Paddle vs Stripe (2026): Real Cost at Each Stage, Including Stripe Managed Payments
For subscription SaaS there are three options, not two: Stripe Payments with Stripe Billing (you are the seller), Paddle (merchant of record) and Stripe Managed Payments (Stripe's own merchant of record, generally available since April 29, 2026).
- Pick Stripe with Billing if you sell mostly in the US, owe sales tax in a handful of states and can register and file yourself. It is the cheapest of the three at every stage: 5.10 points of revenue at pre-seed, falling to 4.46 at Series A.
- Pick Paddle if you sell to buyers in many countries from day one and want someone else to collect, file and carry the tax. It costs 2.1 to 2.4 points more than Stripe with Billing, with no monthly fee and no lock-in period.
- Pick Stripe Managed Payments if you want a merchant of record but need to stay on Stripe's stack, sell only digital products and can use Stripe Checkout or Payment Links. On our scenarios it costs 1.1 to 1.5 points more than Paddle, because its 3.5% stacks on card processing and Billing is charged separately.
Prices are as of October 11, 2026. Paddle has announced a launch event for October 20, 2026; we will recheck its pricing after that date.
All-in cost at pre-seed, seed and Series A
| All-in billing cost | Pre-seed $10,000 MRR, 500 charges | Seed $50,000 MRR, 2,000 charges | Series A $250,000 MRR, 8,000 charges |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stripe Billing | $510/mo 5.10 pts | $2,400/mo 4.80 pts | $11,150/mo 4.46 pts |
| Paddle (merchant of record) | $750/mo 7.50 pts | $3,500/mo 7.00 pts | $16,500/mo 6.60 pts |
| Stripe Managed Payments (merchant of record) | $860/mo 8.60 pts | $4,150/mo 8.30 pts | $20,150/mo 8.06 pts |
Platform fee plus card processing at Stripe's US rate (2.9% + 30¢) wherever the tool's own fee does not include it. A merchant of record also collects and files sales tax and VAT. "pts" = share of revenue, which comes straight off gross margin. Cheapest plan per tool at each volume. Fees verified on the vendors' pricing pages, latest on October 11, 2026. Run your own numbers.
The fixed fee explains a lot of the gap. On a $20 charge, Stripe's 30¢ is 1.5 points of revenue and Paddle's 50¢ is 2.5 points, so the lower your price per charge, the more Paddle costs relative to Stripe. The Managed Payments row is 2.9% + 30¢, plus 3.5%, plus 0.7% for Billing, which Stripe's FAQ lists as "separate". Leaving Billing out understates it by 0.7 points. Adding international buyers moves all three: with 30% of volume on foreign cards needing conversion, pre-seed costs become 5.85 points for Stripe with Billing, 9.35 for Managed Payments and 8.10 for Paddle (2% conversion margin). Run your own numbers with your price and charge count.
Verified prices
Paddle
| Plan | Price (monthly / billed yearly) | For / limits |
|---|---|---|
| Pay-as-you-go | 5% + 50¢ per Checkout transaction | Paddle as merchant of record: payments, checkout, billing, global tax compliance, fraud protection, chargebacks and buyer support |
| Custom pricing | Custom | High-volume businesses or more complex needs, incl. high-volume low-value transactions |
| Add-on: Paddle Invoicing (paid by bank transfer) | 3.5% of SRP | Paddle MSA clause 3.2(ii), last updated 6 October 2026. Invoices paid through Paddle Checkout take the 5% + $0.50 rate. |
| Add-on: Currency conversion into payment currency | 2% (USD/EUR/GBP), 2.5% (CZK, DKK, NOK, THB), 3% (other currencies) over mid-market | MSA clause 7.1, mid-market rate from Open Exchange Rates. |
| Add-on: Chargeback or pre-chargeback alert | 20 USD/GBP/EUR or 40 CAD/AUD | Not refunded if Paddle wins the dispute (help center and seller handbook). |
| Add-on: International (SWIFT) payout | $/€/£15 per transfer | Local payouts (ACH, SEPA) typically free. Payout in a currency other than balance currency: conversion margin up to 1.5%. Minimum payout $100. |
| Add-on: Checkout Recovery | 10% of each checkout successfully recovered | MSA clause 3.3(i). |
Prices verified on paddle.com/pricing on October 11, 2026.
Stripe Billing
| Plan | Price (monthly / billed yearly) | For / limits |
|---|---|---|
| Pay as you go | 0.7% of Billing volume | Low or unpredictable volume; no recurring fees |
| Pay monthly, up to $100,000 Billing volume | $620 per month, 1-year contract | Up to $100,000 Billing volume per month; 0.67% for additional Billing volume |
| Pay monthly, up to $250,000 Billing volume | $1,500 per month, 1-year contract | Up to $250,000 Billing volume per month; 0.67% for additional Billing volume |
| Pay monthly, up to $500,000 Billing volume | $2,950 per month, 1-year contract | Up to $500,000 Billing volume per month; 0.67% for additional Billing volume |
| Pay monthly, up to $1,000,000 Billing volume | $5,750 per month, 1-year contract | Up to $1,000,000 Billing volume per month; 0.67% for additional Billing volume |
| Custom | Custom pricing | $1,000,000+ Billing volume per month, or unique business models |
| Add-on: Stripe Payments, US domestic cards | 2.9% + 30¢ per successful transaction | +0.5% manually entered cards, +1.5% international cards, +1% if currency conversion is required. Source: https://stripe.com/us/pricing |
| Add-on: ACH Direct Debit | 0.8%, $5.00 cap | Source: https://stripe.com/us/pricing and https://stripe.com/us/pricing/local-payment-methods |
| Add-on: Dispute fees | $15.00 per dispute received; $15.00 per dispute countered | Countered fee is returned if you win; received fee is not. Countered fee applies to disputes countered after June 17, 2025. |
| Add-on: Stripe Tax Basic | 0.5% per transaction where you're registered (no-code); $0.50 per transaction (API) | Tax Complete starts at $90 per month on a 1-year contract (tiers $90 / $430 / $1,000 / $1,500). Source: https://stripe.com/us/tax/pricing |
| Add-on: Stripe Invoicing (one-off invoices) | 0.4% per paid invoice (Starter); 0.5% (Plus) | Not charged on subscription invoices, which count as Billing volume. Source: https://stripe.com/us/invoicing/pricing |
| Add-on: Stripe Managed Payments (merchant of record) | 3.5% per successful transaction, on top of Payments fees | Includes indirect tax compliance, fraud prevention, dispute responses and transaction-level support through Link. Billing is charged separately. Source: https://stripe.com/us/managed-payments |
| Add-on: Custom domain (checkout or customer portal) | $10 per month | |
| Add-on: Metronome (advanced usage-based billing) | Startup: $0.04 per 1K ingest events + 0.8% of billing volume | Basic usage-based billing via the Meters API stays in Billing pricing, up to 100M events per month. |
Prices verified on stripe.com/us/billing/pricing on October 11, 2026.
Stripe Managed Payments
| Plan | Price (monthly / billed yearly) | For / limits |
|---|---|---|
| Managed Payments | 3.5% per successful transaction, in addition to Payments fees | Stripe as merchant of record for digital products: indirect tax (sales tax, VAT, GST) in more than 75 countries, fraud prevention, dispute management, customer support |
| Add-on: Stripe Payments, US domestic cards | 2.9% + 30¢ per successful transaction | +1.5% international cards, +1% currency conversion. |
| Add-on: Stripe Billing (subscriptions) | 0.7% of Billing volume | Separate from the Managed Payments fee per Stripe's FAQ. |
Prices verified on stripe.com/us/pricing on October 11, 2026.
Sources: Paddle pricing, Stripe Billing pricing and Stripe pricing, all read October 11, 2026. Stripe retired its 0.5% and 0.8% Billing plans on July 10, 2024; 0.7% is the current rate.
What actually decides it
1. Who is the seller, and who owes the tax
With Stripe Billing you are the seller. Stripe Tax Basic (0.5% per transaction where you are registered) calculates and collects, and Tax Complete (from $90 a month) adds filings, but the liability stays with you. Paddle and Managed Payments are merchants of record: they resell your product and handle indirect tax. Managed Payments covers "more than 75 countries" on Stripe's pricing page and "more than 80" in its docs; we quote both because Stripe does.
2. What the percentage is charged on
Neither vendor states clearly whether its fee is charged on the tax-inclusive amount. Paddle's agreement charges the fee on the price paid by the buyer without saying whether tax is included. Paddle's own comparison page claims Managed Payments is calculated on the tax-inclusive amount; Stripe's pages do not say. Ask both vendors before you sign.
3. Eligibility
Managed Payments is limited to digital products (software, SaaS, digital media, courses), direct integrations without Connect, businesses based in the US, Canada, most of the EU and EEA, the UK, Switzerland, Norway, Australia, Hong Kong, Japan or Singapore, and checkout through Stripe Checkout or Payment Links only. Live use requires an eligibility review.
4. Payouts and currency conversion
Stripe charges +1.5% for international cards and +1% when conversion is required. Paddle adds no international card surcharge but takes a conversion margin of 2% for USD, EUR and GBP, 2.5% for CZK, DKK, NOK and THB, and 3% for other currencies, and pays out monthly once your balance is above $100 ($15 per SWIFT transfer; ACH and SEPA free).
5. Disputes
Stripe charges $15 per dispute received and $15 per dispute you counter, refunding the countered fee if you win. Paddle charges $20 per chargeback, not refunded on a win (an older, now removed Paddle page said $15, refunded). Under Managed Payments, Stripe charges the received fee but covers the evidence fee when it counters.
6. What shows up in your books
Through a merchant of record, you receive net payouts, and under Managed Payments the buyer's statement reads "LINK.COM*" plus your descriptor. Either way, subscription revenue is recognized over the service period; see SaaS revenue recognition and deferred revenue, and ask your accountant how to present merchant-of-record sales.
Migration cost and lock-in
Paddle states it has no lock-in periods and no migration fees. Stripe Billing pay as you go has no contract; its pay-monthly plans run for a year and renew automatically. The real switching cost is moving live subscriptions between being the seller and using a reseller: customer-facing terms, tax registrations and saved payment methods all change hands. We found no published policy from either vendor on transferring saved cards between them, so ask before you plan a cutover, and budget for some customers having to re-enter payment details.
Not hands-on tested yet: we have not run a live account on Paddle. Prices and terms come from Paddle's published pricing page and help docs, read on October 11, 2026.
Not hands-on tested yet: we have not run a live account on Stripe Billing or Stripe Managed Payments. Prices and terms come from Stripe's published pricing pages and help docs, read on October 11, 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Is Stripe cheaper than Paddle?
Stripe Payments with Billing is, by about 2.1 to 2.4 points of revenue on our three scenarios, before you price the tax work Paddle includes. Stripe Managed Payments with Billing is more expensive than Paddle.
Does Stripe have its own merchant of record option?
Yes. Managed Payments has been generally available since April 29, 2026, at 3.5% per successful transaction on top of standard payment fees, for eligible digital products.
Do I still owe sales tax and VAT if I use Paddle?
Paddle, as merchant of record, handles indirect tax on the sales it makes. Your own income and corporate taxes are unaffected.
Can I use both Stripe and Paddle?
Each subscription lives in one system, so running both means two billing stacks and two revenue feeds to reconcile.
Should an early-stage SaaS start with Stripe or Paddle?
Start from where your buyers are. Mostly US B2B with few tax states points to Stripe with Billing; many countries and consumer buyers point to a merchant of record. See Paddle pricing and Stripe Billing pricing for the detail.
Related: billing software costs by stage · Chargebee vs Stripe Billing · SaaS gross margin.