Run our free stripe fee calculator to see Stripe’s cut, your net payout, and the exact amount you need to charge to land on your target after fees. Below we break down how Stripe prices card payments, where the costs really land, and the spots where founders routinely misread the numbers.
What those Stripe fees really mean
Stripe’s fees are the slice it takes from every card transaction you process. In the UK that’s usually 1.4% plus 20p for European cards and 2.9% plus 20p for cards issued outside Europe. There’s also a small fixed fee for some payment methods. All of it gets added to the amount the customer sees unless you absorb it yourself.
Stripe updates these rates every few months, and the percentages cover the card networks (Visa, Mastercard) plus Stripe’s margin. The 20p is the acquirer fee that sits in the middle; it drifts slightly by country. If you let Stripe convert currency for you, it adds a 1% markup on the exchange rate.
Take a £100 pair of shoes sold to a UK customer. Stripe’s fee works out as 1.4% of £100 = £1.40 plus 20p = £1.60 total. You end up with £100 minus £1.60 = £98.40 in your account. To net exactly £100 after fees you have to charge £101.63, because £101.63 minus 1.6% minus 20p lands on £100.00.
There are edge cases. American Express costs 3.4% plus 20p, and some digital wallets are priced higher. Micro-transactions under £5 can carry a different fixed fee. If you’ve negotiated a custom rate the numbers shift, and refunds or chargebacks bring extra costs not baked into the headline rate.
Work it out yourself in three clicks
- Enter the amount you are charging the customer.
- Adjust the rate and fixed fee for your account and region.
- Read the fee, your net, and what to charge to net a target.
Fee = amount × rate% + fixed · Net = amount − feeStripe vs PayPal vs Square Fee Comparison (Domestic US)
| Processor | Credit Card Rate | Online Rate | ACH Rate | Chargeback Fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stripe | 2.9% + $0.30 | 2.9% + $0.30 | 0.8% (min $5) | $15 |
| PayPal | 2.9% + $0.30 | 3.49% + $0.49 + $0.05 | 1.0% (min $1) | $20 |
| Square | 2.9% + $0.30 | 2.9% + $0.30 | 1.0% (min $1) | $15 |
Why the numbers matter in your till
The pain shows up in cash-flow and margins. A café doing 200 coffees a day at £3 each hands over about £9.60 to Stripe every day. That’s roughly £288 a month—enough to cover an extra hour or two of staff time. When the fee isn’t built into the price, gross profit quietly shrinks.
Once you see the real numbers you can bake the fee into your prices, set minimum order sizes, or push for better rates if your volume justifies it. You also catch rate changes before customers notice and adjust pricing ahead of the complaints. That turns a hidden cost into a line item you can control.
Three real deals, three real mistakes
Small café coffee sales
A £3 coffee costs £3.05 to net £3 after fees. Stripe takes 1.4% of £3.05 = £0.0427, rounded to £0.04, plus 20p = £0.24. £3.05 minus £0.24 = £2.81, so the café actually nets £2.81. To net £3 they must charge £3.20: £3.20 minus 1.4% minus 20p = £3.00.
Odd price with rounding trap
A £12.99 T-shirt needs the fee built in. Stripe fee is 2.9% + 20p. Start with £12.99 divided by 0.971 (100% - 2.9%) = £13.38. Round that to £13.40 to avoid fractions of a penny. Check: £13.40 minus 2.9% = £12.9954, rounded to £13.00, minus 20p = £12.80. That’s 19p short, so the correct price is £13.45: £13.45 minus 2.9% minus 20p = £12.99.
Three ways people get caught out
| Common mistake | What to do instead |
|---|---|
| Adding 2.9% to the price after setting it | Work backwards from your net target. If you want £100 in your pocket, divide £100 by 0.971 (100% - 2.9%) to get the price before Stripe takes its cut. |
| Forgetting the 20p fixed fee on small amounts | Even on a £1 sale the 20p eats a fifth of your margin. Either set a £3 minimum order or absorb the fee in your pricing. |
| Mixing up UK/EU rates when customers pay from abroad | Check the customer’s card issuer country. A UK card used by a German tourist still triggers the UK rate of 1.4% + 20p, not the EU rate. |
Use the free calculator to skip the sums
| Tool | What it does |
|---|---|
| Stripe Fee Calculator | See the Stripe fee, your net payout, and what to charge to net a target amount. |
Try the Stripe Fee Calculator
Skip the manual maths — enter your numbers and get the answer instantly.
Open the Stripe Fee Calculator →A quick checklist before you set prices
Small differences in interest rate, term or timing can add up to large sums over the years. Before committing to any financial decision, run a few different scenarios so you can see the full picture and choose with confidence.
The three things to remember tomorrow
- Always build the fee into your price unless you’re happy shrinking margins.
- Round up to the nearest penny to avoid short-changing yourself.
- Check the card’s country of issue—EU and non-EU rates are different.
常见问题
How does Stripe calculate its fee?
Stripe multiplies the charge by a percentage and adds a fixed per-transaction fee. With the defaults, a $100 charge costs 100 x 2.9% + $0.30 = $3.20, leaving a $96.80 net payout. You can edit both fields to match your own pricing.
Is the 2.9% plus $0.30 rate accurate for me?
It is the standard online card rate and a fair starting point, but not guaranteed. Your real rate depends on country, currency, card type and whether the payment is international. Enter your actual figures for a precise result.
What should I charge to receive a specific net amount?
Since the fee is deducted from the charge, you must bill more than your target to keep it in full. The tool calculates this grossed-up amount so you can price a product to net exactly what you want.
Does this cover international or currency-conversion fees?
No. It applies only the one rate and fixed fee you enter. Stripe typically adds extra percentages for cross-border cards and currency conversion, so international charges may cost more than this basic estimate.
Can I rely on this as an official Stripe figure?
No. It is an estimate built from the numbers you provide. Use it for planning and pricing decisions, but confirm the exact fee in your Stripe dashboard for any real transaction.
