Paddle review

Paddle is not a gateway in the narrow sense: it acts as merchant of record, so it sells to your customer, collects sales tax and VAT, files and remits it, and pays you the balance. For a software or digital product company selling worldwide, that removes the need to register for tax in many countries. The pay-as-you-go plan costs 5% plus 50 cents per Checkout transaction with no monthly, migration or hidden fees, and includes checkout, subscriptions, multiple currencies, fraud protection, chargeback handling and support for buyers asking about charges or cancellations. Paddle also sends international invoices for B2B sales. High-volume businesses can ask for custom pricing. The headline rate is roughly double a plain card gateway, so the math works when tax compliance and support would otherwise cost you time or fees. It is designed for SaaS, apps, games and digital goods, not physical ecommerce.

Who it is for

SaaS, app and digital product sellers who want someone else to collect and remit sales tax and VAT worldwide.

Price

No monthly fees; 5% + 50¢ per Checkout transaction including tax compliance and fraud protection.

5% + 50¢ per Checkout transaction
Quoted from the vendor pricing page on November 6, 2026.

Key features

• Merchant of record that collects and remits global sales tax and VAT
• Localized, branded checkout for web and in-app sales
• Subscription management and recurring billing
• Fraud protection, chargeback handling and buyer support
• Invoicing for international B2B customers

Strengths and weaknesses

• Strength: Tax compliance included in the fee
• Strength: Handles buyer payment and cancellation queries
• Strength: No monthly or migration fees
• Weakness: 5% + 50¢ costs more than a plain gateway
• Weakness: Built for digital products, not physical goods
• Weakness: Custom pricing for high volume goes through sales

Key facts

• Transaction fee: 5% + $0.50 per Checkout transaction
• Monthly fee: None
• Role: Merchant of record
• Tax: Global sales tax and VAT compliance included
• Buyer support: Payment and subscription queries handled by Paddle

Where it ranks

Paddle is No. 7 in our Best Payment Gateways verdict.