Why set an alert instead of checking every day?
A rate alert replaces a habit: opening a converter each morning to see whether the dollar or the euro has moved. If you have a payment to make in a few weeks — tuition, an invoice, a holiday deposit — you usually care about one number, not every wiggle. An alert watches that number for you and stays quiet until it matters.
Step 1: pick a target that can happen
Alerts fail most often because the target is unrealistic. Before you type a number:
- look at the pair's chart for the last few weeks (a Google search such as "usd to krw" shows one);
- note today's rate and the range it has moved in;
- choose a target inside or just beyond that range.
If the money must move by a certain date, decide what you will do if the alert never fires.
Step 2: set the alert in Chrome
With the Exchange Rate extension:
- Click its icon. The board opens in the side panel.
- Add the currency you are watching, if it is not there. The row shows its current rate against your
first currency, for example
1 USD = ₩…. - Click the 🔔 on that row. The extension shows today's rate and asks for your target.
- Type the rate you are waiting for. It works out by itself whether you are waiting for a rise or a fall, and says so under the field.
- Click Notify me. The first time, Chrome asks to allow notifications.
From then on the extension compares the target with every hourly rate update. When the rate reaches it, Chrome shows one notification and the alert is removed. Clicking the notification opens the board.
Alerts on a phone: Xe and Wise
If you want alerts while the computer is off, a phone app is the better tool:
- Xe — the Xe app and website offer rate alerts for a wide range of pairs, next to Xe's own charts and money transfers.
- Wise — rate alerts in the Wise app for the currencies Wise handles; you need a Wise account, and from the alert you can go straight to a transfer.
Both are honest choices, especially if you will send the money through them anyway. Our comparison: rate alerts in Xe, Wise and Exchange Rate.
When the alert fires
A reference rate reaching your target is a signal, not a guarantee. Banks, cards and transfer services add their own margin, so open the service you will use and look at its quote before you commit. Why your bank's rate differs from today's rate.