Compare

Wise vs PayU (2026): Which Is Better for Receiving International Payments in India?

Author:: Editorial team, serviceexportguide.com
Verified by:: Editorial team
Published: 28 October 2026
Last modified: 28 October 2026
Fees checked on: 28 October 2026
Reading time: 13 min read

Short answer

Neither Wise nor PayU publishes enough pricing to estimate the cost of a USD 5,000 receipt, so there is no cost verdict. The better choice depends on how your client pays: Wise is best for bank transfers to local account details, and PayU is best for card or PayPal checkout with INR settlement.¹²

Use case	Better option	Why
Bank transfer of USD 5,000	Cannot compare	Neither publishes full pricing for this case.
Bank transfer of USD 2,000	Cannot compare	Neither publishes full pricing for this case.
Client paying USD 2,000 by card or link	Cannot compare	Neither publishes full pricing for this case.
Wise is best for	Wise	Bank transfers to local account details.¹
PayU is best for	PayU	Card or PayPal checkout with INR settlement.²

Invoice amountCurrencyHow the client pays

1,000 USD = ₹94,243 at the reference rate for 13 November 2026 (European Central Bank data).

Estimated rupees received, on published fees

Sorted by estimated rupees received, highest first. Only providers that publish both their fee and their conversion markup for this currency and method can be estimated.

#	Provider and route	Best for	Fee (+GST)	Markup	You receive	Cost
1	Karbon BusinessLowest estimated costBank transfer to a Karbon virtual USD account	US bank transfers and marketplace payouts	₹942plus GST, rate not stated	0%	₹93,131 to ₹93,301	1.00 to 1.18%
2	RazorpayMoneySaver Export Account: bank transfer to virtual account details (Standard plan)	Local transfers from the US, UK and eurozone	₹1,000plus GST, rate not stated	0%	₹93,063 to ₹93,243	1.06 to 1.25%
3	WinvestaGlobal Collections Account, standard plan (up to 2,000 a month per currency)	Local transfers with a published per-payment fee	₹1,435	0%	₹92,809	1.52%
4	SkydoPayment link (InstaLinks) paid by ACH debit	Local bank transfers from major markets	₹1,885plus GST, rate not stated	0%	₹92,019 to ₹92,358	2.00 to 2.36%
5	PayoneerLocal bank transfer to Payoneer receiving account details	Marketplace payouts such as Amazon or Upwork	₹0no GST stated	1 to 4%	₹90,473 to ₹93,301	1.00 to 4.00%
6	PayPalInternational commercial transaction received into a PayPal account (PayPal checkout or invoice)	Clients paying by card or PayPal balance	₹4,175no GST stated	3 to 4%	₹86,465 to ₹87,366	7.30 to 8.25%

Not estimated because pricing is not fully published: Cashfree Payments, Dodo Payments, PingPong, Stripe, Tazapay, TransFi, Wise.

Where a provider says GST applies to its fee but not at what rate, the range runs from no GST to 18%, the rate Skydo, Stripe and Winvesta state on their pages. Estimates use each provider's published fee, conversion markup, GST on fees and FIRA charge, checked 2026-10-28, against the reference rate. They exclude charges taken by intermediary banks and your own bank, and the rate a provider actually applies at the time of conversion. Check the provider's pricing page before you choose. The order is calculated only from these published numbers; no provider can pay to change its position, and there are no affiliate links.

How do Wise and PayU compare at a glance?

Wise and PayU compare on the twelve points below, using each provider's published information as checked on 28 October 2026. Where a provider does not publish something, the table says so.¹³⁴⁵

	Wise	PayU
Best for	Bank transfers to local account details¹	Card or PayPal checkout with INR settlement²
Fees	Wise's India help article says it charges an equivalent of 2 USD in the received currency for the transfer to the INR bank account that issues the e-FIRC. Wise's India receive pricing page describes a free eFIRC for every transfer. The general Wise Business fee table on Wise's India site lists 6.11 USD per USD wire or Swift payment, 2.16 GBP per GBP Swift payment and 2.39 EUR per EUR Swift payment, with domestic (non-Swift, non-wire) payments free; Wise's India-specific receive pages do not repeat these Swift fees. 18% GST applies to Wise fees.¹³⁴	3% for international transactions under the Standard Plan, GST extra. No separate bank transfer receiving fee is published because PayU does not publish a bank transfer collection route.⁵
FX markup	Mid-market exchange rate plus a conversion fee that Wise says depends on the currency. No percentage is published for conversion to INR; the amount is shown in Wise's calculator.³⁶	Converted to INR at the rate on the transaction date; PayU says it applies exchange rate or margins on the card issuing currency for dynamic currency conversion. The margin is not published.²⁷
Settlement	Wise says the INR payment reaches the Indian bank account within 1 to 2 days and that more than 50% of transfers settle within 2 hours of pay-in. The client's payment takes 0 to 3 working days to reach Wise by local methods and 2 to 6 working days by SWIFT.¹	Typically T+2 business days for international payments.²⁷
FIRA	An e-FIRC for each transfer, emailed to the registered address within 3 working days and downloadable from the transfer page. The help article links it to the 2 USD equivalent fee; the pricing page calls it free.¹³	PayU says it provides a FIRC on request through the merchant's Key Account Manager. The cost is not published.⁷
Currencies	24 currencies: local account details in 11 currencies and international account details in 13 more, from 140+ countries, according to Wise.¹	PayU says it accepts payments in 135+ currencies and can show local prices in 27 currencies.²⁷
KYC: who can sign up	Wise Business only: sole traders or freelancers (personal PAN and an INR bank account in their own name), sole proprietorships, private limited companies, LLPs and general partnerships. Other business types are not currently onboarded. Wise personal accounts in India cannot receive money.⁸⁹	PayU's account activation checklist covers individuals, sole proprietorships, partnerships, LLPs, private and public limited companies and other entity types. International payments must be enabled separately through a PayU Key Account Manager; PayU does not publish which entity types are eligible for them.¹⁰¹¹
RBI PA-CB status	RBI's list of authorised payment aggregators dated 16 October 2026 includes Wise Payments India Private Limited as a Payment Aggregator, Cross Border, facilitating inward transactions (PA-CB-I), authorised on 12 March 2026. Wise's India receiving pages do not name the Wise entity that handles inward payments.¹²¹	The RBI lists PayU Payments Private Limited as a Payment Aggregator (online and physical) and as PA-CB I & O, a cross-border payment aggregator facilitating inward and outward transactions, in its list dated 16 October 2026.¹³
Support	Not published on the India receiving pages checked.	Existing merchants raise a ticket at help.payu.in or email care@payu.in; new merchants are directed to their account manager or care@payu.in for international rates.²
Limits	Minimum 5 USD or equivalent and maximum 2.5 million INR (₹25 lakh) or equivalent per transaction; payments outside these limits are returned to the sender. RBI caps each PA-CB inward or outward transaction at ₹25 lakh.¹¹⁴	PayU does not publish a limit for export receipts. RBI rules set a limit of ₹25 lakh per export transaction for PA-CBs.²¹⁴
How clients pay	The client pays to the business's Wise account details from their own bank (local transfer, wire or SWIFT) or from a Wise account.¹⁶	International credit and debit cards (Visa, Mastercard, American Express) and PayPal at a PayU checkout. PayU does not publish local bank account details or virtual accounts for foreign clients to pay by bank transfer.²¹¹
Card payments	Not available for India-based businesses: Wise lists card acceptance only for Wise Business accounts in the EEA, UK, Australia, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Singapore, Canada and the US.¹⁵	Yes. International card transactions fall under PayU's 3% Standard Plan slab, GST extra.⁵

How much INR do you receive on $2,000, $5,000 and $10,000 with Wise vs PayU?

The INR you receive with Wise and PayU is the invoice at the reference rate, less each provider's fee, conversion markup, GST on fees and FIRA charge. The table works this out from published pricing at today's rate.

None of these providers publishes both a fee and a conversion markup for USD.

Not estimated because pricing for USD is not fully published: Wise.

Ranked by INR received on USD 5,000. Reference rate: European Central Bank data for 13 November 2026. Fees, conversion markup, GST on fees and FIRA charges as published by each provider, checked 28 October 2026. Ranges appear where a provider publishes a range or does not state its GST rate. Intermediary bank charges are excluded. See the methodology.

What is Wise and who is it for?

Wise is a money transfer company whose Wise Business account gives Indian businesses and freelancers account details in other currencies, converts what they receive to INR and sends it to their Indian bank account.¹⁶

Regulated by: RBI's list of authorised payment aggregators dated 16 October 2026 includes Wise Payments India Private Limited as a Payment Aggregator, Cross Border, facilitating inward transactions (PA-CB-I), authorised on 12 March 2026. Wise's India receiving pages do not name the Wise entity that handles inward payments.¹²¹
Used by: Wise Business only: sole traders or freelancers (personal PAN and an INR bank account in their own name), sole proprietorships, private limited companies, LLPs and general partnerships. Other business types are not currently onboarded. Wise personal accounts in India cannot receive money.⁸⁹
Best for: Bank transfers to local account details.¹

What is PayU and who is it for?

PayU is an Indian payment gateway that the RBI lists as a cross-border payment aggregator for inward and outward transactions; its international payments product lets Indian merchants accept foreign cards and PayPal and settles in INR.¹³²

Regulated by: The RBI lists PayU Payments Private Limited as a Payment Aggregator (online and physical) and as PA-CB I & O, a cross-border payment aggregator facilitating inward and outward transactions, in its list dated 16 October 2026.¹³
Used by: PayU's account activation checklist covers individuals, sole proprietorships, partnerships, LLPs, private and public limited companies and other entity types. International payments must be enabled separately through a PayU Key Account Manager; PayU does not publish which entity types are eligible for them.¹⁰¹¹
Best for: Card or PayPal checkout with INR settlement.²

How do Wise and PayU fees and FX markup compare?

Wise and PayU charge in different ways, so compare the fee and the conversion markup together, not the headline fee alone.

What does Wise charge?

Transaction type	Fee	FX markup	GST on fees	Best for
Local (domestic, non-Swift, non-wire) transfer to Wise local account details	USD 2³¹⁴	Not published	18%	Clients paying by local bank transfer
Wire or Swift payment to Wise account details	USD 2 + plus a fixed fee by currency³¹⁴	Not published	18%	Clients paying by international wire

What does PayU charge?

Transaction type	Fee	FX markup	GST on fees	Best for
International card or PayPal transaction at PayU checkout (Standard plan)	3%⁵⁷	Not published	Not stated	Clients paying by card

How do Wise and PayU compare on settlement speed?

Wise and PayU publish these settlement times for money reaching an Indian bank account.

Platform	Settlement time	Payout to India	Best for
Wise	Wise says the INR payment reaches the Indian bank account within 1 to 2 days and that more than 50% of transfers settle within 2 hours of pay-in. The client's payment takes 0 to 3 working days to reach Wise by local methods and 2 to 6 working days by SWIFT.¹	Automatic: Wise converts each payment to INR and sends it to the verified Indian bank account given during verification. Indian users cannot hold the foreign currency, and the account details cannot be used to send money. No separate withdrawal fee is published beyond the e-FIRC transfer fee.¹	Bank transfers to local account details¹
PayU	Typically T+2 business days for international payments.²⁷	Settled automatically to the merchant's bank account in INR; PayU's documentation also mentions non-INR settlement. No separate payout fee is published for standard settlement; priority or same-day settlement may carry a nominal fee that is not published.²¹¹⁵	Card or PayPal checkout with INR settlement²

Do Wise and PayU provide FIRA and e-BRC, and are they RBI PA-CB authorised?

Wise and PayU publish the FIRA position and RBI status below, checked on 28 October 2026. An e-BRC is generated by the exporter on the DGFT portal from bank remittance data, so it does not depend on the provider issuing one.³⁵

Platform	FIRA	RBI PA-CB status	Best for
Wise	An e-FIRC for each transfer, emailed to the registered address within 3 working days and downloadable from the transfer page. The help article links it to the 2 USD equivalent fee; the pricing page calls it free.¹³	RBI's list of authorised payment aggregators dated 16 October 2026 includes Wise Payments India Private Limited as a Payment Aggregator, Cross Border, facilitating inward transactions (PA-CB-I), authorised on 12 March 2026. Wise's India receiving pages do not name the Wise entity that handles inward payments.¹²¹	Bank transfers to local account details¹
PayU	PayU says it provides a FIRC on request through the merchant's Key Account Manager. The cost is not published.⁷	The RBI lists PayU Payments Private Limited as a Payment Aggregator (online and physical) and as PA-CB I & O, a cross-border payment aggregator facilitating inward and outward transactions, in its list dated 16 October 2026.¹³	Card or PayPal checkout with INR settlement²

Which currencies, countries and payment methods do Wise and PayU support?

Wise and PayU accept the currencies and payment methods below, as each publishes them.

Platform	Currencies	How clients pay	Card payments	Best for
Wise	24 currencies: local account details in 11 currencies and international account details in 13 more, from 140+ countries, according to Wise.¹	The client pays to the business's Wise account details from their own bank (local transfer, wire or SWIFT) or from a Wise account.¹⁶	Not available for India-based businesses: Wise lists card acceptance only for Wise Business accounts in the EEA, UK, Australia, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Singapore, Canada and the US.¹⁵	Bank transfers to local account details¹
PayU	PayU says it accepts payments in 135+ currencies and can show local prices in 27 currencies.²⁷	International credit and debit cards (Visa, Mastercard, American Express) and PayPal at a PayU checkout. PayU does not publish local bank account details or virtual accounts for foreign clients to pay by bank transfer.²¹¹	Yes. International card transactions fall under PayU's 3% Standard Plan slab, GST extra.⁵	Card or PayPal checkout with INR settlement²

What are the strengths and limitations of Wise and PayU?

Wise and PayU each suit some exporters better than others. These points come from each provider's own pages.

What are the strengths and limitations of Wise?

Strengths:

Your clients are willing to pay by bank transfer to local account details in USD, GBP, EUR or another supported currency.¹
You want an e-FIRC issued for each payment received.¹
You are a freelancer without a registered business, since Wise Business accepts sole traders verified with a personal PAN.⁸
Individual payments are between 5 USD and ₹25 lakh equivalent.¹

Limitations:

Indian businesses cannot accept card payments through Wise.¹⁵
Money cannot be held in foreign currency; every receipt is converted to INR.¹
No conversion fee percentage is published for INR, so the cost of a receipt can only be seen in Wise's calculator.³
Single payments above ₹25 lakh equivalent are returned to the sender.¹
Wise's own pages differ on whether the e-FIRC is free or covered by a 2 USD equivalent fee.¹³
Business types other than sole traders, sole proprietorships, private limited companies, LLPs and general partnerships are not currently onboarded.⁸

What are the strengths and limitations of PayU?

Strengths:

Your foreign clients prefer to pay by international card or PayPal on a checkout page and you want INR settlement.²
You want a provider listed by the RBI as a cross-border payment aggregator for inward transactions.¹³
You already use PayU for domestic payments and want international payments enabled on the same integration.¹¹

Limitations:

No bank transfer collection route (local account details for foreign clients) is published; the international product is card and wallet based.²¹¹
The exchange margin on conversion to INR is not published.⁷
International payments must be enabled through a Key Account Manager, and the FIRC is also requested through the account manager.¹¹⁷
PA-CB export transactions are limited to ₹25 lakh each under RBI rules.¹⁴
Priority settlement fees and the conditions behind the Standard Plan's terms and conditions note are not published.⁵

Should you choose Wise or PayU?

Choose between Wise and PayU by how your clients pay and your usual invoice size.

Choose Wise if:

Your clients are willing to pay by bank transfer to local account details in USD, GBP, EUR or another supported currency.¹
You want an e-FIRC issued for each payment received.¹
You are a freelancer without a registered business, since Wise Business accepts sole traders verified with a personal PAN.⁸
Individual payments are between 5 USD and ₹25 lakh equivalent.¹

Choose PayU if:

Your foreign clients prefer to pay by international card or PayPal on a checkout page and you want INR settlement.²
You want a provider listed by the RBI as a cross-border payment aggregator for inward transactions.¹³
You already use PayU for domestic payments and want international payments enabled on the same integration.¹¹

For example, say a designer invoices a US client USD 2,000. Because neither provider does not publish full pricing for that case, ask for a quote in writing and compare it with the FIRA rate after the first payment.³⁶²⁷

Which other platforms should you consider besides Wise and PayU?

Other platforms to consider besides Wise and PayU are the ones with the lowest estimated cost on a USD 5,000 receipt, listed in that order.¹⁷¹⁸¹⁹²⁰²¹²²²⁴²⁵²⁷²⁸³⁰³²³³³⁴

Platform	Best for	Estimated cost on USD 5,000	FIRA	Review
Skydo	Local bank transfers from major markets¹⁶	0.68%¹⁷¹⁸¹⁹²⁰²¹²²	Skydo says it issues a free FIRA on every payment received, and that its FIRA and FIRC are accepted for GST filing and by banks.²¹²³	Skydo review
Karbon Business	US bank transfers and marketplace payouts²⁴	1.00 to 1.18%²⁴²⁵	Karbon says it provides a FIRA for every transaction, issued by its licensed banking partner, which it does not name. Cost not published.²⁴	Karbon Business review
Razorpay	Local transfers from the US, UK and eurozone²⁶	1.00 to 1.18%²⁷²⁸	Razorpay provides a Foreign Inward Remittance Statement (FIRS), sent to the contact email within 24 hours after settlement for bank transfers, and downloadable from the dashboard, which shows bank-provided certificates and Razorpay-generated statements. The pricing page lists FIRC or eFIRC as included and auto-generated for international cards. No separate charge is published.²⁶²⁹²⁸	Razorpay review
Winvesta	Local transfers with a published per-payment fee³⁰³¹	1.24%³⁰³²³³³⁴	Free e-FIRA, emailed within 24 hours of funds reaching the Indian bank account and downloadable from the dashboard; it shows the purpose code and exchange rate.³³³²	Winvesta review

Compare every provider on your own invoice in the platform cost comparison.

How did we verify this?

We checked this page against the sources below on 28 October 2026. Provider fees, conversion markups and RBI payment aggregator (PA-CB) status were checked on 28 October 2026. Rupee amounts use European Central Bank reference rates for 13 November 2026. Read our methodology or report an error.

Frequently asked questions

Which is cheaper for Indian exporters, Wise or PayU?+

There is no cost verdict for a USD 5,000 bank transfer: neither publishes full pricing for this case.³⁶²⁷ The answer can change with the currency, payment method and invoice size, so check your own numbers in the platform cost comparison.

Do Wise and PayU give a FIRA to Indian exporters?+

Wise: An e-FIRC for each transfer, emailed to the registered address within 3 working days and downloadable from the transfer page. The help article links it to the 2 USD equivalent fee; the pricing page calls it free.¹³ PayU: PayU says it provides a FIRC on request through the merchant's Key Account Manager. The cost is not published.⁷

Can individual freelancers use Wise and PayU?+

Wise: Wise Business only: sole traders or freelancers (personal PAN and an INR bank account in their own name), sole proprietorships, private limited companies, LLPs and general partnerships. Other business types are not currently onboarded. Wise personal accounts in India cannot receive money.⁸⁹ PayU: PayU's account activation checklist covers individuals, sole proprietorships, partnerships, LLPs, private and public limited companies and other entity types. International payments must be enabled separately through a PayU Key Account Manager; PayU does not publish which entity types are eligible for them.¹⁰¹¹

Are Wise and PayU authorised by the RBI?+

Wise: RBI's list of authorised payment aggregators dated 16 October 2026 includes Wise Payments India Private Limited as a Payment Aggregator, Cross Border, facilitating inward transactions (PA-CB-I), authorised on 12 March 2026. Wise's India receiving pages do not name the Wise entity that handles inward payments.¹²¹ PayU: The RBI lists PayU Payments Private Limited as a Payment Aggregator (online and physical) and as PA-CB I & O, a cross-border payment aggregator facilitating inward and outward transactions, in its list dated 16 October 2026.¹³

How fast do Wise and PayU pay out to an Indian bank?+

Wise: Wise says the INR payment reaches the Indian bank account within 1 to 2 days and that more than 50% of transfers settle within 2 hours of pay-in. The client's payment takes 0 to 3 working days to reach Wise by local methods and 2 to 6 working days by SWIFT.¹ PayU: Typically T+2 business days for international payments.²⁷

Do I still need an LUT if I am paid through Wise or PayU?+

Yes, if you are registered under GST and want to invoice the export without IGST. The Letter of Undertaking is a GST filing for the financial year, and it does not depend on how the money reaches you, whether through Wise, PayU or a bank wire.³⁶

This page is general information for Indian service exporters, not tax or legal advice. Rules change and outcomes depend on your facts, so confirm with a chartered accountant before acting.

Keep reading

Platforms