Guide
Which network should you accept USDT and USDC on?
TRON, Ethereum, Solana, Base, Arbitrum or Polygon? Which networks your customers use, what each costs them, and how long payments take to confirm.
Updated · Wolf Pay team
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Key points
- Start with USDT on TRON (what exchange users send most) and USDC on Base or Solana (the lowest fees).
- Add USDT and USDC on Ethereum for larger payments and customers who keep funds there.
- Add Arbitrum and Polygon if your customers are crypto-native or pay from exchanges that favour them.
- The network fee is paid by the customer's wallet; what matters to you is which networks your customers can send from.
The short answer
Offer USDT on TRON and USDC on Base or Solana first. Together they cover most customers paying from an exchange or a mobile wallet, at the lowest network fees. Add the others when your customers ask for them.
The networks compared
| Network | Coins at Wolf Pay | Typical confirmation | Network fee (paid by the sender) |
|---|---|---|---|
| TRON | USDT | about a minute | Low; exchanges charge a flat withdrawal fee |
| Base | USDC | under a minute | Well under a cent to a few cents |
| Solana | USDC, USDT | under a minute | A fraction of a cent |
| Ethereum | USDT, USDC | about 2–3 minutes | Often a few dollars, more at busy times |
| Arbitrum | USDC | under a minute | Usually cents or less |
| Polygon | USDC | about a minute | Usually a fraction of a cent |
How to choose
Where do your customers hold their money? Exchange users can withdraw on the networks their exchange supports. TRC-20 USDT is supported almost everywhere. Coinbase users can send USDC on Base directly.
How big are your payments? On a $20 payment, an Ethereum fee of a few dollars is a real cost to your customer. On a $20,000 invoice, it isn't.
How crypto-native are your customers? Arbitrum and Polygon suit customers already active on them. Most first-time payers will be on TRON, Base or Solana.
A mistake to avoid
Ethereum, Base, Arbitrum and Polygon all use the same address format (0x…). A customer can paste a Base address into a wallet set to Ethereum and the transfer will go through, but on the wrong network. A good checkout puts the network in large type and warns against this. Our address checker shows which networks an address can belong to.
Frequently asked questions
What is the cheapest network to send USDT?
Among the networks Wolf Pay supports, USDT on Solana costs the sender a fraction of a cent, and USDT on TRON is low and predictable. Exchange withdrawal fees are often the larger cost, so check your exchange.
What is the cheapest network to send USDC?
USDC on Solana, Base and Polygon usually costs the sender a fraction of a cent or a few cents.
Is TRC-20 the same as ERC-20?
No. TRC-20 is a token on the TRON network, ERC-20 a token on Ethereum (and on Ethereum layer-2 networks like Base and Arbitrum). USDT exists on both, but a transfer only arrives on the network it was sent on.