TRC20 and BEP20 are two of the most popular low-cost networks for sending USDT. Both offer significantly cheaper transactions than Ethereum's ERC20 standard, but they operate on different blockchains with different address formats and ecosystems. Understanding the differences is essential to avoid sending USDT to the wrong network.

TRC20: USDT on the TRON Network

TRC20 is a token standard on the TRON blockchain. TRC20 addresses always start with the capital letter "T" and are 34 characters long — for example: TQn9Y2khEsLJW1ChVWFMSMeRDow5KcbLSE. TRON was designed specifically for high-throughput, low-cost transactions. Transaction fees are typically under $1 and confirmations happen in 1–3 seconds. TRON is particularly dominant in Asia and is the most widely used network for USDT stablecoin transfers globally by transaction volume.

BEP20: USDT on BNB Smart Chain

BEP20 is a token standard on BNB Smart Chain (BSC), the blockchain developed by Binance. BEP20 addresses start with "0x" and are 42 characters long — the same format as Ethereum addresses: for example 0x55d398326f99059fF775485246999027B3197955 (the USDT BEP20 contract address). BNB Smart Chain fees are also low, typically $0.05–$0.20 per transaction, paid in BNB (Binance Coin). Confirmations take approximately 3 seconds. BEP20 is integrated across the Binance ecosystem and widely supported on decentralized exchanges like PancakeSwap.

Address Format Comparison

TRC20 address: Starts with "T," 34 characters, Base58 encoding. Easy to identify visually. BEP20 address: Starts with "0x," 42 characters, hexadecimal encoding. Looks identical to an Ethereum (ERC20) address. This is important: BEP20 and ERC20 addresses have the same format because BNB Smart Chain is Ethereum-compatible. This means sending USDT via BEP20 to an ERC20 address (or vice versa) can result in the same type of fund loss as cross-network confusion.

Which Should You Use: TRC20 or BEP20?

Use TRC20 when: the recipient's exchange or wallet shows a "T" address, the recipient specifies TRC20 or TRON, or you are transferring USDT between platforms that both explicitly support TRC20. TRC20 has the highest USDT liquidity and is supported by virtually every major exchange. Use BEP20 when: the recipient's address starts with "0x" and they specify BNB Smart Chain or BEP20, you are interacting with Binance DEX or PancakeSwap, or you need to use USDT within the Binance ecosystem DApps. Never mix networks: sending TRC20 to a BEP20-only address, or BEP20 to a TRC20-only address, can result in permanent fund loss.

Fee Comparison: TRC20 vs BEP20

TRC20 on-chain fees: approximately $0.10–$0.50 per transaction (paid in TRX). Exchange withdrawal fees for TRC20: typically 1 USDT. BEP20 on-chain fees: approximately $0.05–$0.20 per transaction (paid in BNB). Exchange withdrawal fees for BEP20: typically 0.29 USDT on Binance. Both networks are dramatically cheaper than ERC20, which can cost $5–$50+ per transaction. The practical fee difference between TRC20 and BEP20 is small enough that the more important factor is usually which network the recipient can receive on.