It’s 3am and way past your bedtime. You’ve already wasted hours trying to figure out the best way to send money to India from the UK, but you still don’t know how you’re going to do it. When you first imagined life as an expat, this is not a problem you ever considered. Besides Google failing to help you this time, each of your friends has a different recommendation. Luckily for you, we are here to make your life a little bit easier. We’ve compiled a list of the top 5 ways to send your money home. Note: navigate to the service page if you’re looking for the cheapest method to send money to India today.

Bank transfer – The traditional method for transferring money

• Transfer fees to India from UK: 15-30 GBP
• Transfer time: 3-7 working days
• Information: This is the most common method for transferring money overseas, but the fees are high and vary between banks. Another disadvantage is that the receiving bank may also charge a fee to receive the transfer. Finally, completing a bank transfer takes much more time than most of the other options.

PayPal – Quick and easy, but high fees

• Transfer fees to India from UK: 4.9% + £0.20 GBP (0-1500 GBP transfers)
• Transfer time: Within minutes to another Paypal account, 3-7 days from Paypal to a bank account
• Information: PayPal is one of the quickest ways to transfer money internationally, but it also has some of the highest transfer fees. Although the transfer takes just a few minutes, it can take up to 7 business days to transfer money from a PayPal account to a bank account, and if something goes wrong their outsourced support can be very difficult to deal with.

Post Office MoneyGram – High fees

• Transfer fees to India from UK: 4.50 to 20.99 GBP
• Transfer time: Within minutes
• Information: MoneyGram is offered at all post offices nationwide, but it has high transfer fees and the money has to be picked up in cash at a post office. The convenience and speed are advantages, but the service has also been plagued by numerous complaints due to transfer problems and its vulnerability to fraud.

Western Union cash transfer – Lower exchange rates

• Transfer fees to India from UK: 5 GBP
• Transfer time: Within minutes
• Information: Western Union is one of the most famous money transfer companies. The money can be transferred at a relatively low fee within minutes, but it has to be picked up in cash at a Western Union agent location. This is a speedy option, but the exchange rates are often very unfavourable and like MoneyGram, Western Union has become vulnerable to scams and fraudsters.

OrbitRemit – Quick and easy

• Fee: 1 GBP when transferring money to India from UK
• Time: Funds are transferred to your recipient the same day we receive them.
• Information: The transfers are fast and the transfer fees low. Plus, there are no fees charged by the receiving bank. Of all the options here OrbitRemit is comfortably the cheapest and will give you a better exchange rate, meaning more of your cash comes out at the other end. Their online tracking system, tight security measures, 24-hour customer support and direct bank-to-bank processes also mean your money going to India from UK is much more secure throughout the entire process.

As you can see, there are many options to remit money to India from the UK. The option that is best for one of your friends may be different than the option that is best for you.

When you’re deciding on which service to use, remember to consider the amount of fees charged and the length of time the transfer will take to be completed. Now that you know the best way to remit money to India, you can sleep soundly tonight.

Visit the pricing page to view OrbitRemit’s full International money transfer fees.