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Head-to-head · Stablecoins

PayPal USD (PYUSD) vs USDC PayPal USD (PYUSD) leads by 2 points.

PayPal USD (PYUSD) scores 2 points above USDC, led by redemption right exercised and seizure and upgrade authority. PayPal USD (PYUSD) ranks #1 and USDC #2 of 11 published stablecoins. Every term of the gap is on the ledger below; the inputs are on the audit receipt.

PayPal USD (PYUSD)79
USDC77
Scores are out of 100; published scores fall within 41–99 · ranks #1 and #2 of 11
Methodology v2026.10.18Ranking snapshot Evidence verified through 4 published criteria5 score dimensions Receipt #cc-VS-PAYPAL-USD-PYUSD-VS-USDC-04cb2c01
Published verdictRanking snapshot 3 November 2026

PayPal USD (PYUSD) leads by 2 points

PayPal USD (PYUSD) scores 2 points above USDC, led by redemption right exercised and seizure and upgrade authority.

PayPal USD (PYUSD) #1 of 1179
USDC #2 of 1177
Scores are out of 100; published scores fall within 41–99; a bar is empty at 41 and full at 99.
Why, term by termPayPal USD (PYUSD) leads on 2 of 4 published criteria; USDC on 1. The terms sum to the gap.
TermPayPal USD (PYUSD)USDCWeightPoints
Redemption right exercised8/105/106.7+5.2for PayPal USD (PYUSD)+2.7 of 32
Reserve and assurance scope4/108/105.8−6.0for USDC−3.1 of 32
Seizure and upgrade authority6/104/104.3+2.2for PayPal USD (PYUSD)+1.2 of 32
Net of the terms+1.5
Criteria roundingThe criteria block is rounded to whole points before it is spread+0.1
Reproduced gap+1.6
Published gapAfter score rounding and bounds — see the note below7977+2.0

Weight is in points of the 86-point weighted total. Points are score points of the gap between the two.

Quick facts

At a glance

2 of 3 rows read the same for both.
FactPayPal USD (PYUSD)USDC
PricingSnapshotISSUER SIDE, binding terms (https://paxos.com/stablecoin-terms-conditions/ → www.paxos.com/terms-and-conditions/stablecoin-terms-conditions, “Last Modified: June 30, 2026”, fetched 29 September 2026). Fee: §2.8.2.1 “Paxos will not charge you fees for redeeming USD Stablecoins.” Minimum: §2.7.4 “Paxos may require a minimum amount for redemption, which may be updated from time to time, equal to the minimum wire fee charged by your bank for the transaction.” Rate: §2.7.1 “ALL REDEMPTIONS WILL BE ON A ONE-FOR-ONE BASIS, NOTWITHSTANDING ANY CHANGE IN THE MARKET VALUE OF THE RESERVE ASSETS BACKING USD STABLECOINS.” A reserve fee accrues to the issuer, §2.8.1.2: “We will apply a fee to reserves backing USD Stablecoins, and you agree to pay us such fee as determined by an appropriate market rate, provided that no fee will be imposed that reduces the USD Stablecoin reserves to below the amount of USD Stablecoins outstanding.” The schedule itself is NOT on this page — §2.8.1.1 defers it: “An overview of our fees is set forth in the Paxos User Guide at https://help.paxos.com or otherwise in a pricing supplement provided to you by Paxos separate from this USD Stablecoin Agreement” || RETAIL SIDE, https://www.paypal.com/us/digital-wallet/manage-money/crypto/pyusd (fetched 29 September 2026): “There are no fees to buy, sell, hold or transfer PYUSD to eligible PayPal users.” and “You can buy and sell 1 PYUSD for 1 USD on PayPal.” || RETAIL SIDE, THE FULL FEE PAGE, https://www.paypal.com/us/digital-wallet/paypal-consumer-fees (fetched 29 September 2026). Buy/sell table, general crypto: “1.00 - 74.99 USD” “2.20%”, “75.00 – 200.00 USD” “2.00%”, “200.01 – 1000.00 USD” “1.80%”, “1000.01 USD +” “1.50%”, followed by “The fees above do not apply to buying and selling PYUSD”. Transfers: “Receiving a crypto transfer” “No fee”; “Transferring crypto to another PayPal or Venmo branded cryptocurrency account” “No fee”; to an outside address “You will be charged a cryptocurrency network fee, payable in the crypto you transfer, which varies.” Bundled one-step flows ONLY: “For PYUSD, you will pay 1.5% on the USD value of the PYUSD that you transfer to your external wallet.” and “For PYUSD, you will pay 1.5% on the USD value of the PYUSD that you receive from your external wallet.” Disclosed but unquantified for PYUSD: “The exchange rate you’ll see before buying or selling crypto will also include a cryptocurrency conversion spread”. No minimum or maximum PYUSD amount is published on either PayPal page. || MARKETING HEADLINE, paxos.com/pyusd (fetched 29 September 2026): “Zero fees to convert PYUSD to USD with PayPal and Paxos”. || TYPED RATE (label, not a quote): spreadPct = 0 — i.e. a 0% spread on the par (one-for-one) redemption, resting on §2.8.2.1 and §2.7.1 above. The 1.5% applies only to the bundled one-step flows and is not typed.NO PUBLIC MINT OR REDEEM FEE SCHEDULE AND NO PUBLISHED MINIMUM on any Circle surface fetched 29 September 2026. The binding contract defers to a document the reader cannot open — Circle Mint User Agreement (https://www.circle.com/legal/user-agreement, “Last Updated: September 28, 2026”) §10 Fees: “Circle may charge fees in connection with the Services. You agree to pay the fees shown to you, if any, or as separately agreed between you and Circle, when you enter into a transaction. Fees are generally disclosed on the Fee Schedule; we may change any of the fees that Circle charges at any time, with or without notice.” The linked Fee Schedule (help.circle.com/s/article/Circle-Account-fee-schedule) returned HTTP 200 with 79 characters of text (“Support Redirect - Support Loading...”) — no amounts, no minimums. circle.com/circle-mint (fetched 29 September 2026) is silent on fees and minimums and says “Circle Mint is the fastest and most cost effective way for distributors to access and redeem USDC, EURC, and cirBTC.” and, under the card “1:1 redemption”, “USDC, EURC, and cirBTC can be respectively redeemed 1:1 for US dollars, euros, and BTC through Circle.” (in August the same card read “can always be redeemed” — the word “always” is gone). circle.com/pricing now redirects to circle.com/contact/partner, a contact form, not a price list. The only fee language addressed to a retail holder is the EEA path, circle.com/legal/mica-redemption-policy (“Last Updated: September 15, 2026”), which charges nothing itself and disclaims only third-party costs: “Retail Holders are informed that third party fees may occur when payment in USD is performed on their bank account. Circle France is not liable for any such third party fees.” The legacy catalog’s six-figure Circle minimum remains unsupported: no minimum of any size appears in the USDC Terms, the Circle Mint User Agreement or circle.com/circle-mint as fetched 29 September 2026. No list price is published, so cost cannot be compared before a sales conversation.
Asset coverageEditorial——
Region fitSnapshotglobalglobal
From the published criteria

Which should you pick?

PayPal USD (PYUSD)

79#1 of 11
Leads
Pick it when
Pick PayPal USD (PYUSD) if redemption right exercised matters most — it scores 8/10 to USDC's 5/10 there (weight 28).
Strength
Redemption right exercised — 8/10
Tradeoff
The protections are scoped to Paxos account-holders; the powers are scoped to everyone. §3.5.6 says the freeze, seizure, forfeiture and destruction section “This Section 3.5 applies to all holders of USD Stablecoins, regardless of whether the holder is a Customer of Paxos.” — but §2.2.2 says “Only Customers may purchase USD Stablecoins from us or redeem USD Stablecoins from us.” and the bankruptcy-remoteness sentence at §3.2.3.1 is framed as “Your assets held with Paxos Trust” and sits inside a subsection headed “3.2.3. Pass-Through Insurance Option.” Buy PYUSD on an exchange, hold it in your own wallet, and you are inside the seizure clause and outside the redemption clause. Note that the prior draft's second complaint — that PayPal's 1:1 zero-fee conversion does not reach on-chain coins — was WRONG and has been withdrawn: “Fee Table: Transferring a cryptocurrency Transfer Type Fee Receiving a crypto transfer No fee Transferring crypto to another PayPal or Venmo branded cryptocurrency account No fee Transferring crypto to an address outside of PayPal or Venmo You will be charged a cryptocurrency network fee, payable in the crypto you transfer, which varies.” The 1.5% applies only to PayPal's bundled one-step buy-and-transfer and transfer-and-sell flows. The real qualification on the PayPal leg is legal, not priced: the counterparty there is PayPal Digital, Inc., where “You do not own any specific, identifiable, Crypto Asset.” and “Crypto Assets, including PYUSD, are not insured by FDIC, SIPC or any other public or private insurer, including against cyber theft or theft by other means.”

USDC

77#2 of 11
Pick it when
Pick USDC if reserve and assurance scope matters most — it scores 8/10 to PayPal USD (PYUSD)'s 4/10 there (weight 24).
Strength
Reserve and assurance scope — 8/10
Tradeoff
The buyer will read "USDC is always redeemable 1:1 for US dollars, and EURC is always redeemable 1:1 for euros. Always." on circle.com/transparency, directly above a panel dated "As of Sep 24, 2026" (read 2026-09-29), and reasonably conclude the word applies to them. It does not. Circle’s own Form 10-Q filed 2026-08-05 states "the Company does not redeem Circle stablecoins from stablecoin holders who are not Circle Mint customers" outside the EU carve-out, and circle.com/circle-mint states "Circle Mint is not available to individuals". Outside the EEA a private holder has no redemption right at all — only an exit at whatever the secondary market pays, which is exactly what broke in March 2023. The second sting is one the first pass did not reach: even inside a Mint account, the binding agreement lets Circle suspend the account "as determined in our sole and absolute discretion" and then says that on closure or suspension you "forfeit all proprietary rights and claims against Circle in relation to any U.S. Dollar or euro funds otherwise eligible for redemption". The third: the protection most buyers assume the new OCC charter already delivers is not in place — the 10-K says Circle National Trust "will hold a first-priority perfected security interest in the USDC reserve as collateral trustee for the benefit of USDC holders" in the future tense, and circle.com/circle-national-trust still says it is only "expected to manage the USDC reserves" over time.
Self-identify in 10 seconds

Which one is actually for you?

PayPal USD (PYUSD)Leads

Choose PayPal USD (PYUSD) if redemption right exercised matters most

  • Redemption right exercised: 8/10 against 5/10 for USDC (weight 28)
  • Seizure and upgrade authority: 6/10 against 4/10 for USDC (weight 18)
USDC

Choose USDC if reserve and assurance scope matters most

  • Reserve and assurance scope: 8/10 against 4/10 for PayPal USD (PYUSD) (weight 24)
Criterion by criterion

Scorecard

Published criteria · weight in points of 868 of 8 cells scored. Strength is read from the evidence file; the weight is the published one. Methodology

Counterparty and insolvency rank

weight 7.2 of 86Tie
PayPal USD (PYUSD)7 out of 10
USDC7 out of 10

Redemption right exercised

by 3 of 10weight 6.7 of 86PayPal USD (PYUSD) leads
PayPal USD (PYUSD)8 out of 10
USDC5 out of 10

Reserve and assurance scope

by 4 of 10weight 5.8 of 86USDC leads
PayPal USD (PYUSD)4 out of 10
USDC8 out of 10

Seizure and upgrade authority

by 2 of 10weight 4.3 of 86PayPal USD (PYUSD) leads
PayPal USD (PYUSD)6 out of 10
USDC4 out of 10

Score dimensions

weights sum to 86

The published score is five dimensions, each weighted for the category. "Published criteria" is the criteria block above; the other four are the engine's own terms — availability, friction, trust record, measured data. Each bar is one side's points out of that dimension's maximum; the weight beside the name is its points of the 86-point weighted total. The published criteria above can fill 24 of the block’s 30. A weight marked “constant here” belongs to a dimension every ranked product in the category holds at the same value: it still counts in the total, and it orders nothing here.

Availabilityweight 20 of 86 · constant here
PayPal USD (PYUSD)14/20USDC14/20
Tie
Published criteriaweight 30 of 86
PayPal USD (PYUSD)15.3/30USDC14.7/30
PayPal USD (PYUSD) leads
Frictionweight 10 of 86 · constant here
PayPal USD (PYUSD)2.7/10USDC2.7/10
Tie
Trust recordweight 8 of 86 · constant here
PayPal USD (PYUSD)3.2/8USDC3.2/8
Tie
Measured dataweight 18 of 86 · constant here
PayPal USD (PYUSD)8.3/18USDC8.3/18
Tie
Decision rulePublished order

Choose PayPal USD (PYUSD) unless the term USDC leads on is the one you are buying.

Pick USDC if reserve and assurance scope matters most — it scores 8/10 to PayPal USD (PYUSD)'s 4/10 there (weight 24).

The published order weighs every criterion the same way for everyone. To weigh them your way, run .

From the published order

Next best action

If this isn't your case

Other matchups worth comparing

How you can lose money here, and what the ranking scores
  • Control failure: a key or vote changes the rules, freezes or mints.
    Scored by Who can freeze, burn or replace your balance — and have they? · 18% (PayPal USD (PYUSD) 6/10, USDC 4/10)
  • Insolvency failure: the firm or issuer that owes you cannot pay.
    Scored by Who exactly owes you the dollar, and where do you rank when they fail? · 30% (PayPal USD (PYUSD) 7/10, USDC 7/10)
    Scored by What is really behind it, and what did the third party actually opine on? · 24% (PayPal USD (PYUSD) 4/10, USDC 8/10)
  • Exit failure: you cannot get out at par, on time, or with what is yours.
    Scored by Can the person actually holding it get a dollar back at par — and has anyone, at size? · 28% (PayPal USD (PYUSD) 8/10, USDC 5/10)
Not assessed by this ranking: Contract failure, Custody failure, Regulatory failure, Information failure. A high place says nothing about these; the Methodology tab says what each means.
Questions

Frequently asked questions

PayPal USD (PYUSD) scores 2 points above USDC, led by redemption right exercised and seizure and upgrade authority. Published scores, out of 100: PayPal USD (PYUSD) 79 (rank 1 of 11 stablecoins), USDC 77 (rank 2 of 11).

Related pages

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Reviewed Next review by Methodology v2026.10.18
How this page is reviewed

Reviewed means both products compared here was read against its sources on or after that date; every ranked category is re-read at least every 45 days. Models research, extract and parse. A deterministic engine ranks. Every quote passes an adversarial refute pass.

Accountable for this review: Mathias Siemonsmeier, Founder.

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