Payments
Stripe Fees Explained: What You Actually Pay Per Sale
Stripe’s standard US price is 2.9% + $0.30 per successful online card payment — a $100 charge costs $3.20 and pays out $96.80. International cards cost 4.4% + $0.30, adding currency conversion takes the rate to 5.4% + $0.30, and in-person payments through Stripe Terminal are cheaper at 2.7% + $0.05. This guide explains each rate, shows why your effective rate is always higher than the 2.9% headline, and covers what happens to the fee when a payment is refunded or disputed.
The standard rate, line by line
Stripe’s standard US pricing is a percentage plus a fixed fee, taken from each payment before it reaches your balance. There is no monthly fee, no setup fee and no minimum term on standard pricing — the per-transaction charge is the whole price of the service:
Stripe fee = charge amount × 2.9% + $0.30You receive = charge amount − Stripe fee| Payment type | Stripe rate | Fee on $100 |
|---|---|---|
| Online card — US (domestic) | 2.9% + $0.30 | $3.20 |
| Online card — international | 4.4% + $0.30 (2.9% + 1.5% surcharge) | $4.70 |
| International + currency conversion | 5.4% + $0.30 (a further +1%) | $5.70 |
| In person — Stripe Terminal | 2.7% + $0.05 | $2.75 |
Source: Stripe’s official US pricing page (stripe.com/pricing). Last verified: November 2026
Why your effective rate is higher than 2.9%
The $0.30 fixed fee is charged in full on every transaction, so it looms larger the smaller the payment. On $100 it adds just 0.3% and the effective rate is 3.2%. On a $10 payment it adds 3% on its own, and the effective rate jumps to 5.9%:
| Charge | Stripe fee | You receive | Effective rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| $5 | $0.45 | $4.55 | 8.9% |
| $10 | $0.59 | $9.41 | 5.9% |
| $50 | $1.75 | $48.25 | 3.5% |
| $100 | $3.20 | $96.80 | 3.2% |
| $1,000 | $29.30 | $970.70 | 2.9% |
Source: Stripe’s standard US online rate of 2.9% + $0.30 applied to each amount. Last verified: November 2026
This is why two businesses on the identical Stripe plan can honestly report completely different fee burdens: the one selling $12 items is paying close to 6% while the one selling $200 items pays about 3.1%. Your average order value matters more than the headline rate.
International cards and currency conversion
A card issued outside the US adds 1.5%, taking the rate to 4.4% + $0.30. If Stripe also converts the payment currency into your payout currency, a further 1% applies — 5.4% + $0.30 in total, so a $100 sale paid from abroad in another currency costs $5.70. Neither surcharge is obvious from the headline pricing, which is why exporters and digital sellers serving a global audience should model their fees at the international rate, not the domestic one. Sellers based in other countries pay their local standard rate instead — in the UK, for example, 1.5% + 20p for UK cards. The Stripe fee calculator applies the right rate for each payment type, including the reverse calculation for sellers who need a set amount to land.
Refunds and disputes: the fees you do not get back
Two costs sit outside the per-transaction rate. When you refund a payment, the customer is made whole but Stripe does not return the original processing fee — a refunded $100 sale leaves you $3.20 down. And a disputed payment (chargeback) carries a dispute fee whether you win or lose the dispute. Neither shows up in a simple fee calculation, but for businesses with meaningful refund or dispute rates they can add up to more than the difference between processors — a point worth remembering when comparing Stripe with PayPal’s fees, which behave the same way on refunds.
The extras are priced separately
Standard payments are only the base product. Stripe Billing (subscriptions), Radar (fraud protection) and Stripe Tax each carry their own charges, usually as a percentage of the transactions they touch, and high-volume businesses can negotiate custom pricing below the standard rate. None of that changes the arithmetic above for a standard account — but if your Stripe bill looks higher than 2.9% + $0.30 explains, an add-on product is the first place to look. Our head-to-head with Square, Stripe vs Square fees, shows how the standard rates compare where most sellers actually choose between them.
Do the maths in seconds
Enter any charge amount and pick the payment type — domestic, international, converted or in person — to see the exact fee, your payout and the effective rate. Reverse mode works out what to charge to land a target amount.
Frequently asked questions
How much does Stripe charge per transaction?
On standard US pricing, 2.9% + $0.30 per successful online card payment: $3.20 on a $100 charge, $1.75 on $50 and $0.59 on $10. International cards cost 4.4% + $0.30, international with currency conversion 5.4% + $0.30, and in-person Terminal payments 2.7% + $0.05.
Does Stripe charge a monthly fee?
No. Standard Stripe pricing has no monthly fee, no setup fee and no minimum term — you only pay per transaction. Optional products such as Stripe Billing, Radar and Stripe Tax are charged separately if you use them, usually as a percentage of the transactions they touch.
Why is my effective Stripe rate higher than 2.9%?
Because of the fixed $0.30, which is charged on every transaction regardless of size. On a $10 payment it adds 3% on its own, pushing the effective rate to 5.9%; on $5 it reaches 8.9%. International cards (+1.5%) and currency conversion (+1%) raise it further. The smaller your average order, the more the fixed fee dominates.
How do I charge so the Stripe fee is covered?
Price backwards: charge = (amount you want + $0.30) ÷ (1 − 0.029). To land exactly $500 in your account, charge $515.25 — the fee is $15.24 and $500.01 reaches you. The reverse mode of our Stripe calculator does this for any target amount and any payment type.