PayPal International Fee Calculator (2026): Cross-Border + Conversion Fees

Fee Comparison

Domestic vs International PayPal Fees — USA

Amount	Domestic Fee	International Fee	Extra Cost
$50	$2.24	$2.99	+$0.75
$100	$3.98	$5.48	+$1.50
$250	$9.21	$12.96	+$3.75
$500	$17.94	$25.44	+$7.50
$1,000	$35.39	$50.39	+$15.00
$2,500	$87.74	$125.24	+$37.50

By country

PayPal international fees by country (October 2026)

PayPal's extra charge for cross-border payments depends on where you (the seller) are based and where the buyer is. These are PayPal's published standard rates for commercial payments, checked against each country's PayPal fees page:

Your country	Domestic rate	Extra for foreign buyers	Currency conversion
🇺🇸 USA	3.49% + $0.49 (Checkout)	+1.5%	4%
🇬🇧 UK	2.9% + £0.30	+1.29% (EEA) · +1.99% (other)	3%
🇨🇦 Canada	2.9% + CA$0.30	+0.8% (US) · +1% (other)	4%
🇦🇺 Australia	2.9% + A$0.30	+1%	3%
🇩🇪 Germany	2.99% + €0.39 (Checkout)	+0% (EEA) · +1.29% (UK) · +1.99% (other)	3%

A worked example

A US freelancer invoices a client in Canada for $1,000 through PayPal Checkout. The standard fee is $35.39 (3.49% + $0.49). Because the buyer is abroad, PayPal adds 1.5% — another $15.00 — for a total of $50.39. If the client pays in Canadian dollars and PayPal converts it to US dollars for you, the 4% conversion spread is built into the exchange rate, which on $1,000 is roughly another $40.

How to pay less on international PayPal payments

Invoice in your own currency when the client agrees, so PayPal has nothing to convert on your side.
Hold the foreign currency in your PayPal balance if you'll spend it in that currency later, instead of converting every payment.
For large invoices, offer a bank transfer through a service like Wise as an alternative — it's often much cheaper on big amounts.
Compare with Stripe: a US Stripe account charges 2.9% + 30¢, +1.5% for international cards and +1% for conversion — see Stripe vs PayPal.

Source: PayPal merchant fee pages for the US, UK, Canada, Australia and Germany. Standard rates only; PayPal may show a different conversion rate during a transaction.

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

PayPal adds a 1.5% international transaction fee on top of the standard rate when the sender and receiver are in different countries. In the USA, an international payment costs 3.49% + 1.5% + $0.49 = approximately 4.99% + $0.49 total.

Yes. PayPal adds a 1.5% international fee when money crosses country borders, plus a currency conversion spread (4% for US accounts, 3% in the UK, Australia and Germany) if currencies differ. These fees combine to make international PayPal payments significantly more expensive than domestic ones.

Wise is significantly cheaper for international transfers — charging 0.4-2% at the mid-market rate vs PayPal's combined 5%+ for international payments. Stripe US charges +1.5% for international cards and +1% for currency conversion.

International PayPal fee = Standard rate (3.49% + $0.49) + International fee (1.5%) + Currency conversion spread (4% for US accounts, if applicable). Our calculator above handles this automatically for any amount.

PayPal charges the international fee to the recipient (seller). The 1.5% international surcharge is deducted from the amount you receive, not added to what the buyer pays.