PayPal Fees and Exchange Rates [2026 Guide]
PayPal is a huge global online shopping and digital payment provider, with a presence in almost every country in the world. However, some of PayPal’s overseas fees can be high compared to other providers.
📌 To reduce the cost of spending and sending money overseas, consider alternatives such as Wise or OFX, that may offer cheaper overall costs.
➡️ In this article we’ll explain everything you need to know about PayPal fees, how they compare to alternative providers, and how to avoid high transaction costs.
PayPal fees: An overview 💡
If you’re spending online with a retailer based here in the US there’s no fee as long as no currency conversion is needed.
If you’re sending a payment domestically in USD, there are also options available to let you avoid PayPal fees entirely.
Simply pay with your PayPal balance, a linked bank account or an Amex Send account if you’re sending a domestic transfer.
Fees only creep in if you’re using another card to make your USD payment – in this case you’ll pay 2.9% + a fixed fee based on the currency involved (0.30 USD if you’re sending locally).
Where PayPal fees become unavoidable – and on the high side – is when you’re converting currencies or moving money across borders. Here’s what you’ll pay in this case:
| Payment type/fee | ➡️🌍 Send a personal PayPal payment overseas | 💻📱 Shop online internationally |
|---|---|---|
| Cross-border transaction fee | Applicable domestic transfer fee plus 5% (Minimum fee $0.99, maximum fee $4.99) | No fee |
| Exchange rate | 3% – 4% on top of the wholesale rate | 3% – 4% on top of the wholesale rate |
*Details correct at time of research – 2nd March 2026
The exact charges you pay when using PayPal may vary depending on how your account is set up, and your location. Check your account terms and conditions to learn more before you get started.
Once you add up all the PayPal fees that apply to your international transaction, you may be surprised by how much it pushes up your overall costs.
💡 We’ll dive into this a little more later – and look at alternative providers like Wise and OFX, which may present a cheaper alternative for your payment.
PayPal currency conversion fee 💱🌎
PayPal adds a 3% – 4% markup fee to the conversion rate used to switch your dollars to the currency you need whenever you send a payment overseas or shop with an international retailer.
What this means is that PayPal takes the wholesale or mid-market exchange rates on the day of conversion or the previous business day, and adds this markup to calculate the rate used for your transaction. 📌
This makes it difficult for the user to see the full costs of the transfer, whether these are charged to their own bank account or to that of the beneficiary.
How to find PayPal’s exchange rate
📌 You can check the PayPal exchange rate of the day by following these steps:
- Go to “Wallet”
- Open the menu to the right of any currency balance and select “Convert Currency”
- Select the desired currency and click “Next”
- Enter the remittance amount to check the exchange rate
When sending money with a credit card or a debit card, you can choose to use the card issuer’s exchange rate.
However, it is impossible to know the exchange rate used at the time of remittance immediately, and the exchange rate used at that time cannot be checked until the bank issues the monthly statement.
PayPal transaction fees
The PayPal transaction fee applies when you sell products and services in-store or online.
There are different rates for each type of transaction. You might also hear this fee described as a payment processing fee, or seller fee.
💡 The exact fees you pay will depend on whether the transaction is considered domestic or international, and the payment method.
There are lots of different ways to get paid as a seller with PayPal, so you’ll need to check out the full details online if you’re looking to compare all the alternatives – but here are the standard PayPal transaction fees for some of the most popular types of payment method:
| Payment type | Domestic US | International |
|---|---|---|
| ⬇️ Receive money for goods/services | 2.99% | 2.99% + 1.5% international fee |
| 💳 Receive payments by credit or debit card | 2.99% + fixed fee (0.49 USD if you’re paid locally) | 2.99% + fixed fee based on currency + 1.5% international fee |
| ➡️ PayPal Checkout/Guest Checkout | 3.49% + fixed fee (0.49 USD if you’re paid locally) | 3.49% + fixed fee based on currency + 1.5% international fee |
| 📱 Pay with Venmo | 3.49% + fixed fee (0.49 USD if you’re paid locally) | Not usually available |
*Details correct at time of research – 2nd March 2026
PayPal withdrawal fees
Once you have money in your PayPal account you may want to withdraw it to your US bank account or card.
There may be a fee for this service, depending on exactly how you want to process the withdrawal.
📌 Here are the PayPal US withdrawal fees for consumer accounts:
| Withdrawal type | PayPal Consumer fees |
|---|---|
| Standard withdrawal to local bank account | No fee as long as no currency conversion required |
| Instant withdrawal to local bank account | 1.75% Currency conversion fees apply if PayPal funds are held in a foreign currency |
| Withdraw to a linked card | 1.75% Currency conversion fees apply if PayPal funds are held in a foreign currency |
| Have a check mailed to you | 1.5 USD |
| Currency conversion fee | 3% – 4% |
*Details correct at time of research – 2nd March 2026
The options available and the fees you’ll pay vary if you have a PayPal merchant account and want to make a withdrawal. Here’s what you need to know:
| Withdrawal type | PayPal Merchant fees |
|---|---|
| Standard withdrawal to local bank account | No fee as long as no currency conversion required |
| Instant withdrawal to local bank account | 1.5% Currency conversion fees apply if PayPal funds are held in a foreign currency |
| Withdraw to a linked card | 1.5% Currency conversion fees apply if PayPal funds are held in a foreign currency |
| Currency conversion fee | 3% – 4% |
*Details correct at time of research – 2nd March 2026
How much are PayPal seller fees?
PayPal seller fees vary based on the type of transaction. Usually you’ll find costs of 2.99% to 3.49% + 1.5% international fee if the payment is made from abroad.
Other PayPal fees
In addition to the fees mentioned in the table above, PayPal also applies optional fees to business accounts for online card payment and services, like Chargeback Protection or Advanced Fraud Protection.
- Chargeback Protection – protect yourself against fraudulent chargebacks on card payments, from 0.4% per payment
- Advanced Fraud Protection – helps business and enterprise customers stay ahead of fraudsters using data driven insights, from 0.07 USD/transaction
PayPal fees: A comparison
Choosing an international payment specialist like PayPal may be cheaper than sending money using your bank. However, it’s still worth comparing the available fees and rates.
Before you send money overseas with PayPal, compare the fees and rates on offer to other providers. Let’s look at how a few different payments from well-established providers in the market work out: Wise and OFX.
| Payment/provider | With Wise recipient gets: | With OFX recipient gets: | ⭐️ Which is cheaper? |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 USD to GBP | 743.22 GBP | 732.05 GBP | Wise |
| 5,000 USD to GBP | 3,724.46 GBP | 3,715.36 GBP | Wise |
| 1,000 USD to EUR | 848.31 EUR | 833.74 EUR | Wise |
| 5,000 USD to EUR | 4,247.10 EUR | 4,230.26 EUR | Wise |
*Details correct at time of research – 2nd March 2026
Wise and OFX are both cheap and efficient options to send money abroad – to see how their costs compare to PayPal you’ll need to have a look in your PayPal app to get a live quote, and then enter your details into an online comparison tool like those we have on Exiap to see which is best.
💡 Tip: Specialist services like these also tend to offer their own specific competitive advantages. For example,
- Wise also offers the Wise multi-currency account and the Wise Multi-Currency Card which you can use to hold and exchange 40+ currencies with the mid-market exchange rate, and spend in 150+ countries around the world.
- OFX on the other hand offers currency risk management solutions to individuals and businesses with a 24/7 phone service when you need support or advice.
⚠️ Note: If you are interested in sending high amount transfers, PayPal transfer limits may apply.
Is PayPal free to send money internationally?
No. Sending money overseas with PayPal has a charge of 5% (Minimum fee $0.99, maximum fee $4.99) + conversion fee of 3% or 4% on top of the wholesale rate.
PayPal fees for receiving money internationally 🌎
PayPal doesn’t have fees to receive a payment to your account as a friends and family transfer – that is, when the payment is not for goods and services. This is the case if you’re splitting a bill with friends for example. However, if you’re paid in one currency and need to convert your balance to a different currency, the PayPal conversion fee will apply.
| Payment type | PayPal personal account international fee |
|---|---|
| Receive money | No fee to receive a payment |
| Currency conversion | 3% or 4% depending on when and how you convert |
*Details correct at time of research – 2nd March 2026
Alternatives to PayPal for receiving international payments
Digital specialist services can allow you to receive incoming payments conveniently, including with local account information. This may mean the sender has low or no fee to pay, and you can receive your money with no additional cost in a selection of currencies.
Here are a few providers to consider:
| Provider | 💡 Great for |
|---|---|
| Wise | Get local account details in 8+ currencies, and SWIFT account details in 20+ currencies to receive payments easily. There are no fees to receive payments with local account details (except USD wires) and there are low, fixed fees for incoming SWIFT transfers. |
| Revolut
| Receive to your Revolut account with local account information to get paid in USD and GBP, and SWIFT information for other incoming currencies. No Revolut fees apply on incoming payments. |
| OFX | Business account holders can receive payments in 4 currencies with local account information, with no international transaction fees and competitive rates. |
*About Wise pricing: Please see Terms of Use for your region or visit Wise Fees & Pricing for the most up to date pricing and fee information.
How to avoid PayPal international fees?
Let’s look at some tips on how to help lower the cost when using PayPal to send payments or shop internationally.
- If you send money internationally with PayPal, the fee minimum and maximum caps make this a better value option if you send one single payment versus several smaller ones
- Try to avoid using your credit or debit card with PayPal where possible as this often means extra fees to pay
- Look at your PayPal currency conversion options carefully – the charge varies depending on the transaction type, so you may find it’s cheaper to switch currency within your account before making your payment for example
- PayPal merchant transaction fees vary according to the way your customers pay – check out which works best for your business as you may be able to minimize fees here
- Consider using alternatives to PayPal to process your payments, like Wise or OFX
Conclusion: PayPal foreign transaction fees
PayPal is easy for both business customers and personal customers to use. It’s also extremely commonly used and globally accepted.
If you’re a merchant or business customer, the benefits of offering PayPal payments may outweigh the fees you pay, at least for domestic transactions. But if you’re making or receiving regular international transactions for business or personal use, you may want to compare PayPal to a few other providers which could offer lower fees and better exchange rates, with just as convenient and quick a service.
On our Exiap comparison page, you’ll find the best deals to send your money abroad depending on the currency and amount that you need to exchange.
You can find more information on PayPal’s fees on their pricing page here.
PayPal fees FAQs
How much are PayPal fees?
PayPal fees vary depending on your account type and the specific transaction.
Domestic fees are often low, with many transactions completely fee free to personal customers. However, international payments can be more costly: sending money overseas has a charge of 5% (Minimum fee $0.99, maximum fee $4.99) + conversion fee of 3% or 4% on top of the wholesale rate.
How can I avoid PayPal fees?
Cut the costs of using PayPal domestically by sticking to USD payments funded from your bank account or PayPal balance. To avoid PayPal’s fees when sending money internationally, pick an alternative provider which offers lower charges and a better exchange rate.
How can I send money with PayPal without fees?
Send domestic PayPal payments from your linked bank account or PayPal balance fee free. For international payments you’ll need to pick a different provider to avoid PayPal fees, as charges apply to all payment methods.
How do I avoid PayPal conversion fees?
Avoid PayPal conversion fees by sticking to local USD transactions only – or pick a different provider like Wise or OFX when you need to send or spend in a foreign currency.
Sources:
Information last checked – 2nd March 2026:
