Which x402 facilitator is cheapest?

Coinbase CDP is free (gas only). Cloudflare is included in Workers plans. Self-hosting costs gas but requires engineering investment.

← Learn

Comparison

x402 Facilitators Compared: Which One Should You Use?

Q: What's the difference between a facilitator and Cleared Check?

Facilitators verify and settle payments after an agent decides to pay. Cleared Check verifies endpoint trust before the agent pays. They're complementary layers.

By Cleared · Updated August 2026 · 7 min read

A facilitator is the service that verifies and settles x402 payments on-chain. When your server gets a payment signature from an agent, the facilitator confirms it's valid, settles the USDC transfer, and tells your server to release the resource. Choosing the right one depends on your stack, volume, and compliance needs.

Side-by-Side Comparison

Facilitator	Type	Networks	Settlement	Pricing
Coinbase CDP	Managed (reference)	Base, Solana, Ethereum, Arbitrum, Polygon	< 2 seconds	Free (protocol fees only)
Stripe ACP	Managed (private preview)	Base, Ethereum	< 5 seconds	2.9% + $0.30 (standard Stripe fees)
Circle	Managed	Base, Ethereum, Solana, Avalanche	Batched (seconds to minutes)	Usage-based (contact sales)
Cloudflare	Edge-native	Base	< 2 seconds	Included in Workers plan
AWS AgentCore	Orchestrated	Base, Solana	< 5 seconds	Pay-per-use (AWS pricing)
Self-hosted	DIY	Any EVM + Solana	Depends on implementation	Gas only

Detailed Breakdown

Coinbase CDP

Managed (reference)

Reference implementation. Broadest network support. Batch settlement. EIP-712 signing.

Best for: Default choice. Production-ready, broadest support.

Stripe ACP

Managed (private preview)

PaymentIntents, refunds, fiat settlement, dispute resolution. Connects x402 to traditional rails.

Best for: Teams already on Stripe. Need fiat settlement or chargebacks.

Circle

Managed

Nanopayment batching. USDC-native. Programmable wallets. Compliance tooling.

Best for: High-volume micropayments. Enterprise compliance requirements.

Cloudflare

Edge-native

Native Agents SDK integration. Edge compute + payment in same request. MCP tool support.

Best for: Already on Cloudflare Workers. Want zero additional infra.

AWS AgentCore

Orchestrated

Buyer-side agent wallets. Budget controls. Multi-agent orchestration. Bedrock integration.

Best for: AWS-native stacks. Agent wallet management at scale.

Self-hosted

DIY

Full control. No vendor dependency. Requires own verification + settlement logic.

Best for: Crypto-native teams. Custom settlement logic. Maximum sovereignty.

Facilitators Verify Payments — But Who Verifies Endpoints?

Every facilitator above confirms that a payment is cryptographically valid and settles on-chain. But none of them answer the question agents ask before paying:

Is this endpoint legitimate? Will it actually deliver? Has anyone verified it?

Facilitators operate after the agent decides to pay. Cleared Check operates before. They're complementary layers — facilitators settle the payment, Cleared verifies the destination is worth paying.

How to Choose

Just getting started? Use Coinbase CDP. It's free, production-ready, and the reference implementation.

Need fiat settlement? Stripe ACP bridges x402 to traditional payment rails with refunds and disputes.

High-volume micropayments? Circle's batching keeps gas costs low at scale.

Already on Cloudflare? Native Workers integration means zero additional infra.

Building on AWS? AgentCore gives you wallet orchestration and budget controls.

Maximum control? Self-host. You handle everything, but you own everything.

Verify Before You Pay

Regardless of which facilitator you choose, add a trust check before your agent sends money. Cleared Check returns PASS/FAIL in under 200ms.

Run a Cleared Check →List your endpoint

const { pass } = await fetch(`https://clearedindex.com/api/cleared/check?origin=${url}`).then(r => r.json());

Frequently Asked Questions

What is an x402 facilitator?+

A service that verifies payment signatures and settles USDC transfers on-chain. It sits between the client (agent) and the resource server, confirming payments are valid before the server releases data.

Do I need a facilitator to use x402?+

For production use, yes. You can self-host one or use a managed service like Coinbase CDP (free), Stripe, or Circle. The facilitator handles on-chain verification so your server doesn't need to.

Which facilitator is cheapest?+

Coinbase CDP is free (you only pay gas). Cloudflare is included in your Workers plan. Self-hosting is gas-only but requires engineering investment.

Can I switch facilitators later?+

Yes. x402 is protocol-level, not vendor-locked. Your middleware points at a facilitator URL — changing it is a config update, not a rewrite.

What's the difference between a facilitator and Cleared Check?+

Facilitators verify and settle payments AFTER an agent decides to pay. Cleared Check verifies endpoint trust BEFORE the agent pays. They're complementary — use both.