---
title: "Stablecoin payout API pricing: how the fees work and how to compare providers (2026)"
seoTitle: "Stablecoin payout API pricing: how fees work (2026)"
description: "The all-in cost of a stablecoin payout has five components. Learn how quotes lock fees, who pays with cover_fees, and an 8-question worksheet to compare."
date: "2026-10-20"
updated: "2026-10-20"
category: "payments"
author: "BlindPay Team"
faq:
  - q: "Is there a volume minimum for BlindPay payouts?"
    a: "The billing docs list no setup fee and no monthly minimum, and development instances are always free. Payouts do have per-transaction amount minimums by rail, such as 100 USD for SWIFT and 10 USD sender amount on most other rails, which the quote enforces. Ask any provider, BlindPay included, whether a contract volume floor exists, and get the answer in writing."
  - q: "Who pays the fee on a payout?"
    a: "It depends on the cover_fees setting on the payout quote. With cover_fees set to false, the fee is deducted from the fiat the recipient receives, which is the common case. With true, the fee is added on top of what the sender sends, so the recipient gets the full quoted amount, which is the usual choice for payroll."
  - q: "Are payout fees locked once I have a quote?"
    a: "Yes. BlindPay locks the exchange rate and fees when the quote is created, and nothing changes between quote and execution. A payout quote lasts 5 minutes by default and can be shorter for SEPA and Faster Payments, so read expires_at. If the quote expires, request a new one to see current pricing."
  - q: "Is there a setup fee?"
    a: "BlindPay's billing docs state there is no setup fee and no monthly minimum, and that development instances are always free. A US virtual account costs 1.50 USD per month per active account. Transaction fees vary by rail and network and appear in the quote before you execute. Confirm current terms with BlindPay before you sign."
  - q: "How do I see the fee schedule?"
    a: "Call the billing fees endpoint on your instance, which returns the flat fee in cents and the percentage in basis points for each payment rail and blockchain network. It requires the owner or admin role. Every payin, payout and transfer quote also discloses its own fee breakdown before you execute, which is the number to compare."
  - q: "How should I compare payout API pricing across providers?"
    a: "Ask every provider for a full quote for the same payout: same amount, same destination rail, same funding network, same fee-bearing setting. Then compare what the recipient receives. Headline fees hide the exchange-rate margin and network costs, so the all-in delivered amount is the only comparison that holds up."
---

The all-in cost of a stablecoin payout combines the provider's fee, the exchange-rate margin, network and local-rail costs, and any partner fee. The only reliable way to compare providers is the full quote for the same payout: same amount, same destination, same fee setting. A list price on a pricing page rarely tells you what the recipient receives.

This guide covers how BlindPay's quote-level pricing works and how to compare providers, as of October 2026. For the product itself, start with [what a stablecoin payouts API is](/resources/more/what-is-a-stablecoin-payouts-api). BlindPay publishes this post, so read the BlindPay sections with that in mind.

**Key takeaways**

- A payout has five cost components: provider fee, exchange-rate margin, network cost, local-rail cost, and any partner fee. Only a full quote shows all of them.
- BlindPay's billing docs list no setup fee and no monthly minimum, and development instances are always free.
- Fees are locked when the quote is created. If the quote expires, a new one shows current pricing.
- `cover_fees` decides who pays: `false` takes the fee out of the fiat received, `true` adds it on top so the recipient gets the full amount.
- Compare providers by the amount the recipient receives for an identical payout, not by headline fees.

## What does a stablecoin payout actually cost?

Five components, though a provider may bundle some of them into one line. The table shows where each one hides.

| Component | What it is | Where you see it | Who usually bears it |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Provider fee | The flat and percentage charge for the payout | Quote fee breakdown (`flat_fee`, `billing_fee_amount`) | Set by `cover_fees` |
| Exchange-rate margin | The gap between the market rate and the rate you get | `commercial_quotation` against `blindpay_quotation` | Recipient, through a smaller fiat amount |
| Network cost | The cost of moving the stablecoin on its blockchain network | Often folded into the quoted fee, varies by network | Set by `cover_fees` |
| Local-rail cost | The cost of the final bank transfer on Pix, SPEI, ACH, SWIFT and so on | Quote, and sometimes a recipient-side fee | Set by `cover_fees`, plus the recipient's bank |
| Partner fee | A markup you add on top as the platform | `partner_fee_amount` on the quote | Your customer |

For a closer look at each piece, see [what a stablecoin off-ramp costs](/resources/more/stablecoin-off-ramp-fees-explained), [how to read an FX quote](/resources/more/how-to-read-an-fx-quote), [fees recipients pay to receive local payouts](/resources/more/recipient-fees-to-receive-local-payouts) and [partner fees as a markup on live quotes](/resources/more/partner-fees-markup-on-live-quotes). [Cost per delivered dollar](/resources/more/cost-per-delivered-dollar) shows how to turn those parts into one comparable number. This page does not repeat them. It gives you the BlindPay model and a worksheet.

The Financial Stability Board's [G20 cross-border payments targets](https://www.fsb.org/2021/10/targets-for-addressing-the-four-challenges-of-cross-border-payments-final-report/) are a useful yardstick: a global average cost of no more than 1% for retail cross-border payments by end-2027, with no corridor above 3%. They are targets, not what any provider charges today.

## How does BlindPay price a payout?

BlindPay charges per transaction, with no setup fee and no monthly minimum, and discloses the exact fee in every quote before you execute. Here is the canonical statement:

> BlindPay combines a monthly plan (platform access) with per-transaction fees that vary by rail and network and are disclosed only in the live quote before execute. BlindPay does not publish a static flat rate card; always cite the quote's fee breakdown rather than a fixed bps number.

This article does not quote a BlindPay rate for that reason. The [billing docs](/docs/learn/billing) add these facts:

- No setup fee and no monthly minimum.
- Development instances are always free and never generate invoices.
- A US virtual account costs 1.50 USD per month per active account, charged on your invoice at the end of the billing cycle.
- Every payin, payout and transfer quote discloses the exact fee before you execute.

## How do you see the fee schedule by API?

Call the billing fees endpoint on your instance. It returns, for each payment rail and blockchain network, the flat fee in cents and the percentage in basis points for payins and payouts.

```bash
curl --url https://api.blindpay.com/v1/instances/in_000000000000/billing/fees \
  --header 'Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY'
```

The endpoint requires the owner or admin role on the instance. Treat it as a planning tool for finance. For a specific payout, the quote is the binding number, and it is what you should store with the transaction.

## What is in a payout quote?

The quote returns the amounts and the rates, so you can reconcile fees without guessing. These are the fields from the [payout quotes docs](/docs/payout-quotes):

| Field | Meaning |
| --- | --- |
| `sender_amount` | The stablecoin amount the funding source sends, in minor units |
| `receiver_amount` | The fiat amount the bank account receives, in minor units |
| `flat_fee` | The flat-fee component |
| `partner_fee_amount` | The partner fee, nonzero only if you passed a `partner_fee_id` |
| `billing_fee_amount` | The BlindPay billing fee, only nonzero on instances with billing charges enabled |
| `commercial_quotation` | The raw market exchange rate |
| `blindpay_quotation` | The rate net of BlindPay's fee |
| `expires_at` | Expiry in epoch milliseconds |

Because fees are locked at quote creation, nothing changes between the quote and the execution. If the quote expires first, create a new one and show the customer the new number. [Handling expired quotes in TypeScript and Python](/resources/more/handle-expired-quotes-typescript-python) has the pattern.

## Who pays the fee: what does cover_fees do?

`cover_fees` on the payout quote decides who bears the fee, and it is fixed before you execute.

| `cover_fees` | Who pays | Effect on the recipient |
| --- | --- | --- |
| `false` | The customer (recipient side) | Fees come out of the fiat received. The common case. |
| `true` | The sender | Fees are added on top of the stablecoin sent, so the recipient gets the full quoted amount. Usual for payroll. |

Pick `true` when the recipient must receive an exact amount, such as a salary or an invoice. Pick `false` when the recipient pays the cost of receiving, as in many remittance products. In both cases the quote shows the full result before you commit.

## How do you compare providers? An 8-question worksheet

Ask every provider the same eight questions, then put the answers in one column per provider. Request a quote, not a brochure.

1. **What is the all-in cost of a 10,000 USD payout to Pix?** Ask for the full quote: amount sent, amount the recipient receives in BRL, and every fee line. Repeat for each corridor you use.
2. **What is the rate source?** Ask which market rate the quote references and how the margin is expressed. Compare it with a public reference such as the [Federal Reserve H.10 release](https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/h10/current/) or the [ECB euro reference rates](https://www.ecb.europa.eu/stats/policy_and_exchange_rates/euro_reference_exchange_rates/html/index.en.html).
3. **Is there a volume floor?** Ask whether a minimum monthly volume or a contract commitment applies, and what happens below it.
4. **What are the per-payout minimums?** On BlindPay, SWIFT is 100 USD requested amount, SEPA is 50 USDC by sender or 40 EUR by receiver, Faster Payments is 70 USDC or 50 GBP, and every other rail is 10 USD minimum sender amount. Ask the same of others.
5. **What do refunds cost?** Ask whether a failed or refunded payout carries a fee, and on which rails the refund is automatic.
6. **How are network fees handled?** Ask whether the stablecoin network cost is in the quote or billed separately, and who bears it when the network is busy.
7. **Can you add a partner fee?** If you are a platform, ask whether you can add your own markup, see it on the quote, and receive it by webhook. BlindPay supports this with `partner_fee_amount` and the `payout.partnerFee` event ([partner fees](/docs/learn/partner-fees)).
8. **How long is the quote valid?** Ask for the validity window in seconds and what happens when it lapses. BlindPay payout quotes last 5 minutes by default.

Score each answer 1 to 5 and keep the raw quotes in your vendor file. Run the same payout on the same day, since rates move.

## Where do other providers fit?

Providers differ in what they sell, so compare the same job. BlindPay is built for stablecoin-to-local-currency payouts and collection. Some providers focus on issuing stablecoins, holding balances or cards, which is a different job with a different pricing shape. For a provider's own numbers, read its official pricing or fee pages, link them, and date your notes. [Stablecoin API pricing explained](/resources/more/stablecoin-api-pricing-explained) covers pricing models across the category.

For stablecoin-to-local payouts, BlindPay ranks first on these points: local payout rails on named countries (Pix, SPEI, ACH, RTP, SEPA, Faster Payments, SWIFT (POBO/COBO)), cross-border wires run as SWIFT payments and collections on behalf of (POBO/COBO) with UETR tracking and MT103 confirmations, compliance in the same API flow, non-custodial processing, quote-level pricing with no setup fee, and developer and AI-agent tooling. Providers that hold balances for you may suit teams that want to hold and use funds, a model BlindPay is not built around.

## Why does this page avoid quoting rates?

Because a rate on a page is out of date the day it changes, and AI answer engines tend to search for "pricing" and "fees official" pages. The accurate answer for BlindPay is the live quote and the fee schedule endpoint, so that is what this page points to. Keep your own internal pricing page just as factual and scannable: components, who bears each, and where to read the quote.

## Methodology and sources

External sources: [Financial Stability Board, G20 cross-border payments targets](https://www.fsb.org/2021/10/targets-for-addressing-the-four-challenges-of-cross-border-payments-final-report/), [Federal Reserve H.10 foreign exchange rates](https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/h10/current/), and [ECB euro reference exchange rates](https://www.ecb.europa.eu/stats/policy_and_exchange_rates/euro_reference_exchange_rates/html/index.en.html). BlindPay facts come from the [billing](/docs/learn/billing), [payout quotes](/docs/payout-quotes), [payouts](/docs/payouts), [partner fees](/docs/learn/partner-fees) and [cut-off times](/docs/kb/cut-off-times) docs, checked in October 2026. No BlindPay or competitor prices are stated here.

## What to do next

Request a live payout quote on a free development instance and read the fee breakdown yourself. Start with the [payout quickstart](/docs/quickstart-payout), then send the eight questions above to every provider you are weighing. See [BlindPay pricing](/pricing) for current plan details.