Worked examples: what different balances cost in total
The formula is simple; seeing it applied to real-looking amounts makes it stick. Several examples, from small to large balances.
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The total for a top-up is always built the same way: the balance you choose, plus a top-up charge on that balance, plus a flat card fee for the card. Knowing the formula is one thing; seeing it applied to a few amounts makes it much easier to predict what you will pay. This article works through several examples, explains the rounding, and shows where costs outside our fees come in.
The formula
Total = balance + (balance × top-up percentage) + card fee
Today the top-up charge is 15% and the card fee is $5.00. Those figures can move, so the examples below stick to round illustration numbers, a 10% top-up charge and a $5 card fee, which keep the sums simple. The rates page shows the live figures and a table of common amounts calculated with them.
Example 1: A small card
You want 20 dollars on a card for a small online purchase.
- Balance: 20.00
- Top-up charge at 10%: 2.00
- Card fee: 5.00
- Total: 27.00
Notice how much of the total the flat card fee makes up here. On small cards, the card fee is the dominant cost. If you had several small purchases at the same merchant, putting them on one card would save repeated card fees.
Example 2: A mid-sized card
You load 150 dollars for a software subscription year.
- Balance: 150.00
- Top-up charge at 10%: 15.00
- Card fee: 5.00
- Total: 170.00
Here the two fees are closer in size, and together they are a smaller share of the total than on the 20-dollar card.
Example 3: A larger card
You load 800 dollars for travel bookings.
- Balance: 800.00
- Top-up charge at 10%: 80.00
- Card fee: 5.00
- Total: 885.00
On a large card, the percentage does almost all the work and the card fee barely registers. This is where an oversized buffer costs the most: every extra 100 dollars of balance adds 10 dollars of top-up charge in this illustration.
Example 4: An amount with cents
You load 47.35 to match an exact checkout total plus a small margin.
- Balance: 47.35
- Top-up charge at 10%: 4.735, rounded to 4.74
- Card fee: 5.00
- Total: 57.09
Charges are calculated in cents and rounded half-up: anything from half a cent upwards rounds up, anything below rounds down. The keypad on the rates page, the receipt and our server all use exactly this rule, so the total you see while typing is the total stored on your order.
Example 5: Two cards versus one
You need to cover two purchases of 60 dollars each at the same merchant.
Two separate cards:
- Each card: 60.00 + 6.00 + 5.00 = 71.00
- Two cards: 142.00
One card for both:
- 120.00 + 12.00 + 5.00 = 137.00
The top-up charge is the same either way — it depends only on the total balance — but two cards pay the card fee twice. Whether the saving is worth it depends on how much you value keeping the purchases apart. One card per subscription is often worth an extra card fee for the clarity it gives.
Example 6: Working backwards from a total
Sometimes you start from your budget rather than from the balance you need. Say you have 220 dollars available and want the biggest card it covers.
With the illustration rates, the total is balance × 1.10 + 5. Working backwards:
- Take away the card fee: 220 − 5 = 215.
- Divide by 1.10: 215 ÷ 1.10 ≈ 195.45.
- Round down to the cent so you stay inside 220: a balance of 195.45.
Check it the normal way: 195.45 + 19.55 (10%, rounded) + 5.00 = 220.00. Remember to keep your own network or withdrawal fee aside on top, since that is not part of the total.
With the live rates the steps are identical: subtract $5.00, then divide by one plus the top-up percentage. Or simply try a few balances in the keypad until the total lands where you want it.
What the total does not include
Our total covers our fees and the card balance. Two kinds of cost sit outside it.
Costs on your side, before the payment arrives
Sending crypto costs a network fee, and many exchanges add a withdrawal fee. These are paid to the network or the exchange, not to us. The important thing is that the full total has to arrive. If your exchange subtracts its fee from what you send, the payment arrives short and the order is held as underpaid. Our guide on why less than the total arrives explains how to avoid it.
Costs on the merchant's side, after the card exists
When you use the card, a merchant may add its own charges — currency conversion, service fees, booking fees. Those come out of the card balance at the moment of purchase, which is why a buffer is useful. Our guide on adding a buffer helps you size it.
Using the examples to plan
To estimate any total quickly:
- Take the balance you need, including a buffer.
- Multiply by the current top-up percentage and round to the cent.
- Add the card fee.
- Add your own network or withdrawal fee on top when you send the payment.
Or skip the arithmetic and type the balance into the keypad on the rates page. It shows each line as you type.
Quick answers
Why do the examples use 10%?
To keep the arithmetic simple. The live top-up charge is 15% and the card fee is $5.00; the rates page always shows the current figures.
Is the total ever different from what the receipt showed?
Not for that order. The server recalculates the total when you continue and stores it on the order; that stored total is what you pay.
Do I pay the top-up charge on the fees too?
No. The percentage only ever applies to the card balance.
Is there any fee when I spend from the card?
Not from us. A merchant may add its own charges.
Summary
Balance plus a percentage of the balance plus one flat fee: that is the whole calculation. Small cards are dominated by the card fee, large cards by the percentage. Send enough to cover your own network fees so the full total arrives, and leave a buffer for the merchant's side.
