They are free in some European countries. I've had friends from elsewhere who were shocked that a wire transfer wasn't free and typical in the US.

Forget fees, I once tried to buy something in the US from some stranger and he refused to give me his account number and accept a wire even if I paid for everything (and the sum was big enough that PP wouldn't be cheaper). The guy literally thought I want his number for some scam. "Only PayPal, please, it's secure, blah blah blah". Talk about culture shock.

It is useful to know that, in the US, if you have sufficient information to send a payment into an account you also have sufficient information to debit it. Americans are, accordingly, leery about giving out account numbers.

Americans are not historically leery about giving out checks but, fun fact, we put all the information needed to empty an account on every check.

Why? Long story; legacy systems rule the world. The industry's main defense is a) surveillance of use of accounts, b) reversing transactions which appear fraudulent, and c) aggressively prosecuting fraudsters where their identity can be readily ascertained.

The same is true in the UK, a direct debit instruction can be setup on an account using just the name, number and sort code, but it doesn't make us more wary, much in the same way that supplying one's home address is enough to take out lines of credit in that person's name

This sounds incredibly insecure, is it exploited much?

It's difficult to exploit Direct Debits, as you are entitled to a full and immediate refund: https://www.directdebit.co.uk/DirectDebitExplained/pages/dir...

As far as I know, the ability to use direct debits is not given to everyone. You can't just start making direct debits just because you have a bank account.

My guess is that it's the same as elsewhere in the EU: Your bank will reverse the charge if you ask it to, the risk stays almost entirely with the payee/the payee's bank.

To do this, your business requires permission from your bank. If you abuse it, your bank will probably revoke your permission.

>> It is useful to know that, in the US, if you have sufficient information to send a payment into an account you also have sufficient information to debit it.

Wait, what? The only thing needed to send a payment is a target account number. So, if banks in US consider that enough info to DEBIT the account then something went terribly wrong there. In Europe, to take money out of the account you need to either

- go to the bank, and show your photo ID to prove that you're you.

- login to online transaction system and prove your identity by knowing the login password and one-time SMS password.

That's why many charity institutions simply put their account number on their website and ask for donations - there's zero risk someone will debit their account.

In the US, e-deposit of checks is a passable option to avoid fees.

Many banks will take a check deposit by scan or phone camera now, so you can just have someone write a paper check and send the image immediately and deposit it that way.

It's still pretty high-friction, not something you'd typically want to do with a customer, but a reasonable alternative to bank transfer if you don't want to pay the $50.

> In the US, e-deposit of checks is a passable option to avoid fees.

My bank (credit union) charges a $2 fee for each check I write, regardless of how or where it's deposited. Yes, it's cheaper than a bank transfer, but checks still aren't fee-free for everyone.

Switch to another bank or CU. Most do not charge $2 checkwriting fees.

Weird, I knew some of the big corp banks did this for their lower tier accounts, but every credit union I've used has had free checking even on the basic no minimum balance accounts. TIL

Google Wallet is significantly lower friction than writing out and mobile-depositing a check, at least in my experience.

Last i checked the android app refuses to run on hardware without nfc, even for the features that don't require it. Maybe it's an option if you have the right phone, or if it lets you do payments on desktop. (haven't tried the latter)

AFAIK, the Google Wallet app doesn't, anymore, have any features that require or use NFC (tap-and-pay did, but that moved years ago to Android Pay.)

Plus, not only can you do everything "on desktop", you can do it on web generally; the browser version works great on phones.

Good to know...I thought that the classic Wallet app went away entirely, as I recall being forced to "upgrade" it to Android Pay when it came out, and in the process lost the features I actually used, so didn't pay much attention after that.

I've only tried to use it on a real computer.

it works beautifully on desktop

I've transferred money between my Union Bank and USAA accounts multiple times for free. Wire transfers will get you, but if you do a regular transfer, it's usually free

Banks will often let you transfer between accounts you control for free. But it usually requires pre-validating control with some random-number-of-cent deposits (which take 3 business days, because ACH sucks).

Not something you can just use to pay a stranger.

Some banks will waive transfer fees based on your account status / type:

https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/banking/wire-transfers-what-...

Uk here - I can transfer amounts under 10k in under 2 hours without any fee, to any other uk bank. If I want to send more, it's about 20 pounds, and completed in a day. I can TransferWise money anywhere in Europe (not tested the US) for far less than those prices too.

Denmark here. November 21 2014 instant clearing 365/24/7 between danish banks via the Danish Central Bank was started. I can transfer money from bank A and have it be there on my account with bank B when I alt-tab over and refresh the browser with netbank B. Oh and its free(although a few banks have started charging a minor DKK 1 or DKK 10 fee for initiating the transfer, not mine though).

Netherlands here. Same thing. Free.

New Zealand and Australia here - ditto.

What's the reason to use a wire transfer compared to ACH?

A wire takes place in real time, whereas an ACH goes into a batch which is cleared later, like a paper check.

If you want the funds transferred instantly and with certainty, use a wire and pay the fee for the real-time service.

If not, use an ACH (cheap or free). But be aware the funds won't show up for a day or two. And possibly never, if, for example, the sender's account has insufficient funds or doesn't exist.