Stripe Pricing and Fees: Everything You Need to Know

With Stripe being at the forefront of the best international payment gateways, the issue of transaction and processing fees deserves special attention. With a high-security degree and a plethora of payment options, some Stripe payment fees are still among the main reasons why some business owners ignore this popular provider.

However, those who exploit an offline store in a particular region might not want to pay Stripe credit card payment fees, as they don’t require 140+ currency processing. Both small and huge companies have their vision and requirements of how the payments should proceed, and not all of them can be resolved because of specific Stripe processing fees.

So, let’s examine the details further and learn what Stripe payment transaction fees are and who benefits from using this popular platform.

Stripe Fees Overview

If you do not know what is stripe yet, we recommend that you first understand the main aspects of this payment system.

There are two main types of transaction fees: online and offline payments. Stripe online payment fees include accepting the most popular banking cards (Visa, Mastercard, American Express) and working with digital providers (mobile payments like Apple Pay and Google Pay). The raw numbers for this method will be 2.9% + 30 cents if the transaction is confirmed.

Another colossal sector includes in-person payments via POS terminals. Here, a business owner should rely on 2.7% + 5 cents from every successful transaction. And these numbers are highly competitive.

Regarding more specific payment methods and options, Stripe is ready to cope with ACH Credit & Direct Deposit, Wire, Afterpay, and Checks. ACH Credit methods will cost a merchant one dollar per ACH credit payment, while Direct Deposit has a slightly lower fee—0.8% per transaction (but no more than $5). A Wire payment will cost a substantial $8 (ACH Credit). Afterpay will require 6% + 30 cents per transaction.

Among other crucial options, one should be ready to pay for in-person payment hardware: $59 for a mobile terminal and $249 for a countertop one. Stripe payment processing fees for international clients will cost an extra 2.9% and +2% if the conversion is needed. As for the refund options, Stripe copes with them without additional takeout but keeps the original fee. Chargeback, however, will cost $15 per return or +0.04% for every transaction if you activate chargeback protection.

How to Calculate Stripe Fees

Calculating Stripe payments processor fees is a pretty simple procedure, as it requires elementary mathematics logic and a calculator. Let’s go step by step for the three most common payments to understand the procedure for the good or service that costs $25.

Calculating Online Payment

Stripe’s online payment fees are 2.9% + 30 cents per completed charge, so:

Online Fee: ($25 * 0.029) + $0.3 = $0.725 + $0.3 = $1.03.

Payout: $25 - $1.03 = $23.97.

The specified rates apply only to online transactions, for example, if you work through your website, marketplace, or specialized systems like Shopify where your business’s showcase is hosted. However, when selling goods and services offline or when receiving (or sending) payment from abroad, the rates change.

Calculating In-Person Payment

Startups and business owners that rely on offline selling procedures should use quite different rates: 2.7% + 5 cents per transaction, so:

In-Person Fee: ($25*0.027) + $0.05 = $0.675 + $0.05 = $0.73.

Payout: $25 - $0.73 = $24.27.

Please note that Stripe pricing and fees are subject to change depending on the platform’s current policy. Therefore, follow the updates on the system’s official website or in your personal account, where notifications are also sent to entrepreneurs who use the solution.

Calculating International Payment

Let’s say you are ready to sell your product to an international audience without raising its cost. So, your final Stripe card payment fees will be 2.9% + 2% extra, and the payout will look as follows:

International Payment Fee: ($25 * 0.049) + $0.3 = $1.53.

Payout: $25 - $1.53 = $23.47.

This applies specifically to Stripe international fees, which are quite loyal when compared to third-party payment systems, gateways, and aggregators. However, the platform is quite flexible and allows you to partially personalize commissions, for example, for small businesses, startups, etc.

Understanding Payouts: Instant & Deferred

With dozens of paying methods on Stripe’s board, the platform performs instantly with both online and in-person payments, which is one of their major stripe benefits. Thus, Stripe’s API sends instant requests to the client’s bank or wallet if there are enough funds for the transaction. Then, the platform also receives a fast response from the merchant’s account holder if it’s ready to receive payments and finalizes the deal. The whole process takes around 30 minutes.

However, if a merchant is interested in facilitating this process, it will cost them an extra 1% fee for each transaction. Otherwise, they are dealing with the original transaction and need to wait for one business day to receive the payout, which can be deferred up to one month. They can choose the exact day each month when the money will be transferred to their account and don’t have to pay any additional fees.

Comparison of Stripe's Fees With Other Payment Gateways

So, what does Stripe cost compared to the rest of the payment aggregators? Let’s compare the platform's conditions with those of other members of the class to determine whether Stripe is really as profitable as it seems at first glance. We have prepared a comprehensive table from which you will learn about all the market competitors and their key commissions, taxes, etc.

Stripe leads the market in terms of available payment options and reasonable fees for either big or small businesses, especially in the online sector. Another worldwide-known platform, PayPal, covers even more countries and has smaller prices for PayPal owners but a shorter list of connected payment methods.

For those who seek a payment gateway for small businesses with limited online sales geography, Square should be regarded due to its relatively smaller fees. If we talk about even more specific companies emphasizing POS terminals and in-person payments, one should look at a wider list of Clover offers.

If you want to manage your finances on the international market, pay attention to Stripe and PayPal. Square simply has limited options outside NA and EU, while Clover charges higher fees because of using Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC), which can be up to 3–4%. Knowing how to close a stripe account should help you if you need to delete your account for any reason.

Conclusion

Setting up a payment gateway for a business is one of the key aspects that should be considered in full detail. The Stripe payment platform is often regarded as part of integrating the business into the local or global market, and for a reason. Stripe offers competitive fees, starting from 2.7% + 5 cents per transaction while covering many payment methods. Still, you should not forget about Stripe’s competitors because platforms like PayPal or Square can be more advantageous for online or in-person payments.

Consider Rates as Your Trusted Partner

Knowing how much Stripe transaction fees are and how the platform works is not all there is to it. To get the maximum profit and not lose money on international transactions, you should know the most recent exchange rates, and this is where the Rates come to the rescue.

Our platform provides a comprehensive knowledge of all exchangers in your city, with the ability to track the dynamics of their exchange rates. Extensive graphs, geolocating, and a user-friendly interface—all this, so you can find the best deal possible.

Take advantage of Rates.fm now, and don't spend additional money on currency exchange.

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