Paddle Pricing (2026)
Straight transaction-based cut — 5% + 50¢ on every Checkout sale, so you're paying for volume processed, not seats or features. There's no subscription fee at all, which means Paddle's revenue rises and falls directly with your revenue.
- Pay-as-you-go
- Contact Sales
- Custom pricing
- Contact Sales
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Pay-as-you-go
- Cross-border sales tax compliance
- Protection against fraud and chargebacks
- No migration fees, monthly fees, or hidden extras
Custom pricing
- Custom pricing to fit your business model and products
- Get access to optional premium services and success management
- Custom migration services and implementation support
Does Paddle have a free plan?
No. Paddle lists no free plan or trial on its pricing page. Pricing is custom; you'll need to talk to sales.
Want free? Lemon Squeezy, Adapty, and Mollie have free plans: see all Paddle alternatives →
AI Pricing Analysis
Pricing Model
Straight transaction-based cut — 5% + 50¢ on every Checkout sale, so you're paying for volume processed, not seats or features. There's no subscription fee at all, which means Paddle's revenue rises and falls directly with your revenue.
Tier Strategy
Pay-as-you-go is built for early-stage or smaller SaaS companies who don't want to negotiate a contract just to start selling. The jump to Custom happens once transaction volume gets big enough that a flat percentage cut starts hurting margins more than a negotiated rate would.
Competitive Positioning
Sitting in the merchant-of-record space next to Stripe and Lemon Squeezy, Paddle isn't the cheapest per-transaction but bundles in tax/compliance handling, so it's positioned as the 'pay more, worry less' option. They're chasing SaaS teams who'd rather outsource global sales tax headaches than DIY it with a cheaper processor.
Growth Lever
There's no feature-gating here — the lever is pure transaction volume, so growth is literally tied to how much you sell through Checkout. The real upgrade trigger is a company outgrowing the default percentage rate and needing custom terms as they scale into enterprise territory.
Want the strategist's read on the live page? Read the AI teardown of Paddle's pricing page →
Paddle Pricing FAQ
- How much does Paddle cost?
- Pricing is custom — you'll need to talk to their sales team for a quote.
- Is there a free plan?
- No free plan. You'll need to commit to a paid plan to get started.
- Can I try it before paying?
- Not at the moment. There's no free trial or free plan listed on their pricing page.
- How does the pricing work?
- Straight transaction-based cut — 5% + 50¢ on every Checkout sale, so you're paying for volume processed, not seats or features. There's no subscription fee at all, which means Paddle's revenue rises and falls directly with your revenue.
- Which plan makes sense for me?
- Pay-as-you-go is built for early-stage or smaller SaaS companies who don't want to negotiate a contract just to start selling. The jump to Custom happens once transaction volume gets big enough that a flat percentage cut starts hurting margins more than a negotiated rate would.
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Comparing Paddle to something specific? Try Paddle vs Stripe, Paddle vs Lemon Squeezy, or Paddle vs Adapty. Or see the best Paddle alternatives, ranked.
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