Editorial comparison
Stripe vs Paddle for SaaS
Compare direct payment control with a Merchant of Record operating model.
Last verified: 2026-09-05 · Source-linked catalog
Run your own scenarioThis comparison keeps payment economics and tax responsibility in separate fields. Review the provider records below, then test the same revenue, transaction and market facts in the calculator.
Catalog status
This page reads the same provider, pricing-input and tax catalog used by the calculator: 10 verified provider plan record(s), 48 production-enabled coverage row(s), 42 published tax rule record(s), 43 tax rate record(s), and 13 threshold record(s).
Current provider records
| Plan | Stored fee fields | MoR | Tax operations | Verification / source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stripe DirectStripe | Regional pricing · additional fields: billingSeller-country dependent36 seller-country/card-region rows · Seller regions: AU, CA, DE, ES, FR, HK, IE, IT, JP, NL, SE, SG, UK, USPricing varies by seller country. Run the calculator with seller country selected.Monthly fee: 0.00 USD | No | Merchant responsibility fieldsStripe Direct is modeled as payment processing; the merchant remains the seller and tax operator. Stripe Billing or other recurring-billing products are separate from the direct payment row. | verified · 2026-09-05Stripe Direct official source record ↗ |
| Paddle BillingPaddle | 5.00% + 0.50 USDMonthly fee: 0.00 USD | Yes | calculate · collect · file · remit · registrationPaddle describes the 5% + 50¢ Checkout price as all-inclusive for payments, billing, tax compliance, fraud, chargebacks and buyer support. Paddle's terms separately publish a 3.5% invoice bank-transfer discount and possible FX margins; the standard Checkout row does not silently add either. | verified · 2026-09-05Paddle Billing official source record ↗ |
Useful next step
Run a scenario with your real revenue, order value and customer mix. The output links to source records and labels gaps as Review Required.
This page is educational and uses the catalog methodology. It is not legal or tax advice; rules and provider terms change.