> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.cow.bleu.builders/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Fee Model

> How fees work in CoW Protocol — from the quote response to on-chain settlement. Everything you need to understand protocol fees, network costs, partner fees, and how to retrieve fee data for accounting.

<Note>
  **Building an integration?** The **[API Integration Guide](/cow-protocol/howto/integrate/api#step-3-compute-the-amounts-to-sign)** has the complete step-by-step fee computation with code examples. This page explains the concepts behind the fee model.
</Note>

## How fees work

CoW Protocol does **not** charge fees as a separate transaction. Instead, fees are embedded in the trade itself — deducted from the amounts you're already swapping. This means:

* **Sell orders**: fees reduce the buy amount you receive
* **Buy orders**: fees increase the sell amount you pay

There is no separate fee transfer, no gas token deduction, and no invoice. If you're looking for fee data for accounting, see [Retrieving fee data](#retrieving-fee-data-for-accounting) below.

## Fee types

| Fee               | What it covers                                                          | Applied to                                        |
| ----------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------- |
| **Network costs** | Gas fees for on-chain settlement                                        | Sell token (always)                               |
| **Protocol fee**  | CoW Protocol's revenue (`protocolFeeBps` in quote)                      | Buy token (sell orders) / Sell token (buy orders) |
| **Partner fee**   | Optional integrator fee (set via [appData](/cow-sdk/concepts/app-data)) | Buy token (sell orders) / Sell token (buy orders) |
| **Slippage**      | Price movement tolerance (not a fee, but part of the pipeline)          | Buy token (sell orders) / Sell token (buy orders) |

## Fee pipeline

Fees are applied in a specific order, transforming the raw spot price into the final signed amounts:

```
Spot Price (beforeAllFees)
  → after Protocol Fee
    → after Network Costs
      → after Partner Fee
        → after Slippage = amounts you sign
```

For the full pipeline with code examples and diagrams, see **[How Intents Are Formed](/cow-protocol/explanation/how-it-works/how-intents-are-formed#3-amount-stages)**.

## Current protocol fee parameters

| Fee                       | Rate                                           | Applies to                 |
| ------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------- | -------------------------- |
| **Surplus fee**           | 50% of surplus, capped at 0.98% of volume      | Out-of-market limit orders |
| **Quote improvement fee** | 50% of improvement, capped at 0.98% of volume  | Market orders (swaps)      |
| **Volume fee**            | 2 bps (standard) / 0.3 bps (correlated assets) | All orders                 |

For full definitions and calculation formulas, see **[Fees (Governance)](/governance/reference/fees)**.

## Understanding the quote response

The `/quote` API response is the starting point for understanding fees:

```json theme={null}
{
  "protocolFeeBps": "2",
  "quote": {
    "sellAmount": "99937516653569264",
    "buyAmount": "191179999",
    "feeAmount": "62483346430736",
    "kind": "sell"
  }
}
```

| Field            | What it means                                                   |
| ---------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `sellAmount`     | Sell amount **after** network costs deducted                    |
| `buyAmount`      | Buy amount **after** network costs and protocol fee deducted    |
| `feeAmount`      | Network costs in **sell token** units                           |
| `protocolFeeBps` | Protocol fee in basis points (already reflected in `buyAmount`) |

<Warning>
  `feeAmount` is the **network cost** only — not the total fee. The protocol fee is already embedded in `buyAmount` (sell orders) or `sellAmount` (buy orders).
</Warning>

### What you sign vs. what you see

For a **sell order**, the amounts signed into the order are:

* `sellAmount` = spot price amount (= `quote.sellAmount + quote.feeAmount`)
* `buyAmount` = minimum to receive after all fees and slippage

For a **buy order**:

* `sellAmount` = maximum to pay after all fees and slippage
* `buyAmount` = exact amount to receive (= spot price)

## Retrieving fee data for accounting

On-chain, `feeAmount` is set to **zero** in the order struct. This confuses many integrators looking for fee data. The actual fees are embedded in the price difference between the quoted and executed amounts.

To get fee breakdowns for a filled order:

### 1. Query the order details

```bash theme={null}
curl https://api.cow.fi/mainnet/api/v1/orders/{ORDER_UID}
```

The response includes `executedSellAmount`, `executedBuyAmount`, `executedSellAmountBeforeFees`, and `executedFeeAmount` — these reflect the actual settlement values.

### 2. Query the solver competition

```bash theme={null}
curl https://api.cow.fi/mainnet/api/v1/solver_competition/by_tx_hash/{TX_HASH}
```

This shows the solver's execution plan including surplus generated and fees taken.

### 3. Use the CoW Explorer

Visit `https://explorer.cow.fi/orders/{ORDER_UID}` for a visual breakdown of the order's fee components and settlement details.

<Note>
  For programmatic accounting, the [TypeScript SDK](/cow-sdk/api/order-book-api) and [Python SDK](/cow-py/api/order-book) provide typed access to order details including executed amounts and fees.
</Note>

## Related resources

* **[How Intents Are Formed](/cow-protocol/explanation/how-it-works/how-intents-are-formed)** — Full fee pipeline with code and diagrams
* **[Fees (Governance)](/governance/reference/fees)** — Current fee parameters and definitions
* **[Partner Fee](/governance/reference/partner-fee)** — How integrator fees work
* **[Error Reference](/cow-protocol/reference/core/error-reference)** — Fee-related errors (`SellAmountDoesNotCoverFee`)