Stripe Fees Explained — How Much Does Stripe Charge? (2026)

Updated October 2026 · 5 min read

Stripe is the world's most popular developer-first payment processor. Its pricing is transparent, but understanding the full picture — especially for international payments and currency conversion — requires knowing all the components.

Stripe's Standard Pricing

What the 2.9% + $0.30 Formula Means in Practice

The flat fee ($0.30) has a big impact on small transactions and becomes negligible on large ones:

• $5 charge: Fee = $0.145 + $0.30 = $0.445 → you receive $4.555 (effective rate: 8.9%)
• $50 charge: Fee = $1.45 + $0.30 = $1.75 → you receive $48.25 (effective rate: 3.5%)
• $500 charge: Fee = $14.50 + $0.30 = $14.80 → you receive $485.20 (effective rate: 2.96%)

Key insight: Stripe is relatively expensive for very small transactions. If you sell $5 digital products, consider grouping them into a higher-value bundle or using Stripe's no-code payment links with a minimum charge.

How to Charge the Fee to the Customer

If you want to pass the Stripe fee on to the customer so you receive the full amount, you need to gross up the charge. Use the formula:

Example: To receive exactly $100, charge: ($100 + $0.30) ÷ 0.971 = $103.40. The Stripe Fee Calculator handles this in both directions — "what will I receive?" and "what should I charge?".

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