Crypto Payments Go Mainstream as 40% of US Merchants Adopt – PayPal

Key Insights:

• About 40% of U.S. merchants accept crypto payments, and most say shoppers have asked for them.
• Usage can be meaningful: merchants who take crypto say it makes up 26% of sales.
• The main hurdle is simplicity: 90% would try crypto if it were as easy as card payments.

Crypto Payments are showing up in regular checkout decisions, not just in product demos. That shift matters for the crypto market because it ties activity to consumer spending behavior rather than price momentum alone.

On Jan. 27, 2026, PayPal and the National Cryptocurrency Association (NCA) released U.S. merchant research stating that “nearly 4 out of 10 (40%)” merchants already accept crypto at checkout, and 84% believe crypto payments will become common within five years.

Merchants report that customers are asking for the option. The merchants who already offer it describe crypto as more than a novelty line item.

Crypto Payments and the Crypto Market: What PayPal’s Survey Measured

PayPal and the NCA say the survey was conducted online in the U.S. by The Harris Poll from October 21–27, 2025, among 619 “payment strategy decision makers” across retail/e-commerce, hospitality/travel, luxury/specialty, and digital goods/gaming.

The release also discloses a Bayesian credible interval equivalent to about ±3.9 percentage points at a 95% confidence level.

PayPal and the NCA report that 88% of merchants have received customer inquiries about paying with crypto. About 69% say customers want to use crypto at least once a month. Meanwhile, 79% agree that accepting crypto could help attract new customers.

PayPal executive May Zabaneh, Vice President and General Manager of Crypto at PayPal, frames this shift as demand-driven and no longer experimental, saying crypto payments are “moving beyond experimentation and into everyday commerce.”

The market implication is not that every merchant will suddenly onboard tomorrow. Cryptocurrency payment acceptance is increasingly described in the same language as mainstream payments competition: customer preference, conversion, speed, and familiarity.

Adoption is Uneven By Business Size, and That’s the Point

The survey breaks adoption out by revenue bands, and the spread is meaningful. Among large enterprises earning more than $500 million in annual revenue, 50% are already accepting crypto. That compares with 34% of small businesses and 32% of midsize companies.

Bigger merchants move first because they can fund integrations, manage risk, and negotiate better processing economics.

If crypto payments are following that well-worn adoption curve, the implication is clear. The next growth phase may be less about awareness. It will be more about a simpler setup and a “feels like cards” user experience for smaller merchants.

When Crypto is Accepted, It Can Become a Material Share of Sales

One data point in the PayPal/NCA release stands out: among merchants that accept crypto today, crypto represents “over a quarter (26%) of total sales.” In the same group, 72% report their crypto sales increased over the past year.

Even allowing for self-selection effects, merchants seeing success are more likely to keep the option enabled. 26% is not a rounding error. If accurate across this accepting subset, it implies Crypto Payments can graduate from “alternative payment method” to meaningful tender mix once customers see it as routine.

Merchants report the greatest interest comes from Millennials (77%) and Gen Z or younger (73%). For small businesses specifically, Gen Z inquiry rates are reported at 82%, versus 67% for mid-size and 65% for large companies.

That detail matters for the crypto market. It suggests Crypto Payments are being pulled into checkout by demographics that already live in app-native commerce.

When the customers most likely to ask are also the cohorts that will compound purchasing power over time, the dynamic shifts. Cryptocurrency payment acceptance becomes less of a niche feature. It turns into a competitive checkbox, especially in online-first categories.

Industry Adoption is Clustering Where “digital-native” Demand is Highest

The survey highlights the industries with the highest customer interest: hospitality and travel (81%), digital goods/gaming/luxury/specialty retail (76%), and retail/e-commerce (69%).

This clustering is intuitive. These categories often have cross-border demand, digital delivery, and customers already accustomed to alternative payment methods. Crypto Payments appear to be scaling first in sectors where the buyer journey is already optimized for speed, remote checkout, and online identity.

The release’s most actionable takeaway is that usability remains the gating factor. Ninety percent of merchants say they would try accepting crypto if the experience matched the ease of card payments. A separate 90% say they would be likely to accept crypto if the setup were as simple as accepting credit cards.

For the crypto market, this signals a pragmatic near-term contest. The rails that make crypto payments feel boring will win. Predictable settlement, clear reconciliation, and minimal integration overhead will benefit disproportionately.