x402 facilitator fees compared: Coinbase CDP, PayAI, thirdweb
Updated 2026-11-10 · listed A to Z, not ranked
x402 lets an API charge per request in stablecoins. A facilitator does the payment work: it verifies the signed payment and settles it onchain. Facilitators charge in three different ways: a flat fee per onchain transaction, prepaid credits at a network rate, or a percentage of each payment.
This page compares the published fees of three hosted facilitators listed on our site, quoted from each official page on Nov 10, 2026. For the full list of facilitators, including free ones, see our <a href="/guides/x402-facilitators">x402 facilitators guide</a>.
- 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 it charges
- Percentage of each transaction executed through the facilitator
- Free allowance
- None listed for x402
- Price
- 0.3% of each transaction
- Account
- thirdweb account; listed plans Growth $99, Scale $499, Pro $1,499+ a month
- Networks
- EVM networks
How we checked: Pricing quoted from docs.cdp.coinbase.com, payai.network, facilitator.payai.network/pricing and thirdweb.com/pricing on Nov 10, 2026. Worked examples are our arithmetic.
What 10,000 payments a month cost
One settlement per payment. Example 1: 10,000 calls at $0.05 ($500 of payments). Example 2: 10,000 calls at $1 ($10,000).
| 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) |
| thirdweb | $1.50 (0.3% of $500), plus the plan price | $30.00 (0.3% of $10,000), plus the plan price |
Our arithmetic from the published rates, not a quote. A flat fee stays the same as payment size grows; a percentage fee grows with it. Batch settlement (Coinbase CDP and PayAI support it) can put thousands of payments into one onchain transaction.
PayAI network rates (Nov 10, 2026)
| Network | Scheme | USD per settlement |
|---|---|---|
| Solana | exact | $0.00112 |
| Solana | batch-settlement: settle | $0.00056 |
| Solana | batch-settlement: deposit, claim, refund or seal | $0.00112 |
| Solana | upto: deposit or claim | $0.00112 |
| Base | exact (EIP-3009) | $0.00179 |
| Base | exact (Permit2) | $0.00168 |
| Avalanche | exact | $0.00242 |
| Polygon | exact | $0.00365 |
| BNB Smart Chain | exact (Permit2) | $0.00424 |
| Arbitrum | exact | $0.00559 |
| Sei | exact | $0.00042 |
From facilitator.payai.network/pricing; rates refresh daily.
FAQ
What does an x402 facilitator cost?
Of the three here: Coinbase CDP charges $0.001 per onchain transaction after 1,000 free a month; PayAI charges prepaid credits at a daily network rate (e.g. $0.00179 on Base); thirdweb charges 0.3% of each transaction.
Is there a free x402 facilitator?
Coinbase CDP’s first 1,000 onchain transactions each month are free, and PayAI gives 1,000 free credits to start plus free testnets. Our facilitators guide lists others that advertise no fees.
Which facilitator is cheapest?
We do not pick a winner: the three charge in different units, so the total depends on payment size, volume and network. Use the worked examples above with your own numbers.
Where do these figures come from?
Each provider’s official pricing page or docs, read on Nov 10, 2026. Confirm current rates 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
- portal.thirdweb.com/x402
- thirdweb.com/pricing
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