PayPal Fee Calculator
With payment amount 100 USD, paypal fee comes to $96.02 — you receive. It is reached in 5 steps, the last of which is 100 - 3.98, and each one is printed on the page with its numbers filled in. The formula is the one published by PayPal US merchant fees, not an approximation fitted to it.
What PayPal takes from a payment and what reaches you, on the US rates published 1 September 2026 — plus the amount to invoice to net a target figure.
Formula and sources checked · How we check
Payment amount 100, Payment type PayPal Checkout or invoice — 3.49% + $0.49, Where the payer is United States
$96.02
You receive for the example below. Editing a field recomputes the calculator below; this figure holds the answer the page was loaded with.
It is written into the HTML rather than drawn by a script, so a search engine reading this page without running JavaScript still finds an answer.
- Fixed fee
0 * 0 + 0 * 0.09 + 0 * 0.09 + (1 + 0 + 0 + 0) * 0.490.49 USD- PayPal takes
100 * 0.0349 + 0.493.98 USD- You receive
100 - 3.9896.02 USD- Effective rate on this payment
3.98 / 100 * 1003.98 %- Invoice this much to net the amount above
(100 + 0.49) / (1 - 0.0349)104.124 USD
Ask about this in the chatPayPal Fee Chart
Worked example
A $100 PayPal Checkout payment costs $3.98 and lands as $96.02. To actually receive $100 you have to invoice $104.13 — adding 3.98 back is not enough, because the fee is charged on the larger figure too.
How to work it out yourself
- 1.Pick the payment type carefully. Goods and services sent from the Send Money screen is 2.99% with no fixed fee; a PayPal Checkout button on a website is 3.49% + $0.49. On $20 that is a 60-cent difference.
- 2.Add 1.50% for a payer outside the US. It applies on top of the domestic rate, so an international Checkout payment is 4.99% + $0.49.
- 3.Use the gross-up line when a client has agreed to cover the fee. Adding the fee to the invoice undercharges, because the fee applies to the new total as well.
- 4.Apply for Micropayments pricing if your typical sale is under about $12. Below that, 4.99% + $0.09 beats the standard rate; above it, it costs more.
- 5.Friends-and-family payments are free from a PayPal balance or bank account. They cost 2.90% + $0.49 from a card, and using them for a real sale voids buyer and seller protection for both sides.
PayPal Checkout fee by payment size
| Payment amount (USD) | You receive | PayPal takes | Effective rate on this payment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | $4.34 | 0.66 USD | 13.29 % |
| 10 | $9.16 | 0.84 USD | 8.39 % |
| 20 | $18.81 | 1.19 USD | 5.94 % |
| 25 | $23.64 | 1.36 USD | 5.45 % |
| 50 | $47.77 | 2.24 USD | 4.47 % |
| 100 | $96.02 | 3.98 USD | 3.98 % |
| 250 | $240.79 | 9.22 USD | 3.69 % |
| 500 | $482.06 | 17.94 USD | 3.59 % |
| 1000 | $964.61 | 35.39 USD | 3.54 % |
| 2500 | $2,412.26 | 87.74 USD | 3.51 % |
| 5000 | $4,825.01 | 174.99 USD | 3.5 % |
The fixed 49 cents dominates small payments: on $5 the effective rate is 13.3%, on $500 it is 3.6%. That is the entire reason Micropayments pricing exists — 4.99% + $0.09 beats 3.49% + $0.49 on anything under about $12.
The formula
- Fixed fee
0 * 0 + 0 * 0.09 + 0 * 0.09 + (1 + 0 + 0 + 0) * 0.49 - PayPal takes
100 * 0.0349 + 0.49 - You receive
100 - 3.98 - Effective rate on this payment
3.98 / 100 * 100 - Invoice this much to net the amount above
(100 + 0.49) / (1 - 0.0349)
Source: PayPal US merchant fees — commercial transaction rates, last updated 1 September 2026, PayPal US consumer fees — personal transaction rates
Questions people actually ask
- How much does PayPal take from $100?
- $3.98 on the standard US Checkout rate of 3.49% + $0.49, leaving $96.02. Goods-and-services payments sent through Send Money are 2.99% flat, which is $2.99 and leaves $97.01.
- How do I charge the client the PayPal fee?
- Divide rather than add. To net $100 at 3.49% + $0.49, invoice ($100 + $0.49) ÷ (1 − 0.0349) = $104.13. Simply adding $3.98 gets you $99.86, because the fee is recharged on the extra amount too.
- Is there a way to avoid PayPal fees?
- Not for a genuine sale. Friends-and-family transfers are free from a balance or bank account, but using them for goods removes buyer and seller protection, breaches the user agreement, and leaves you with no recourse when a payment is reversed. Micropayments pricing is the legitimate saving for small sales.
- Why did PayPal charge more than the rate says?
- Usually the 1.50% international surcharge, or a currency conversion. Conversion is priced separately and applied on top, and PayPal's exchange rate carries its own spread — so an overseas payment converted to dollars can cost noticeably more than 4.99% + $0.49.
- What are Micropayments and should I use them?
- A pricing plan of 4.99% + $0.09 you apply for on an account. The lower fixed fee wins below roughly $12 a sale, and the higher percentage loses above it. Because it applies to the whole account, it is worth it only if small payments are most of your volume.
- Does PayPal charge to receive personal payments?
- No, when no currency conversion is involved. Sending is free from a balance or bank account and 2.90% + $0.49 from a card. Internationally the sender pays 5.00%, with a minimum of $0.99 and a maximum of $4.99.
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