Plisio charges 0.5% but adds auto-conversion fees that push the real cost to 2%+. Here's a direct comparison and why merchants are switching.
Plisio is a popular crypto payment gateway known for advertising the lowest fees in the market: 0.5%. But the 0.5% only applies to specific scenarios — and understanding their full pricing reveals a different picture. This guide breaks down the real costs and compares Plisio with Bekena for common merchant use cases.
Plisio's Real Fee Structure
Plisio's 0.5% base fee is for receiving crypto and keeping it in crypto (no conversion). If you want to convert the received crypto to a stablecoin or fiat — which most businesses need — Plisio applies a conversion fee on top. The conversion spreads typically range from 1%–3% depending on the pair and market conditions.
- ✓Base fee (crypto-to-crypto, no conversion): 0.5%
- ✓With auto-conversion to stablecoin: 0.5% + 1–3% spread
- ✓Effective rate for USD-equivalent settlement: 1.5%–3.5%
- ✓Settlement timing: varies by currency, can be 24–72 hours
- ✓Minimum payout thresholds that can delay access to funds
Bekena vs Plisio: Direct Comparison
- ✓Fees: Bekena 1% true flat vs Plisio 0.5%–3.5% effective
- ✓Settlement: Bekena ~5 minutes vs Plisio 24–72 hours
- ✓Invoice currency: Bekena settles in received coin — no auto-conversion spread
- ✓Coin support: both support major cryptocurrencies
- ✓API reliability: Bekena has purpose-built payment API vs Plisio's broader platform
- ✓Merchant categories: Bekena explicitly supports digital businesses
When Plisio Makes Sense
If you genuinely hold multiple cryptocurrencies and need to accept a very wide range of altcoins, Plisio's larger coin list can be useful. For businesses primarily accepting USDT, BTC, ETH, or other major coins and wanting USD-equivalent settlement, Bekena's pricing is simpler and often cheaper in practice.
Migrating from Plisio
Plisio uses a callback-based integration (payment button or API). Bekena uses a standard REST API with webhooks. Migration steps: create a Bekena account, generate API keys, update your integration code to POST to Bekena's invoice endpoint instead of Plisio's, and update your callback handler to verify Bekena's HMAC-SHA256 signature.