Here’s one area where Europe is nice.
PayPal Fees Are Insane
11–20 of 33 posts
Re: PayPal Fees Are Insane
#12You're getting hit with basically the same %% fees credit card companies charge PayPal's very clear on this (as is Stripe, etc) The only "feeless" transfer service I know is Zelle ... but there's also no recourse if you transfer money to the wrong target, the product doesn't arrive, etc
In Australia the Reserve Bank publishes the average cost of acceptance by card type.
As of 2019 the published rates are 0.5-1% for Visa and Mastercard (lower end for debit, higher for credit) and 1.4% for American Express. They are basically all dropping over time, not going up. This includes terminal rental, monthly fees, etc.
PayPal charges 2.6% plus a fixed $0.30 fee for domestic + another 1% for international. Stripe by comparison charges 1.75% domestic and 2.9% international. PayPal still charges this fee even if someone funds it from a much cheaper bank account or their PayPal balance. BrainTree, a subsiduary of PayPal for many years.. charges 1.75% + $0.30. Go figure :)
PayPal also has a fairly good anti-fraud measure that many others lose out on in that it does not let you submit a payment with a credit card associated with a PayPal account, without actually logging into said PayPal account.
PayPal has historically always had quite a high percentage, operating off brand I think and owing to easy integration options.
I'm sure there is some more complexity here I'm missing but in general, PayPal fees have always been significantly higher than the competition in Australia.
Also worth noting unlike the US, in Australia we have totally free transfers between all australian bank accounts - same system, every bank, 0 fee. So Paypal here is really only used primarily as a merchant facility for your website. The inter-person payment part has a much lower use rate than the USA.
Re: PayPal Fees Are Insane
#13You're getting hit with basically the same %% fees credit card companies charge PayPal's very clear on this (as is Stripe, etc) The only "feeless" transfer service I know is Zelle ... but there's also no recourse if you transfer money to the wrong target, the product doesn't arrive, etc
In Australia the Reserve Bank publishes the average cost of acceptance by card type. As of 2019 the published rates are 0.5-1% for Visa and Mastercard (lower end for debit, higher for credit) and 1.4% for American Express. They are basically all dropping over time, not going up. This includes terminal rental, monthly fees, etc. PayPal charges 2.6% plus a fixed $0.30 fee for domestic + another 1% for international. St…
Despite the hate paypal gets, and the high fees i have multiple times been saved by having them in between me and the seller, its something i dont mind paying abit extra for the clawback system is pretty decent.
Re: PayPal Fees Are Insane
#14Your crypto transaction fees did not incorporate conversion risk.
So, for example, if you transferred crypto, but the value of crypto fell by 10%, that expense to the recipient could be far greater than the 5% fee you paid. Alternatively, if the value rose by 10%, then the cost to you as a sender is far greater than the 5% fee you paid.
And crypto is extremely volatile, so your exchange risk is also extremely high.
Re: PayPal Fees Are Insane
#15Your crypto transaction fees did not incorporate conversion risk. So, for example, if you transferred crypto, but the value of crypto fell by 10%, that expense to the recipient could be far greater than the 5% fee you paid. Alternatively, if the value rose by 10%, then the cost to you as a sender is far greater than the 5% fee you paid. And crypto is extremely volatile, so your exchange risk is also extremely high.
Unless you're using stable coins.
Re: PayPal Fees Are Insane
#16Your crypto transaction fees did not incorporate conversion risk. So, for example, if you transferred crypto, but the value of crypto fell by 10%, that expense to the recipient could be far greater than the 5% fee you paid. Alternatively, if the value rose by 10%, then the cost to you as a sender is far greater than the 5% fee you paid. And crypto is extremely volatile, so your exchange risk is also extremely high.
Unless you're using stable coins.
Which doesn't help when your exchange steals your stable coins.
Re: PayPal Fees Are Insane
#17Earlier quoted context omitted.
Wise.
Wise varies rapidly depending on your input and receipt country. They charge around 6% in many places. Better to send USDC and convert to the local currency once the USDC is at the destination.
Agreed, I know Wise keeps getting mentioned but they are very expensive. Seems like every 1-2 months they also restructure/tweak their pricing as well.
Re: PayPal Fees Are Insane
#18You're getting hit with basically the same %% fees credit card companies charge PayPal's very clear on this (as is Stripe, etc) The only "feeless" transfer service I know is Zelle ... but there's also no recourse if you transfer money to the wrong target, the product doesn't arrive, etc
In Australia the Reserve Bank publishes the average cost of acceptance by card type. As of 2019 the published rates are 0.5-1% for Visa and Mastercard (lower end for debit, higher for credit) and 1.4% for American Express. They are basically all dropping over time, not going up. This includes terminal rental, monthly fees, etc. PayPal charges 2.6% plus a fixed $0.30 fee for domestic + another 1% for international. St…
Paypal in USA charges 3.49% for domestic!
Re: PayPal Fees Are Insane
#19Re: PayPal Fees Are Insane
#20You're getting hit with basically the same %% fees credit card companies charge PayPal's very clear on this (as is Stripe, etc) The only "feeless" transfer service I know is Zelle ... but there's also no recourse if you transfer money to the wrong target, the product doesn't arrive, etc
It's not just fees. Its the currency conversion spreads they offer which are just as bad and fluctuate wildly depending on the country.