Bank of America Wire Transfer Review

Bank of America account holders are the only people who can use the bank’s wire transfer feature, and they might want to stick to domestic transfers and avoid international transfers.

If you’re a Bank of America customer, it’s not terribly complicated to execute a wire transfer, and the bank doesn’t charge a fee for certain transfers. But if you’re not a Bank of America customer, you can’t send wire transfers through the bank.

Even if you are a customer, one drawback of Bank of America (the country’s second largest bank based on assets) is that you can’t send a wire transfer through the bank’s app. Instead, you must do it through your online account or make an appointment at one of the bank’s 4,000 branches. Some banks, such as Chase and Citibank, allow wire transfers through their app.

Another drawback: An international wire transfer at Bank of America must be sent to a recipient’s bank account. Some other international money transfer services allow money to be picked up at an affiliated location, delivered to a recipient’s home or even sent to a recipient’s mobile device.

However, one positive is that Bank of America does enable a customer to send money via wire transfer to over 200 countries in more than 140 currencies. Also, Bank of America doesn’t charge a fee for international wire transfers sent in a foreign currency, and the exchange rate for that type of transfer is locked in upfront. Bank of America notes that you may be able to get a better exchange rate through an online transfer rather than an in-person transfer.

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Bank of America’s write transfer features are fairly straightforward (but a bit clunky) since the only way to do a wire transfer without visiting a branch is through an online Bank of America account.

If you have an online checking or savings account, here are the many steps you’ll go through to do an international wire transfer:

• Log into your Bank of America account.
• Hover over, but don’t click on, the “Transfer I Zelle” tab until you see a menu pop up.
• Choose “Transfer” and then “To/from other banks (includes wires).”
• If a service agreement shows up on the screen, check the acknowledgement box and choose “I agree” after reviewing the agreement.
• Add a new recipient’s account information if you’re sending money to that recipient for the first time.
• Complete authentication of the recipient and their account if this is a first-time wire transfer.
• Click on “International.”
• Choose the country where the recipient’s account is located.
• As you start completing the form, select “Yes” or “No” to answer the question, “Do you know the currency of this account?” Then, from the drop-down menu, pick the currency for the transfer.
• Add the recipient’s personal information, including the home address connected with their bank account, and then add the recipient’s bank information.
• Click “Add Account.”
• On the screen that you’ll see after the recipient’s account is added, select “Return to Make Transfer.”
• Select your account and the recipient, then enter the amount of money you want to send in the currency you’ve already chosen.
• Confirm the information for the wire transfer is correct.
• After confirming the information, check the box that says, “I have read and agree to the above terms, including exchange rate, fees and taxes.”
• Click “Make Transfer.”

A domestic wire transfer includes a lot of the same steps, but there aren’t as many to complete..

Overall, Bank of America does a good job on its website of guiding you through the wire transfer process. Plus, it has created video tutorials about how to complete domestic and international wire transfers. Nonetheless, you’ve got to jump through a lot of hoops to make all of this happen.

Bank of America’s pricing for domestic and international wire transfers is pretty straightforward

Type of Transfer	Fee
Outbound domestic wire transfer (same business day)	$30 per transaction for consumers and small businesses (limit $1,000 per transaction for consumers and $5,000 for small businesses)
Outbound international wire transfer (in U.S. dollars)	$45 per transaction for consumers and small businesses (limit $1,000 per transaction for consumers and $5,000 for small businesses)
Outbound international wire transfer (in foreign currency)	$0 per transaction for consumers and small businesses (limit $1,000 per transaction for consumers and $5,000 for small businesses)

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While Bank of America’s online wire transfer tools aren’t necessarily difficult to use, it takes some time to initiate a wire transfer, given all the steps required. Someone who’s not familiar with executing wire transfers on Bank of America’s platform may need to practice some patience to make it through the process without getting too frustrated.

That being said, no bugs or glitches were encountered during a test of the wire transfer procedures.

Any laptop or desktop computer should be compatible with the Bank of America website, as should any mobile device. Just remember that wire transfers can’t be initiated through the Bank of America app.

Here’s a rundown of the operating systems and browsers that Bank of America recommends for an ideal online banking experience.

Recommended Operating Systems

• Windows 7 or higher
• Mac OS 10.9 or higher

Recommended Browsers

• Firefox 93 or higher
• Chrome 93 or higher
• Edge 96 (Windows 10 or higher)
• Safari 14.x or higher

Of course, an online wire transfer carried out through the Bank of America website will go smoother if you’re using a high-speed internet connection.

Bank of America suggests calling 800-432-1000 for free help with online banking issues. Representatives are available 8 a.m.-11 p.m. ET Monday through Friday, and 8 a.m.-8 p.m. ET Saturday and Sunday. Automated support is available 24 hours a day. Free online chat or email support also may be available.

In a test of Bank of America’s over-the-phone customer support, the pleasant customer service representative was knowledgeable about wire transfers. However, the help wasn’t immediate. After going through a few automated prompts, a message indicated that customer support was experiencing high call volumes; an option was given to have a representative call back rather than having to wait on hold.

A little over 10 minutes later, a representative called back and answered a handful of questions about wire transfers. The call concluded about five minutes later. A follow-up email contained instructions about initiating a wire transfer.

Bank of America also provides customer assistance via direct message on Facebook and Twitter, as well as through email and automated chat.