Coinbase CDP vs PayAI: x402 facilitator fees compared
Updated 2026-11-10 · listed A to Z, not ranked
An x402 facilitator verifies a signed stablecoin payment and settles it onchain, so an API can charge per request without running its own payment stack. Coinbase CDP and PayAI both offer one, and they charge in different ways.
Every figure is quoted from the official pricing or docs page, read on Nov 10, 2026. Worked examples are our arithmetic. We don’t rank them or pick a winner.
- How it charges
- Flat fee per onchain settlement transaction
- Free allowance
- First 1,000 onchain transactions each month
- Price
- $0.001 per onchain transaction after 1,000 a month
- Account
- CDP API key ID and secret
- Networks
- Base, Polygon, Arbitrum, Monad, World and Solana (plus testnets)
- How it charges
- Prepaid credits; each settlement costs its network’s daily rate
- Free allowance
- 1,000 credits to start (one-time); testnets free
- Price
- Base $0.00179, Solana $0.00112, Arbitrum $0.00559 per settlement (Nov 10 rates)
- Account
- None to start; API key for paid usage beyond the free credits
- Networks
- Solana, Base, BNB Smart Chain, Polygon, Avalanche, Arbitrum, Sei, X Layer and SKALE
How we checked: Pricing quoted from docs.cdp.coinbase.com and payai.network on Nov 10, 2026. PayAI rates are the daily network rates published at facilitator.payai.network/pricing.
What 10,000 payments a month cost
Two examples, one settlement per payment: 10,000 calls at $0.05 ($500 of payments), and 10,000 calls at $1 ($10,000 of payments).
| Facilitator | 10,000 × $0.05 | 10,000 × $1 |
|---|---|---|
| Coinbase CDP | $9.00 (9,000 billable onchain transactions at $0.001) | $9.00 (flat per transaction, payment size doesn’t matter) |
| PayAI | About $17.90 on Base or $11.20 on Solana (daily network rates, before the one-time free credits) | About $17.90 on Base or $11.20 on Solana (flat per settlement) |
Our arithmetic from the published rates, not a quote. A flat per-transaction fee stays the same as payment size grows; a percentage fee grows with it. Batch settlement, where supported, puts many payments in one onchain transaction and lowers per-payment cost.
How they differ
- Coinbase CDP: flat fee per onchain settlement transaction. Free allowance: first 1,000 onchain transactions each month. Price: $0.001 per onchain transaction after 1,000 a month.
- PayAI: prepaid credits; each settlement costs its network’s daily rate. Free allowance: 1,000 credits to start (one-time); testnets free. Price: Base $0.00179, Solana $0.00112, Arbitrum $0.00559 per settlement (Nov 10 rates).
- Getting started: Coinbase CDP: cDP API key ID and secret. PayAI: none to start; API key for paid usage beyond the free credits.
FAQ
What does Coinbase CDP charge for x402?
$0.001 per onchain transaction after 1,000 a month; free allowance: first 1,000 onchain transactions each month (docs.cdp.coinbase.com, Nov 10, 2026).
What does PayAI charge for x402?
Base $0.00179, Solana $0.00112, Arbitrum $0.00559 per settlement (Nov 10 rates); free allowance: 1,000 credits to start (one-time); testnets free (facilitator.payai.network, Nov 10, 2026).
Which is cheaper?
We do not pick a winner: they charge in different units (per onchain transaction, per-network credits, or a percentage), so the total depends on your payment size, volume and network. The worked examples above show the arithmetic.
Where do these figures come from?
Each provider’s official pricing page or docs, read on Nov 10, 2026. Rates change (PayAI’s daily): confirm before you rely on them.
Sources (official pages, read 2026-11-10)
- docs.cdp.coinbase.com/x402/core-concepts/facilitator
- docs.cdp.coinbase.com/x402/support/faq
- payai.network
- facilitator.payai.network/pricing
Spot something out of date? Email hello@youraitools.co and we’ll fix it.