The Circle Exchange Rate is the mid-market rate.
Sending and receiving money on the internet should be safe, private, easy, fun, instant, and as free as possible.
That’s why we use the mid-market rate, or what others call the “real” exchange rate, whenever customers go between currencies. We don’t charge fees on top of the Circle Exchange Rate (hidden or otherwise), and no markup will be added on top of this "real" exchange rate.
This “real” exchange rate is what you’ll find on Google, Yahoo Finance, and XE. It's also what banks use behind the scenes before they add a bunch of fees of their own.
Using Currencies
All customers have the ability to send or request money using all of the currencies we support. If you send to a friend and it goes between currencies, we’ll let you know what amount they’ll receive.
Some Circle customers can switch the currency they hold in their account, depending on where they live. If you can’t currently switch your balance between currencies and you would like to have that ability, please let us know.
Public Rate API
Circle does not yet have a public rate API. But if you’re interested in something like this, please let us know.
If you’re thinking, is this too good to be true?
The answer is: it’s really good, and it’s really true! Circle is built on the idea that money should be like the internet—accessible, empowering, and instant. We don’t want anything to get between our customers and that vision. If you can easily and instantly send a goofy video to your friend half-way across the world with no fees and no worries, sending money should be just as easy. No one should get between you and your money. It may seem unique and unprecedented, but that is exactly what we are trying to accomplish.