Which platform is cheapest for a $9 sale?
With no monthly fee, Payhip Free Forever: $1.01 per sale (net payout $7.99), against $1.31 on Etsy and $1.96 on Gumroad, payment processing included in all three. Payhip Plus ($0.74) and Payhip Pro ($0.56) take less per sale but cost $29.00 and $99.00 a month.
Which platform is cheapest for a $29 sale?
With no monthly fee, Payhip Free Forever: $2.59 per sale (net payout $26.41), against $3.21 on Etsy and $4.54 on Gumroad, payment processing included in all three. Payhip Plus ($1.72) and Payhip Pro ($1.14) take less per sale but cost $29.00 and $99.00 a month.
Which platform is cheapest for a $79 sale?
With no monthly fee, Payhip Free Forever: $6.54 per sale (net payout $72.46), against $7.96 on Etsy and $10.99 on Gumroad, payment processing included in all three. Payhip Plus ($4.17) and Payhip Pro ($2.59) take less per sale but cost $29.00 and $99.00 a month.
How is the Gumroad fee per sale calculated?
10% + $0.50 Gumroad fee, plus 2.9% + $0.30 card processing. That gives $1.96 at $9, $4.54 at $29 and $10.99 at $79 on a direct sale paid with a card; the Gumroad fee alone, before card processing, is $1.40, $3.40 and $8.40.
How is the Payhip fee per sale calculated?
On Payhip Free Forever, take 5% of the price for Payhip, then add Stripe's US card rate of 2.9% of the price plus $0.30. That gives $1.01 at $9, $2.59 at $29 and $6.54 at $79; Payhip's own share drops to 2% on Plus and 0% on Pro, while the Stripe part stays the same.
How is the Etsy fee per sale calculated?
Add the $0.20 listing fee, the 6.5% transaction fee and the Etsy Payments fee of 3% of the price plus $0.25. That gives $1.31 at $9, $3.21 at $29 and $7.96 at $79 for a sale that did not come from an Offsite Ad.
Fee and net payout per sale
| Platform and plan | Monthly plan fee | $9 sale | $29 sale | $79 sale | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fee | Net payout | Fee | Net payout | Fee | Net payout | ||
| Gumroad (direct sale, no monthly plan) Gumroad fee plus card processing. This is the seller's total. | $0.00 | $1.96 | $7.04 | $4.54 | $24.46 | $10.99 | $68.01 |
| Gumroad fee alone, before card processing Breakdown of the row above, not the seller's total. The seller receives the net payout in the row above. | $0.00 | $1.40 | $7.60 | $3.40 | $25.60 | $8.40 | $70.60 |
| Payhip Free Forever Includes Stripe US domestic card processing. | $0.00 | $1.01 | $7.99 | $2.59 | $26.41 | $6.54 | $72.46 |
| Payhip Plus Includes Stripe US domestic card processing. | $29.00 | $0.74 | $8.26 | $1.72 | $27.28 | $4.17 | $74.83 |
| Payhip Pro Includes Stripe US domestic card processing. | $99.00 | $0.56 | $8.44 | $1.14 | $27.86 | $2.59 | $76.41 |
| Etsy (standard shop, Etsy Payments, US bank account) Includes Etsy Payments processing and one listing fee. | $0.00 | $1.31 | $7.69 | $3.21 | $25.79 | $7.96 | $71.04 |
Every plan row includes payment processing for a US card, so the rows can be compared directly. The Gumroad row is the Gumroad fee (10% + $0.50 on a direct sale) plus credit card processing (2.9% + $0.30), which Gumroad's help article on its fees lists as separate from the Gumroad fee. A Gumroad sale paid with PayPal carries PayPal's fee in place of card processing; Gumroad's article gives no rate for it, so no PayPal figure is shown.
The formula for each platform
In every formula, the net payout is the price minus the fee. Each percentage part is rounded to the cent before the parts are added.
Gumroad, direct sale
Fee = 10% + $0.50 Gumroad fee, plus 2.9% + $0.30 card processing. No monthly fee.
(10% x 9.00 + 0.50) + (2.9% x 9.00 + 0.30) = 0.90 + 0.50 + 0.26 + 0.30 = 1.96(10% x 29.00 + 0.50) + (2.9% x 29.00 + 0.30) = 2.90 + 0.50 + 0.84 + 0.30 = 4.54(10% x 79.00 + 0.50) + (2.9% x 79.00 + 0.30) = 7.90 + 0.50 + 2.29 + 0.30 = 10.99
The Gumroad fee alone, before card processing (the breakdown row in the table):
(10% x 9.00 + 0.50) = 0.90 + 0.50 = 1.40(10% x 29.00 + 0.50) = 2.90 + 0.50 = 3.40(10% x 79.00 + 0.50) = 7.90 + 0.50 = 8.40
Payhip Free Forever
Fee = 5% of the price (Payhip) + 2.9% of the price + $0.30 (Stripe, US domestic card). No monthly fee.
(5% x 9.00) + (2.9% x 9.00 + 0.30) = 0.45 + 0.26 + 0.30 = 1.01(5% x 29.00) + (2.9% x 29.00 + 0.30) = 1.45 + 0.84 + 0.30 = 2.59(5% x 79.00) + (2.9% x 79.00 + 0.30) = 3.95 + 2.29 + 0.30 = 6.54
Payhip Plus
Fee = 2% of the price (Payhip) + 2.9% of the price + $0.30 (Stripe, US domestic card). The plan costs $29 a month.
(2% x 9.00) + (2.9% x 9.00 + 0.30) = 0.18 + 0.26 + 0.30 = 0.74(2% x 29.00) + (2.9% x 29.00 + 0.30) = 0.58 + 0.84 + 0.30 = 1.72(2% x 79.00) + (2.9% x 79.00 + 0.30) = 1.58 + 2.29 + 0.30 = 4.17
Payhip Pro
Fee = 0% of the price (Payhip) + 2.9% of the price + $0.30 (Stripe, US domestic card). The plan costs $99 a month.
(0% x 9.00) + (2.9% x 9.00 + 0.30) = 0.00 + 0.26 + 0.30 = 0.56(0% x 29.00) + (2.9% x 29.00 + 0.30) = 0.00 + 0.84 + 0.30 = 1.14(0% x 79.00) + (2.9% x 79.00 + 0.30) = 0.00 + 2.29 + 0.30 = 2.59
Etsy, standard shop with Etsy Payments
Fee = $0.20 listing fee + 6.5% of the price (transaction fee) + 3% of the price + $0.25 (Etsy Payments processing). No monthly fee.
(0.20) + (6.5% x 9.00) + (3% x 9.00 + 0.25) = 0.20 + 0.59 + 0.27 + 0.25 = 1.31(0.20) + (6.5% x 29.00) + (3% x 29.00 + 0.25) = 0.20 + 1.89 + 0.87 + 0.25 = 3.21(0.20) + (6.5% x 79.00) + (3% x 79.00 + 0.25) = 0.20 + 5.14 + 2.37 + 0.25 = 7.96
Assumptions
- The seller is based in the United States and has a US bank account.
- Listing, sale and payout are all in USD. No currency conversion.
- One digital product, no shipping, one unit per order, no discount code, no refund and no chargeback.
- A direct sale: the buyer did not arrive through Gumroad Discover or through an Etsy Offsite Ad.
- The buyer pays with a US-issued card, not with PayPal. No international-card surcharge.
- The price is the pre-tax amount. Sales tax or VAT added at checkout is ignored.
- Monthly plan fees are not spread across sales. Payhip Plus ($29 a month) and Payhip Pro ($99 a month) are shown in their own column.
- Etsy: one $0.20 listing fee is counted for each sale.
- Gumroad: the seller's paid sales in the calendar month are below $20,000, so the 10% + $0.50 fee applies.
- Rounding: each percentage part is rounded half-up to the cent, then the parts are added. A platform's own rounding may differ by a cent.
Published fees that are left out of the table
- Gumroad Discover fee, 30%: applies when a new customer finds and buys the product through Gumroad's Discover marketplace. Gumroad's help article says this flat fee includes all processing fees.
- Gumroad high-volume rate, 5% + $0.50: replaces the 10% + $0.50 fee on new direct sales once a seller's paid sales in a calendar month reach $20,000.
- Etsy Offsite Ads fee, 15%: applies only to a sale that comes from an Offsite Ad. Etsy says the programme is optional for most sellers but may be required depending on sales over 12 months.
- Etsy currency conversion fee, 2.5%: applies only when the listing currency differs from the payment account currency.
Fees that could not be confirmed and are left out
- PayPal's fee on a Gumroad sale paid with PayPal. Gumroad's help article says the Gumroad fee does not include PayPal fees and gives no rate, so the Gumroad row assumes a card payment.
- PayPal's fee on a Payhip sale. PayPal lists several US rates, and neither Payhip's nor PayPal's page says which one applies to a Payhip checkout, so the Payhip rows assume a card payment through Stripe.
- Etsy's regulatory operating fee. It is not mentioned on Etsy's seller page, and Etsy's full fee policy page could not be read by the automated fetcher.
- Etsy's one-time shop set-up fee. Etsy's page mentions it without an amount, and it is not a per-sale fee.
- Etsy's listing renewal rules for a digital listing that keeps selling.
Fees at a single price
One page per price, each with the fee formula, the fee, the net payout, the fee as a percentage of the price and the arithmetic for every row:
Questions people ask
How much does Gumroad take from a $9 sale?
$1.96 on a direct sale paid with a card, which leaves $7.04. That is 21.78% of the price: the Gumroad fee of $1.40 (10% + $0.50) plus card processing of $0.56 (2.9% + $0.30).
Is Payhip cheaper than Gumroad?
On these figures, yes at all three prices. Payhip Free Forever costs $1.01, $2.59 and $6.54 per sale at $9, $29 and $79, and Gumroad costs $1.96, $4.54 and $10.99. Both include card processing of 2.9% + $0.30, so the gap is the platform's own fee: 5% on Payhip Free Forever against 10% + $0.50 on Gumroad.
Is Etsy cheaper than Gumroad?
On these figures, yes at all three prices. Etsy costs $1.31, $3.21 and $7.96 per sale at $9, $29 and $79, and Gumroad costs $1.96, $4.54 and $10.99, payment processing included in both. An Etsy sale that comes from an Offsite Ad carries a further 15% fee, which is left out here.
What are Etsy's fees on a $29 digital product?
$3.21, which leaves $25.79. That is a $0.20 listing fee, a 6.5% transaction fee ($1.89) and the Etsy Payments fee of 3% + $0.25 ($0.87 + $0.25). If the sale comes from an Etsy Offsite Ad, Etsy charges a further 15% fee, which is left out here.
Which platform keeps the least on a $79 product?
Payhip Pro at $2.59 per sale, on a plan that costs $99 a month. With no monthly fee, Payhip Free Forever keeps the least at $6.54, then Etsy at $7.96, then Gumroad at $10.99.
When is Payhip Plus worth $29 a month?
Payhip Plus saves 3% of the price on each sale compared with Payhip Free Forever: $0.27 at $9, $0.87 at $29 and $2.37 at $79. Dividing the $29 monthly fee by that saving, Plus becomes cheaper than Free Forever from 108 sales a month at $9, 34 sales a month at $29 or 13 sales a month at $79.
When is Payhip Pro worth $99 a month?
Payhip Pro saves 5% of the price on each sale compared with Payhip Free Forever: $0.45 at $9, $1.45 at $29 and $3.95 at $79. Dividing the $99 monthly fee by that saving, Pro becomes cheaper than Free Forever above 220 sales a month at $9, from 69 sales a month at $29 or from 26 sales a month at $79.
Do these figures include payment processing?
Yes, for all three platforms: card processing of 2.9% + $0.30 on Gumroad, on top of the Gumroad fee of 10% + $0.50; Stripe's US domestic card rate (2.9% + $0.30) on Payhip; and the Etsy Payments fee (3% + $0.25) on Etsy.
Are these fees still correct?
Figures checked on 2026-10-04 (UTC) matched the platforms' public pricing pages. Gumroad's card processing rate was read the same day in the text of Gumroad's help article on its fees, as held in Gumroad's own open-source repository. Fees change, so check the source pages listed below before you decide.
How this page was made and its sources
Compiled with AI assistance. The fee figures were checked against the platforms' public pricing pages on 2026-10-04. Fees change.
An automated fetcher read each source page and recorded the quoted fee text, and every figure in the table is computed from those recorded fees with the formulas shown above. Source pages:
https://gumroad.com/pricinghttps://github.com/antiwork/gumroad/blob/main/app/views/help_center/articles/contents/_66-gumroads-fees.html.erbhttps://payhip.com/pricinghttps://stripe.com/pricinghttps://www.etsy.com/sell
Gumroad's pricing page gives the 10% + $0.50 fee. The card processing rate of 2.9% + $0.30 comes from the second source in the list: the template of Gumroad's help article "Gumroad's fees" in Gumroad's own open-source repository. The same article on Gumroad's help site returned only its title to the automated fetcher on 2026-10-04, so the rate was read from the repository file and not from the rendered help page.
Not affiliated with or endorsed by Gumroad, Payhip or Etsy. Their names are used only to describe their published fees.