I am going to teach you how I have been using XOOM Money Transfers here in Buenos Aires!
The money situation in Argentina is kind of sticky! You never know what’s going to happen with the exchange rate as it goes up and down every day, sometimes very drastically. With the change of government in December 2015 came free market policies that replaced a long history of trade protectionism. This allowed Argentineans to buy and sell other currencies, such as the USD, legally at any bank or money house. Now, after the mid-term elections of 2019, inflation is soaring, causing the official exchange rate to fluctuate drastically. Now in September 2019, the current administration has taken steps to stabilize the economy by imposing capital controls in hopes of preventing a national default on foreign investments. Some ATMs are only stocked every Monday morning so it’s not uncommon to see a sea of people waiting in line to withdraw. I still use XOOM to send money to myself from my American bank account to receive Argentine Pesos here in Buenos Aires.
Here are some reasons I don’t withdraw money from ATMs and still send money to myself from the United States:
It is not uncommon for travelers to come to Buenos Aires “unprepared.” They come with a few hundred USD in cash and assume they can simply use a credit or debit card under any circumstances. At any case, I would not necessarily recommend taking out money from the ATM or swiping that credit card too freely (even if you have a card from the United States that does not charge a foreign transaction fee). Why? Because most places (restaurants and stores alike) only accept cash. Given the unpredictable nature of Argentina’s economy, businesses prefer cash payments as they can actually lose money due to inflation on card transactions. I have a handful of expat friends that had their information compromised at an ATM and had to contact the bank in their country of origin to secure their account. In order to avoid this, think of Argentina as a cash-only country.
Banks in Argentina do charge for an ATM withdrawal. It is possible to contest these fees with your bank at home, but then again, why bother calling customer service while studying abroad in Buenos Aires? In addition, ATMs have a maximum withdrawl amount that various depending on the exchange rate. In my opinion, it’s more than worth it to avoid the hassle.
To use XOOM, you will need to download the XOOM App on your mobile phone, or go to XOOM‘s official website. The registration process is self-explanitory and user-friendly.
Let’s say you’ve already set up your bank account, debit or credit card. It will take a couple of days to approve your account, but it is immediate if you use your debit card. Then, simply press “Send Money” to start a transaction.
Remember that credit or debit cards have a bigger fee per transaction, 
compared if you set up your XOOM account directly from your bank account which is around 5 USD less (these fees of course depends on how much are you sending, if you are transferring more than 100 USD, is usually more, etc).
The picture shows the mobile app setup and the difference between the fees when wanting to transfer 100 USD to ARS. It is more convenient to wait those couple of days until they approve your bank account, in the end you will be saving money!
In my experience, XOOM is very reliable. On the website or the app, you will always see how much your card or account is going to be charged. My home bank will charge 5 USD per ATM withdrawal outside my bank and 2% per swipe outside the U.S.A, and on top of that banks in Buenos Aires will charge a standard ATM withdrawal fee of around 80 ARS, so for me XOOM is still the best option to pinch a few pennies! After that, just swipe to the right to confirm the transfer!
To pick it up your money transfer, there are many differet options around the city. The address for the main location (and the most reliable) is
Libertad 1057. This location is convenitently at the intersection of Av. Santa Fe and Libertad, just a block before reaching Av. 9 de julio. This store is their headquarters, so in order to avoid any problems, I suggest going directly there!
The hours for this location are Monday – Friday, 10am – 6pm. It is possible to call ahead and ask if your transfer is available, however, I have never had any trouble once I received the confirmation email stating my transfer is ready for pickup. The only two requirements for picking up your transfer are the following: your passport and the confirmation code you receive via email. Picking up for the first time will require a little extra time to confirm your personal information, but it will be a quick stop in the future after this step is complete.
One transfer takes about 30 minutes to be available in Buenos Aires. I have yet to find a way to pick up money on a Saturday or Sunday, so always plan ahead. Even from XOOM pickup locations that are open on the weekends, they always need to verify with the one on Libertad to release your transfer, and since they are only open M-F, they will NOT give you the money. This is obviously very frustrating, so plan accordingly.
One very important thing to note is that XOOM only works with bank accounts and cards issued in the United States. Rumor has it that there is a similar version of XOOM for Europeans, but I have never found it. In my opinion, XOOM is better than other companies such as MoneyGram or Western Union as the competition charges incredibly high transaction fees and especially because these a third party must physically send you the money. This means that if you are studying abroad with Mente Argentina, someone else in the US (family, friends) wil have to transfer under their name for you to pick up here. With XOOM, it is easy and independent and you don’t have to ask favors from anyone.
I hope this information helps you to get the most bang for your buck in Buenos Aires if you come to do one of the Mente Argentina Programs. Be prepared to bring as much cash as you can before you arrive and take advantage of XOOM!
Rewritten by: Rachel Orga