Crypto payment gateways offer significantly lower transaction fees than traditional processors like credit cards or bank transfers by eliminating intermediaries. Traditional payment systems involve multiple parties—banks, card networks (Visa/Mastercard), and payment processors—each charging fees that can total 2-4% per transaction, plus fixed costs. In contrast, crypto transactions are peer-to-peer, settling directly on the blockchain without intermediaries.
Key reasons for lower fees:
No Intermediary Markups: Crypto bypasses banks and card networks, avoiding their processing and currency conversion fees.
Flat Network Fees: Blockchain transactions typically cost cents (e.g., Bitcoin Lightning Network or Solana transactions can be under $0.01), unlike percentage-based credit card fees.
No Chargeback Costs: Crypto’s irreversible transactions remove fraud-related chargeback fees, which cost merchants
1.50
–
1.50–3.00 per dispute.
Borderless Savings: Traditional cross-border payments incur hefty forex and wire fees (5–10%), while crypto charges the same low fee globally.
For example, a Shopify merchant paying 2.9% + $0.30 per card sale might pay just 0.5–1% with a crypto gateway. However, fees vary by blockchain—Ethereum’s gas fees can spike, whereas stablecoin networks (like BSC) offer consistency. By cutting overhead, crypto gateways empower businesses, especially in high-volume or international trade, to retain more revenue.