exchange rates usd to euro

[johnnyju]

Where do you get the exchange rate?

Today's rate is .8113'. Paypal used .789821 for my transaction

[PeteME]

I just had the same experience!  They are not even close!  I guess they don't charge us enough fees, that they gotta tack on 5% against us in the exchange rate.  If there was an itemization so I knew how they were ripping us off, I would appreciate it, but this is, simply put, clandestine robbery.

[sandypurins]

PayPal charges a 2.5% currency conversion fee... it's documented in Section 8.5 Additional Fees of PayPal's User Agreement.

The exchange rate applicable to your transaction is displayed on the "Review Payment" screen before you complete your payment.

Where can I find PayPal's currency exchange rates?

You can view the current exchange rate on your Manage Currencies page. Here's how:

1. Log in to your account.
2. Click the My Account tab.
3. Click Profile at the top of the page.
4. Click Currency Balances under the Financial Information column.
5. Enter the requested information and click Calculate.

[TheShoeman]

I understand PayPal charging conversion fees.....but call it a fee...don't offer an exchange rate that's way off from the rest of the world...charge the actual rate, and then deduct the 'Fee'

What is so difficult about that.  It would stop the confusion.

[reddragon]

Feel lucky to be getting European buyers at all, with the Euro down so far versus the Dollar. Many of my European buyers have cut way back.  But it's a good time to buy items priced in Euros with Dollars.

[fish007]

credit card companies add 3% to the exchange rate, and they don't show that as a fee on your statement either...

[AndrewBL]

My question is a bit different.  I sent funds to the UK, converting from USD to GBP: Only Paypal charged the conversion fee on the recipient side, not on the sender side.  I'm wondering why the receiver should have to pay the conversion fee. I don't mind paying it, and one would think it should be on the sender, not on the receiver.  Does anyone have an idea why Paypal does it this way?

[pierrelebel]

PayPal is no different than any commercial bank, in the USA, Canada, Europe or anywhere in the free world.  All financial institutions charge a fee (generally around 2% to 4%) to convert a currency into another.

If you send US$ to a seller in the UK, he has to convert them into British pounds (£) and will pay a fee for the privilege.  An option would be to pay the seller in Sterling at which time you (the sender) would pay the conversion fee.

If you travel to London, England and use your credit card to pay for a purchase in £s you will notice your credit card issuer will convert the £s into US$ on your monthly statement.  A fee (approximately 2.5% for most banks) will be included in the conversion.  Conversion fees are generally not shown separately.

[gpilcher]

Actually, PapPal is different from other banks in many ways.  In the case of exchange rates and currency conversion fees, the PayPal fee is ridiculously high.  My bank, for example, charges only 1%.   Sure, there are other banks that charge high rates like PayPal, but consumers have options and don't have to agree to such ridiculous rates.  I, for example, use USAA Federal Savings Bank.

The real problem here is that PayPal effectively hides the fee.  As one poster notes, PayPal mentions it in the fine print of the account agreement, but it is nowhere to be found in connection with an individual transaction.  Instead, PayPal reveals only the alleged exchange rate when processing individual transactions, which includes the outlandish conversion fee deeply buried within it so that the user is under the mistaken impression the exchange rate is a market-based rate.

It would be quite easy for PayPal to automatically reveal the currency conversion fee on each transaction just has it does the exchange rate.  I believe PayPal's refusal to do so confirms it does not want users to know the truth about the outlandish fee it charges.

PayPal fooled me once.  It won't happen again.  Next time, I will make sure a foreign currency transaction is processed in the local currency.   And, I will pay my bank a much more reasonable 1% conversion fee.