# What is Paydude?

URL: https://www.paydude.io/resources/what-is-paydude
Type: Guide
Published: 2026-09-05 · Updated: 2026-09-05
Summary: Paydude is a payments API for software businesses. Rates from 2.6% + 25¢, no monthly fee, published pricing. What it does and who it is for.

**Paydude is a payment processor and payments API for software businesses.** It accepts card payments, runs subscriptions and invoices, handles refunds and payouts, and prices all of it publicly — card rates start at 2.6% + 25¢ per successful transaction and improve automatically as monthly volume grows.

## Summary

Payments API for software businesses, not a point-of-sale system. Card rates from 2.6% + 25¢, improving automatically with volume. No monthly platform fee, and no additional percentage for subscriptions or invoices. Sandbox is open with no signup; live processing is currently waitlisted.

## What it costs

**Published card rates, applied automatically by last month's volume**

| Tier | Monthly card volume | Rate per successful transaction |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Starter | Under $100k | 2.6% + 25¢ |
| Growing | $100k – $5M | 2.55% + 20¢ |
| Scale | $5M+ | 2.5% + 15¢ |

A tier locks for six months once reached, and renews automatically if reached again during that period. There is no monthly platform fee on any tier. Every situational fee is published — see [Paydude pricing explained](https://www.paydude.io/resources/paydude-pricing-explained) for the full list with worked examples.

## What it does

- **Card payments** through a REST API, typed SDKs and drop-in card fields.
- **Subscriptions and invoices** in the same API, at no additional percentage.
- **Refunds, payouts and reconciliation** rather than as separate products.
- **Webhooks** that are signed, with idempotent writes so retries cannot double-charge.
- **An official MCP server**, so an AI coding agent can build and test the integration.

## Who it is for

Software businesses that take payments through an API. That means SaaS products, subscription businesses, digital products and developer-led ecommerce — anywhere the integration is code rather than a storefront plugin or a card terminal.

> **Where it is not the right fit:** Paydude is not a point-of-sale system, so businesses whose volume is mostly in person are better served by Square, Clover or Toast. It is also not a merchant of record, so if you need global sales tax and VAT handled for you, Paddle or Lemon Squeezy do that and Paydude does not. The [is Paydude right for my business](https://www.paydude.io/resources/is-paydude-right-for-my-business) page goes through this properly.

## The pricing philosophy

Rates are published rather than quoted. There is no sales call, no negotiated pricing, and no situation where a similar business is paying less because they pushed harder. Volume tiers apply automatically based on last month's processing, so the rate improves without anyone having to ask.

To compare that against what you pay now, run a month of statements through the [effective rate calculator](https://www.paydude.io/resources/tools/effective-rate-calculator), or see the [processor fee comparison](https://www.paydude.io/resources/payment-processor-fee-comparison) for every major provider side by side.

**See the full rate card** Every tier and every situational fee, published up front. — [View pricing](https://www.paydude.io/pricing)

## Frequently asked questions

### What is Paydude?

Paydude is a payment processor and payments API for software businesses. It handles card payments, subscriptions, invoices, refunds and payouts through one API, with published volume-based pricing starting at 2.6% + 25¢ per successful card transaction and no monthly platform fee.

### How much does Paydude cost?

2.6% + 25¢ under $100k of monthly card volume, 2.55% + 20¢ from $100k to $5M, and 2.5% + 15¢ above $5M. Tiers apply automatically based on last month's volume and lock for six months once reached. There is no monthly platform fee.

### Is Paydude available yet?

The sandbox is open and needs no signup — sandbox API keys work immediately. Live processing is currently waitlisted for early API access.

### Who is Paydude for?

Software businesses taking card payments through an API: SaaS products, subscription businesses and developer-led ecommerce. It is built around an API and SDKs rather than a point-of-sale terminal or a hosted storefront.

### How is Paydude different from Stripe?

Lower published rates on both the percentage and the fixed fee, tiers that improve automatically without renegotiation, no additional percentage for subscriptions and invoicing, and an official MCP server so an AI coding agent can build the integration. Stripe has a far larger product surface and a longer track record.