1. Polar
percentageOpen-source monetization for developers
4% + $0.40 per transaction (lowest MoR fees on the market). Open-source monetization for developers.
Ease 5/5Fees 5/5Conv 2/5MoR
Best if:indie dev, open source, developers, digital products
Bootstrapped SaaS Payment Tools (1970)
Bootstrapped SaaS founders pick payment tools by total cost of ownership: fees, time to integrate, and the tax mess they remove from your plate.
8 tools matched
Why it matters
Without a VC runway, every billing decision is a margin decision. MoR platforms and self-serve billing tools both work — the right pick depends on revenue stage.
2. Lemon Squeezy
percentagePayments, subscriptions and MoR for indie SaaS
5% + $0.50 per transaction. Acquired by Stripe 2024.. Payments, subscriptions and MoR for indie SaaS.
Ease 5/5Fees 4/5Conv 2/5MoR
Best if:saas, indie dev, digital products, license keys
3. Paddle
percentageComplete payments infrastructure for SaaS
5% + $0.50 per transaction. Complete payments infrastructure for SaaS.
Ease 3/5Fees 3/5Conv 2/5MoR
Best if:saas, b2b, global, scaling
4. Stripe Billing
percentageSubscription billing with full developer control
0.5–0.8% on top of standard Stripe fees. You handle taxes.. Subscription billing with full developer control.
Ease 2/5Fees 4/5Conv 2/5
Best if:saas, b2b, developers, enterprise
5. Lago
open sourceOpen-source metering and usage-based billing
Self-hosted: free. Cloud: from $100/month. Open-source metering and usage-based billing.
Ease 2/5Fees 5/5Conv 1/5
Best if:saas, ai apps, usage based, open source
6. FastSpring
percentageGlobal payments and MoR for software companies
5.9% + $0.95 per transaction (or custom rate). Global payments and MoR for software companies.
Ease 3/5Fees 2/5Conv 2/5MoR
Best if:saas, software, global, b2b
7. Orb
customUsage-based billing for AI and SaaS
Custom pricing (contact sales). Usage-based billing for AI and SaaS.
Ease 2/5Fees 3/5Conv 1/5
Best if:ai apps, usage based, saas, credits
8. Amberflo
customReal-time metering and usage-based billing
From $500/month. Real-time metering and usage-based billing.
Ease 2/5Fees 2/5Conv 1/5
Best if:saas, usage based, ai apps, metered
Quick comparison
| Tool | Pricing | MoR | A/B | Ease | Fees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Polar | 4% + $0.40 per transaction (lowest MoR fees on the market) | Yes | — | 5/5 | 5/5 |
| Lemon Squeezy | 5% + $0.50 per transaction. Acquired by Stripe 2024. | Yes | — | 5/5 | 4/5 |
| Paddle | 5% + $0.50 per transaction | Yes | — | 3/5 | 3/5 |
| Stripe Billing | 0.5–0.8% on top of standard Stripe fees. You handle taxes. | — | — | 2/5 | 4/5 |
| Lago | Self-hosted: free. Cloud: from $100/month | — | — | 2/5 | 5/5 |
| FastSpring | 5.9% + $0.95 per transaction (or custom rate) | Yes | — | 3/5 | 2/5 |
| Orb | Custom pricing (contact sales) | — | — | 2/5 | 3/5 |
| Amberflo | From $500/month | — | — | 2/5 | 2/5 |
Our pick
Polar — the best balance of ease, conversion, and fees. Open-source monetization for developers.
Stack recommendation
For most of this audience we recommend Polar — Developer-first merchant of record.
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