Fees

Understanding gas fees, network costs, and who pays what.

Overview

JoPay's fee structure is straightforward. There are two types of costs involved in a payment: platform fees charged by JoPay and gas fees charged by the blockchain network.

Gas fees

Every blockchain transaction requires a small fee called gas, paid to the network validators who confirm the transaction. Gas fees vary by chain and network congestion.

Chain	Typical gas fee	Notes
Polygon	< $0.01	Lowest fees. Best for high-volume, low-value payments.
Base	< $0.01	Comparable to Polygon. Growing ecosystem.
Optimism	$0.01–$0.05	Low fees with Ethereum L2 security.
Arbitrum	$0.01–$0.05	Low fees with high throughput.
Ethereum	$1–$20+	Varies significantly with network congestion.

Gas fees are determined by the blockchain network, not by JoPay. They fluctuate based on network demand. The values above are typical ranges, not fixed prices.

Who pays gas fees

The party who initiates a blockchain transaction pays the gas fee. In JoPay's payment flow:

Action	Who initiates	Who pays gas
Customer sends USDC to merchant	Customer	Customer
Merchant withdraws / sends funds	Merchant	Merchant
Auto-forward to withdrawal address	Server (via embedded wallet)	Merchant (deducted from balance)
Recurring charge	Server (via embedded wallet)	Customer (deducted from charge amount)

Customers should be aware that they pay a small gas fee when sending USDC. On Polygon or Base, this is typically less than a cent. On Ethereum, it can be several dollars.

Platform fees

JoPay platform fees are configured at the partner level. Each partner sets their own fee structure for their merchants. Contact your partner to understand the specific fee schedule that applies to your account.

Platform fees, where applicable, are deducted from the payment amount or charged separately based on the partner's configuration.

No hidden fees

JoPay does not charge:

Account creation or setup fees
Monthly subscription fees
Per-transaction fees beyond what the partner configures
Currency conversion fees (FX rates are pass-through)
Withdrawal fees (gas only)

Minimizing fees

To keep costs as low as possible:

Use Polygon or Base: Gas fees on these chains are fractions of a cent, making them ideal for small or frequent payments.
Avoid Ethereum for small payments: A $5 gas fee on a $10 payment doesn't make sense. Reserve Ethereum for high-value transfers.
Batch withdrawals: If you send funds frequently, consider batching withdrawals to reduce the number of gas-paying transactions.