Corridor USD → KRW · US dollar to South Korean won
What does it cost to send US dollars to South Korea?
On 16 October 2026, the most a recipient in South Korea got for 1,000 USD was 1,325,490 KRW via Remitly: a true cost of 6.90 USD (0.69%) including fee and rate markup. The last of 6 quotes cost 3.95%.
Transfer cost receipt · USD → KRW
Most to the recipient: Remitly transfer service
- You send
- 1,000.00 USD
- Upfront fee
- −2.49 USD
- Amount converted
- 997.51 USD
- Rate given
- 1,328.80
- Mid-market when quoted
- 1,334.70
- Exchange-rate markup inside the rate
- 4.41 USD 0.44%
- True total cost
- 6.90 USD 0.69%
- Recipient gets
- 1,325,490 KRW
Picking the last quote in this ledger (OFX) instead would leave the recipient 43,577 KRW short.
Snapshot indicative quotes retrieved 16 Oct 2026, 17:02 UTC. Quote collected 16 Oct 2026, 16:45 UTC. Source: Wise public comparison data.
Plain link to the provider's official site. No commission.
Every quote for 1,000 USD → KRW
Sorted by what the recipient gets. “True cost” adds the upfront fee to the money lost in the exchange rate versus the mid-market rate at the time each quote was collected.
| Provider | Upfront fee | Rate markup | True cost | Cost % | Recipient gets | vs best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Remitlyservice | 2.49 USD | 0.44% | 6.90 USD | 0.69% | 1,325,490 KRW | best |
| 2. Instaremservice | 0.00 USD | 0.72% | 7.16 USD | 0.72% | 1,325,139 KRW | −351 KRW |
| 3. Wiseservice | 13.82 USD | 0.00% | 13.82 USD | 1.38% | 1,316,107 KRW | −9,383 KRW |
| 4. Western Unionservice | 0.99 USD | 1.88% | 19.80 USD | 1.98% | 1,308,277 KRW | −17,213 KRW |
| 5. Xoomservice | 0.00 USD | 2.52% | 25.19 USD | 2.52% | 1,301,077 KRW | −24,413 KRW |
| 6. OFXservice | 5.00 USD | 3.47% | 39.55 USD | 3.95% | 1,281,913 KRW | −43,577 KRW |
Does the cheapest option change with the amount?
| You send | Most to recipient | Best cost | Worst cost | Recipient gets (best) | Gap best vs worst | Quotes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 200 USD | Instarem | 0.72% | 5.89% | 265,028 KRW | 13,799 KRW | 6 |
| 1,000 USD | Remitly | 0.69% | 3.95% | 1,325,490 KRW | 43,577 KRW | 6 |
| 5,000 USD | Remitly | 0.49% | 2.53% | 6,640,684 KRW | 135,748 KRW | 5 |
What the USD → KRW numbers show
- The provider that delivers the most changes with the amount: Instarem at 200.00 USD, Remitly at 1,000.00 USD, Remitly at 5,000.00 USD. Fixed fees weigh heavily on small transfers; rate margins dominate large ones.
- At 200.00 USD, true cost ranged from 0.72% (Instarem) to 5.89% (OFX); the recipient would get 13,799 KRW less with the last quote than with the first.
- 2 of 6 quotes at 1,000.00 USD charged no upfront fee but priced in a rate markup above 0.5%, so “no fee” did not mean free.
How does the quoted mid-market rate compare with the ECB reference?
The European Central Bank reference rate for USD/KRW on 16 October 2026 was 1,332.10. The mid-market rate implied by the top quote at its collection time was 1,334.70, a difference of 0.20%. ECB rates are published once per working day around 16:00 CET, so they drift from live market rates during the day; RateRunner uses them only as a cross-check, never to rank providers.
Every quote for 200 USD → KRW
| Provider | Upfront fee | Rate markup | True cost | Cost % | Recipient gets | vs best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Instaremservice | 0.00 USD | 0.72% | 1.43 USD | 0.72% | 265,028 KRW | best |
| 2. Remitlyservice | 2.49 USD | 0.44% | 3.36 USD | 1.68% | 262,451 KRW | −2,577 KRW |
| 3. Western Unionservice | 0.99 USD | 1.88% | 4.74 USD | 2.37% | 260,618 KRW | −4,410 KRW |
| 4. Wiseservice | 9.37 USD | 0.00% | 9.37 USD | 4.68% | 254,405 KRW | −10,623 KRW |
| 5. Xoomservice | 4.99 USD | 3.02% | 10.87 USD | 5.44% | 252,429 KRW | −12,599 KRW |
| 6. OFXservice | 5.00 USD | 3.47% | 11.77 USD | 5.89% | 251,229 KRW | −13,799 KRW |
Every quote for 5,000 USD → KRW
| Provider | Upfront fee | Rate markup | True cost | Cost % | Recipient gets | vs best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Remitlyservice | 2.49 USD | 0.44% | 24.59 USD | 0.49% | 6,640,684 KRW | best |
| 2. Instaremservice | 0.00 USD | 0.66% | 32.82 USD | 0.66% | 6,629,697 KRW | −10,987 KRW |
| 3. Wiseservice | 36.10 USD | 0.00% | 36.10 USD | 0.72% | 6,624,573 KRW | −16,111 KRW |
| 4. Western Unionservice | 0.99 USD | 1.88% | 95.10 USD | 1.90% | 6,546,572 KRW | −94,112 KRW |
| 5. OFXservice | 0.00 USD | 2.53% | 126.29 USD | 2.53% | 6,504,936 KRW | −135,748 KRW |
Read next
Questions people ask
- Which provider gave the most for 1,000 USD sent to South Korea?
- Remitly, with 1,325,490 KRW delivered, in the snapshot retrieved 16 Oct 2026, 17:02 UTC. Its upfront fee was 2.49 USD and its rate markup 0.44%.
- How much of the cost of sending USD to KRW is hidden in the exchange rate?
- For the 6 quotes on 1,000 USD, rate markups ranged from 0.00% to 3.47% of the amount converted. 2 quotes charged no upfront fee but still had a markup above 0.5%.
- How current are these USD to KRW quotes?
- RateRunner retrieved them on 16 Oct 2026, 17:02 UTC. Each provider quote also carries its own collection time, shown in the tables, and quotes older than 24 hours are flagged. They are indicative; the price you are offered at checkout can differ.
Related corridors
Sources
- Indicative provider quotes: Wise public comparison data (retrieved 16 Oct 2026, 17:02 UTC). Wise collects quotes from listed banks and services and is itself listed.
- Reference rate: European Central Bank euro reference rates via Frankfurter (16 October 2026).
- Raw data for this page: usd-to-krw.json