Subscription App Builder

Stripe Fees Explained (2026): What a $20 Subscription Actually Nets You

A line-by-line breakdown of Stripe’s published US fees for subscriptions, with worked examples for domestic and international cards, tax, refunds, disputes and annual plans.

Floot ·

Key Takeaways

  • A $20 US subscription nets about $18.98. That is 2.9% + 30¢ for the card ($0.88) plus 0.7% for Stripe Billing on pay-as-you-go ($0.14), about $1.02 or 5.1%.
  • International customers cost more. Stripe adds 1.5% for international cards and 1% when currency conversion is needed, taking the same $20 charge to about $1.52 in fees.
  • The 30¢ hurts small prices most. On a $5 plan, fees are about 9.6% of the price. On a $50 plan, about 4.2%.
  • Refunds and disputes have a cost. Stripe doesn’t return processing fees when you refund, and each dispute costs $15.
  • Annual plans cut the fee share. One $200 annual charge costs about $7.50 in fees (3.75%), against 5.1% on monthly $20 charges.

Quick-Start Prioritization Framework

Scenario (one $20 monthly charge)Approximate feesYou keep
US card, Stripe Billing pay-as-you-go$1.02$18.98
International card$1.32$18.68
International card plus currency conversion$1.52$18.48
US card plus Stripe Tax (no-code, where registered)$1.12$18.88
US bank debit (ACH) instead of card$0.30$19.70

Stripe’s headline rate is easy to remember: 2.9% plus 30¢ per successful card charge in the US. A subscription business pays more than that, though, because recurring billing, international cards, currency conversion, tax calculation, refunds and disputes each add their own line. None of them is large on its own. Together they decide how much of a $20 subscription reaches your bank account. This guide uses Stripe’s published US pricing as of November 2026 to work through the real numbers, so you can price with your eyes open. Prices change, and businesses outside the US see different rates, so check Stripe’s pricing page for your country before you rely on these figures.

The fees that apply to every subscription charge

Two fees apply to almost every subscription on Stripe: the payment processing fee and the Stripe Billing fee.

Card processing: 2.9% + 30¢

Stripe’s US pricing page lists 2.9% plus 30¢ per successful transaction for domestic cards. On $20 that is $0.58 plus $0.30, so $0.88. You pay it on successful charges only; a declined card doesn’t cost you a processing fee.

Stripe Billing: 0.7% of billing volume

Recurring subscriptions run on Stripe Billing. On the pay-as-you-go plan it costs 0.7% of billing volume, with no monthly fee. On $20 that is $0.14. Stripe also offers monthly Billing plans on a one-year contract starting at $620 a month (covering up to $100,000 of monthly billing volume, then 0.67%), which only make sense at much larger volumes.

Putting them together

$0.88 + $0.14 = $1.02 in fees on a $20 charge. You keep $18.98, or 94.9%. That is the baseline for every example below.

How the price point changes the picture

Because 30¢ is fixed, the share of each charge that goes to fees drops as the price rises.

Monthly priceCard fee (2.9% + 30¢)Billing fee (0.7%)Total feesShare of price
$5$0.45$0.04$0.489.6%
$10$0.59$0.07$0.666.6%
$20$0.88$0.14$1.025.1%
$50$1.75$0.35$2.104.2%
$100$3.20$0.70$3.903.9%

What this means for pricing

A $5 plan gives up nearly a tenth of its revenue before hosting, support or any other cost. If you want a cheap entry point, consider an annual-only option or a higher monthly price with more included. Figures are rounded to the cent.

International customers and currencies

Selling worldwide is one of the best things about software. It costs a little more per charge.

International cards: +1.5%

Stripe adds 1.5% for international cards. On $20 that is $0.30 more, so $1.32 in total fees and $18.68 kept.

Currency conversion: +1%

If currency conversion is required, Stripe adds another 1%. A $20 charge on an international card that also needs conversion costs about $1.52, leaving $18.48.

Worked example: a mixed customer base

Suppose 100 subscribers pay $20 a month: 70 on US cards, 20 on international cards in USD, and 10 on international cards that need conversion. Fees are 70 × $1.02 + 20 × $1.32 + 10 × $1.52, which is $71.40 + $26.40 + $15.20 = $113.00 on $2,000 of revenue. You keep $1,887, or 94.35%.

Tax calculation, bank debits and payouts

These apply only if you use them, but most growing subscription businesses will touch at least one.

Stripe Tax: 0.5% where you’re registered

Stripe Tax Basic with a no-code integration (Billing, Checkout, Invoicing, Payment Links) costs 0.5% of each transaction where you’re registered to collect tax. The API integration costs 50¢ per transaction instead, including 10 calculation calls. Tax Complete plans, which add registration and filing, start at $90 a month on a one-year contract. On a $20 charge, 0.5% adds about $0.10.

ACH Direct Debit: 0.8%, capped at $5

For US business customers who pay from a bank account, ACH Direct Debit costs 0.8% with a $5 cap. A $20 subscription paid by ACH costs $0.16 plus the $0.14 Billing fee, about $0.30. On larger B2B plans the cap matters: a $1,000 monthly invoice by ACH costs $5 in processing instead of $29.30 by card.

Payouts

Stripe’s pricing page lists 50 free domestic payouts a month before per-payout fees apply, and instant payouts at 1.5% of the amount with a 50¢ minimum. Most small businesses never pay for standard payouts.

Refunds and disputes

These are the fees founders discover the hard way.

Refunds don’t return the fee

Stripe’s refund documentation says its processing fees from the original transaction aren’t returned. Refund a $20 charge and you are out at least the $0.88 processing fee, with nothing to show for it. Stripe also notes that refunds issued shortly after a charge may go through as a reversal, for which it doesn’t withhold fees, but you can’t count on that timing.

Disputes cost $15 each

A dispute (chargeback) costs $15 when it is received. Countering it costs another $15, refunded only if you win. On a $20 subscription, a dispute you counter and lose costs the $20, the original fees and $30 in dispute fees, so a single dispute can wipe out the margin on several months of that customer.

How to keep both low

Most subscription disputes come from customers who don’t recognize a charge or forgot to cancel. A clear statement descriptor, a renewal or trial-ending reminder, and an easy cancel button reduce both refunds and disputes. Refunding a confused customer quickly is usually cheaper than fighting a dispute.

Monthly vs annual: the fee math

Fewer, larger charges mean the fixed 30¢ is paid less often.

Worked example

Twelve monthly charges of $20 cost 12 × $1.02 = $12.24 in fees, 5.1% of $240. One annual charge of $200 (two months free) costs $5.80 + $0.30 + $1.40 = $7.50, which is 3.75% of $200. The annual customer pays you less in total but costs less to collect, and you have the cash up front.

The tradeoff

A refund on an annual plan is larger, and the processing fee on it isn’t returned. Decide your annual refund policy (full, prorated or none after a set period) before you offer annual billing, and state it on the pricing page.

Merchant of record options and what they cost

With standard Stripe, your business is the seller and is responsible for sales tax and VAT. Merchant of record (MoR) services act as the seller for you and handle tax compliance, for a higher fee.

Stripe Managed Payments

Stripe’s own MoR product, Managed Payments, is listed at 3.5% per successful transaction in addition to payments fees. Stripe’s docs say it handles sales tax, VAT and GST compliance in more than 80 countries, plus fraud prevention, disputes and transaction-level customer support, for eligible digital products. On a $20 US card charge that is $0.88 + $0.70 = $1.58, and $1.72 if Stripe Billing’s 0.7% also applies to your subscriptions.

How that compares

Other MoR services publish their own rates; Paddle’s pricing page, for example, lists 5% + 50¢ per checkout transaction, which is $1.50 on $20. Whether an MoR is worth it depends on how many countries you sell into and how much time tax compliance would otherwise take you.

Common mistakes

These are the fee surprises that come up most often.

  • Quoting margin from the 2.9% + 30¢ headline and forgetting the 0.7% Billing fee.
  • Pricing a monthly plan at $3 to $5, where fees take close to a tenth of revenue.
  • Assuming refunds return Stripe’s fee.
  • Not modelling international cards and currency conversion when much of your audience is abroad.
  • Ignoring disputes until the first $15 fees arrive, instead of sending reminders and offering easy cancellation.
  • Treating Stripe Tax as optional without checking whether you owe tax in the places you sell (see our sales tax and VAT guide).

If you’d rather not set this up yourself

If you’d rather not wire Stripe products, prices and webhooks into an app yourself, Floot can build a subscription app from a plain-English description, with checkout and subscriptions through Floot Payments, paid out via Stripe. Check Floot’s own terms for how payment fees apply to your account.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does Stripe take from a $20 subscription?

At Stripe’s published US rates, about $1.02: 2.9% + 30¢ for the card ($0.88) plus 0.7% for Stripe Billing on pay-as-you-go ($0.14). You keep about $18.98. International cards and currency conversion add more.

Does Stripe charge a monthly fee?

Not on pay-as-you-go pricing. Stripe Billing has optional monthly plans on one-year contracts starting at $620 a month, aimed at much larger billing volumes.

Does Stripe refund its fee when I refund a customer?

No. Stripe’s documentation says processing fees from the original transaction aren’t returned when you refund. Refunds issued shortly after the charge can be processed as reversals, for which Stripe doesn’t withhold fees.

How much does a chargeback cost on Stripe?

Stripe charges $15 when a dispute is received and another $15 to counter it, refunded only if you win. You also lose the disputed amount unless the dispute is decided in your favor.

Is Stripe cheaper than a merchant of record like Paddle?

Per charge, standard Stripe is cheaper: about $1.02 on $20 against $1.50 at Paddle’s listed 5% + 50¢. A merchant of record also takes on sales tax and VAT compliance, which you otherwise handle yourself, so compare total cost and time, not just the fee.

Are Stripe fees the same outside the US?

No. Stripe publishes pricing by country, and rates for domestic cards differ. Use your own country’s Stripe pricing page for your calculations.

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