Best Payment Tools for Startups (1970)

Tools that pair the easiest setup with a 'starting' stage profile — free tiers, low integration cost.

24 tools matched

Why it matters

Early-stage time-to-revenue beats every other consideration. Pick the tool that ships your first paid customer this week and revisit when you outgrow it.

1. RevenueCat

free until threshold

In-app subscriptions made easy

Ease 5/5 — Free up to $2.5k MTR, then 1% of revenue.

Ease 5/5Fees 3/5Conv 2/5

Best if:ios, android, react native, flutter

View profile →Alternatives

2. Lemon Squeezy

percentage

Payments, subscriptions and MoR for indie SaaS

Ease 5/5 — 5% + $0.50 per transaction. Acquired by Stripe 2024..

Ease 5/5Fees 4/5Conv 2/5MoR

Best if:saas, indie dev, digital products, license keys

View profile →Alternatives

3. Polar

percentage

Open-source monetization for developers

Ease 5/5 — 4% + $0.40 per transaction (lowest MoR fees on the market).

Ease 5/5Fees 5/5Conv 2/5MoR

Best if:indie dev, open source, developers, digital products

View profile →Alternatives

4. Gumroad

percentage

Sell anything digital, instantly

Ease 5/5 — 10% + $0.50 per transaction (direct). 30% via Gumroad marketplace. MoR since January 2025 — handles all global tax..

Ease 5/5Fees 2/5Conv 3/5MoR

Best if:ebooks, templates, courses, indie creators

View profile →Alternatives

5. Payhip

freemium

Sell digital products and memberships

Ease 5/5 — Free: 5% fee. Plus $29/mo: 2%. Pro $99/mo: 0%.

Ease 5/5Fees 4/5Conv 2/5

Best if:ebooks, templates, courses, memberships

View profile →Alternatives

6. Beehiiv

flat monthly

Newsletter platform with paid subscriptions and ad network

Ease 5/5 — Free Launch plan. Scale $43/mo. Max $96/mo. Enterprise: custom. 0% platform fee on paid subscriptions..

Ease 5/5Fees 4/5Conv 4/5

Best if:newsletters, creators, paid subscriptions, ad monetization

View profile →Alternatives

7. Substack

percentage

Publish and monetize newsletters

Ease 5/5 — 10% of paid subscription revenue. Stripe handles payments..

Ease 5/5Fees 2/5Conv 3/5

Best if:newsletters, writers, podcasts, new creators

View profile →Alternatives

8. Skool

flat monthly

Simple community and course platform

Ease 5/5 — $99/month flat. 2.9% + $0.30 transaction fee..

Ease 5/5Fees 3/5Conv 3/5

Best if:communities, courses, memberships, coaching

View profile →Alternatives

9. Podia

freemium

All-in-one platform for courses, memberships, and digital products

Ease 5/5 — No free plan (removed 2024). 30-day free trial. Mover $39/mo ($33/mo annual, 5% fee). Shaker $89/mo ($75/mo annual, 0% fee)..

Ease 5/5Fees 3/5Conv 3/5

Best if:courses, memberships, digital products, creators

View profile →Alternatives

10. Memberful

percentage

Membership subscriptions for independent creators

Ease 5/5 — Free (10% + Stripe fees). Pro $49/mo (4.9%). Premium $199/mo (0% transaction fee)..

Ease 5/5Fees 3/5Conv 3/5

Best if:memberships, newsletters, creators, podcasts

View profile →Alternatives

11. Patreon

percentage

Membership platform for creators

Ease 5/5 — Lite: 8% of earnings. Pro: 12%. Premium: 15%. Stripe fees on top..

Ease 5/5Fees 2/5Conv 4/5

Best if:creators, memberships, podcasts, artists

View profile →Alternatives

12. Adapty

free until threshold

Mobile subscriptions with paywall optimization

Ease 4/5 — Free up to $10k MTR, then 1% of revenue.

Ease 4/5Fees 5/5Conv 5/5

Best if:ios, android, react native, flutter

View profile →Alternatives

13. Nami ML

free until threshold

No-code paywall builder and A/B testing for mobile

Ease 4/5 — Free plan available, paid from $149/month.

Ease 4/5Fees 3/5Conv 5/5

Best if:ios, android

View profile →Alternatives

14. Qonversion

free until threshold

Mobile subscription analytics and infrastructure

Ease 4/5 — Free up to $10k MTR, then 0.6% on Starter.

Ease 4/5Fees 5/5Conv 2/5

Best if:ios, android, react native, flutter

View profile →Alternatives

15. Apphud

free until threshold

iOS subscriptions with win-back automation

Ease 4/5 — Free plan available, Pro from $39/month.

Ease 4/5Fees 4/5Conv 3/5

Best if:ios

View profile →Alternatives

16. Whop

percentage

Sell communities, courses, and software access

Ease 4/5 — 3% platform + Stripe fees (~5.7–7.2% all-in).

Ease 4/5Fees 4/5Conv 3/5

Best if:communities, courses, memberships, discord access

View profile →Alternatives

17. Kit

flat monthly

Creator email marketing with paid subscriptions

Ease 4/5 — Free up to 10,000 subscribers. Creator from $25/month..

Ease 4/5Fees 3/5Conv 3/5

Best if:creators, newsletters, courses, digital products

View profile →Alternatives

18. Circle

flat monthly

Community platform with courses and memberships

Ease 4/5 — Professional $89/mo. Business $199/mo (lower transaction fees, branded apps add-on). Circle Plus: custom pricing for large-scale businesses. 0% transaction fee on Professional and above..

Ease 4/5Fees 3/5Conv 3/5

Best if:communities, courses, memberships, creators

View profile →Alternatives

19. Kajabi

flat monthly

All-in-one platform for online courses and memberships

Ease 4/5 — Basic $143/mo, Growth $199/mo, Pro $399/mo (annual billing). Kajabi Payments: 2.7-2.9% + $0.30. 0-2% fee on 3rd-party payment providers depending on plan..

Ease 4/5Fees 1/5Conv 4/5

Best if:courses, memberships, coaching, creators

View profile →Alternatives

20. MemberPress

flat annual

WordPress membership and subscription plugin

Ease 4/5 — Basic $179/year. Plus $299/year. Pro $399/year..

Ease 4/5Fees 4/5Conv 3/5

Best if:wordpress, memberships, courses, content paywalls

View profile →Alternatives

21. Easy Digital Downloads

flat annual

Sell digital products on WordPress

Ease 4/5 — Personal $99/year. Extended $199/year. Professional $299/year..

Ease 4/5Fees 4/5Conv 2/5

Best if:wordpress, digital products, ebooks, software

View profile →Alternatives

22. Leaky Paywall

flat monthly

WordPress paywall for independent publishers

Ease 4/5 — From $99/month.

Ease 4/5Fees 3/5Conv 2/5

Best if:wordpress, local news, independent publishers

View profile →Alternatives

23. Teachable

freemium

Sell online courses and coaching

Ease 4/5 — Free (1 product, $1+10% fee). Basic $39/mo. Pro $119/mo. Pro+ $199/mo..

Ease 4/5Fees 3/5Conv 3/5

Best if:courses, coaching, creators, memberships

View profile →Alternatives

24. Mighty Networks

flat monthly

Community platform with courses and memberships

Ease 4/5 — Courses $33/mo (3% transaction). Business $99/mo (2%). Path-to-Pro $360/mo (0%)..

Ease 4/5Fees 3/5Conv 3/5

Best if:communities, courses, memberships, creators

View profile →Alternatives

Quick comparison

Tool	Pricing	MoR	A/B	Ease	Fees
RevenueCat	Free up to $2.5k MTR, then 1% of revenue	—	—	5/5	3/5
Lemon Squeezy	5% + $0.50 per transaction. Acquired by Stripe 2024.	Yes	—	5/5	4/5
Polar	4% + $0.40 per transaction (lowest MoR fees on the market)	Yes	—	5/5	5/5
Gumroad	10% + $0.50 per transaction (direct). 30% via Gumroad marketplace. MoR since January 2025 — handles all global tax.	Yes	—	5/5	2/5
Payhip	Free: 5% fee. Plus $29/mo: 2%. Pro $99/mo: 0%	—	—	5/5	4/5
Beehiiv	Free Launch plan. Scale $43/mo. Max $96/mo. Enterprise: custom. 0% platform fee on paid subscriptions.	—	Yes	5/5	4/5
Substack	10% of paid subscription revenue. Stripe handles payments.	—	—	5/5	2/5
Skool	$99/month flat. 2.9% + $0.30 transaction fee.	—	—	5/5	3/5
Podia	No free plan (removed 2024). 30-day free trial. Mover $39/mo ($33/mo annual, 5% fee). Shaker $89/mo ($75/mo annual, 0% fee).	—	—	5/5	3/5
Memberful	Free (10% + Stripe fees). Pro $49/mo (4.9%). Premium $199/mo (0% transaction fee).	—	—	5/5	3/5
Patreon	Lite: 8% of earnings. Pro: 12%. Premium: 15%. Stripe fees on top.	—	—	5/5	2/5
Adapty	Free up to $10k MTR, then 1% of revenue	—	Yes	4/5	5/5
Nami ML	Free plan available, paid from $149/month	—	Yes	4/5	3/5
Qonversion	Free up to $10k MTR, then 0.6% on Starter	—	—	4/5	5/5
Apphud	Free plan available, Pro from $39/month	—	—	4/5	4/5
Whop	3% platform + Stripe fees (~5.7–7.2% all-in)	—	—	4/5	4/5
Kit	Free up to 10,000 subscribers. Creator from $25/month.	—	—	4/5	3/5
Circle	Professional $89/mo. Business $199/mo (lower transaction fees, branded apps add-on). Circle Plus: custom pricing for large-scale businesses. 0% transaction fee on Professional and above.	—	—	4/5	3/5
Kajabi	Basic $143/mo, Growth $199/mo, Pro $399/mo (annual billing). Kajabi Payments: 2.7-2.9% + $0.30. 0-2% fee on 3rd-party payment providers depending on plan.	—	—	4/5	1/5
MemberPress	Basic $179/year. Plus $299/year. Pro $399/year.	—	—	4/5	4/5
Easy Digital Downloads	Personal $99/year. Extended $199/year. Professional $299/year.	—	—	4/5	4/5
Leaky Paywall	From $99/month	—	—	4/5	3/5
Teachable	Free (1 product, $1+10% fee). Basic $39/mo. Pro $119/mo. Pro+ $199/mo.	—	—	4/5	3/5
Mighty Networks	Courses $33/mo (3% transaction). Business $99/mo (2%). Path-to-Pro $360/mo (0%).	—	—	4/5	3/5

Our pick

RevenueCat — the fastest setup and best documentation. In-app subscriptions made easy.

Stack recommendation

For most of this audience we recommend Lemon Squeezy — Fastest path to charging for a SaaS.

See full stack →

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