How Much Does It Cost to Send ETH Right Now?
Right now, to send ETH on Ethereum mainnet costs about $0.0042 at the standard gas price of 0.081 gwei.
A plain ether transfer between two regular wallets is the cheapest transaction on Ethereum. It always consumes exactly 21,000 gas, the protocol's fixed cost for a transaction with no contract code. Sending ETH to a smart contract wallet or a contract that runs code on receipt uses more.
How the cost is calculated
Fee = gas used × gas price × ETH price. With the current standard price: 21,000 gas × 0.081 gwei = 0.00000170 ETH, which is $0.0042 at $2,492 per ETH. Across the typical range of exactly 21,000 gas, the standard cost is between $0.0042 and $0.0042.
How to pay less
- Sending to an exchange deposit address is a plain transfer and uses 21,000 gas.
- If you send ETH often, a layer-2 network makes the same transfer cost a fraction of a cent.
- Check the cheapest hours to transact and avoid known demand spikes.
What it cost on recent days
Cost of this action at each day's average and peak standard gas price, using that day's average ETH price.
| Day | Avg gas | Cost at avg | Cost at peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| October 10, 2026 | 0.088 gwei | $0.0046 | $0.0073 |
| October 9, 2026 | 0.212 gwei | $0.011 | $0.065 |
| October 8, 2026 | 0.940 gwei | $0.050 | $0.649 |
| October 7, 2026 | 0.682 gwei | $0.037 | $0.320 |
| October 6, 2026 | 0.544 gwei | $0.031 | $0.253 |
| October 5, 2026 | 0.467 gwei | $0.027 | $0.197 |
| October 4, 2026 | 0.122 gwei | $0.0069 | $0.053 |
Compare with other Ethereum actions
| Action | Typical gas | Standard cost |
|---|---|---|
| Send ETH | 21,000 | $0.0042 |
| Send USDT (ERC-20) | 63,000 | $0.013 |
| Send USDC (ERC-20) | 60,000 | $0.012 |
| Approve a token | 46,000 | $0.0093 |
| Swap on Uniswap | 150,000 | $0.030 |
| Mint an NFT | 120,000 | $0.024 |
| Transfer an NFT | 70,000 | $0.014 |
| Buy an NFT on a marketplace | 200,000 | $0.040 |
| Deposit into Aave | 220,000 | $0.044 |
| Wrap ETH into WETH | 46,000 | $0.0093 |
| Stake ETH with Lido | 85,000 | $0.017 |
| Bridge ETH to a layer-2 | 110,000 | $0.022 |
| Register an ENS name | 300,000 | $0.060 |
| Deploy a smart contract | 1,200,000 | $0.242 |
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to send ETH right now?
About $0.0042 at the standard gas price of 0.081 gwei with ETH at $2,492, using a typical 21,000 gas.
How much gas does it use?
Typically exactly 21,000 gas. Exact usage depends on the contract and on whether new storage is written.
Why does the cost change during the day?
The gas price follows demand for Ethereum block space. Busy hours and market events push it up; quiet hours bring it down.