Tool profile
Merchant of record platform for SaaS billing, subscriptions, tax compliance, and global payments.
Indie and SMB SaaS selling globally without building tax ops
Paddle acts as merchant of record (MoR) for software sellers: hosted checkout, subscriptions, tax registration and remittance in many jurisdictions, fraud tooling, and payment-related buyer support under one headline fee.
Per paddle.com/pricing, Pay-as-you-go is 5% + $0.50 per Checkout transaction with no monthly platform fee listed, including cross-border tax compliance and chargeback/fraud positioning in marketing copy. Custom pricing targets larger or specialized sellers (paddle.com/demo). Footnotes direct under-$10 products or invoicing-heavy motions to contact sales for bespoke rates.
MoR means Paddle is the seller of record—different legal and checkout UX implications than Stripe Billing where you remain the merchant. Compare Lemon Squeezy and Gumroad for similar MoR simplicity; compare Stripe + Tax when you want to remain merchant of record; compare FastSpring in enterprise software distribution RFPs.
Quick fit
Editorial take
Model 5% + $0.50 against average order value—flat $0.50 hurts micro-transactions, which is why Paddle routes sub-$10 to sales. MoR changes chargeback and refund workflows versus direct Stripe. Compare all-in rate to Stripe + tax vendor + support headcount. For alternatives, Lemon Squeezy competes for creators; FastSpring in B2B software; Stripe remains merchant-of-record default for teams that want control.
What it does well
Primary use cases
Fit notes
Compare with
Pressure-test this pick against nearby alternatives.
Pricing snapshot
Paddle's public pay-as-you-go price is 5% + $0.50 per Checkout transaction, with no migration fees, monthly fees, or hidden extras on the pricing page. The same page positions cross-border sales tax compliance, fraud and chargeback protection, customer support, and revenue recovery as included. Custom pricing is available for larger businesses, and Paddle explicitly routes sellers with products under $10 or invoicing needs to sales.
Gumroad
Free planIndie creators selling ebooks, templates, and courses
Creator commerce platform for selling digital products, memberships, and online downloads.
Not ideal for complex B2B invoicing or usage billing.
