Glossary · assets and networks
What is a gas fee?
A gas fee is what you pay a blockchain to execute a transaction. Gas measures the computational work, the fee is that work priced at whatever the network currently costs, and it goes to the network rather than to any company.
Gas, and why the word only really belongs to some networks
The term comes from Ethereum, where every operation has a fixed gas cost and the network sets a price per unit. A simple transfer uses little gas. A complex contract call uses far more.
Other networks use the same idea with different names and very different price levels. What people mean by a gas fee on one network and a network fee on another is usually the same thing, so the two terms get used interchangeably.
What matters commercially is not the mechanism but the spread. Moving the same stablecoin can cost a fraction of a cent on one network and meaningfully more on another, with no difference in what the recipient receives.
So a business decision hides inside a technical word. Which networks you offer changes what your payments cost and how many shoppers complete, and it is one of the few levers here that is entirely yours.
Where it shows up for you
Three moments, and only one of them is your cost.
A shopper paying you
They pay the fee on top of your invoice. If they subtract it instead, you get an underpayment.
Frequently asked questions
Does CoinGate charge gas fees?
No. They go to the network. Our fees are separate and published. Pricing
Why does the same payout cost different amounts?
Because the network changed, or demand on it did. The asset being the same does not make the route the same.
Can I avoid gas fees?
Not entirely, but you can choose cheaper networks. That is the whole practical response.
Is gas the same as a network fee?
Close enough in payments. Gas is the metering mechanism, the network fee is what you actually pay.