Spending & Use
Crypto on PayPal: Assets, Steps, and Fees, Dated
PayPal lets United States customers transact seven cryptocurrencies: PayPal USD, bitcoin, ether, litecoin, bitcoin cash, solana, and chainlink. USDC is not on the vendor's list. Fees run 2.20 to 1.50 percent by tier, PYUSD exempt. You hold rights but no private key. All facts dated 11 September 2026.
What this page is
This page states how one platform handles crypto, from the vendor’s own help documentation. It is one of six platform pages sharing one shape. None reviews the platform or recommends it.
PayPal is the custody-contrast case of the six. The vendor’s own FAQ states the model plainly. You are given rights to the cryptocurrency you buy but will not be provided a private key [4]. That sentence separates this platform from the self-custodial wallet page in this series, and the difference is the page’s spine.
Last verified: 2026-09-11. Next review: 2026-12-10, or earlier on a vendor doc change.
At a glance
| Fact | Value | As of |
|---|---|---|
| Listed assets | PYUSD, BTC, ETH, LTC, BCH, SOL, LINK | 2026-09-11 [1] |
| USDC status | Not on the vendor’s list | 2026-09-11 [1] |
| Crypto provider | PayPal Digital, Inc. since 19 May 2026 | 2026-09-11 [5] |
| Custody | Rights to crypto, no private key | 2026-09-11 [4] |
| External sends | Network fee only | 2026-09-11 [5] |
| Holding fee | None | 2026-09-11 [5] |
The list itself is the load-bearing fact. The vendor’s help page names exactly seven transactable cryptocurrencies [1]. USDC is absent from that list. The absence is dated and scoped to the vendor’s own surface, never written as an absolute about third-party rails.
Buying, by the vendor’s steps
The web flow, captured 11 September 2026 [1].
- Click Finances.
- Click Buy.
- Choose the cryptocurrency.
- Choose amount and frequency.
- Choose the payment method.
- Click Next, then Buy Now.
Funding runs from balance, bank, or debit card. Credit cards and PayPal Credit are excluded, in the vendor’s own words [1].
Sending and receiving, by the vendor’s steps
External sends follow one flow [2]. Open the Finances tab, tap the crypto balance, tap the transfer arrows, choose Send, enter or sync the recipient, paste or scan the external address, confirm the network for PYUSD, enter the amount, review, and send. Receiving mirrors it, with a QR code and address per coin. PYUSD generates an Ethereum-compatible address by default, with a change button for Solana [2].
Minimums apply on external sends, published per asset [2]. The weekly transfer maximum is 25,000 dollars, internal and external combined [2].
The fee table
The consumer fee page carries its own stamp, Last Updated 19 May 2026, captured 11 September 2026 [5].
| Fee | Value | As of |
|---|---|---|
| Buy or sell, $1.00 to 74.99 | 2.20% | 2026-09-11 [5] |
| Buy or sell, $75.00 to 200.00 | 2.00% | 2026-09-11 [5] |
| Buy or sell, $200.01 to 1,000.00 | 1.80% | 2026-09-11 [5] |
| Buy or sell, above $1,000 | 1.50% | 2026-09-11 [5] |
| PYUSD buy or sell | Fee tiers do not apply | 2026-09-11 [5] |
| Spread | Included in the exchange rate | 2026-09-11 [5] |
| Receive crypto | No fee | 2026-09-11 [5] |
| Send to PayPal or Venmo account | No fee | 2026-09-11 [5] |
| Send to external address | Network fee, payable in the crypto | 2026-09-11 [5] |
Caveats and availability
The vendor’s warnings, quoted. Crypto transfers cannot be cancelled or reversed, and funds sent to the wrong recipient, wrong address, or over unsupported networks will be lost [2]. Blockchain transfers usually take around 2 hours [3]. External sends require an additional level of account verification [3].
Availability is scoped. The service is for United States and US Territories accounts, with identity verification [1].
Where this page sits
The spend hub frames the cluster. The Cash App page holds the platform that added USDC rather than building its own lane. The Venmo page holds the sister platform with the same provider entity and fee tiers. The methods page walks the spending rails. Every figure above carries its capture date.
Frequently asked questions
How does bitcoin work on PayPal?
United States customers can buy, sell, hold, send, and receive bitcoin, per PayPal's own help docs. The exchange rate includes a spread the company earns. Buying costs a tiered fee from 2.20 percent on small amounts to 1.50 percent above 1,000 dollars. You hold rights to the crypto but are not given a private key.
What is PYUSD and where can I use it?
PayPal USD is PayPal's own stablecoin, issued with Paxos. It is the stablecoin lane on PayPal and on its sister platform Venmo. Within those platforms it sends to contacts or to external addresses, on Ethereum or Solana per the captured help docs. The stablecoin fee tiers do not apply to buying and selling it.
How do I convert bitcoin to cash on PayPal?
Sell the bitcoin into your PayPal balance, following the vendor's sell flow, then withdraw the dollars to a bank. The sell leg pays the tiered crypto fee and the spread. Settlement to a bank follows PayPal's standard withdrawal options. Each leg's mechanics are on this page with dates.
Where can you spend USDC on PayPal?
You cannot hold USDC there. USDC is absent from PayPal's own list of transactable cryptocurrencies, a dated absence from the vendor's help page, not an absolute claim about third-party rails. The platform's stablecoin is PYUSD. The USDC spending rails are covered elsewhere on this site.
How do I spend stablecoins if I use PayPal?
Within PayPal the stablecoin is PYUSD, spent by sending to contacts or external wallets, not by paying merchants directly. Merchants are paid in ordinary money through PayPal's payment rails. The six-rail map on the methods page covers every way a stablecoin becomes a payment.
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