Hey HN! I built this over the weekend after getting frustrated with poor exchange rates.
The core idea: instead of converting USD→EUR directly, sometimes USD→GBP→EUR gives you more money due to rate inefficiencies between currency pairs.
Technical approach:
- Scrapes live rates from multiple sources every 60 seconds
- Builds a graph of all possible 2-hop paths (source→intermediate→target)
- Calculates final conversion amounts and sorts by best value
- Redis caching for sub-second response times
Real example from this morning:
- $10,000 USD → INR direct: ₹873,831 (rate: 87.38)
- Best route USD → TZS → INR: ₹881,876 (rate: 88.19)
- Extra money: ₹8,045 (~$92 or +1.49%)
The math: USD→TZS at 2520.55, then TZS→INR at 0.035 = effective rate of 88.19
Surprisingly, this works for many currency pairs. I've seen savings of 2-5% on EUR, GBP, AUD conversions.
The core idea: instead of converting USD→EUR directly, sometimes USD→GBP→EUR gives you more money due to rate inefficiencies between currency pairs.
Technical approach: - Scrapes live rates from multiple sources every 60 seconds - Builds a graph of all possible 2-hop paths (source→intermediate→target) - Calculates final conversion amounts and sorts by best value - Redis caching for sub-second response times
Real example from this morning: - $10,000 USD → INR direct: ₹873,831 (rate: 87.38) - Best route USD → TZS → INR: ₹881,876 (rate: 88.19) - Extra money: ₹8,045 (~$92 or +1.49%)
The math: USD→TZS at 2520.55, then TZS→INR at 0.035 = effective rate of 88.19
Surprisingly, this works for many currency pairs. I've seen savings of 2-5% on EUR, GBP, AUD conversions.
Tech stack: Next.js frontend, Node.js API, Redis cache, deployed on Vercel.
The tool is completely free - no signup, no ads, no data collection. Just want to help people save money on exchanges.
Would love feedback on the UX and if you find any interesting arbitrage opportunities!
Live at: bestcxroute.com