Send money to Tanzania

Sendwave and WorldRemit offer competitive rates for M-Pesa delivery to Tanzania, often with zero upfront fees. For bank deposits, Wise tends to have the tightest exchange rate margin. Fund from a bank account rather than a debit or credit card to keep costs at their minimum.

Yes. Multiple providers including WorldRemit, Remitly, and Sendwave deliver directly to Vodacom M-Pesa wallets in Tanzania. Enter the recipient's Vodacom number (starting with 074, 075, or 076) and the shillings arrive within minutes. The recipient can withdraw at any M-Pesa agent kiosk.

M-Pesa and Airtel Money transfers typically arrive in under five minutes. Bank deposits to NMB, CRDB, or Stanbic take 1–2 business days. Cash pickup at Western Union locations in Dar es Salaam or Arusha is usually available within one hour.

You'll need the recipient's full name, bank name (CRDB, NMB, Stanbic, etc.), branch name, and local account number. Tanzania does not use IBAN. Some providers also request the bank's SWIFT/BIC code for international routing.

Yes. After the Tigo-Airtel merger, Airtel Money Tanzania absorbed Tigo Pesa customers and is now supported by WorldRemit and other providers. Recipients on the Airtel network (numbers starting with 068 or 069) can receive funds directly in their Airtel Money wallet.

Western Union and MoneyGram maintain agent networks in all major Tanzanian cities. Your recipient visits an agent location with their national ID (NIDA card) or passport plus the transaction reference number. Cash pickup is especially important for recipients in rural areas without mobile money access.

Tanzania does not tax incoming personal remittances. However, a mobile money levy of up to TZS 4,000 per withdrawal applies to mobile wallet cash-outs above certain thresholds. This affects what your recipient nets when converting mobile money to physical cash, so it's worth factoring in for larger transfers.

The Tanzanian shilling is managed by the Bank of Tanzania and tends to depreciate gradually rather than move in sharp swings. Provider markups range from 1% to 3% over the mid-market rate. Because TZS values are very large numerically (1 USD is roughly 2,500 TZS), even small rate differences translate to noticeable shilling amounts.

WorldRemit and Sendwave lead on mobile money delivery to M-Pesa and Airtel Money. Western Union dominates cash pickup. Wise and XE offer competitive bank deposit rates. For recipients in Dar es Salaam, any delivery method works well; for rural recipients, M-Pesa agent coverage is your most reliable bet.