---
title: "Understanding the different expense amounts"
slug: "understanding-the-different-expense-amounts"
description: "Learn how Payhawk displays expense amounts: see transaction vs base currency totals, exchange fees and the differences between payment and accounting FX rates."
updated: 2026-10-19T09:40:48Z
published: 2026-10-19T09:40:48Z
canonical: "payhawk.com/understanding-the-different-expense-amounts"
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://payhawk.com/help/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Understanding the different expense amounts

In Payhawk, you can view expense amounts in different sections, each showing specific details or context.

To provide a full overview of the amounts and the way they are indicated in the system, the example uses a paid card expense in a currency that is different from the [base currency of the Payhawk account](/help/overview-of-deposits-and-payments-in-payhawk).

![The Amount section of a card expense paid in USD, showing each amount in USD with the amount in EUR below it, and the Payment section with the card currency, exchange rate, and fees.](https://cdn.payhawk.com/Navigation%20images%20Desi_20261015/amount_payment_20261015_ai.png)

## The sums in the Amount section

The **Amount** section shows the amounts in one column:

- **Paid currency** refers to the currency of the transaction; the local currency where the transaction was made.
- **TOTAL** refers to the total amount in the transaction currency.
- Under each amount, a second line shows it in the base currency of the Payhawk account, EUR in this example. For example, **Net amount in EUR** and **Tax amount in EUR**.
- **Total in EUR** refers to the total amount in the base currency. This amount is calculated by multiplying the **TOTAL** amount by the official (accounting) FX rate on the date of the transaction between the transaction currency and the base currency of the Payhawk account.

> [!TIP]
> Even when the card currency is the same as the account base currency, the **Total in EUR** amount may differ because of the different FX rates used.

## The sums in the Payment section

- **Card currency** refers to the amount paid in the currency of the card; the balance to which it was attached when the transaction was made.
- **Paid in** refers to the amount paid in the transaction currency as reported by the provider, meaning the local currency where the transaction was made. The amount corresponds to the **TOTAL** amount in the **Amount** section unless the expense has been manually modified by an employee.
- **Exchange fees** refers to the charged transaction fee as reported by the transaction in the **Card currency**.
- **ATM fees** refers to the ATM withdrawal fees collected at the point of sale in the **Card currency**.

## Payment FX rate vs. accounting FX rate

> [!TIP]
> The payment FX rate and the accounting FX rate are unrelated and may involve different currencies.

The payment FX rate:

- Corresponds to the **Exchange rate** under **Payment** and refers to the FX rate as reported by the transaction (in this case **0.80630**).
- Is provided by the payment processor (VISA or Mastercard) in real-time and converts the transaction amount to the card (balance) currency on the settlement date.
- Depends on the time of the day and will differ if you make several transactions on that day.

The accounting FX rate (official FX rate):

- Corresponds to the exchange rate displayed between the **Amount** and **Payment** sections (in this case **0.8507**).
- Is provided by Payhawk based on the data from the [European Central Bank](https://www.ecb.europa.eu/stats/policy_and_exchange_rates/euro_reference_exchange_rates/html/index.en.html), remains fixed throughout the entire day, and converts the transaction amount to the accounting (base) currency of the Payhawk account on the authorization date, ensuring it can be properly accounted for in the ERP system.
- Is expected to be applied for the official accounting of expenses and any minor discrepancies in the final amounts due to this fixed rate are considered acceptable from an accounting perspective.
- Even if the card and accounting (base) currencies are the same, there might be discrepancies because the two come from different sources and are for different dates.

## Useful resources

- [Take control of your AI spend with Payhawk](/help/take-control-of-your-ai-spend-with-payhawk)
- [Why are the last 4 digits of my card different on the invoice?](/help/why-are-the-last-4-digits-of-my-card-different-on-the-invoice)
- [3D secure protection for online VISA card payments](/help/3d-secure-protection-for-online-visa-card-payments)