Finance
ACH vs Wire Transfer
ACH is a batch bank-to-bank transfer that settles in 1 to 3 business days for a few cents; a wire settles the same day for $15 to $50.
ACH (Automated Clearing House) is the low-cost, batch-processed rail that carries most everyday business payments in the U.S. — payroll direct deposit, vendor payments, customer collections. Transfers typically settle in 1 to 3 business days at $0.25 to $3 per transaction. Same-day ACH is available for a modest premium.
Wire transfers move funds in real time from your bank to the recipient's bank, usually within hours. They cost $15 to $50 outgoing and $10 to $30 incoming. Wires are used when timing matters — real-estate closings, large vendor payments, M&A funding — and when the recipient's bank does not accept ACH.
The critical difference for owners: wires are final and irrevocable. Once the money leaves, you cannot claw it back. ACH transactions have a limited reversal window for unauthorized debits.
Common pitfalls
- Approving a wire based on an emailed instruction change — this is the classic business email compromise scam and the money is gone once sent
- Using wires for routine vendor payments where ACH would work — $30 a wire adds up fast
- Forgetting that ACH takes days to clear and running into overdrafts when the timing does not match your bank balance expectations
- Not requiring dual approval on outgoing wires above a threshold — a single-signer wire is a fraud waiting to happen
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