The Short Answer
If you take card payments online, Stripe is cheaper: 2.9% + $0.30 versus PayPal Checkout's 3.49% + $0.49. On a $100 sale that's $3.20 with Stripe against $3.98 with PayPal — and the gap only widens as your volume grows.
But "cheaper" depends on how you sell. In person, PayPal's Zettle reader (2.29% + $0.09) undercuts Stripe Terminal (2.7% + $0.05) on percentage. Internationally, Stripe pulls far ahead, because PayPal's currency conversion is roughly 4% to Stripe's 1%. And for tiny payments under about $10, PayPal's Micropayments tier can beat both.
So the honest answer is: it depends on your channel and your customers. The table below settles it line by line.
Stripe vs PayPal: The Fee Table
US standard-plan rates as of 2026. Confirm current numbers on each provider's pricing page before you commit — both adjust pricing periodically.
| Fee | Stripe | PayPal |
|---|---|---|
| Online card | 2.9% + $0.30 | 3.49% + $0.49 (2.99% advanced) |
| In-person | 2.7% + $0.05 | 2.29% + $0.09 (Zettle) |
| Manually keyed | 3.4% + $0.30 | 3.49% + $0.49 |
| Bank debit / ACH | 0.8% (capped $5) | No comparable low-cap ACH |
| International card | +1.5% | +1.5% |
| Currency conversion | ~1% | ~4% |
| Micropayments (<$10) | None | 4.99% + $0.09 |
| Dispute / chargeback | $15 | $20 |
| Monthly fee | $0 | $0 |
Green marks the cheaper option for each line. Run your own ticket size through both calculators:
Where Stripe Wins
- Online card rate. A flat 60 basis points and 19 cents cheaper per transaction than PayPal's standard checkout — real money once you're doing hundreds of sales a month.
- International and multi-currency. This is the blowout. PayPal's ~4% conversion versus Stripe's ~1% means a converted foreign sale can hit nearly 9% on PayPal against roughly 4.4% on Stripe.
- Cheap ACH. Stripe's 0.8%-capped-at-$5 bank debit has no real PayPal equivalent. For large B2B invoices it's decisive.
- Subscriptions and developer tooling. Stripe Billing, metered usage, and a genuinely excellent API make recurring revenue far easier to build and run.
- Lower dispute fee. $15 versus PayPal's $20, and Stripe's Radar fraud tooling is strong out of the box.
Where PayPal Wins
- Checkout conversion. The hardest one to put on a spreadsheet, and often the most valuable. A lot of shoppers trust the PayPal button and will abandon a card form they don't recognize. A few extra percentage points of completed checkouts can outweigh a slightly higher rate.
- In-person rate. Zettle's 2.29% + $0.09 is the lowest card-present rate in this comparison — good for cafes, markets, and pop-ups.
- Micropayments. If your average sale is under ~$10 (digital goods, tips, small downloads), PayPal's 4.99% + $0.09 tier beats any flat 2.9% + $0.30, where the fixed 30 cents dominates.
- Zero-code setup. You can be taking payments through PayPal without touching a line of code or hiring anyone — a real advantage for non-technical sellers.
Don't over-optimize on rate alone
If adding PayPal lifts your completed-checkout rate by even 2-3%, that extra revenue can dwarf the difference between a 2.9% and a 3.49% fee. Conversion beats basis points more often than merchants expect.
Worked Examples
A $100 domestic online sale
Stripe: $3.20. PayPal standard checkout: $3.98. PayPal advanced card: $3.48. Stripe wins by $0.78 — about $780 a year if you do a thousand of these.
A $40 in-person coffee-shop sale
PayPal Zettle: $1.01 (2.29% + $0.09). Stripe Terminal: $1.13 (2.7% + $0.05). PayPal wins at the counter — small per ticket, but it compounds across a busy day.
A $200 international sale with conversion
Stripe (2.9% + 1.5% + 1% ≈ 5.4% + $0.30): about $11.10. PayPal (3.49% + 1.5% + 4% ≈ 8.99% + $0.49): about $18.47. Stripe saves over $7 on a single sale — this is where cross-border sellers feel the difference most.
A $5 digital download
Stripe (2.9% + $0.30): $0.45 — 9% of the sale, because the fixed 30 cents hurts. PayPal Micropayments (4.99% + $0.09): $0.34. For tiny tickets, PayPal's micro tier wins clearly.
Which Should You Choose?
- Choose Stripe if you sell online, run subscriptions, ship internationally, want cheap ACH on invoices, or have any developer resource. It's the default for SaaS and modern e-commerce.
- Choose PayPal if buyer trust drives your conversions, you sell in person with Zettle, your tickets are tiny, or you want to start without code.
- Choose both if you run a storefront. Stripe-powered card fields plus a PayPal button is an extremely common setup — you capture the rate-sensitive buyers and the PayPal loyalists, and pay each fee only on what it processes.
Want the mechanics behind every number above — interchange, assessments, and markup? Start with the pillar guide, or read our full Stripe breakdown:
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Stripe cheaper than PayPal?
For standard online card payments, yes — 2.9% + $0.30 versus PayPal Checkout's 3.49% + $0.49 ($3.20 versus $3.98 on $100). PayPal's in-person Zettle rate (2.29% + $0.09) can beat Stripe at the counter, and its 2.99% advanced-checkout rate narrows the online gap.
Which is cheaper for international sales?
Stripe, usually by a lot. Both add ~1.5% for an international card, but PayPal's currency conversion is ~4% versus Stripe's ~1%. A converted international sale can reach nearly 9% all-in on PayPal versus ~4.4% on Stripe.
Does Stripe or PayPal have monthly fees?
Neither, on its standard plan — both are pure pay-per-transaction with no setup or monthly fee. You only pay more if you opt into add-ons like PayPal Micropayments or Stripe's Billing and advanced Radar.
Should I use Stripe or PayPal for my small business?
Stripe if you sell online, run subscriptions, need cheap ACH or international handling, or have a developer. PayPal if you want buyer trust at checkout, sell in person with Zettle, or take very small payments. Many businesses simply offer both.
Can I offer both Stripe and PayPal?
Yes, and many stores do. A PayPal button alongside Stripe-powered card fields can lift conversion, since some shoppers only trust the PayPal flow. You pay each provider's fee only on the transactions it processes.
Key Takeaways
- Online: Stripe wins (2.9% + $0.30 vs 3.49% + $0.49).
- In person: PayPal Zettle wins (2.29% + $0.09 vs 2.7% + $0.05).
- International: Stripe wins big — ~1% conversion vs PayPal's ~4%.
- Tiny tickets: PayPal Micropayments wins under ~$10.
- Don't ignore checkout conversion — offering both is often the smartest move.
Compare on Your Own Numbers
There's no universal winner — there's a winner for your mix of channels, ticket sizes, and customers. Drop your real numbers into both calculators, weigh in checkout conversion, and remember that running both is a perfectly good answer.