There are two distinct costs when sending XRP: the XRP Ledger's network fee and the exchange's withdrawal fee. The network fee is always 0.00001 XRP and is burned. Exchange withdrawal fees are set by each platform independently and typically range from 0.1 to 1 XRP per withdrawal.
Major exchange withdrawal fees for XRP in 2026: Binance typically charges around 0.1 XRP per withdrawal; Coinbase charges vary; Kraken has its own fee schedule. These platform fees are hundreds to thousands of times higher than the actual XRP Ledger transaction cost.
Why do exchanges charge more than the network fee? Exchanges bundle the network fee with their own operational costs and profit margin. Some exchanges also batch user withdrawals to reduce their own transaction overhead, effectively charging users a premium for the service.
To minimize total XRP transfer costs, use exchanges with the lowest withdrawal fees, consider withdrawing larger amounts less frequently, and always check whether you're being shown the network fee or the exchange fee. For wallet-to-wallet transfers on the XRPL directly, only the 0.00001 XRP base fee applies.
