Mpesa is a widely used mobile money service that allows users to send and receive money online, pay bills, and buy airtime.
It’s essential to understand the latest Mpesa charges for various transaction types.
In this post, we’ll provide a comprehensive guide to Mpesa fees and rates and tips on how to save money on transactions.
What is Mpesa?
Mpesa is a mobile money payment system by Safaricom that allows its users to send and receive money through their mobile phones.
On March 6th, 2007, Mpesa was launched as a platform where users could exchange their airtime for goods and services or cash. But this has since changed.
Over the years, Mpesa has evolved to become one of the largest mobile payment systems globally. It offers services such as savings, insurance, international money payments and many more.
What are some of the main services provided by Mpesa?
Being a major mobile payment platform, Here are some of the services that Mpesa provides its users with:
- Send Money – Enables you to send money from your Mpesa wallet to others’.
- Withdraw Cash – This allows you to withdraw funds from your Mpesa wallet through either an M-pesa agent or ATM.
- Buy Airtime – Enables you to buy airtime for your Safaricom mobile number or any other mobile numbers (must be Safaricom) from your Mpesa wallet.
- Loans and Savings – This allows you to borrow money using your Mpesa account.
- Lipa na Mpesa – Enables you to pay for goods and services using cash in your Mpesa wallet.
- Global Pay – this is the latest product offering from Mpesa. With this, you get a Visa card that allows you to pay for goods and services online across borders.
Some of these services provided by Mpesa are at a fee, while others are free.
What are the current Mpesa charges?
Below are the official Mpesa rates for the chargeable transactions.
Mpesa send money charges
Mpesa users can send money to both registered M-pesa users and non-registered users.
Here are the charges for sending money to either user.
| Minimum amount (Kshs) | Maximum amount (Kshs) | Mpesa charges for registered recipients (Kshs) | Mpesa charges for non-registered recipients (Kshs) |
| 1 | 49 | Free | N/A |
| 50 | 100 | Free | N/A |
| 101 | 500 | 6 | 45 |
| 501 | 1,000 | 12 | 49 |
| 1,001 | 1,500 | 22 | 59 |
| 1,501 | 2,500 | 32 | 74 |
| 2,501 | 3,500 | 51 | 112 |
| 3,501 | 5,000 | 55 | 135 |
| 5,001 | 7,500 | 75 | 166 |
| 7,501 | 10,000 | 87 | 205 |
| 10,001 | 15,000 | 97 | 265 |
| 15,001 | 20,000 | 102 | 288 |
| 20,001 | 35,000 | 105 | 309 |
| 35,001 | 50,000 | 105 | N/A |
| 50,001 | 150,000 | 105 | N/A |
Note: You cannot send less than Kshs.101 or more than Kshs.35,000 to a non-registered recipient.
Mpesa charges for transfer to pochi la biashara and business till to customer
The rates for sending money to pochi la biashara or from a business till to a customer are as follows:
| Minimum amount (Kshs) | Maximum amount (Kshs) | Mpesa charges for transfer to pochi la biashara and from business till to customer (Kshs) |
| 1 | 49 | Free |
| 50 | 100 | Free |
| 101 | 500 | 6 |
| 501 | 1,000 | 12 |
| 1,001 | 1,500 | 22 |
| 1,501 | 2,500 | 32 |
| 2,501 | 3,500 | 51 |
| 3,501 | 5,000 | 55 |
| 5,001 | 7,500 | 75 |
| 7,501 | 10,000 | 87 |
| 10,001 | 15,000 | 97 |
| 15,001 | 20,000 | 102 |
| 20,001 | 35,000 | 105 |
| 35,001 | 50,000 | 105 |
| 50,001 | 150,000 | 105 |
Mpesa withdrawal charges
Mpesa allows you to withdraw money from either an mpesa agent or an ATM.
Here are the Mpesa charges for agent withdrawals
| Minimum amount (Kshs) | Maximum amount (Kshs) | Mpesa charges for agent withdrawals (Kshs) |
| 1 | 49 | N/A |
| 50 | 100 | 10 |
| 101 | 500 | 27 |
| 501 | 1,000 | 28 |
| 1,001 | 1,500 | 28 |
| 1,501 | 2,500 | 28 |
| 2,501 | 3,500 | 50 |
| 3,501 | 5,000 | 67 |
| 5,001 | 7,500 | 84 |
| 7,501 | 10,000 | 112 |
| 10,001 | 15,000 | 162 |
| 15,001 | 20,000 | 180 |
| 20,001 | 35,000 | 191 |
| 35,001 | 50,000 | 270 |
| 50,001 | 150,000 | 300 |
Note: You cannot withdraw less than Kshs.50 from an Mpesa agent.
Here are Mpesa charges for ATM withdrawals
| Minimum amount (Kshs) | Maximum amount (Kshs) | Mpesa charges for ATM withdrawals (Kshs) |
| 200 | 2,500 | 34 |
| 2,501 | 5,000 | 67 |
| 5,001 | 10,000 | 112 |
| 10,001 | 20,000 | 197 |
Which Mpesa services are free?
You will not be charged by Mpesa when you make the following Mpesa transactions:
- Deposit money into your Mpesa account.
- Register your Mpesa.
- Buy airtime.
- Enquire about your Mpesa balance.
- Change your Mpesa pin.
Final Take on The Mpesa Charges
Smart spending calls for the ability to track every single cent involved in a transaction. This mpesa charges guide provides you with all the information you need regarding costs involved in mpesa transactions. This way, you can easily manage your money like a boss.
FAQs on Mpesa Charges
What is the Mpesa transaction limit?
The Mpesa limit per transaction is Ksh.150,000. And the daily cumulative limit is Kshs.300,000.
What is the maximum amount that I can hold in my Mpesa wallet?
The maximum amount that you can hold in your Mpesa wallet is Kshs300,000.
