Wise: Transfer Money to Your Bank Account

I spent way too long trying to figure out how to get money out of my own Wise account. Like, "How do I transfer from Wise to my bank?" — I couldn't find it anywhere. Turns out it's a little flip of the switch on how Wise works.

Click on the image above to watch the full video.

The Trick: Add Yourself as a Recipient

Wise doesn't have a "withdraw" button. Instead, you add yourself as a recipient — just like you would any other person or business you're sending money to.

Go to Recipients
Add a new recipient
Choose USD (or your currency)
Select Business or Personal depending on your account
Enter your business name or your own name
Put in your bank's routing number and account number
Select checking or savings
Hit Confirm

That's it. Once you've added yourself, you can transfer money to your own bank account anytime — just "send money" to yourself.

Why Wise Instead of PayPal or Stripe?

Wise is a solid option for moving money around, especially internationally. Fees are low — and sometimes zero for US-to-US transfers. If you're working with international clients or receiving payments from overseas, the exchange rates are transparent and usually better than what your bank offers.

Give It a Nickname

After adding yourself as a recipient, you can nickname the account — something like "My UCCU checking" — so you know exactly where the money's going when you hit transfer.

Referral Program

Wise has a referral program where you can get your first transfers (up to $600) completely free — international or local. If you want to try it out, the link is in the video description.