For international businesses, the PayPal currency conversion fee is one of the easiest costs to miss – and one of the most expensive. PayPal adds a 3-4% spread above the mid-market exchange rate every time it converts a payment into your base currency, on top of PayPal business transaction fees. The most reliable way to avoid it is to receive funds in the original currency and convert on your own terms. As an official PayPal partner, amnis lets businesses receive PayPal payouts directly into a multi-currency account in the original currency – at a flat 0.2-0.4%, with no hidden FX markup.
For e-commerce sellers and cross-border businesses, these charges quietly compound. Every foreign-currency payout that PayPal converts automatically carries a margin you never see as a line item – it is baked into the exchange rate. Over a year of payouts, that can add up to thousands.
Below, we break down exactly what PayPal charges, show the real cost on a worked example, and explain how to keep more of your revenue – without changing your bank.
According to PayPal, a “commercial transaction” includes buying or selling goods or services or to make any other commercial type of transaction. The costs for domestic commercial transactions range from 1.90% up to 3.49%, plus a fixed fee based on the currency received, for example 0.39 EUR for Euro or 0.49 USD for a US-Dollar PayPal Checkout.
If you conduct international transactions, you need to pay the domestic fees above plus a fixed rate of 1.50%. As a result, international PayPal business transaction fees can add up to 4,99% (3,49% + 1,50%). In this calculation, the PayPal currency conversion fee is not included, yet.
On top of the PayPal business transaction fees, you may also be charged a PayPal currency conversion fee. The PayPal currency conversion spread amounts to 3-4%.
To sum up: When you conduct international transactions with PayPal, you are charged threefold:
These charges are very expensive, especially if you regularly send or receive different currencies. Luckily, there are easy ways to avoid at least some of the fees charged by PayPal.
Percentages are abstract, so here is what the PayPal currency conversion fee looks like in money. The figures below are illustrative and use PayPal’s typical 3.5% conversion spread – always check PayPal’s current rates before relying on exact numbers.
Imagine a Swiss online retailer receives a €10,000 payout that PayPal converts to CHF:
| Example: Swiss retailer’s PayPal payout | Amount |
|---|---|
| Payout received (EUR), converted to CHF | €10,000 |
| PayPal currency conversion spread (~3.5%) | ≈ €350 lost |
| Same conversion via amnis (flat 0.4%) | ≈ €40 |
| Extra revenue you keep, per payout | ≈ €310 more |
That is a single payout. A business processing €100,000 a year through PayPal could lose roughly €3,000-€4,000 to the conversion spread alone – before PayPal business transaction fees are added. Receiving each payout in its original currency removes that spread entirely and lets you exchange currency when the rate suits you.
Here’s how the PayPal currency conversion fee compares with receiving payouts through amnis, and with specialist transfer services:
| PayPal | amnis | Specialist transfer (e.g. Wise) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| FX conversion cost | 3–4% spread, built into the rate | 0.2–0.4% flat | ~0.4–1.5% |
| Hidden markup | Yes – inside the exchange rate | No | No |
| Receive in original currency | No – conversion is automatic | Yes – multi-currency account | Yes |
| Local IBANs | No | CHF, EUR, GBP, CZK, DKK | Some |
| Control over when you convert | No | Yes | Partial |
| Built for | Checkout & consumer payments | Businesses receiving & paying cross-border | Mostly personal transfers |
amnis isn’t a replacement for your bank or for PayPal’s checkout – it’s the smart layer on top that lets you receive PayPal payouts in the original currency and stay in control of when you convert.
If you don’t need instant transactions, the most common way for international transactions is to use the SWIFT network with your bank account.
However, depending on the location of the sending and receiving bank, your money might go through multiple intermediary institutions until it reaches its final destination, adding up further transaction costs. SWIFT fees range on average from 3-5% of the transferred amount and are charged either both parties (sender and beneficiary) or just one party, depending on the type of SWIFT transaction (BEN, OUR or SHA). Further, SWIFT transactions are not instant, but may take several days, bank holidays not included.
In contrast, local payment schemes, such as the European SEPA or the American ACH are by far the cheapest alternatives to PayPal or SWIFT payments. The problem: In most cases, you need local bank accounts to access these payment schemes. In the next sections, we are going to explain how you can profit from these local payment schemes, even if you don’t have a local bank account.
To avoid PayPal conversion fees for international transactions, businesses can connect a multi-currency or local account to receive funds in the original currency – as official PayPal partner, the amnis integration allows businesses to receive PayPal payouts in the original currency directly into their amnis multi-currency wallet.
If you conduct international money transfers in multiple currencies, multi-currency IBANs offered by amnis are a great way to save currency conversion fees. To compare: Traditional banks usually only allow you to open a foreign currency account for only one currency, so you need to manage several accounts in case you have more than one foreign currency.
If you’re looking for alternatives, you can also explore Stripe currency conversion and the options of optimising it with amnis.
amnis is a digital payment platform that enables you to easily set up multi-currency IBANs and local accounts to profit from local payment schemes.
With amnis you can open a multi-currency account to pay and receive money in over 20 currencies via the SWIFT network. The options include commonly-used currencies such as EUR, USD, GBP, CNY, and JPY.
In addition, with amnis you get your own local CHF IBAN registered in your company’s name. This IBAN can easily be added to payment platforms like PayPal, allowing you to receive Swiss Francs directly into your amnis account – at minimal cost.
You also benefit from local accounts in EUR, CHF, GBP, DKK and CZK. This enables you to send and receive payments like a local business – without intermediary banks, with better exchange rates, and significantly lower fees than providers like PayPal. You eliminate unnecessary conversion charges and pay only a fraction of the usual transaction costs.
At last, amnis offers transparent flat rates (between 0.2% and 0.4%), which are completely independent of your FX volume. You know exactly what you pay without the need to scroll through long pricing lists.
With the official PayPal integration, businesses can receive PayPal payouts directly into their amnis multi-currency wallet in the original transaction currency. This prevents forced currency conversion by PayPal and gives you full control over when and how currencies are exchanged.
Pricing note: PayPal payouts in your reference currency are free of charge. For payouts in non-reference currencies, amnis applies a transparent package-based percentage fee (depending on your plan), helping you achieve significant savings. This keeps pricing predictable and avoids hidden FX markups.
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Estimated CHF savings per Year
Save money with top-tier FX rates – only 0.4% margin in the Launch package and 0.2% in the Professional package
Avoid hidden fees with 0% FX on every card payment (vs. 3–4% elsewhere)
Cut costly SWIFT fees by sending and receiving local payments instead
Estimated time savings in hours per Year
Save hours by capturing expenses directly in amnis with automatic pre-accounting – no manual prep needed
Speed up approvals and payment creation with invoice data auto-filled in amnis
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PayPal charges a currency conversion spread of around 3-4% when foreign-currency payments are automatically converted into a base currency. This fee is applied on top of PayPal’s international transaction fees.
