps that historically have made the process tedious.

One of the best applications to use for a fast transfer is the TransferWise app, now known as Wise. You can receive the money in just a few hours compared to some other applications wherein it takes one to two days to transfer.

Best Ways to Send Money for Specific Countries

Different countries have their options for senders. There are specific applications that provide a cheaper and faster transfer in a particular country than other countries.

Send Money to Colombia From USA

The USA has several different transfer applications available, but the best application at the time of this writing is Revolut. Assuming both sender and receiver have Revolut installed on their phone, a transfer of $1000 USD costs just $4 in exchange fees (at the time of writing), and verified receipt of funds can occur within the same day (before 5:00 pm).  

For Colombia to USA transfers, most senders prefer Wise. There’s also a significant number of people that still rely on bank or wire transfers to send money from Colombia to the US.

Send Money to Colombia From UK

The ideal transfer money app for the United Kingdom is Wise. It’s well-known for providing a low transfer fee with fast receipt of funds. Technically, TransferGo has cheaper rates in the British pound, but this almost always results in a negligible difference between the two applications, and TransferGo can lead to wait times of several days. Sending $1000 GBP to Colombia from the UK will cost you just $3.09 GBP, and you can receive it within two hours.

Individuals who want to transfer money from Colombia to the UK usually send their money via bank or wire transfer since the majority of UK transfer apps do not yet interface with Colombian banks on the sender side.

Send Money to Colombia From Spain

Lastly, individuals who want to send money from Spain to Colombia almost always use TransferGo. It provides significantly lower transfer fees than the alternatives, and TransferGo also provides you different options for delivery time. For example, sending $1000 EUR from Spain to Colombia will cost you $2.99 EUR within 30 minutes, or $0.99 EUR within twenty four hours. The longer you’re comfortable with waiting, the less money a transfer will cost you.

For individuals who want to send money from Colombia to Spain, the main transfer method (once again) is traditional wire or bank transfer, since the infrastructure for transferring out of Colombia is still lacking.

Conclusion

To send money to Colombia cheaply and quickly, we recommend senders consider the many options discussed above. Make sure to research the different fees associated with each type of transfer before you commit to a method since each application usually has a non-trivial sign-up process associated with it.

Use our comparison tool now to find out which is the best money transfer app for your current needs.