WorldFirst vs Airwallex: Compare fees, features, and benefits

Trading internationally comes with FX costs and transfer fees. These can quietly drain margin. The right platform will help you cut conversion costs, lower payment charges, and simplify how you collect and pay in multiple currencies.

In this guide, we compare WorldFirst and Airwallex for UK businesses. You’ll see how they differ on pricing, features, and scalability, where each one delivers the most value, and the hidden costs to watch out for.

What is WorldFirst?

WorldFirst is an FCA-authorised Electronic Money Institution (EMI) that offers multi-currency business accounts for international trade. UK businesses can open local accounts in over 23 currencies, receive funds from 100+ marketplaces, and pay suppliers across the globe.

When it comes to pricing, local payments in GBP, EUR, and USD cost £0.30, international transfers are £4.00, and cross-currency payments above £5,000 are free. Transfers between World Accounts are free. FX conversion fees range from 0.50% to 0.75% depending on turnover, with no setup or monthly account charges.

WorldFirst also provides FX risk management tools such as spot and forward contracts, and a virtual World Card, which allows spending with 0% FX fees in 15 currencies when drawn from same-currency balances.

What is Airwallex?

Airwallex (that’s us) is a global financial platform that brings together online payment acceptance, multi-currency accounts, FX and transfers, cards, expense management, Bill Pay, and developer APIs. It’s also authorised in the UK as an authorised Electronic Money Institution under the Financial Conduct Authority. 

For UK businesses, card acquiring costs 1.30% + £0.20 for domestic cards, 2.40% + £0.20 for EEA cards, and 3.15% + £0.20 for international cards. It also supports 160+ local payment methods starting from £0.20 plus method fees.

Like-for-like settlement is available in 14 currencies, meaning you avoid excessive FX fees and manage currencies as cost-efficiently as possible. FX margins are 0.5% above interbank for major currencies and 1% for others. Transfers can be routed through low-cost local rails or via SWIFT, with fees that vary by payment corridor (the specific route between currencies and countries).

Airwallex integrates with accounting platforms such as Xero, QuickBooks, and NetSuite, helping you stay on top of reconciliation and reporting.

At a glance: How WorldFirst and Airwallex compare

How WorldFirst and Airwallex compare on costs

Account and plan fees

WorldFirst has no setup or monthly account fees. You can open an account, hold multiple currencies, and send payments without paying ongoing charges.

Airwallex has a plan-based model. The entry-level Explore plan is free if you maintain or deposit at least £10,000 during the billing period, otherwise it’s £19 per month. The Grow plan is £49/month, while the Accelerate plan is £999/month - this plan is for larger businesses needing advanced controls and dedicated support. See which Airwallex plan works best for you.

Payments and transfers

WorldFirst charges £0.30 for local transfers in GBP, EUR and USD, and £4 for international transfers. Cross-currency payments above £5,000 are free, and transfers between World Accounts are instant at no cost.

Airwallex prices transfers at the corridor level. The payout network covers 200 countries with 120+ using free local transfers. 

FX margins

With WorldFirst, FX margins are tiered between 0.50% and 0.75%, depending on your turnover band. Smaller businesses often fall into the higher bracket, making conversions more expensive.

Airwallex applies a clear margin of 0.5% above interbank for major currencies and 1% for others. Unlike WorldFirst, the rate is fixed and published, removing uncertainty around which band you fall into.

Online payments and settlement

WorldFirst does not offer online card acquiring or settlement. Its focus is marketplace collections and bank-based payments.

Airwallex has full online payment acceptance. Card acquiring is 1.30% + £0.20 for UK cards, 2.40% + £0.20 for EEA cards, and 3.15% + £0.20 for international cards. It also offers over 160 local payment methods, usually from £0.20 plus the method fee. Like-for-like settlement is available in 14 currencies, so you avoid forced FX.

Cards and spend

WorldFirst has World Card, a virtual card with 0% FX fees in 15 currencies when spending from same-currency balances. It supports spend in over 150 currencies overall.

Airwallex issues both physical and virtual multi-currency cards free of charge with 0% foreign transaction fees. Cards integrate with built-in spend management and Bill Pay, enabling businesses to consolidate payments, expenses, and treasury in one place.

Fees overview

How WorldFirst and Airwallex compare on additional features

Multi-currency accounts and local details

WorldFirst: Local receiving accounts advertised across 15+ currencies; good marketplace reception; hold 20+ currencies.

Airwallex: Local details in 60+ countries and hold 23+ currencies in Global Accounts.

Cards and spend management

WorldFirst: World Card (virtual) with 0% FX in 15 currencies from balance.  

Airwallex: Issue multi-currency company and employee cards with 0% foreign transaction fees, manage expenses, and pay bills from the same platform. 

Developer APIs and automation

WorldFirst: Primarily an accounts and payments platform with a marketplace focus.

Airwallex: Broad payments/FX/accounts/cards/payouts API surface. Embedded finance options. 

Accounting integrations

WorldFirst: Xero feed available.

Airwallex: Xero, QuickBooks, NetSuite (with bank feeds and invoice payments).

Batch payments and mass payouts

WorldFirst: Batch up to 200 payments in one go; instant World Account-to-World Account payments free. 

Airwallex: International batch transfers supported via platform and API. 

eCommerce and checkout

WorldFirst: Strong on marketplace collections (Amazon, etc.) and bank-based receiving, but not a full card-acquiring gateway.

Airwallex: Full checkout stack (cards + 160+ local methods), plugins, Hosted Payment Pages, components, and like-for-like settlement.

Treasury consolidation: One stack vs bolting on tools

WorldFirst: mainly about accounts and supplier payments. If that’s all you need, the simplicity is a plus. But if you also take customer payments, issue cards, or manage team spend, you’ll need extra software on top, from payment gateways to expense tools.

Airwallex: pulls those pieces together. You can accept payments, convert currencies, pay out globally, issue cards, and reconcile everything inside one platform. For finance teams, that means fewer integrations to manage and a clearer view of cash flow across markets.

How it works: billing in multiple currencies

Imagine you’re a UK SaaS company billing customers in USD, EUR, and AUD.

With WorldFirst, you could collect into local currency accounts and convert back to GBP when needed. It works, but you’d still need a separate checkout solution and probably more tools for reconciliation.

With Airwallex, you can run checkout in each currency, settle like-for-like in 14 currencies, and plug straight into Xero, QuickBooks, or NetSuite for clean reporting. The APIs let you automate recurring billing and reconciliation, so finance doesn’t become a bottleneck.

Which platform is better for your business?

WorldFirst works if you’re a UK SME that:

• Mainly collects in multiple currencies and pays suppliers abroad.

• Wants no monthly fee and simple, published charges (£0.30 local, £4.00 international).

• Prefers a marketplace-focused setup without the extras.

Go with Airwallex if you’re scaling and need:

• An all-in-one platform: accounts, FX, online payments, cards, spend management, Bill Pay, and APIs.

• Transparent FX (0.5%/1%) and card acquiring fees, 160+ local payment methods, and like-for-like settlement in 14 currencies.

• A single stack for collecting, converting, spending, and reconciling globally, without extra hassle.

Rule of thumb:

If your business is mostly about receiving and paying by bank, WorldFirst is a solid fit. If you also need to take customer payments, manage team spend, and automate finance as you grow, Airwallex could be the better long-term choice.

Which suits eCommerce and marketplaces best?

WorldFirst: strong marketplace coverage (100–130+ platforms including Amazon), simple fees, and easy supplier payouts. A good fit if your sales are primarily marketplace-driven.

Airwallex: Great for eCommerce brands that sell direct. You can accept cards and 160+ local payment methods, settle in multiple currencies, and manage payouts, cards, and expenses from the same stack.

Why businesses are switching to Airwallex

Airwallex is designed for companies that want to keep Accounts Receivable, Accounts Payable, and treasury all in one place. You can accept customer payments via cards and 160+ local payment methods, settle in 14 currencies to avoid forced FX, hold 23+ currencies for optimal global treasury management, and convert at 0.5–1%. From there, it’s easy to pay out globally while also managing cards, expenses, and bills on the same platform.

Integrations with Xero, QuickBooks, and NetSuite keep reconciliation simple, and for high-growth ecommerce, SaaS, and B2B exporters, having everything on one stack cuts down on extra tools and makes unit economics more predictable as new markets are added.

Get more information on Airwallex Business Accounts and Airwallex pricing.

Conclusion

Both platforms help UK businesses trade globally, but they’re built for different needs. WorldFirst is a solid, marketplace-friendly account with simple fees and no monthly charge. Airwallex goes further with checkout, alternative payment methods, cards, expense management, Bill Pay, and APIs. Its transparent FX and like-for-like settlement help you keep more from each sale.

If you just need to receive and pay by bank, WorldFirst will do the job. If you also need to take customer payments, manage team spend, and automate finance, Airwallex might be the better option.

Disclaimer: We wrote this article in Q3 2025. The information was based on our own online research and we were not able to manually test each tool or provider. The information is provided for educational purposes only and a reader should consider the specific requirements of their business when evaluating providers. This research is reviewed every six months. If you would like to request an update, feel free to contact us at [email protected].