Stripe & PayPal Merchant Fee Calculator
Payment processing fees quietly skim a slice off every transaction, and for a subscription business those small percentages compound into a serious line item that directly reduces gross margin and net revenue. Processors like Stripe and PayPal typically charge a percentage of each transaction plus a fixed per-transaction fee — the familiar 2.9% + $0.30 in the United States is the standard baseline. On a $20 subscription that fee eats over 4% of revenue; on high transaction volumes it adds up to thousands of dollars a month. Understanding exactly what you keep after fees is essential for accurate margin, ARPU, and lifetime value calculations. Enter your transaction amount, processor rate, and monthly volume to see your true net revenue after payment processing costs.
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Results update live as you type. Estimates only — not financial, tax, or investment advice.
The Formula
Fee = (Amount × Processor %) + Fixed Fee; Net = Amount − Fee
Understanding the Stripe & PayPal Merchant Fee Calculator
The fixed per-transaction fee is what makes small transactions disproportionately expensive. At 2.9% + $0.30, a $100 charge loses about 3.2% to fees, but a $5 charge loses 8.9% — the fixed thirty cents dominates. This is why businesses with low average transaction values feel processing fees so acutely, and why bundling into larger, less frequent charges (annual instead of monthly billing, for example) can materially improve net margins.
Because processing fees come straight off the top, they belong in your gross margin, ARPU, and lifetime value calculations, not treated as an afterthought. A SaaS company reporting $100 ARPU that ignores a 3% processing haircut is overstating its real per-customer economics. At scale, negotiating interchange-plus pricing, reducing failed-payment retries, and optimizing billing frequency can recover meaningful margin. Model your net revenue after fees so every downstream unit-economics metric reflects the cash you actually collect.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are standard Stripe and PayPal fees?
The common baseline in the United States is 2.9% of the transaction plus a fixed $0.30 per transaction for standard online card payments. Rates vary by country, card type, and volume, and both processors offer custom or interchange-plus pricing for higher-volume businesses that can lower the effective rate.
Why do small transactions cost more in fees?
Because of the fixed per-transaction fee. At 2.9% + $0.30, a $100 charge loses about 3.2% but a $5 charge loses 8.9%, since the flat thirty cents is a much larger share of a small amount. Low average transaction values make processing fees hurt disproportionately.
Should processing fees be included in gross margin?
Yes. Payment processing fees come directly off every dollar you collect, so they belong in gross margin, ARPU, and lifetime value calculations. Ignoring them overstates your true per-customer economics; at scale a 3% haircut meaningfully changes your reported margins and unit economics.