When do I choose whether to make Rebuttal's optional payment?
You choose the affected spell during Rebuttal's finalization, before opponents can react.355.5359.3.c You do not decide whether to pay until Rebuttal resolves. The optional payment is not a cost paid to play Rebuttal; it is a game action Rebuttal instructs you to perform during resolution.135.2.b.3205 Opponents therefore know which spell you chose, but not whether you will pay to gain control of it or decline and have Rebuttal attempt to counter it.