Stripe is a good payment processor, particularly for new businesses and developers. But flat-rate pricing, any flat-rate pricing, including Stripe’s, has a consistent structural property: as your volume grows and your card mix shifts, your processing cost grows predictably while your operating leverage on other cost lines improves. Understanding the math tells you when to ask harder questions about your payment infrastructure.
Understanding Stripe’s Pricing Structure
Stripe’s standard online rate is 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction. This flat rate applies regardless of card type, a debit card costs the same as a premium rewards card. The per-transaction fixed fee ($0.30) also means that the effective rate is higher on lower-ticket transactions. At $10 average order value, the effective rate is 2.9% + 3.0% = 5.9%. At $100, it’s 2.9% + 0.3% = 3.2%. At $500, it’s 2.9% + 0.06% = 2.96%.
The True Cost Calculation
Let’s calculate the actual annual processing cost at different volume levels, assuming a $75 average order value:
| Monthly Volume | Transactions | Rate Fee (2.9%) | Fixed Fee ($0.30) | Total Monthly | Total Annual |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $10,000 | 133 | $290 | $40 | $330 | $3,960 |
| $50,000 | 667 | $1,450 | $200 | $1,650 | $19,800 |
| $100,000 | 1,333 | $2,900 | $400 | $3,300 | $39,600 |
| $500,000 | 6,667 | $14,500 | $2,000 | $16,500 | $198,000 |
What to Compare When Evaluating Alternatives
When evaluating any alternative to Stripe at your current volume, the comparison should go beyond headline rate:
- Authorization rate performance: What authorization rate does the alternative achieve for merchants like you? Even a 1–2% improvement in authorization rate can offset significant rate differences in recovered revenue.
- Ancillary fee structure: Does the alternative have monthly fees, PCI fees, or other charges that the headline rate doesn’t reveal? Calculate total effective cost, not just the percentage.
- Fraud and chargeback tools: What fraud prevention is included? What are the chargeback rates for comparable merchants? Better fraud tools reduce chargeback losses independent of processing rate.
- Support quality: At higher volumes, the cost of downtime becomes significant. What support does the alternative provide?
The Right Questions to Ask
Rather than asking “is this cheaper than Stripe?”, the more valuable questions are:
- What is my current effective processing rate (total fees / total volume)?
- What is my authorization rate, and how much declined-but-legitimate revenue am I leaving on the table?
- What are my total chargeback costs (fees + lost transactions + staff time)?
- What would a processor with better infrastructure deliver across all three of these dimensions?
ConvesioPay offers the same flat-rate structure as Stripe (2.9% + $0.30, no monthly fees) with Adyen’s direct acquiring infrastructure behind it, delivering better authorization rates and fraud management at the same predictable price point that makes flat-rate appealing in the first place.
Ready to get started? Learn more about ConvesioPay or view pricing.