See exactly what PayPal takes on a Goods & Services payment, domestic or international, and what you'll actually receive.
For Goods & Services payments, PayPal charges 2.99% + $0.49 domestically. International payments jump to 4.99% + $0.49, and if the payment requires currency conversion, PayPal adds a further 3.5% on top of the exchange rate.
The jump from 2.99% to 4.99% plus a 3.5% conversion markup means an international payment with currency conversion can cost 3-4x more in fees than the same domestic payment — on a $500 payment, that's roughly $15 versus $50+.
A $500 international payment requiring currency conversion: 4.99% ($24.95) + $0.49 + 3.5% conversion ($17.50) = $42.94 in total fees. You'd receive $457.06 — about 8.6% gone to fees.
Does this apply to Friends & Family payments? No — Friends & Family payments funded by a bank account or PayPal balance are typically fee-free domestically. This calculator is for Goods & Services (business) transactions, which always carry a fee.
Can I avoid the currency conversion fee? Only by having a PayPal balance or bank account already in the buyer's currency, which most individual sellers don't have set up — for most people receiving international payments, the conversion fee is unavoidable through PayPal.
Are there cheaper alternatives for international payments? Often yes — services like Wise are built specifically to minimize currency conversion costs and can be significantly cheaper for cross-border payments. See the payment processor comparison tool.