Paddle vs Polar: Which Merchant of Record Fits Developers in 2026?
Polar fits indie developers who want a self-serve, open source merchant of record with paid plans that lower the rate; Paddle fits growing SaaS companies that sell worldwide and want custom pricing, buyer support and dedicated customer success. Both start at 5% + 50¢ per transaction as of November 2026, and Pocketsflow is a third merchant of record at 4.7% + $0.30 per sale.
Paddle vs Polar at a glance
| Question | Paddle | Polar |
|---|---|---|
| Base fee | 5% + 50¢, no monthly fee | 5% + 50¢ on the free Starter plan |
| Non-US cards | No surcharge listed | +1.5% |
| Lower rates | Custom pricing on request | $20 to $400 a month for 3.8% to 3.4% |
| Products under $10 | Bespoke pricing on request | Same rate |
| Buyer billing support | Included | Not listed on the fees page |
| Open source | No | Yes |
| MCP server | Docs MCP for Paddle knowledge | Manages your Polar account |
Paddle and Polar as merchants of record
Paddle and Polar are both merchants of record. Each one resells your software to the buyer and adds the right sales tax or VAT at checkout, so you do not register for tax in every country. Paddle's pricing page says Paddle collects the tax, tracks the filing deadlines and submits the returns. Polar's docs say Polar takes on the liability of international sales taxes, and Polar runs on Stripe for the payments underneath. For the model itself, read merchant of record explained.
Paddle and Polar fees on a non-US card
Paddle charges 5% + 50¢ per Checkout transaction, per paddle.com/pricing, and lists no extra fee for international cards. Polar's Starter plan charges the same 5% + 50¢, plus 1.5% when the card is from outside the US, per Polar's fees page. Both were read November 2, 2026. On a US card the two cost exactly the same, so the chart shows a non-US card, where they differ.
| Point | Paddle | Polar Starter |
|---|---|---|
| $10 | $1 | $1.15 |
| $29 | $1.95 | $2.39 |
| $49 | $2.95 | $3.69 |
| $99 | $5.45 | $6.94 |
Source: Paddle pricing (paddle.com/pricing), 5% + 50¢ per Checkout transaction; Polar fees (polar.sh/docs/merchant-of-record/fees), Starter 5% + 50¢ + 1.5% for international cards. Read November 2, 2026. One payment, no tax.
On a $10.00 sale paid with a non-US card, Paddle takes $1.00 and Polar Starter takes $1.15. On a $99.00 sale, Paddle takes $5.45 and Polar Starter takes $6.94. Polar also works out its fee on the total with VAT included, keeps the fee when you refund, and charges $15 per dispute.
Polar's paid plans vs Paddle's custom pricing
Polar publishes three paid plans that swap a monthly fee for a lower rate: Pro at $20 a month for 3.8% + 40¢, Growth at $100 for 3.6% + 35¢, and Scale at $400 for 3.4% + 30¢. By Polar's own math, Pro pays for itself above about $1,379 a month in sales, Growth above $5,634 and Scale above $19,048. Paddle publishes one rate and offers custom pricing to high-volume businesses, plus bespoke pricing for products under $10. A US-heavy seller can read Polar's price today; a large seller with buyers worldwide should ask Paddle for a quote and compare.
What developers get from Paddle and Polar
Paddle covers checkout, subscriptions, payments, invoicing, fraud protection and reporting in one platform. Paddle also answers your buyers' questions about payments, subscriptions and cancellations, and offers a migration service for existing subscribers. Polar is built around an API and SDKs, with "benefits" that grant access after payment: license keys, file downloads, GitHub repository invites and Discord roles. Polar's remote MCP server lets Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor look up and change products, customers and orders. Paddle's Docs MCP gives an AI assistant up-to-date knowledge of Paddle's docs. Polar's code is open source on GitHub.
When Paddle is the better choice
Paddle fits SaaS and app companies with many buyers outside the US, who skip Polar's 1.5% surcharge. Paddle also fits teams that want buyer billing support handled for them, a migration service, B2B invoicing, or a negotiated rate at high volume.
When Polar is the better choice
Polar fits indie developers and open source maintainers who sell to US buyers, want a published price with no sales call, and want GitHub or Discord access granted on payment. Polar is also the cheaper choice once US sales pass about $1,379 a month, when Polar Pro pays for itself.
Pocketsflow: a third merchant of record
Pocketsflow is a merchant of record for software, SaaS, courses and digital products, at 4.7% + $0.30 per sale with no monthly fee and no extra fee for non-US buyers. A $49.00 sale costs $2.60 on Pocketsflow, against $2.95 on Paddle and $2.95 on Polar Starter with a US card. Every Pocketsflow plan includes a hosted MCP server that manages the store from Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor. Paddle is still the better fit for a large team that wants a demo and a negotiated rate, and Polar for open source code. Read Pocketsflow vs Paddle, Pocketsflow vs Polar, or run your own numbers in the fee calculator.