# Paddle Fee Calculator

URL: https://www.paydude.io/resources/tools/paddle-fee-calculator
Type: Free interactive calculator
Summary: Calculate Paddle processing fees at your own volume and ticket size, and see the effective rate rather than the headline 5%.

Paddle is a merchant of record aimed at software businesses. Drag both sliders — ticket size changes the answer as much as volume does, because the fixed per-transaction fee is a much bigger share of a small sale.

## Summary

Paddle published rate: 5%. The effective rate you pay is always higher than the headline percentage. On small tickets the fixed fee costs more than the percentage does. Compare on effective rate, not on the advertised number.

## How Paddle prices card payments

Paddle acts as the merchant of record for your sales, taking on global sales tax and VAT registration, remittance, invoicing and chargeback handling. Like other merchant-of-record providers, its rate bundles compliance services rather than pricing processing alone.

**Paddle published rate, September 2026**

| Component | Cost |
| --- | --- |
| Percentage of each transaction | 5% |
| Fixed fee per transaction | 50¢ |

> **Verify before you rely on this:** Published rates change, and Paddle may quote you something different from its list price. These figures are its advertised standard rate as of September 2026 — check the current rate card before making a decision on it.

## Why your effective rate is higher than the headline

A percentage takes the same share of every sale. A fixed fee does not — 50¢ is the same amount on a $5 charge as on a $500 one, so it costs a hundred times more of the small one proportionally.

**Paddle effective rate by ticket size**

| Average transaction | Fee | Effective rate |
| --- | --- | --- |
| $5 | $.75 | 15.00% |
| $10 | $1.00 | 10.00% |
| $25 | $1.75 | 7.00% |
| $50 | $3.00 | 6.00% |
| $100 | $5.50 | 5.50% |
| $250 | $13.00 | 5.20% |

## Who Paddle suits

Paddle suits SaaS companies selling internationally that would otherwise need to register for VAT across multiple jurisdictions.

> **Worth knowing:** The comparison that matters is total cost of compliance, not rate against rate. For a business selling only domestically, a merchant of record is usually the more expensive option.

## What this does not include

- International card surcharges, typically 1–1.5% on top
- Currency conversion, usually another 1–2%
- Chargeback and dispute fees, which depend on your dispute rate
- Negotiated pricing, which is not publicly listed

For your real blended number across all of those, run one month of statements through the [effective rate calculator](https://www.paydude.io/resources/tools/effective-rate-calculator). To see every provider side by side, use the [payment processor fee comparison](https://www.paydude.io/resources/payment-processor-fee-comparison).

**Paydude starts at 2.6% + 25¢** Published tiers that improve automatically with volume, and no monthly platform fee. — [See the rate card](https://www.paydude.io/pricing)

## Frequently asked questions

### How much does Paddle charge per transaction?

Paddle advertises 5% for standard domestic card payments. What you actually pay is higher, because the fixed fee is a larger share of small transactions — at a $10 ticket the effective rate is 10.00%.

### Why is my Paddle effective rate higher than 5%?

Because of the fixed 50¢ per transaction. The percentage is the same on every sale, but the flat fee is a much bigger proportion of a small one. Divide your total monthly fees by your total volume to see the real figure.

### Does Paddle have a monthly fee?

Not on the standard plan priced here. Some Paddle products and add-ons carry their own monthly costs, so check the plan you are actually on.

### How do I compare this to other processors?

Compare effective rates at your own average ticket size, not headline percentages. A provider with a lower percentage and a higher fixed fee can easily cost more if your transactions are small. The payment processor fee comparison table puts every provider side by side at three ticket sizes.