Yes, always. To transact on the Polygon network, you pay a fee, which goes to miners who process and validate transactions.
As the Polygon network is a decentralized blockchain with no singular entity or authority overseeing its operation, a mechanism is put in place to avoid the network from being congested or spammed with transactions.
This mechanism charges senders of transactions with a small fee called gas fee which is then used to reward validators who validate transactions on the network.
The gas fee is denominated in MATIC, which is also used on the Polygon network to facilitate value transfers, payouts to validators, and smart contract executions.
The way the gas fee works is similar to how gasoline/fuel works for vehicles. To get from Point A to Point B, a vehicle needs to be filled up with a sufficient amount of gas. Similarly, for a transaction on the Polygon network to be successful, the sender must provide a sufficient amount of gas to pay for gas fees.
To provide gas fee for a transaction, the gas fee is deducted from the remaining MATIC balance of your address and not from the amount of MATIC or tokens that you are sending. It is also deducted automatically and concurrently with your transaction in a single event, so there is no need to worry about forgetting to pay gas fees.
Meaning that you’d need a bit more balance in your MATIC balance in order a successful transaction.
No, it’s never been a fixed price. Gas Fees fluctuate depending on the complexity of a transaction and traffic on the network. Transacting during busy periods with plenty of traffic on the network will attract heavier fees.
The Polygon network is like a computer system that many people can use without one person in charge. To stop too many people from using it at once, they made a plan. This plan charges people a small fee called a “gas fee” when they want to use it. This fee goes to people who make sure everything on the network is correct. The fee is measured in something called MATIC, which is also used on the network to send and receive money and do other things. It’s like how cars need gas to move. The fee for using the network is taken from the amount of MATIC that you have. It happens automatically, so you don’t need to worry about forgetting to pay it.
