Glossary

What is a network fee (gas)?

Also known as network fee network fees gas fee gas fees gas miner fee

In short

The network fee — often called gas — is what a blockchain charges to process a transaction. It goes to the network that validates the transfer, not to the recipient and not to the payment provider.

Every transfer competes for limited space in the next block, and the fee is the bid. Pay more and the transaction is picked up sooner; pay less and it waits. Fees are always charged in the network’s own asset — ETH on Ethereum, TRX on Tron, BTC on Bitcoin — even when the thing being moved is a token such as USDT.

Why the same payment costs different amounts

  • The network matters most. A transfer on Tron or TON typically costs cents; the same transfer on Ethereum can cost dollars when the chain is busy.
  • Congestion changes the price through the day, sometimes by an order of magnitude.
  • The amount does not. Sending $10 and $10,000 costs the same, which is why small payments are the ones that suffer on expensive networks.

Who pays it

Whoever sends the transaction. When a customer pays your invoice they pay the fee to deliver the funds, so their wallet shows slightly more than your price. When you withdraw, the fee comes out of the withdrawal. A good checkout lists the available networks so the customer can pick a cheaper one.

Frequently asked

It does not usually fail — it stays unconfirmed until the network is quiet enough to pick it up. Wallets estimate the fee for you, and most let you speed a transaction up afterwards.

The fee is paid in the network's own asset. To move USDT on Tron you also need a little TRX; on Ethereum you need ETH.

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