Polar.sh Fee Calculator.
Calculate exact Merchant of Record fees across Starter, Pro, Growth, and Scale plans. Discover your exact breakeven revenue, reverse gross-up price targets, and net deposits.
Fee Wealth Leakage Radar & Profit Drag
Multi-Rail Arbitrage ("Switch & Save")
%
Pass Fee to Client (Legal Surcharge Engine) Calculate zero-shortfall compliant markup & legal surcharge limits
• United States: Visa & Mastercard cap credit card surcharges at 3.00% (effective April 2023). Surcharging debit or prepaid cards is strictly illegal under federal operating rules.
• UK & European Union: Surcharging consumer debit and credit cards is prohibited under PSD2. B2B / corporate card surcharges remain permitted.
• Australia: Governed by RBA; surcharging is legally restricted strictly to the merchant's actual cost of card acceptance.
Client Invoice Message
Bookkeeping Journal Entry
Recent Calculations (Click to Restore)
The 2026 Merchant of Record Paradigm Shift: Polar.sh vs Stripe
When building a modern SaaS application or selling digital software globally, founders face a fundamental architecture choice: Direct Payment Gateway (Stripe) vs. Merchant of Record (Polar.sh).
While Stripe advertises a headline rate of 2.9% + $0.30, using Stripe as a standalone merchant leaves 100% of global tax liabilities on the founder's shoulders. Selling software into the European Union triggers mandatory EU VAT One-Stop Shop (OSS) registration. Selling into the United States requires tracking economic nexus across 45+ states with varying $100,000 revenue or 200-transaction thresholds.
- Zero Fiscal Liability: Polar legally buys your software and resells it to the end consumer, filing and remitting all taxes under Polar's corporate entity.
- Built-in Developer Primitives: Native webhooks, token usage meters, and automated GitHub & Discord member benefits.
- Tiered Volume Discounts: Unlike Lemon Squeezy and Paddle which lock you at 5%, Polar drops transaction fees to 3.8% and 3.4% as your MRR scales.
Complete 2026 Polar.sh Pricing & Fee Schedule
| Plan Tier | Monthly Fee | Transaction Rate | Optimal Monthly Revenue |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $0 / mo | 5.0% + $0.50 | $0 to $1,379 / mo |
| Pro | $20 / mo | 3.8% + $0.40 | $1,380 to $25,000 / mo |
| Growth | $100 / mo | 3.6% + $0.35 | $25,000 to $150,000 / mo |
| Scale | $400 / mo | 3.4% + $0.30 | $150,000+ / mo |
Closed-Form Inversion Formula: What to Price on Polar
Many founders make the mistake of adding 3.8% to their desired net profit. Because processor percentages are deducted from the gross billed amount, naive percentage addition causes a persistent margin loss. The exact deterministic formula is:
Example: To clear exactly $100.00 net on Polar Pro (3.8% + $0.40):
Gross = ($100.00 + $0.40) / (1 - 0.038) = $100.40 / 0.962 = $104.37.
When the customer pays $104.37, Polar deducts (3.8% = $3.97) + $0.40 = $4.37, leaving you with exactly $100.00 net payout.
Polar.sh vs Lemon Squeezy: Full Battle Matrix
Compare tax filing, developer APIs, GitHub automation, and net take-home pay.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are official Polar.sh Merchant of Record fees in 2026 across all tiers? ↓
Polar.sh operates on a 4-tier Merchant of Record pricing schedule: Starter ($0/mo, 5.0% + $0.50), Pro ($20/mo, 3.8% + $0.40), Growth ($100/mo, 3.6% + $0.35), and Scale ($400/mo, 3.4% + $0.30). A standard +1.5% fee applies to international cross-border payment cards.
What is the mathematical breakeven tipping point between Polar Starter and Pro? ↓
The exact mathematical breakeven point between the Starter plan (5% + 50¢) and the Pro plan ($20/mo + 3.8% + 40¢) is approximately $1,379.31 per month in gross sales. As soon as your software or digital product revenue exceeds $1,380/mo, upgrading to Pro saves you more in transaction discounts than the $20 monthly fee.
How does Polar's 3.8% Pro tier compare to Lemon Squeezy's 5.5% SaaS rate? ↓
Lemon Squeezy charges 5.0% + $0.50 plus a mandatory 0.50% recurring subscription surcharge (totaling 5.5% + $0.50). On a $10,000/mo SaaS business, Lemon Squeezy takes ~$650/mo. On Polar Pro, transaction fees are only 3.8% + $0.40, totaling ~$480/mo including the $20 plan cost, saving founders over $2,040 annually.
How does Polar handle global sales tax, EU VAT, UK VAT, and GST compliance? ↓
As a full legal Merchant of Record (MoR), Polar legally resells your software. Polar assumes 100% legal, fiscal, and audit liability for calculating, collecting, and remitting sales taxes, EU VAT OSS, UK VAT, and GST across 130+ jurisdictions worldwide.
What are Polar.sh chargeback dispute fees and fraud protection mechanisms? ↓
Polar charges a standard $15 dispute fee per lost chargeback. Because Polar is the legal Merchant of Record, automated fraud filters screen suspicious cards before checkout, and Polar represents dispute evidence directly with card networks.
Does Polar support usage-based billing, token metering, and GitHub/Discord automation? ↓
Yes. Polar is purpose-built for modern developers, featuring native APIs for event-based token consumption metering, seat-based subscriptions, automated private GitHub repository invites, and Discord role synchronization upon purchase.
What are the payout schedules and withdrawal fees on Polar? ↓
Polar settles cleared earnings via Stripe Connect directly to your linked bank account in USD, EUR, GBP, CAD, and dozens of local currencies on a regular weekly or bi-weekly cadence with zero withdrawal fees in supported countries.
How do I calculate what to charge for a SaaS plan on Polar Pro to take home $100 net? ↓
Using Polar Pro's closed-form inversion formula: Gross Price = (Desired Net + Fixed Fee) / (1 - Percentage Rate) = ($100.00 + $0.40) / (1 - 0.038) = $100.40 / 0.962 = $104.37. Invoicing $104.37 ensures you retain exactly $100.00 net after all processor deductions.