Stablecoin Accepted

Network fees when paying with USDT: who pays and why amounts arrive short

Sending USDT or USDC involves two separate costs: what the merchant charges, and what the network charges to move the coins. Mixing them up is a common reason an invoice ends up underpaid. This page explains the mechanics only; it is not financial advice and quotes no fee levels, because they change.

The network fee

  • Every transfer pays a fee to the network it runs on. The sender pays it, not the merchant.
  • The fee is normally paid in the network’s own coin, not in USDT. A wallet holding only USDT on a network may be unable to send until it also holds a little of that network’s coin. See which network is which.
  • Fees differ a lot between networks, and on some they vary with congestion. Check the fee your wallet shows before you confirm.

Sending from an exchange

  • Exchanges usually charge a fixed withdrawal fee per network, and some deduct it from the amount you enter.
  • If the invoice says 50 and the exchange takes its fee out of the 50, the merchant receives less than 50 and the order can show as underpaid.
  • Read the “amount received” line on the withdrawal screen, and raise the amount so the merchant receives at least the invoice total.

What the merchant sees

  • Invoices are matched against the amount that arrives at the address. The fee you paid on top does not count towards the invoice.
  • Some payment processors accept a small shortfall; many do not. Do not rely on it.
  • If you have underpaid, our payment problems guide lists what to do, starting with contacting the merchant’s support with the transaction hash.

Before you send

  1. Confirm the network on the invoice and in your wallet match.
  2. Make sure you hold enough of the network’s coin to cover the fee.
  3. Check that the amount the recipient gets, after any exchange fee, covers the invoice.
  4. Send before the timer ends. The how to pay checklist has the full list.

Looking for a service that takes stablecoins? Browse the verified directory. If a listing is out of date, tell us.