A Quick Follow-Up: What Are the Fees for Transferring PayPal to Skrill?

After sharing my experience on moving money from PayPal to Skrill, a friend asked me to dig a bit deeper into the fees involved. I get it—nobody wants surprises eating into their funds! So, I went back to check the costs for each method I mentioned in my last post. Here’s what I found, laid out simply based on my own research and recent transactions.

1. Using Your Bank as a Middleman

This is the “safe but slow” route where you transfer from #PayPal to your bank, then from your bank to #Skrill.

• PayPal to Bank: In the U.S. and UK, standard bank withdrawals are usually free, but they take 1–5 days. If you’re in a hurry, instant transfers might cost 1–1.5% (capped at $25 in the U.S.). In other countries, like India or Australia, PayPal might charge $2–$5 per withdrawal. If your PayPal balance is in a different currency than your bank (say, USD to EUR), expect a 3–4.5% conversion fee above the mid-market rate.
• Bank to Skrill: Skrill doesn’t charge for bank transfer deposits in many regions (like the U.S. or UK), which is nice. But if you use a debit card linked to your bank, Skrill charges about 1–2%. Currency conversion? That’s another 3.99% fee on Skrill’s end if your bank and Skrill currencies don’t match.
• Rough Total: $0–$5 flat fees, plus 3–8.5% if currencies are converted. For example, transferring $100 USD could cost $3–$8 in conversion losses, plus any withdrawal fees.

2. Third-Party Exchange Services

These are faster but involve trusting a platform to swap your funds. I mentioned ChangeBuz.com as something I tried, and I’ll use it as an example here since it worked for me.

• Exchange Markup: Most exchangers charge 1.5% to 3% through their exchange rate. For instance, if you’re swapping $100 PayPal USD to Skrill USD, you might get $90–$95 in Skrill after the rate is applied. I saw rates around 1.14–1.16 PayPal USD to 1 Skrill USD on some platforms, meaning a 1.5%% effective fee.
• Extra Fees: Some services add a flat fee ($1–$5), and PayPal might charge 2.9–5% for sending to the exchanger’s PayPal account, especially if it’s international or treated as a “goods and services” payment.
• Rough Total: 5–15% of your transfer, plus $0–$5 flat fees. For $100, you could lose $5–$20 total, depending on the service and PayPal’s cut.

3. Debit Card Linked to PayPal

This is where you use a PayPal-linked debit card to deposit directly into Skrill.

• PayPal Side: If PayPal processes it as a card transaction, there’s usually no fee unless it’s treated as a cash advance (check with your card issuer—mine charged 3% once as a cash advance fee).
• Skrill Side: Card deposits cost 1–2% on Skrill. If there’s currency conversion (e.g., your card is in USD, but Skrill is set to EUR), add Skrill’s 3.99% conversion fee.
• Rough Total: 1–5% in fees, plus 3.99% for currency conversion if applicable. For $100, expect $1–$9 in costs, depending on your card and currency setup.

My Two Cents

Fees can sting, no doubt. The bank route is cheapest if you avoid currency conversion and don’t mind waiting a 5 days. Exchangers like ChangeBuz.com are pricier but faster—great when time’s tight.

Pro Tip: Always check PayPal and Skrill’s fee pages for your country, and compare exchanger rates on sites like ChangeBuz.com to get a sense of the market. Also, keep all your accounts (PayPal, bank, Skrill) in the same currency if possible to dodge those conversion hits.

Got a specific fee question or a transfer you’re planning? Let me know what you’re working with, and I’ll try to help figure out the cheapest way to go!