A detailed comparison of Stripe as compared to. Paddle vs.

To help you choose between Stripe vs. Paddle vs. , this comparison guide:

• What areas of the payment lifecycle each solution is a viable option for (e.g. payments processing, gathering and remitting taxes, and subscription management) and what other software you'll require to integrate into your tech stack.
• What companies and industries each one serves.

We then provide details of how to compare key options like checkout and reporting. Finally, we share several testimonials and case studies for each solution.

In a nutshell, Stripe primarily deals in payment processing. Paddle and Paddle handle billing, subscription management including tax collection and tax remitting in addition to fraud prevention and much more with no the requirement for any additional software.

 Table of Contents

•   What aspects of the payment lifecycle are you able to handle and which other programs are you going to require for a complete payment solution?
•   What types of businesses and what industries are able to use every platform?
•   Functionality and feature comparisons
•     Pay Processing
•     Calculating and remitting sales tax, VAT and GST
•     Checkout
•     Subscription Management
•     Reporting and Analytics
•   Pricing
•   Review by Customer

NOTE: Information in this article is correct as of the date of publication but may change.

What areas that are part of the payment cycle are you able to control and what additional software do you require for a comprehensive payment solution?

Stripe Paye: Payment Processing

Stripe is most well-known for payment processing, meaning they assist you in collecting information about payments and have them approved. In addition, they also provide basic services to manage your subscription and fraud detection, invoices, and more.

These extra features may meet the requirements of some start-ups, however, the majority of companies will require additional options that are more powerful. Eventually, you'll need additional software to manage complex recurring billing needs, accept more payment methods around the world, or design your own checkout system. Luckily, most developers can easily incorporate Stripe with the majority of other applications (however, you have to be able to pay for each program separately).

The majority of companies that use Stripe will also require staff to manage the sales tax (and VAT) as well as regulatory compliance. Although Stripe takes taxes on sales and VAT for your company, you are responsible to pay it. If you remit these taxes in the wrong quantity, in the wrong time or in the wrong way there's a chance that you'll be liable for penalty and financial losses. (More about this in the future. )

Plus, you'll be responsible of staying current and following local laws and regulations where the customers reside. It's a big undertaking for any organization, and that's the reason why many companies devote an entire division to this work.

The entire payment lifecycle

• Many payment processors (which enhances the rate of authorization and allows you to conduct transactions globally).
• Flexible subscription management and recurring billing tools.
• B2B Digital Invoicing.
• Advanced detection of fraud.
• Flexible checkout (down to the pixel).
• Comprehensive reports and analysis.
• And much and more.

It will be possible to control all aspects of the payment lifecycle from your dashboard without the need for additional programs or heads.

Paddle: Most of the Payment Lifecycle

Paddle provides options for processing payments as well as subscription management and fraud detection, and is more feature-rich than Stripe's options. However, some of Paddle's capabilities aren't as strong as  the features of. For example, 's checkout is more customizable than Paddle's checkout options (more on this later).

If Paddle does not provide the features it needs, you could require an additional program or change to another software or.

Similar to Paddle, it is a MoR.

What kinds of businesses and Which Industries Can Use the Platforms?

Stripe: Nearly Any Business

The Stripe platform is used by almost any kind of business in nearly any industry. However, SaaS companies will inevitably face some difficulties with Stripe.

Like we said earlier, companies using Stripe are entirely responsible for paying sales tax and VAT. There was a time that SaaS companies didn't have to pay sales tax or VAT, however, many states and nations are drafting (and insisting on enforcing) legislation that force SaaS firms to pay VAT or sales tax.

Here are two examples:

• On January 1, 2015 on the 1st of January, 2015, the European Union began requiring software sellers to collect and refund VAT according to the location of the buyer and not on the address of the seller's company or employees.
• In the year 2018 in 2018, The United States Supreme Court has ruled that states are allowed to charge sales tax on purchases made by sellers outside of the state (including sellers on the internet) however the seller does not have any physical presence within the state that taxes.

Keeping track of and observing constantly changing tax laws isn't easy. That's why SaaS companies (and companies selling any digital products) should opt for an option that can handle remitting sales tax and VAT for you.

: B2C and B2B SaaS or Digital Goods Companies

For nearly 20 years it has served B2B and B2C businesses that market SaaS Digital products and software that is downloadable:

Paddle B2C SaaS

Paddle has been serving SaaS firms for around ten years. Paddle's platform is more suitable for B2C companies, however, they are working on adding new features for B2B businesses, like automated invoices.

If adding B2B services is in your near future, these capabilities could be in place by the time you need them. If you're currently selling products that are B2B-related it's a good idea look at a different option that has B2B functions that are fully functional ('s Digital Invoicing tool for B2B has been in operation for a number of years).

Next, we compare Stripe vs. vs. Paddle, according to specific features.

Functions and feature comparisons

Payment Processing (Payment Options, Currency and More)

Stripe

For Stripe to start accepting payments Stripe, you have to set up each location to use the appropriate currency and payment options that you would like to accept in that area. Once you've set this to go live, Stripe will automatically convert pricing of the product and present the right currency and payment options at the time of checkout.

Stripe supports 135+ currencies.

It will be possible to accept payments from large credit card networks (including MasterCard and Visa), bank transfers, vouchers as well as popular wallets such as Apple Pay and Google Pay. But, they're not able to accept PayPal.

Stripe can also support in-person transactions via the Stripe Terminal as well as mobile SDKs.

makes it simple makes it easy for SaaS as well as e-commerce businesses to accept transactions in all different currencies and payment options around the globe. Instead of configuring every one individually, sellers can simply enable localized payments and accept global payment right away.

However, Stripe automatically converts the price into local currency for you, provides more flexibility:

• It is possible to let the conversions on your behalf, oryou can fix a price fixed for each of your products for each country.
• You can let choose the appropriate currency based on the user's location, you can choose a specific currency for each location, or you can let the customer select their preferred currency. supports 23+ currencies.

 With it, customers are able to make payment by using:

• Credit cards include Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, JCB, and UnionPay.
• ACH.
• SEPA Direct Debit.
• Wire transfers.
• Paysafecards, such as PayPal, Apple Pay, Amazon, Alipay, and many more.

Payouts are more successful rate when the gateway is located in the same place as the purchaser. automatically routes online payments through the gateway with the highest rate of authorization for the payment method and the location.

Furthermore, the use of multiple payment gateways solves most problems with failed payments that arise caused by network issues. When a gateway for payment has a problem with its technology, automatically retries the payment by using another gatewayand without the team needing to lift a finger.

Bonus: Sift Partners as Sift

The company is at the forefront of fraud and risk activities (including chargebacks). We collaborate in partnership with Sift, a global pioneer in risk analysis and fraud prevention, to keep your transaction secure. Sift utilizes machine learning and AI to:

• Improve the accuracy of fraud-related decisions.
• Improve approval rates and result in less false positives.
• Beware of bad actors before a transaction is even processed.

also blocks transactions from nations and countries where companies cannot currently do business.

Paddle

Paddle is also a payment options and allows companies to accept international payments without any set-up.

Paddle supports 20+ different currencies, most popular credit cards (including MasterCard, Union Pay and many more) as well as wire transfers as well as money-saving wallets (including Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal, and Alipay) -- although many of these are currently in beta testing.

Inputing and submitting Sales Tax, VAT, and GST

Stripe

Stripe purchased TaxJar to assist you in calculating VAT, sales tax, and GST. However, they only provide directions for activating tax-related features and assigning tax codes. It is your responsibility to make decision-making and the implications of using those tools (e.g., knowing how your product is classified under tax law and if/where you are nexus-related, you must to register, collect tax, file, and file the consumption tax). If you're interested in knowing the best way to maximize tax rates, qualify for reduced tax rates, or other tax-related question, you'll likely be told to consult your tax advisor or read through the help article.

 If you accidentally set it up incorrectly and you pay the incorrect amount (or the wrong type) of tax, you'll be responsible.

Plus, remitting sales taxes is often more involved than filling out a simple sheet and writing out a cheque. In the last few years, more and more nations are imposing additional conditions in order to be compliant. As an example:

• Countries such as Colombia, Japan, Mexico, Serbia, and others are governed by the presence of a local representative, meaning you have an employee with a physical presence in that country in order to pay your tax obligations. This can cost anywhere from $5k-$15k annually.
• Countries such as India, Indonesia, Japan, and others require your bank account "pre-funded" meaning you have to predict the amount of tax you'll owe, and then keep funds in your account until the time comes to submit your tax return (up to three months prior to filing).
• Countries like Serbia, United Kingdom, Taiwan and many others have electronic invoicing (it is applicable to non-resident companies, as well). The typical cost for companies is $2k to $5k per year. Notice: E-invoicing mandates are rising at an alarming pace and the EU rolling out universal electronic invoicing requirements by 2028.
• Countries such as Taiwan, Indonesia, Nigeria, Vietnam, and others are requiring you to submit taxes on your income as well as to indirect tax (this can add up to $5-$10k each year).

Finally, wiring international tax payments is not simple or cost-free. The banks that process the tax payments and those who receive them both charge fees and there's the additional risk involved in foreign transactions.

So, while Stripe has taken an important step towards helping to collect sales tax acquiring TaxJar however, they're still a long distance from providing an end-to-end solution to sales tax as well as international tax.

takes care of the entire procedure for collecting and processing the sales tax, VAT and GST for you .

Over 20 years of expertise in filing more than 1,200 annual tax returns, our team ensures the correct amount (and type) of indirect tax collection during checkout. We can even manage tax-free transactions in the U.S. and 0% reverse charge when permitted internationally.

The tax collection agency files taxes and records them in over 52 nations, 13 provinces and in all 45 U.S. states that collect sales tax (five states do not collect sales tax).

Our team then pays these taxes for you, and ensures all the necessary steps are taken for you to remain compliant. If a country or state asks you to comply with tax laws, our team will advise you on the best way to handle it -- even as far as copy and paste responses.

We establish and maintain connections with tax law specialists across the globe, to ensure that we're aware of tax laws and regulations as they change.

Bonus: Tax Codes Customized

Tools like TaxJar, Avalara, and other tax software supply the tax code for most products and services. But, the majority of companies ultimately want to provide an item or service that doesn't fit neatly into the description of any of the tax codes offered (e.g. the possibility of an in-person conference with some online attendees and speakers). By using a tool like TaxJar and TaxJar, you'll be on your own to figure out and collect the right amount and kind of indirect tax since TaxJar doesn't provide the appropriate tax code for your particular situation.

This isn't an issue for sellers because we just released a option that lets us build unique product tax codes tailored to the specific use caseand in just only a few minutes. Tell us the details of the product or service you offer and we will create your tax code.

Paddle

Like , Paddle takes the lead on gathering and remitting taxes on sales, VAT, and GST on behalf of the benefit of you. In contrast , Paddle doesn't support tax exempt situations in the U.S.

Check out

Stripe

Stripe Checkout offers a built-in payment page designed for use on any device. You have a few choices for personalization (e.g. the font blocks, forms, colors etc.) however, it's very limited. Stripe instantly converts Checkout to the appropriate local language (35+ choices) in accordance with the purchaser's place of residence.

You can customize all aspects of your checkout process, with custom fields, to custom colours. There's also the option to decide whether to give your developer complete control over checkout or let manage it for you (or something within the middle).

Here's an overview of 's check-out options:

• Three variations: You have the option to embed checkout directly onto your website you can also use a popup checkout, or direct your customers to a Web Storefront managed by .

• Store Builder Library (SBL):  It's SBL allows you to have complete control over the look and feel of your checkout all the way down to the pixel- regardless of which checkout method you select.
• Localized Checkouts:Let customers choose their preferred language or choose the appropriate option based on the customer's place of residence. It supports 19+ languages.
• Tracking and testing instruments: With 's built-in tracking tools, you can easily identify ways to improve conversion rates. Many companies who use this method are able improve their conversion rates up to 30.
• Personalized customer service:Although we provide you with complete control of your shopping cart, our team is always ready to assist you in creating the most efficient checkout experience possible for your business. Some companies only provide individual support to their most important customers and do not provide any support for small firms. We don't have with our clients' interests. Our team is ready to be of assistance in whatever ways they can.

Paddle

Paddle provides two versions of checkout:

• Embedded on your webpage
• Popup overlay

In these two formats, you can choose from 50 different options for customization. Paddle supports 16 languages and automatically translates your checkout.

Subscription Management

Stripe

Stripe Billing includes a few various subscription options:

• Flat-rate billing (for an annual or monthly price) annual cost)
• Multiple price billing (where a single product is sold for different rates in various locations)
• Per seat billing (based on active users at the time of billing)
• Usage-based charging (single unit, or tiered)
• Flat-rate plus overage (a combination of usage-based and flat-rate billing)

This option is suitable for firms that are only using just a handful of subscription-based services but companies that have more complicated recurring billing requirements (e.g., SaaS) generally require an additional tool. In this regard, Stripe has developed a closely-knit partnership with Chargebee so that it's easier for customers to obtain the tools for subscription billing they need. It's not difficult to integrate these two tools but you'll have to handle and pay for both separately.

In addition, Stripe offers a customer account management portal that allows customers to manage their accounts (both as well as Paddle provide this feature as well).

offers a variety of options for managing subscriptions that are designed specifically to be used by SaaS companies.

Furthermore, many of these choices can be set up without having to write any code. You can, for instance, set up:

• Automated weekly, monthly or annual recurring billing.
• Prorated billing to accommodate changes -- as well as downgrades -- mid-cycle.
• Trials for free or paid of any length.
• Trials without or with information about your payment (by not collecting payment details you'll reduce friction during check-out, which usually leads to higher rate of conversion).
• Automatic or manual renewal.
• Upsells, cross-sells, one-time additions and discounts.
• and many and more...

Access to our API as well as our webhooks library to provide additional customization options.

 A major aspect that frequently gets overlooked is whether or no your periodic billing plan is compliant with local laws and regulations for transactions.

As an example, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has specific rules regarding recurring payments. At the time of writing this article, the RBI limit automatic recurring payment to the amount of Rs15,000 (approximately 170 dollars). If a purchase exceeds this amount, the client has to sign off on each transaction by hand. Also, you must file an official mandate with the RBI which outlines the procedure you need to follow for ensuring the compliance. If you do not make a formal mandate application or have customers manually approve large transactions, you'll be liable to severe penalties or even be banned from selling products to consumers in India.

Though some subscription management software are able to release updates for community members whenever they discover new regulations However, you're ultimately accountable for keeping track of and adhering to all rules and laws. If you don't comply, you could face fines or be banned from doing business in that region. The majority of companies will require more staff to manage this.

 customers don't have to worry about this because we accept the transaction responsibility on behalf of the benefit of.

Our legal team stays up to date on all relevant legalities, ensures all the procedures required are in place, takes the initiative in audits and provides individual advice for staying in compliance -- and all this at no additional cost.

Bonus: Invoicing via digital

The Digital Invoicing (DI) lets you manage B2B orders along with B2C purchases. With DI, you can:

• Customize and manage quotes that are updated in real-time (including customized tags coupons, discounts and more).
• Set quote expiration dates.
• Accept and request the payment.
• Add custom notes for your prospect or customer.
• Offer a quote that is self-service (this is particularly useful when clients require approval prior to purchasing).
• and many and more.

Paddle

Using a series of webhooks, and APIs, Paddle supports the following subscription model:

• Fixed
• Tiered
• Per-seat
• Metered

Plus, some of these choices are able to be mixed. You could, for instance, create a tiered system with each level allowing the use of a number of seats.

Paddle offers free and paid trials, however, customers will be required to submit payment details for the trial. Paddle additionally automatically adjusts the prorated amount when users change their plan mid-cycle (e.g. or add new users or upgrade).

Reporting and Analytics

Stripe

Stripe provides a range of revenue recognition tools to assist you in reducing your expenses, including:

• Basic accounting reports including balance sheets or income statement.
• Revenue rules that can be configured, such as excluding passthrough fees and auto-adjusting timings for recognition.
• Revenue overview reports.
• and more...

Reports can be reviewed within your Stripe dashboard. Some reports are available for download in a CSV file. Additionally, you can integrate it with accounting software including QuickBooks Desktop and Xero. The ability to transfer data from revenue recognition companies to Stripe is currently in beta.

The Reporting and Analytics suite is a powerful suite that helps you understand:

• The impact each product has on your bottom line.
• The time when customers are the most likely to abandon.
• Which coupons and promotions are working.
• Which subscription model generates the most revenue.
• Your customers' locations.
• What currencies and payment methods clients prefer.
• and there's and more...

A majority of this data is available in one of two dashboards that include both the income overview dashboard as well as the subscription overview dashboard.

The revenue overview dashboard includes more general data like total transactions per country or net sales by product.

The subscription overview dashboard lets you drill down into more specific details like active customers or monthly recurring revenue (MRR) as time passes.

If you aren't able to find exactly the report you're looking for within these dashboards, you are able to create and save custom reports. You can also reach out to our team and we'll help you find (or make) the report that you want. All reports can be seen on your dashboard, or downloaded as an CSV PNG, XLSX, or XLSX file.

Paddle

Paddle recently acquired ProfitWell to offer the ability to report and analyze data. But, the integration isn't complete, so there could be some differences between the two platforms. In particular, they will show distinct MRR.

After integration, Paddle will be able to:

• Automatically track and report on key performance indicators such as MRR.
• Monitor user engagement and churn.
• Offer benchmarking tools and segmentation techniques.
• And more...

Pricing

Stripe

Being a platform for DIY the pricing of Stripe works differently than or Paddle. With Stripe it is necessary to purchase additional software and headcount to manage other aspects of the billing lifecycle such as advanced authentication and subscription management, as well as remitting VAT and sales tax and much more.

Stripe is also pricing card and wallets in a different way as compared to other payment methods, including ACH and SEPA.

In all of the payment options listed above will allow you access to many of their services but they're not all available. Like, for instance, Stripe charges additional fees for transactions that are 3D secure, invoicing, tax features as well as other features.

To learn more regarding Stripe, visit their website.

With , you'll have access to the all of the platform (and all services) at a flat rate. We take care of transaction liability for you and lead the charge on VAT and sales tax, you won't need any additional software or headcount.

Our team works together with you to come up with an affordable rate depending on the number of transactions that you conduct . Plus, you'll only be charged when transactions take place.

Paddle

Paddle advertises a flat-rate fee for their main product, which includes most of the options you'll require -payment processing payment, check-out, subscriptions global taxes and tax compliance fraud protection and reporting, among others However, it does not contain everything.

For example, Paddle collects a 10% fee to reclaim empty carts.

For more information on Paddle, visit their website.

Customer Reviews

Stripe

Stripe currently has 4.4 rating at G2 (a popular software review site) with more than 82 reviews.

The company currently has 4.5 ratings on G2 with more than 184 reviews.

This is what a few of our clients have to say about us:

Paddle

Paddle currently holds 4.5 five stars on G2 along with over 145 reviews.

Final. Paddle vs. Stripe

In the case of selling physical items or services, and Paddle are not an option, which makes Stripe the most suitable choice of the three options described here. If you are selling digital goods, Stripe may not be the best choice because you'll be on your own to create a comprehensive payment platform (which can be expensive and takes a long time).

is serving SaaS businesses longer than Paddle and has additional features and capabilities. is also better prepared to assist B2B firms.