How we compare
How Currency Expert compares currency and hedging providers.
We show you three numbers on every comparison: the live mid-market rate, the rate a provider is offering, and the fee. Then we turn the gap into what it costs you in pounds. This page explains exactly how we do that, who we feature, and how we are paid.
What sits behind a comparison
What we actually do
The mid-market rate is the midpoint between the buy and sell price in the wholesale market. It is the rate with no margin added, so it is the only fair reference point for judging what a provider is charging you.
Almost every provider makes most of its money in the gap between that mid-market rate and the rate it gives you. That gap is the FX margin, and it rarely appears as a line on your confirmation. The transfer fee is usually the smaller number.
So we do the arithmetic you would otherwise have to do yourself. On a £50,000 transfer, a margin of 1% against the mid-market is £500, whatever the headline fee says. We put that figure in front of you.
We are a comparison and introduction service. We do not hold your funds, we do not execute trades, and we do not give personal financial advice. We show you the numbers and introduce you to the provider you choose. You contract with that provider directly.
Our comparison methodology
How we source the rates, work out the margin in pounds, and date what you are reading.
We start from the mid-market rate for your currency pair, taken from an independent market data source rather than from any provider we compare. That keeps the reference honest.
Against it we place the rate a provider is quoting and any fee it charges. Where a provider gives live quotes, we use the live number. Where it does not, we use its published pricing and say so, because a published rate and a dealt rate are not always the same thing.
To get the cost in pounds, we take the difference between the mid-market rate and your offered rate, apply it to your amount, and add the fee. That total is what you lose to the provider on the transfer. It is the figure worth comparing, and the one we lead with.
Our assumptions are deliberately plain. We compare quotes gathered at roughly the same time, because the market moves while you shop. We assume a single transfer unless a page states otherwise, and we ignore promotional first-transfer rates that do not survive to your second payment.
Every comparison and every provider page carries a verified-on date. Rates move by the second and provider terms change without notice, so we treat a figure as accurate as of the date shown and ask you to confirm the live quote before you commit. When we refresh a page, we change the date.
Where a number is our own calculation rather than a provider’s stated figure, we say which it is. We would rather show you the working than ask you to trust a headline.
How we choose which providers to feature
Regulation first, then whether your money is protected, and how.
Before we feature a provider, we check that the legal entity you would deal with is authorised or registered by the Financial Conduct Authority, and we confirm its firm reference number on the FCA Register rather than taking a badge on a website at face value.
We then look at how your money is protected, because there are two different regimes and they are often confused. The distinction matters to you if a firm ever fails.
- ◆Applies to banks and building societies. The Financial Services Compensation Scheme covers eligible deposits if the institution fails.
- ◆The limit is now £120,000 per person per institution, raised from £85,000 on 1 December 2025.
- ◆It does not cover money held with most FX and payments firms, whatever the amount.
- ◆Applies to e-money and payments firms, which is what most specialist FX providers are.
- ◆Your money sits in segregated accounts under FCA rules, separate from the firm’s own funds, so it can be returned if the firm fails.
- ◆It is real protection, but it is not the FSCS deposit guarantee, and any firm implying otherwise is one we question.
What we check before featuring a provider
We confirm the FCA authorisation and the exact regulated entity, read the safeguarding wording, and check that the service actually covers your currencies and volumes. A provider we cannot verify, we do not feature.
Our commercial relationship
How we make money, stated plainly.
When you use a provider we introduce you to, we may earn a commission from that provider. That is how the service is funded, and it means you can use our comparisons without paying us anything.
Being paid this way does not change the rate you get. The provider quotes you the same rate whether you arrive through us or on your own, and our commission does not come out of your money.
It also does not decide which providers we assess or how we rank them. We compare a provider on its rate, its fee, its regulation and its fit for your transaction, not on what it pays us. Where a provider we work with is not the right choice for your exposure, we would tell you so.
You will find this same disclosure quietly in the footer of our pages. We would rather it be dull and honest than buried.
The forward-contract calculator
A tool to sense-check a hedging quote, not a quote itself.
Our forward-contract calculator lets you enter a mid-market rate, a quoted forward rate and your amount, and see the margin, the likely deposit and the range in pounds. It exists so a forward quote stops being an abstract rate and becomes money you can weigh.
If you are still deciding whether to hedge at all, our currency hedging guide covers that wider question.
Its limits matter, and we state them on the tool. The numbers you enter are yours, so the output is only as good as the rate and terms you type in. It is illustrative, not a live quote, and it does not account for a provider’s exact deposit percentage, margin-call trigger or settlement terms.
Use it to check whether a forward quote looks reasonable before you speak to a provider. Do not treat its figure as the price you will be dealt. The provider’s own quote, confirmed at the time, is the number that binds.
If we get something wrong
How we handle corrections.
Rates move and provider terms change, so a figure that was right when we checked it can date. If you spot something that looks wrong, you can tell us through our contact page and we will look at it.
Where we find an error, we correct it and change the verified-on date so you can see the page has been updated. We would rather fix a number quietly and quickly than defend one that is out of date.
Who reviews this
Our business content is checked for accuracy and editorial standards before it goes live.
Mike Smith, co-founder of Currency Expert, reviews our business content for accuracy and editorial standards. He has spent more than 40 years in UK financial services, including senior roles at Sun Alliance, Legal & General and LaSer UK (BNP Paribas).
His review covers whether the numbers on our business pages are supported, whether the regulatory points are stated correctly, and whether we have been clear about what we do and do not do.
In one line
Currency Expert is a comparison and introduction service. We do not execute transfers or hold client funds.
Common questions
Do you charge for comparisons? +
No. You can use our comparisons and guides without paying us anything. We are funded by commission from providers when you choose to use one we introduce, so the cost of running the service does not fall on you.
How do you make money? +
We may earn a commission from a provider when you use it through an introduction from us. It does not change the rate you are quoted, it does not come out of your money, and it does not decide which providers we assess or how we rank them.
Are the providers regulated? +
We feature providers whose legal entity is authorised or registered by the Financial Conduct Authority, and we confirm the firm reference number on the FCA Register. We also check whether your money is safeguarded or FSCS-protected, because the two are not the same.
Do you hold my money or give advice? +
No to both. We compare providers and introduce you to the one you choose. We never hold client funds, we do not execute trades, and we do not give personal financial advice. You contract with the provider directly.
How current are your rates? +
Every comparison carries the date its rates and provider terms were verified. Rates move by the second, so treat our figures as accurate as of that date and confirm the live quote with the provider before you commit.
Tell us what you need to move.
Share the currency, the amount and when the payment is due, and we will compare providers suited to the transaction and introduce you to the right one. We will be straight about the trade-offs. No cost, no obligation.