How Much Does PayPal Charge for Invoices?
PayPal Invoicing has no separate "invoice fee" — the rate is the commercial transaction rate for the payment method your customer chooses at checkout. Card / guest checkout = standard card rate. Login-and-pay via PayPal = PayPal Checkout rate. Partial payments charge the fixed fee on every installment.
What Is PayPal Invoicing?
PayPal Invoicing is PayPal's structured billing product. The merchant creates an invoice (with line items, tax, due date, and optional partial-payment rules), PayPal emails it to the customer as a payment link, and the buyer pays by credit card, debit card, bank, or their PayPal balance. The invoice itself is free to create and send — PayPal only charges when the customer actually pays. The fee depends on how the buyer chooses to pay, not on the fact that a PayPal invoice was used. There is no separate 'invoicing' rate type; the commercial rate for the chosen payment method applies.
When This Applies
- ✓ Freelancers billing clients for design, development, consulting, or creative work
- ✓ B2B service providers collecting structured invoices with line items and tax
- ✓ Small businesses that need a hosted pay-link with guest checkout (no PayPal account required for the buyer)
- ✓ Teams sending recurring monthly or quarterly invoices and tracking status (SENT / PAID / OVERDUE)
When This Does NOT Apply
- ✗ Pure retail / checkout flows — embed PayPal Checkout directly instead, Invoicing adds an approval step
- ✗ Fully automated subscription billing that renews without buyer action — Invoicing is one-shot per invoice and does not auto-renew
- ✗ Instant-settle use cases that cannot tolerate the SENT → PAID delay (the buyer may not pay for hours or days)
PayPal Invoice Fee Calculator
Enter an amount to calculate the fee for each payment method. Standard card is the default (most invoices are paid by card or as a guest); toggle PayPal Checkout to see what login-and-pay buyers cost per invoice.
Transaction Type
Current PayPal US Rates
Official| Type | Rate | Fixed |
|---|---|---|
| Standard Card | 2.99% | $0.49 |
| PayPal Checkout | 3.49% | $0.49 |
| QR Code | 2.29% | $0.09 |
Last verified: 2026-04-08 · Source
Use reverse calculation to determine what to charge so you receive the exact amount you need after fees.
PayPal Fee Structure
Standard Card
2.99% + $ 0.49
Applies when the buyer pays the invoice with a credit or debit card — either as a guest checkout (no PayPal account) or through a PayPal account that defaults to card payment. This is the most common Invoicing fee tier in the US.
PayPal Checkout
3.49% + $ 0.49
Applies when the buyer logs into PayPal and pays via the PayPal Checkout flow (using PayPal balance, linked bank, Pay Later, or Venmo). About half a percentage point higher than the standard card tier.
QR Code
2.29% + $ 0.09
QR Code tier does not apply to online invoice payments — this tier is for in-person scan-to-pay via PayPal Zettle. Shown here for comparison only; an invoice paid online will route through the card or PayPal Checkout tier instead.
Rates last verified on 2026-04-08. Source: PayPal official pricing .
How Fees Are Triggered
- 1 Invoicing fees are determined by the buyer's payment method at checkout, not by the fact that it is an invoice. If the buyer pays by card (or guest-checkouts without a PayPal account), the standard card rate applies. If the buyer logs in and pays via PayPal Checkout or Venmo, the PayPal Checkout rate applies.
- 2 Guest checkout is supported — the buyer can pay with a credit or debit card without creating a PayPal account. The fee is the standard card rate, the same as any other API-driven card payment.
- 3 Partial payments are supported when the merchant enables 'Allow partial payment' on the invoice. Each installment is charged as a separate commercial transaction, with its own fixed fee. A $600 invoice paid in three $200 installments incurs three fixed fees instead of one.
- 4 Invoices default to 'due on receipt' but the merchant can set Net 7 / Net 10 / Net 15 / Net 30 / Net 60 / Net 90 terms. Overdue invoices stay open; PayPal can send up to three automatic reminders. There is no forced expiry at 30 days, though most customers default to a Net 30 term.
- 5 Invoices move through a lifecycle: DRAFT (created but not sent, no fee) → SENT (customer received link, no fee yet) → PAID (customer paid, fee charged) → MARKED_AS_PAID (merchant recorded off-PayPal payment, no fee) → CANCELLED (merchant voided, no fee). The fee is only charged on the PAID transition, per installment.
Common Misconceptions
Myth: PayPal Invoicing has its own special 'invoice fee'.
Reality: It does not. PayPal charges the commercial transaction rate that corresponds to the payment method the buyer chose. Cards and guest checkout use the standard card rate; login-and-pay flows use the PayPal Checkout rate. The invoice itself is a free sending mechanism.
Myth: Customers need a PayPal account to pay a PayPal invoice.
Reality: Guest checkout is supported — the buyer can pay a PayPal invoice with just a credit or debit card, without creating or logging into a PayPal account. The invoice link opens a hosted PayPal checkout page that accepts cards directly. The fee is the standard card rate in that case.
Myth: If a partial-payment invoice is paid in three installments, the fixed fee is only charged once.
Reality: The fixed fee is charged on every installment. PayPal processes each partial payment as a separate commercial transaction, each with its own percentage-plus-fixed-fee charge. A $600 invoice paid in three $200 installments pays the fixed fee three times — meaningfully more than paying the invoice in a single payment would.
Myth: PayPal Invoicing is free because invoicing is a billing feature, not a payment method.
Reality: Creating and sending an invoice is free. Getting paid through an invoice is not — PayPal charges the commercial rate on the payment, the same as any other G&S transaction. Friends & Family is free in the US but is explicitly not available for invoice payments, because invoicing is always a commercial flow.
Example Fee Calculations
| Amount | Standard Card | PayPal Checkout | QR Code | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fee | You Receive | Fee | You Receive | Fee | You Receive | |
| $50.00 | $1.99 | $48.01 | $2.24 | $47.76 | $1.24 | $48.76 |
| $100.00 | $3.48 | $96.52 | $3.98 | $96.02 | $2.38 | $97.62 |
| $300.00 | $9.46 | $290.54 | $10.96 | $289.04 | $6.96 | $293.04 |
| $500.00 | $15.44 | $484.56 | $17.94 | $482.06 | $11.54 | $488.46 |
| $1,000.00 | $30.39 | $969.61 | $35.39 | $964.61 | $22.99 | $977.01 |
| $2,000.00 | $60.29 | $1,939.71 | $70.29 | $1,929.71 | $45.89 | $1,954.11 |
All amounts in USD. Fees calculated using current PayPal rates.
How PayPal Invoice Fees Actually Work
PayPal Invoicing's pricing model is deliberately simple at the top level: there is no separate 'invoice fee' to look up. The fee is whatever the commercial rate for the buyer's chosen payment method would be on any other PayPal transaction. A buyer who pays by card triggers the standard card rate; a buyer who logs into PayPal and pays from their balance triggers the PayPal Checkout rate. From the merchant's side, the only lever that changes the fee is which payment methods they accept and how they encourage buyers to pay.
The lifecycle of a PayPal invoice matters more than the raw fee. An invoice in DRAFT has no fee exposure — it hasn't been sent. A SENT invoice likewise carries no fee; PayPal only bills when the buyer transitions the invoice to PAID. An invoice the merchant marks as MARKED_AS_PAID (because the customer wired the money off-PayPal) or CANCELLED never touches PayPal's payment rails, so no fee applies. Understanding this lifecycle is how merchants avoid paying for invoices that resolved off-platform.
Partial payments are where Invoicing's fee math deviates from naive expectations. When a merchant enables 'Allow partial payment' and the buyer pays in installments, each installment is processed as a separate commercial transaction — meaning each installment pays the full fixed fee. For a $600 invoice paid in three $200 installments, the percentage portion is unchanged (still computed on $600 total), but the fixed fee is charged three times instead of once. On PayPal's US standard card tier, that is $0.49 × 3 = $1.47 versus $0.49 × 1 = $0.49, a $0.98 hidden cost. Merchants who offer partial payment should understand this trade-off: partial-payment flexibility reduces dunning churn but costs roughly one fixed fee per extra installment.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the PayPal invoice fee depend on how my customer pays?
Yes. PayPal does not have a separate 'invoice fee' line item. Instead, the fee is the commercial transaction rate that corresponds to the payment method your customer chooses at checkout. If they pay by card (or as a guest without a PayPal account), you pay the standard card rate. If they log in and pay via PayPal Checkout, you pay the PayPal Checkout rate (about half a percentage point higher). Nudging customers toward card payment in the invoice note can noticeably reduce your effective fee over hundreds of invoices.
If my customer pays a PayPal invoice in three installments, do I pay the fixed fee three times?
Yes. Each partial payment is processed as its own commercial transaction, so each installment pays the full fixed fee. For a $600 invoice paid in three $200 installments, that is three fixed fees instead of one. The percentage portion is unchanged (still based on the total amount collected), but the fixed fees compound. Partial payment is still worth offering for dunning-reduction reasons, but the pricing trade-off is real and should be modeled into your quotes on large invoices.
Can my customer pay a PayPal invoice without a PayPal account?
Yes. PayPal Invoicing supports guest checkout: the customer clicks the invoice link, enters credit or debit card details, and pays — no PayPal account, no login required. The fee is the standard card rate, the same as if they paid through an API-driven direct card integration. This is one of the major practical advantages of PayPal Invoicing over some other invoicing products that require the buyer to create an account first.
What happens if my customer doesn't pay the PayPal invoice within 30 days?
The invoice stays open and moves to OVERDUE if you set a payment term (Net 7, 15, 30, 60, or 90). PayPal can send up to three automated reminders. There is no forced cancellation at 30 days — overdue invoices remain open until the customer pays, you cancel them, or you mark them as paid off-PayPal. If you never expect payment (e.g. dispute or bad debt), cancelling keeps your dashboard tidy and avoids miscounted pending revenue in reporting.
Is there a fee to send a PayPal invoice if the customer never pays?
No. PayPal Invoicing does not charge anything to create, send, or cancel an invoice. The fee is only incurred on the PAID transition — when the customer actually pays. An invoice in DRAFT, SENT, OVERDUE, MARKED_AS_PAID, or CANCELLED state never triggers a fee. This makes it safe to use Invoicing as a speculative billing tool (send quotes as invoices, cancel if the deal doesn't close) without paying for deals that never convert.
See also: related PayPal scenarios
Data Source & Transparency
All fee rates on this page are sourced from paypal.com merchant fees and were last verified on 2026-04-08. PayPal Invoicing does not add a separate fee on top of the payment method's commercial rate — creating and sending the invoice is free, and PayPal only charges when the buyer transitions the invoice to PAID. UK Invoicing follows the same logic but uses UK rates; see the PayPal UK calculator for GBP amounts.
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