What Stripe, Square and PayPal charge, and how much to charge to cover it
Updated October 2026
| Processor and type | Rate | Fee on $20 | Fee on $100 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stripe, online card | 2.9% + 30¢ | $0.88 | $3.20 |
| Stripe Terminal, in person | 2.7% + 5¢ | $0.59 | $2.75 |
| Square Free, in person | 2.6% + 15¢ | $0.67 | $2.75 |
| Square Free, online | 3.3% + 30¢ | $0.96 | $3.60 |
| Square Plus/Premium, online | 2.9% + 30¢ | $0.88 | $3.20 |
| Square, keyed-in card | 3.5% + 15¢ | $0.85 | $3.65 |
| PayPal Checkout or Venmo | 3.49% + 49¢ | $1.19 | $3.98 |
| PayPal Guest Checkout (card, no PayPal account) | 3.49% + 49¢ | $1.19 | $3.98 |
| PayPal Standard Credit and Debit Card Payments | 2.99% + 49¢ | $1.09 | $3.48 |
| PayPal in person, card present or QR | 2.29% + 9¢ | $0.55 | $2.38 |
These are the standard published prices for domestic cards, taken from each company’s pricing page in October 2026. PayPal’s U.S. merchant fee page (last updated October 1, 2026) lists two card rates that are easy to mix up: “Standard Credit and Debit Card Payments” at 2.99% + 49¢, and “PayPal Guest Checkout,” where a shopper pays by card through the PayPal button without logging in, at the same 3.49% + 49¢ as PayPal Checkout and Pay with Venmo. In person, card-present and QR code payments are 2.29% + 9¢. Square’s Plus and Premium plans lower the in-person rate to 2.5% and 2.4% + 15¢. High-volume businesses can negotiate custom or interchange-plus pricing.
Fee = amount × rate + fixed fee. You receive the amount minus the fee. To receive a set amount after fees, charge (target + fixed fee) ÷ (1 − rate). Worked example for a $100 invoice paid online through Stripe: 2.9% × $100 = $2.90, plus $0.30, is a $3.20 fee and $96.80 received. To receive the full $100, charge ($100 + $0.30) ÷ 0.971 = $103.30; the fee on $103.30 is $3.30, which leaves exactly $100. Simply adding 2.9% and 30¢ to the price ($103.20) falls 10¢ short, because the percentage also applies to the amount you added.
Enter a typical payment, pick how the customer pays (online, in person, keyed in or through a PayPal button), and add how many such payments you take each month. The results show the fee and its effective percentage, what reaches you, the gross-up amount, the monthly fee total, and the cheapest and most expensive of the ten options for that amount.
| Option | $5 | $20 | $100 | $1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stripe, online card | 8.90% | 4.40% | 3.20% | 2.93% |
| Square Free, in person | 5.60% | 3.35% | 2.75% | 2.61% |
| Square Free, online | 9.30% | 4.80% | 3.60% | 3.33% |
| PayPal Checkout or Venmo | 13.29% | 5.94% | 3.98% | 3.54% |
| PayPal in person, card present or QR | 4.09% | 2.74% | 2.38% | 2.30% |
Each cell is the fee as a share of the payment. The fixed part dominates small tickets: PayPal Checkout takes more than 13% of a $5 payment but about 3.5% of $1,000. For a coffee-sized sale the in-person rates with small fixed fees win; above a few hundred dollars the percentage is nearly all that matters.
Under Visa’s U.S. rules (Q&A dated February 15, 2024), a credit card surcharge may not exceed your actual merchant discount rate or 3%, whichever is lower. You must tell your acquirer at least 30 days before you start, disclose the surcharge where the customer enters the store or checkout and at the point of sale, and show it as a separate line on the receipt. Debit and prepaid cards cannot be surcharged. Some states add their own limits, so check your state before adding a fee. A cash or bank-transfer discount is a separate practice with fewer card-network rules.
Only the base domestic rate is modeled. Stripe adds 1.5% for international cards, 1% when currency conversion is needed and 0.5% for manually entered cards; PayPal adds 1.5% on international commercial transactions. Disputes cost $15 on Stripe (plus a $15 fee if you counter, refunded when you win) and $20 on PayPal. Stripe charges 1.5% (minimum 50¢) for instant payouts. Bank debits are much cheaper: Stripe’s ACH Direct Debit is 0.8% capped at $5. Monthly software plans, hardware and refunds are also outside the calculation. For large volumes, an accountant or a processor’s sales team can price interchange-plus quotes against these flat rates.
Comparing headline percentages only. At $5, Square in person (2.6% + 15¢) costs less than half of PayPal Checkout even though the percentages differ by under one point.
Using the in-person rate for online sales. Square’s free plan charges 3.3% + 30¢ online and 3.5% + 15¢ for keyed-in or card-on-file payments, not the 2.6% tap rate.
Grossing up by adding the rate. As the worked example shows, adding the percentage to the price leaves you slightly short; divide instead.
Surcharging debit cards. Card rules forbid it, and the customer cannot always tell which card type they hold, so a blanket “card fee” can break the rules.