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Revolut UK exchange rates: fees, limits and transfers

Sophie BennettUpdated 2026-09-2810 min read

Quick answer

Revolut’s foreign-exchange cost depends on your plan, monthly exchange volume and timing. Standard currently has a £1,000 monthly exchange allowance before a 1% fair-usage fee; Plus has £3,000 before 0.5%; Premium, Metal and Ultra have no fair-usage limit, while weekend exchange fees still vary by plan. On the current Standard plan, exchanges above £1,000 in a monthly billing cycle incur a 1% fair-usage fee; Plus charges 0.5% above £3,000.

Foreign exchange has more than one price: the exchange rate, any plan or fair-usage fee, weekend pricing and the transfer route. Looking at only one of those numbers is how a cheap-looking conversion becomes expensive. For this page, that framework is applied specifically to Revolut exchange and international transfers: how to avoid unnecessary FX costs.

Plan, billing cycle and the real exchange route

Open the plan screen before a large conversion. On the current Standard plan, exchanges above £1,000 in a monthly billing cycle incur a 1% fair-usage fee; Plus charges 0.5% above £3,000. The relevant limit usually resets on the billing-cycle date, not necessarily the first day of the calendar month. A conversion one day before reset can cost more than the same transaction one day after it. For Revolut exchange and international transfers: how to avoid unnecessary FX costs, apply this point to the live Revolut UK terms and your own numbers.

Use the live Revolut UK page for the final figure rather than assuming the number in this guide will remain unchanged. In this article, apply that check to Revolut exchange and international transfers: how to avoid unnecessary FX costs.

Separate the currency conversion from the payment route. Revolut can charge different costs for exchange, international transfer, card transfer or an option that covers recipient-bank fees. The app preview is the document to inspect before confirming. For Revolut exchange and international transfers: how to avoid unnecessary FX costs, apply this point to the live Revolut UK terms and your own numbers.

For a fair comparison, change only one variable at a time. Keep the same balance, transaction count, borrowing amount or holding period when you compare Revolut UK with an alternative; otherwise the cheaper-looking result may simply come from different assumptions. In this article, apply that check to Revolut exchange and international transfers: how to avoid unnecessary FX costs.

Exchange, transfer and weekend costs

Weekend timing can add a percentage charge on some plans. Revolut sets its own variable exchange rate and shows applicable fees in the app where possible before the conversion. International-transfer and intermediary-bank charges can be separate from the currency conversion itself. For a £3,000 conversion, an extra 1% is £30. If the payment is not urgent, timing alone can therefore be worth more than chasing a tiny difference in the displayed exchange rate. For Revolut exchange and international transfers: how to avoid unnecessary FX costs, apply this point to the live Revolut UK terms and your own numbers.

A useful test is to write the downside beside the benefit. In this article, apply that check to Revolut exchange and international transfers: how to avoid unnecessary FX costs.

Judge the transfer by how much the recipient receives, not only what leaves your account. Intermediary-bank deductions can matter on some international routes. If the recipient must receive an exact invoice amount, use the app’s fee information and any 'pay all fees' option where available. For Revolut exchange and international transfers: how to avoid unnecessary FX costs, apply this point to the live Revolut UK terms and your own numbers.

Do not count a feature twice. In this article, apply that check to Revolut exchange and international transfers: how to avoid unnecessary FX costs.

Fair-use limits, ATM costs and recipient amount

Fair-usage limits are cumulative. Current weekend exchange fees are 1% on Standard and 0.5% on Plus; Premium, Metal and Ultra do not have that additional weekend fee. A month containing travel spending, a large currency conversion and some crypto or commodity exchange can reach the allowance faster than expected because several types of exchange can count toward the same plan limit. For Revolut exchange and international transfers: how to avoid unnecessary FX costs, apply this point to the live Revolut UK terms and your own numbers.

Keep a small buffer for timing. In this article, apply that check to Revolut exchange and international transfers: how to avoid unnecessary FX costs.

ATM withdrawals and card purchases can trigger currency conversion too. Dynamic currency conversion at a merchant or ATM can introduce the merchant’s own rate. Paying in the local currency usually keeps the conversion with your card provider rather than the terminal operator. For Revolut exchange and international transfers: how to avoid unnecessary FX costs, apply this point to the live Revolut UK terms and your own numbers.

The product should fit the next year, not only the month in which you apply. In this article, apply that check to Revolut exchange and international transfers: how to avoid unnecessary FX costs.

Run one real comparison and keep the transaction record

Worked example: A Standard customer converting £2,500 in one billing month would be £1,500 over the £1,000 allowance. A 1% fair-usage fee on that excess is £15, before any weekend fee or separate transfer charge. That makes the billing-cycle reset date worth checking before a large transfer. Before sending, compare the app’s final GBP cost and recipient amount with one bank or specialist transfer quote at the same moment. That one real comparison is more useful than relying on an old reputation for being 'cheap FX'. For Revolut exchange and international transfers: how to avoid unnecessary FX costs, apply this point to the live Revolut UK terms and your own numbers.

Write down the decision rule before you shop. That keeps the comparison disciplined. In this article, apply that check to Revolut exchange and international transfers: how to avoid unnecessary FX costs.

After the payment, save the exchange rate, fee breakdown, recipient amount and reference. If the transfer is delayed or short, those four details let support distinguish an FX question from a payment-routing or intermediary-bank issue. For Revolut exchange and international transfers: how to avoid unnecessary FX costs, apply this point to the live Revolut UK terms and your own numbers.

Finally, save the page or PDF used for the decision and the date you checked it. In this article, apply that check to Revolut exchange and international transfers: how to avoid unnecessary FX costs.

Check plan allowance and reset date
Preview the complete fee before exchange
Avoid unnecessary weekend conversion fees
Compare recipient amount, not only exchange rate
Watch cumulative monthly exchange usage
Save the final fee and rate record

Sources and verification

MYBANKANSWERS VERDICT

Sophie Bennett - Editorial view

With Revolut, foreign exchange can be very competitive, but the cheap outcome depends on plan, volume and timing. I would check the billing-cycle allowance immediately before a large conversion, avoid avoidable weekend charges and compare one live alternative using the exact amount and route. Reputation is not a substitute for the final fee preview in the app. Applied to Revolut exchange and international transfers: how to avoid unnecessary FX costs, the final check is whether the product still works when its temporary promotion is removed.

MyBankAnswers uses official provider and UK regulatory sources wherever practical. Information is general and does not constitute financial advice.