Quick answer: buying or selling an NFT usually involves three separate costs stacked together: a gas fee paid to the blockchain network, a platform fee taken by the marketplace (typically 0.5% to 2.5%), and sometimes a creator royalty. They’re easy to confuse because all three show up in the same checkout screen, but they go to three different places for three different reasons.
Why this trips people up
Most first-time sellers open a marketplace, list an NFT, and are surprised when the amount received is noticeably less than the sale price. None of the individual fees are hidden exactly, but nothing on most marketplaces breaks them down clearly before you commit to a listing or a purchase.
Gas fees
Gas is paid to the blockchain itself, not the marketplace, in exchange for processing the transaction. It covers minting, listing, buying, and transferring. On Ethereum, gas fluctuates with network demand and can range from a couple of dollars to well over $50 during busy periods. Layer-2 chains and networks like Polygon or Solana charge a small fraction of that. This is the one fee that has nothing to do with which marketplace you use; it’s determined entirely by which blockchain the NFT lives on.
Platform fees
This is the marketplace’s own cut, deducted automatically from the sale price. It funds the platform’s operations, in the same way a payment processor or auction house takes a percentage. Rates vary: OpenSea currently charges around 2.5%, Blur has run promotional periods at 0%, and Magic Eden’s rate depends on the chain. Since this fee changes over time as platforms compete on price, check the current rate on whichever marketplace you’re using rather than relying on any figure you read elsewhere, including here.
Creator royalties
A percentage of the sale, historically 2.5% to 10%, intended to route back to the original creator on every resale. This is the fee most likely to be inconsistent: some marketplaces still enforce it automatically, others made it optional for buyers starting around 2023. Our deep dive on how NFT royalties actually work covers why enforcement varies so much by platform.
| Fee type | Who receives it | Typical range | Who controls it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gas fee | The blockchain network | Variable, chain-dependent | Network congestion |
| Platform fee | The marketplace | 0% to 2.5% | The marketplace |
| Creator royalty | The original creator | 0% to 10% (often optional) | Marketplace + buyer choice |
Doing the math before you list or buy
Before selling, subtract the platform fee and any royalty from your expected sale price, and remember gas is paid separately, usually up front, regardless of whether the item sells. Before buying, the listed price is close to what you’ll actually pay, since buyer-side fees are typically lower or bundled into gas, but always check the final confirmation screen before approving a transaction, since that’s where the real total is shown.
The one-line summary
Gas goes to the network, platform fees go to the marketplace, royalties go to the creator, and only one of the three (royalties) is negotiable in the sense that its enforcement depends on where you trade. Knowing which fee is which makes marketplace comparisons, like our OpenSea vs. Blur vs. Magic Eden guide, much easier to actually use.