Enter an amount and choose the situation that fits. U.S. rates, verified September 2026.
| Situation | PayPal | Stripe |
|---|---|---|
| Online card / checkout | 3.49% + $0.49 | 2.9% + $0.30 |
| Goods & Services / standard card | 2.99% | 2.9% + $0.30 |
| International customer | +1.5% | +1.5% |
| Currency conversion | included in spread/handling | +1% |
| Manually keyed card | varies | +0.5% |
| In-person | — | 2.7% + $0.05 |
For a normal U.S. online sale, Stripe is almost always slightly cheaper: on a $100 payment it takes $3.20 versus PayPal Checkout's $3.98. The gap shrinks or flips depending on the PayPal product you choose (Goods & Services is 2.99% with no fixed fee) and on currency conversion, where Stripe adds an explicit 1%. Toggle the options above to match the real makeup of your payments rather than comparing headline rates alone.
For standard U.S. online payments Stripe is usually cheaper by a fraction of a percent plus a smaller fixed fee ($3.20 vs $3.98 on $100). PayPal's Goods & Services rate (2.99%, no fixed fee) can be close, and the picture changes with international or foreign-currency payments — model both above.
Both providers add about 1.5% when the card is issued outside your country. Stripe additionally charges 1% if a currency conversion is required; PayPal applies its own currency conversion spread, which is not shown as a separate line item here.
When you type a customer's card number in by hand instead of taking it through a secure online checkout, Stripe charges an extra 0.5% because such transactions carry higher fraud risk. Online sales via Stripe Checkout do not trigger this.
No. Both are pay-as-you-go with no monthly fee, no setup charge and no minimums for standard accounts. You only pay the per-transaction rates shown.
Yes — many sellers offer Stripe on their website and PayPal as an alternative at checkout, since some buyers specifically prefer paying from their PayPal balance. Offering both can lift conversion even though fees differ slightly.
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