U.S. checkout and processor comparison
Stripe vs PayPal Fees Calculator
Compare the same U.S. dollar payment through Stripe's standard online-card pricing and PayPal's published U.S. merchant fee flows. See which processor leaves more money, test international impact, and judge whether PayPal's extra cost is small enough to accept for your checkout mix.
Last updated: 2026-03-25
Fee logic last verified: 2026-03-25
Calculator
Processor comparison breakdown
Use the breakdown rows right after Results to see not just who wins, but why. The price-increase and fixed-fee lines are the fastest way to understand whether the fee gap is trivial or commercially meaningful.
| Stripe base processing fee | — |
|---|---|
| Stripe international surcharge | — |
| Stripe total fee | — |
| PayPal base processing fee | — |
| PayPal international surcharge | — |
| PayPal total fee | — |
| Fee gap | — |
| Required price increase for PayPal | — |
| Fixed-fee gap | — |
| Fixed-fee gap on this sale | — |
| Stripe net after fees | — |
| PayPal net after fees | — |
What the result means
Read the output as a checkout decision, not just a fee table.
- Which processor leaves more money on this exact payment after public fees?
- Is the fee gap small enough to tolerate, or large enough to change your checkout choice?
- If Stripe keeps more, check the Required price increase row in the breakdown to see how much extra price PayPal would need to close the gap on this sale.
- If the fixed-fee sensitivity warning appears, low-ticket orders are being hit harder by the flat-fee gap than the headline percentages suggest.
Where Stripe usually wins
Stripe usually wins on direct cost when the comparison is Stripe standard cards versus PayPal Checkout, Venmo, or Pay Later. Its public U.S. baseline stays lighter on both the percentage fee and the fixed fee, so the gap is especially visible when your orders are small or mid-ticket.
- Stripe standard U.S. cards are modeled at 2.9% + $0.30.
- PayPal Checkout and Venmo are modeled at 3.49% + $0.49.
- PayPal Pay Later is modeled at 4.99% + $0.49, so it can widen the cost gap quickly on the same payment.
Where PayPal can still make sense
PayPal is not chosen only because of headline fee cost. Sellers sometimes keep it because buyers trust it, recognise the wallet, or prefer payment options that feel more familiar at checkout. This page does not score conversion directly, but it helps you judge how much extra price PayPal would need to justify its lower net on the same payment.
- PayPal Checkout presents PayPal, Venmo, Pay Later, cards, and alternate methods inside PayPal's hosted flow.
- If the Required price increase row is small, the extra PayPal fee may be commercially tolerable for your checkout mix.
- If the row is large, you should treat PayPal's extra cost as a real margin decision, not a rounding error.
The biggest flip points: PayPal flow, order size, international status
The winner usually changes because one of three levers changed.
- Payment type: PayPal Standard card pricing is much closer to Stripe than PayPal Checkout or Pay Later.
- Order size: the flat-fee gap matters much more on low-ticket orders, which is why small payments can feel disproportionately expensive on PayPal.
- International status: both processors add cross-border pressure, so the total fee gap can stay stable or widen depending on the selected PayPal flow.
International friction is broader than processor cost
This page compares processor cost, not the full conversion behaviour of a global checkout. Cross-border performance can also change based on buyer familiarity, wallet support, local payment method availability, and how much checkout configuration work you are willing to maintain.
- Stripe Checkout dynamically shows the payment methods most likely to increase conversion based on customer location and preference.
- PayPal Checkout is presented as a hosted checkout stack with PayPal, Venmo, Pay Later, cards, and alternate methods.
- That is why a pure fee winner is not automatically the best operational winner for every international checkout.
How this Stripe vs PayPal comparison works
stripe_total_fee = payment_amount × 2.9% + $0.30 + optional 1.5% international-card surcharge paypal_total_fee = payment_amount × selected PayPal domestic rate + selected fixed fee + optional 1.5% international surcharge fee_difference = absolute difference between Stripe total fee and PayPal total fee required_price_increase_for_paypal = modeled extra price PayPal would need to recover when Stripe is the lower-cost processor winner = processor with the higher net after fees on the same payment
- This page is intentionally U.S.-scoped and USD-only so both processors can be compared on one public pricing basis.
- Stripe is modeled as standard online card processing only, not ACH, Terminal, manual entry, custom enterprise pricing, or a local payment method with its own fee table.
- PayPal is modeled from the public U.S. merchant fee table for the flow you choose. Currency-conversion spread, disputes, chargebacks, and enterprise pricing are outside this comparison.
- The price-increase row is a cost-side breakeven aid. It does not prove that either checkout actually converts better in your store.
Example: the same payment through Stripe, PayPal Checkout, and PayPal Pay Later
A seller tests one $75 domestic order and then turns on the international toggle to see whether PayPal's extra cost still feels commercially acceptable.
- On a $75 domestic payment, Stripe standard cards land around $2.48.
- The same payment lands around $3.11 through PayPal Checkout and around $4.23 through PayPal Pay Later.
- That means the seller should not only ask who is cheaper, but also whether PayPal would realistically convert enough better to justify the lower net per order.
- If Pay Later is the flow you want to compare fairly, remember the right Stripe benchmark is not standard cards but a BNPL method such as Klarna, which can carry materially higher fees than standard card processing.
Before you rely on this result: key assumptions
- This comparison models a U.S. Stripe account on standard online-card pricing and a U.S. PayPal business account on public merchant pricing. It is not a global Stripe vs PayPal calculator.
- Stripe is calculated as 2.9% + $0.30 for standard online cards, with the published 1.5% additional fee when the transaction is marked international.
- PayPal is calculated from the selected public U.S. merchant payment type using the published domestic rate and fixed fee, then adds the published 1.5% additional percentage-based fee when the transaction is marked international.
- This page compares processor cost, not full checkout conversion. Buyer familiarity, wallets, and local payment method availability can still change real-world results.
- This page does not estimate Stripe manual-entry surcharges, Stripe FX surcharge, PayPal currency-conversion spread, disputes, chargebacks, micropayments, nonprofit pricing, or custom enterprise contracts.
Model the winning processor in more detail
After the headline comparison, test the exact side that matters next: PayPal by payment type, Stripe by cross-border card cost, or Stripe FX if you also settle or charge across currencies.
Check the trust layer behind this comparison
Use these trust routes before changing platforms, processors, or payout assumptions from one side-by-side result.
How this comparison is built
See how SellerMaths holds scope constant before comparing one stack against another.
Open methodologySee source logic
Review the source family behind the fee rules, payout mechanics, or pricing assumptions used here.
Open sourcesRead why this is an estimate
See where compare-page results stop and page-level judgment still matters.
Open disclaimerFAQ
Is Stripe always cheaper than PayPal?
No. Stripe usually wins against PayPal Checkout, Venmo, and Pay Later on direct U.S. card-processing cost, but PayPal Standard card pricing or Goods and Services can sit much closer. The answer depends on the selected PayPal flow and payment size.
What does the Required price increase row mean?
It estimates how much extra price PayPal would need on the same payment to close the fee gap when Stripe is the lower-cost processor. It is a cost-side breakeven tool, not proof that PayPal actually converts better in your store.
Why does the fixed-fee warning show up more on small payments?
Because the fixed-fee gap between Stripe and many PayPal flows is the same dollar amount on every order. On a small payment, that flat-fee gap takes a much larger share of the sale than it does on a bigger order.
Does the international toggle affect both processors?
Yes. Stripe's public standard pricing adds 1.5% for international cards, and PayPal's U.S. merchant fee page adds a published 1.5% additional percentage-based fee for international commercial transactions. This page applies that surcharge to both sides for the same scenario.
How should I think about PayPal Pay Later versus Stripe?
Do not compare PayPal Pay Later to Stripe standard cards as if they are the same product. The fairer Stripe comparison is a BNPL method such as Klarna or another instalment option, which can carry materially higher fees than standard card processing.
Does this page include FX spread, disputes, or local-payment-method pricing?
No. Stripe FX surcharges, PayPal currency-conversion spread, dispute costs, and the separate fee tables for individual local payment methods are outside this comparison. This page is intentionally limited to the standard processor-cost stack that can be matched more cleanly.
Related next steps
Sources
- Stripe US pricingStripe · Last verified 2026-03-15
- Stripe Checkout payment-method optimisationStripe · Last verified 2026-03-20
- Stripe local payment methods pricingStripe · Last verified 2026-03-20
- PayPal US merchant feesPayPal · Last verified 2026-03-20
- PayPal Checkout solutionsPayPal · Last verified 2026-03-20