The XRP Ledger base fee is set at 10 drops of XRP, which equals 0.00001 XRP — one of the lowest transaction fees among all major blockchain networks. This fee is hardcoded into the protocol as the reference minimum, ensuring every participant on the network contributes a nominal cost to prevent spam.

A "drop" is the smallest unit of XRP, where 1 XRP equals 1,000,000 drops. The base fee of 10 drops was designed to be negligible for legitimate users while creating a meaningful deterrent against denial-of-service attacks. As of early 2025, 10 drops is worth less than one hundred-thousandth of a cent, making XRP transactions virtually free for everyday users.

The base fee is reported through the server_info API method as validated_ledger.base_fee_xrp, and through server_state as the raw internal integer validated_ledger.base_fee (in drops). Every signed transaction must include the fee in the Fee field; once signed, this field cannot be altered without invalidating the cryptographic signature.

Unlike proof-of-work blockchains where fees go to miners, or proof-of-stake chains where fees go to validators, the XRP Ledger destroys all transaction fees permanently — they are "burned." This mechanism slightly reduces the total XRP supply over time, contributing to long-term scarcity.