Paxful review 2023 | Finder.com

Paxful announcement

On April 4, 2023, Ray Youssef, the CEO of Paxful announced in a blog post that Paxful will be suspending its marketplace and that he isn’t sure that it will come back.

Youssef highlighted the fact that The Paxful Wallet will be up for customers to retrieve their funds and urged users to send their funds on Paxful to a non-custodial wallet.

Disclaimer: This page is not financial advice or an endorsement of digital assets, providers or services. Digital assets are volatile and risky, and past performance is no guarantee of future results. Potential regulations or policies can affect their availability and services provided. Talk with a financial professional before making a decision. Finder or the author may own cryptocurrency discussed on this page.

Our take on

Paxful

Paxful is a peer-to-peer online marketplace that allows you to buy and sell Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH) and Tether (USDT) with anyone in the world.

One of the best things about Paxful is that it allows users to pay for their crypto purchases using their choice of more than 350+ payment methods. These methods range from more traditional options like bank or wire transfers to newer options like Apple Pay or PayPal.

Paxful operates in more than 100 countries and has served over 10 million people.

You may prefer to be a buyer on Paxful as opposed to a seller, as sellers have to cover all of the transfer fees on the platform.

3

Finder Rating

★★★★★

• Supported cryptocurrencies

  ★★★★★

  Transferring money or assets

  ★★★★★

  Fees and costs

  ★★★★★

  Ease of use

  ★★★★★

  Customer service

  ★★★★★

  Features

  ★★★★★

  Staking/earn

  ★★★★★

  Trustworthiness/security

  ★★★★★

  • Finder’s editors objectively assess each platform across a spectrum of performance metrics using a system of 1 to 5 stars, which are designed to help you assess a crypto platform’s strengths and weaknesses. You can read our full methodology here.

    Our rating and selection of the best crypto exchanges is based on the same criteria as our annual Crypto Trading Platform Awards, updated by our editorial team throughout the year to reflect changes in the market.

Paxful pros and cons

Pros

• Enables peer-to-peer crypto trading
• No fee for buying crypto
• Hundreds of payment methods
• Simple sign-up process
• Quick delivery of assets
• Learning center

Cons

• Sellers set rates – it may be hard to find a seller offering the quantity of Bitcoin you want at your desired price
• Fees when paying with gift cards are high

Paxful pros explained

• Peer-to-peer trading. Paxful enables trading directly from one person to another. You have the option to use Paxful’s custodial wallet when you use the platform, but you can also have funds directly to a non-custodial wallet.
• No fee for crypto purchases. You don’t pay a fee when you buy crypto via Paxful. You only pay a fee when you sell it.
• Hundreds of payment methods. You can use everything from bank transfers and gift cards to altcoins to purchase Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH) or Tether (USDT) via Paxful.
• Simple sign-up process. Creating your account on Paxful is easy. You just have to input your email, create a username and password and agree to the terms and conditions.
• Quick delivery of assets. After 2 confirmations on the Bitcoin network, your balance will be available in your Paxful wallet.
• Learning center. You can learn more about Bitcoin and other digital assets at Paxful University.

Paxful cons explained

• Sellers set rates. Sellers on Paxful set the rate at which they are willing to sell their BTC, ETH or USDT. This can make it difficult to find a seller offering the crypto you want at the right price.
• High fees for paying with gift cards. When you pay for your crypto with a gift card via Paxful, the fees are between 4% and 5%.

About Paxful – company history and background

Paxful was established in 2015 in New York City. It currently has offices in Estonia, the UK, the Philippines, Dubai and St. Petersburg.

Paxful’s mission is to empower the four billion people on Earth who are either unbanked or underbanked.

Listed Paxful crypto exchange assets

Paxful supports over 3 cryptocurrencies, but some notable assets are missing. Namely, Avalanche, Binance USD and BNB, which are in the top 20 cryptos by market cap. In total, 4 of the top 20 cryptos are available on Paxful.

Popular assets on Paxful

Paxful does not support

Avalanche (AVAX)

Paxful does not support

Binance USD (BUSD)

Paxful supports

Bitcoin (BTC)

Paxful does not support

BNB (BNB)

Paxful does not support

Cardano (ADA)

Paxful does not support

Cosmos Hub (ATOM)

Paxful does not support

Dai (DAI)

Paxful does not support

Dogecoin (DOGE)

Paxful supports

Ethereum (ETH)

Paxful does not support

LEO Token (LEO)

Avalanche (AVAX)Binance USD (BUSD)Bitcoin (BTC)BNB (BNB)Cardano (ADA)Cosmos Hub (ATOM)Dai (DAI)Dogecoin (DOGE)Ethereum (ETH)LEO Token (LEO)

Paxful does not support

Lido Staked Ether (stETH)

Paxful does not support

Polkadot (DOT)

Paxful does not support

Polygon (MATIC)

Paxful does not support

Ripple (XRP)

Paxful does not support

Shiba Inu (SHIB)

Paxful does not support

Solana (SOL)

Paxful supports

Tether (USDT)

Paxful does not support

TRON (TRX)

Paxful supports

USD Coin (USDC)

Paxful does not support

Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC)

Lido Staked Ether (stETH)Polkadot (DOT)Polygon (MATIC)Ripple (XRP)Shiba Inu (SHIB)Solana (SOL)Tether (USDT)TRON (TRX)USD Coin (USDC)Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC)

• • BTC
  • ETH
  • USDT
  • USDC

Paxful fees

Since Paxos is a peer-to-peer marketplace, you don’t deposit or withdraw money from the platform.

Instead, you send money from one of the many funding sources Paxos supports directly to the person from whom you’d like to purchase BTC, ETH or USDT or vice versa.

Deposit methods

• Bank transfer (ACH)
• Bank transfer
• Cryptocurrency
• Debit card
• PayPal

• Wire transfer
• Apple Pay
• Google Pay

Paxful trading fees

As a buyer, you won’t pay a transfer fee. Sellers pay a transfer fee, which varies depending on the source of the transfer. See tables in the following section.

The seller will then decide how much more they want to charge, so be sure to compare sellers’ rates before initiating a transaction.

Cryptocurrency Trading Fees

Payment GroupSellBuyBank Transfer0.5%No feeOther Bank Transfer1%No feeCredit/Bank Card1%No feeDigital Currency1%No feeOnline Wallet1%No feeCash1%No feeGoods & Services1%No feeGift Card5% iTunes and Google Play cards

3% for all gift card types

No fee

Buying Cryptocurrency
When buying cryptocurrency from another user on Paxful, you are buying cryptocurrency at a rate set by the customers themselves. These rates vary based on numerous factors such as your verification status, payment method, currency pair (such as USD, EUR, CNY), and order size.

Selling Cryptocurrency
This escrow amount is deducted from your Paxful Wallet at the beginning of the trade. Upon successful completion of the trade, Paxful receives the escrow fee. If the trade is not completed, i.e. cryptocurrency is released from escrow back to the cryptocurrency seller, Paxful takes no fee.

Sending and Receiving Bitcoin

Wallet TypeSendReceiveExternal Wallet$0 – $9.99 = 0.00008 BTC fee;
$10 – $19.99 = 0.00016 BTC fee;
$20+ = 0.0004 BTC feeNo feeInternal WalletUp to 1,000 USD per month for free (between all cryptocurrencies)

After 1,000 USD is reached, a fee of 1 USD or 1% of the amount being sent, whichever is greater, is applied

No fee

Sending and Receiving Tether (USDT)

Wallet TypeSendReceiveExternal WalletDynamic Ethereum or Tron network fee + Paxful Wallet fee

Paxful Wallet fee breakdown:

$0 – $9.99 = 1 USDT fee
$10 – $19.99 = 2 USDT fee
$20+ = 5 USDT fee

No feeInternal WalletUp to 1,000 USD per month for free (between all cryptocurrencies)

After 1,000 USD is reached, a fee of 1 USD or 1% of the amount being sent, whichever is greater, is applied

No fee

When you send TRC-20 based USDT from your Paxful wallet, you won’t pay a Tron network fee, but you will pay the Paxful wallet fee.

Sending and Receiving Ethereum (ETH)

Wallet TypeSendReceiveExternal WalletDynamic Ethereum network fee + Paxful Wallet fee

Paxful Wallet fee breakdown:

$0 – $9.99 = 0.0005 ETH fee
$10 – $19.99 = 0.001 ETH fee
$20+ = 0.002 ETH fee

No feeInternal WalletUp to 1,000 USD per month for free (between all cryptocurrencies)

After 1,000 USD is reached, a fee of 1 USD or 1% of the amount being sent, whichever is greater, is applied

No fee

Lightning Network

Wallet TypeSendReceiveExternal Wallet1% of the amount being sentNo fee

Converting Cryptocurrency

Conversion TypeFeeAll cryptocurrency conversions0.5%

How to sign up on Paxful

Buying digital assets via Paxful is a simple process.

1. Get started

   Create an account and instantly receive a free e-wallet from Paxful.

2. Set up payment

   Enter how much you want to spend and choose your payment method.

3. Compare rates

   Compare sellers’ rates and choose a sender.

4. Start trading

   Initiate a live chat with that seller to agree on terms and complete transfer.

About the Paxful app

The Paxful app is available for both Android and iOS operating systems.

Is Paxful safe?

Yes, Paxful is safe. Paxful is regulated in the United States as a Money Service Business with the United States Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).

You must complete a Know Your Customer (KYC) process to use Paxful. The brokerage’s Anti-Money Laundering (AML) policies and procedures are designed to deter illicit activity on the platform.

The platform’s escrow system is designed to protect buyers and sellers, and its crypto wallet is provided by BitGo, a platform that helps over 150 crypto brokerages and exchanges custody the assets stored on their platforms in cold storage. Paxful also offers 2-factor authentication (2FA).

Keeping your crypto secure

All centralized exchanges, including Paxful, are vulnerable to counterparty risks like hacking, theft and insolvency. Using a self-custodial or

hardware wallet is widely accepted as the best way to improve the security of your funds. We’ve shared some of our top picks below.

Ledger Nano X Wallet

Trezor Model T Wallet

Ledger Nano S Plus Wallet

Go to site

Go to site

Go to site

Supported assets

5,500+

Supported assets

1,456+

Supported assets

5,500+

Price (USD)

$149

Price (USD)

$219

Price (USD)

$79

See more of the best crypto wallets

Compare now

Paxful customer support

Paxful offers email and 24/7 chat bot support.

Downloads on Google Play23.5k reviews, 3 stars, 1M+ downloadsDownloads on Apple Store2.6k reviews, 3.6 stars

How to reach Paxful

• Email
• Facebook page
• Live chat

• Telegram
• Twitter

Alternatives to Paxful

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