Gumroad Alternatives in 2026: What You Actually Keep From a $27 Sale

Gumroad is often the first platform people try for a digital product, because you can list something in minutes. But once you look at the fee page, a lot of sellers start shopping around: direct sales cost 10% + $0.50, plus card processing on top.

This guide compares seven alternatives on one concrete question: if a US buyer pays $27 by card for your template or guide, how much do you keep? Then it covers what the numbers leave out (tax handling, monthly fees, marketplaces), because the cheapest option on paper isn't always the right one for a first product.

Every fee below comes from each platform's own pricing or help pages, checked in October 2026. Platforms change pricing often, so confirm on their site before you sign up. This isn't tax or financial advice.

The short version

• Lowest fees with tax handled for you: Lemon Squeezy, or Polar if you're a developer (both 5% + $0.50 on their free plans for new accounts).
• Lowest fees if you're happy to handle sales tax yourself: Stripe Payment Links (2.9% + $0.30 on US cards).
• No monthly fee and you bring your own Stripe or PayPal: Payhip Free or Ko-fi (5% plus processor fees).
• A marketplace that can send you buyers: Etsy, or stay on Gumroad and use Discover. Both cost more per sale.
• Flat monthly fee, 0% platform fee: Stan Store ($29/month). This only makes sense once you're selling regularly.

Selling a guide, workbook or planner specifically? See how to sell a PDF online for the setup steps on each option.

Fees on a $27 sale (US buyer, card payment)

How the "you keep" column is calculated, so you can redo it at your own price:

• Gumroad direct: $27 − (10% + $0.50) − (2.9% + $0.30) = $27 − $3.20 − $1.08 = $22.72
• Lemon Squeezy / Polar: $27 − (5% + $0.50) = $27 − $1.85 = $25.15
• Payhip + Stripe: $27 − 5% − (2.9% + $0.30) = $27 − $1.35 − $1.08 = $24.57
• Etsy: $27 − $0.20 − 6.5% − (3% + $0.25) = $27 − $0.20 − $1.76 − $1.06 = $23.99

Extra fees can apply on top of these in some cases:

• International buyers: Lemon Squeezy and Polar add 1.5%.
• PayPal: Lemon Squeezy adds 1.5% for PayPal payments.
• Payouts: Lemon Squeezy is free to a US bank. Polar lists separate payout fees in its docs.
• Tax in the total: Etsy's processing fee is charged on the order total, including tax, and Lemon Squeezy's fee is calculated on the total order value, including tax.

The alternatives, one by one

Lemon Squeezy

Lemon Squeezy charges 5% + $0.50 per transaction with no monthly fee, and that rate includes card processing. It's a merchant of record, which means it's legally the seller. It calculates, collects and pays sales tax and VAT for you, which is the biggest headache with selling digital goods across borders. It has file delivery, discount codes, $0 products (useful for a free lead magnet) and an affiliate program built in.

Watch for: the extra 1.5% on international and PayPal payments. There's no marketplace, so you bring all the traffic yourself. Also note that Stripe owns Lemon Squeezy, and a January 28, 2026 update from its CEO says the team is building Stripe Managed Payments and plans an easy migration path for Lemon Squeezy users. We compare that option in Stripe Managed Payments for digital products.

Good fit if: you'll send your own traffic (posts, articles, a newsletter) and want the lowest fee with tax handled.

Polar

Polar is also a merchant of record and is aimed at developers: it has an API, license keys and access to private GitHub repos as a "benefit". Since May 27, 2026, new organizations start on the free Starter plan at 5% + $0.50. Accounts created before then keep an older 4% + $0.40 rate, which is why you'll see both numbers quoted online. Paid plans lower the rate, from $20/month.

Good fit if: you're selling code, templates for developers, or anything that needs license keys.

Payhip

Payhip's Free plan takes 5% per sale. Plus ($29/month) cuts that to 2% and Pro ($99/month) to 0%. Every plan has the same features. You connect your own Stripe or PayPal, which charge their standard rates on top, and the money goes to you right after each sale.

Watch for: processor fees come on top, so the "5%" is really about 9% on a $27 product. Upgrading only pays off at higher volume: Plus beats Free at around $967/month in sales.

Good fit if: you want instant payouts and a full storefront (courses, memberships, coupons) at no monthly cost.

Ko-fi Shop

Ko-fi takes 5% on shop sales (or 0% with Ko-fi Gold at $12/month), plus your processor's fees. Payments go straight to your own PayPal or Stripe, with no payout delay. It's simple and creator-friendly.

Watch for: Ko-fi isn't a merchant of record, so sales tax and VAT are up to you. The "tip jar" feel suits art and creative downloads better than business templates.

Etsy

Etsy is the only option here with a large built-in audience actively searching for templates and printables. In the US, fees are $0.20 per listing, a 6.5% transaction fee and 3% + $0.25 payment processing. Digital listings can include up to five files of up to 20 MB each, delivered instantly after purchase.

Watch for: the competition. Popular template categories have listings with thousands of reviews, often at low prices. Your listing title, photos and reviews matter more than anything else.

Good fit if: you're selling planners, printables or spreadsheet templates to a consumer audience that already shops on Etsy. Already on Etsy and want your own checkout for traffic you bring yourself? See how to sell printables outside Etsy.

Stan Store

Stan charges a flat monthly fee (Creator plan: $29/month, or $300/year) and takes 0% of each sale. You still pay Stripe's processing fees.

The math: at $27, Stan only beats Lemon Squeezy once the per-sale savings ($0.77) cover the $29 subscription, which is about 38 sales a month. Before that, a percentage-based platform costs less.

Stripe Payment Links

This is the cheapest per sale (2.9% + $0.30 on US cards) and quick to set up. But you're the seller: sales tax, VAT, receipts, file delivery and refunds are all on you. For a first product sold to buyers in many states or countries, that admin is usually worth paying a merchant of record to handle.

If you do go this route, our step-by-step guide to selling digital products with Stripe Payment Links covers setup, file delivery, tax and testing.

Is it worth leaving Gumroad?

Here's the honest arithmetic at $27. Lemon Squeezy keeps about $2.43 more per sale than Gumroad direct. That's roughly $24 per 10 sales, or $97 per 40 sales. It's real money, but small at the start.

Reasons to stay on Gumroad:

• You're already set up and selling. Switching costs time you could spend on distribution.
• You want Discover. It costs 30% per sale, but it can bring buyers who would never find you otherwise.

Reasons to switch:

• Nearly all your buyers come from your own links (posts, articles, email), so you're paying Gumroad's higher direct rate for no extra reach.
• You want lower fees and tax handled. Lemon Squeezy and Polar do both.

For a deeper side-by-side of the three most popular options at $9, $27 and $47, see Gumroad vs Lemon Squeezy vs Payhip. If you're choosing between Gumroad and a plain Stripe checkout, see Gumroad vs Stripe Payment Links. Selling Notion templates? Our guide to how to sell Notion templates compares these checkouts with the Notion Marketplace's own fee.

How to choose in five minutes

1. Will the platform send you buyers? If you have no traffic plan at all, a marketplace (Etsy, or Gumroad Discover) is worth its higher fee. If you're bringing your own traffic, skip the marketplace premium.
2. Do you want to deal with sales tax? If not, pick a merchant of record: Lemon Squeezy, Polar or Gumroad.
3. Are you selling more than about 38 units a month? If not, avoid monthly-fee plans.
4. Do you need a $0 product for a lead magnet? Lemon Squeezy, Gumroad, Payhip and Ko-fi all support free or pay-what-you-want products.
5. Then pick one and launch. The platform matters much less than the product and where you show it. Platform choice is worth one evening, not a week.

Price still matters more than fees. If you haven't settled on a number yet, read how to price your first digital product, then work through the digital product launch checklist.

Sources (checked October 2026)

• Gumroad pricing and Gumroad's fees
• Lemon Squeezy pricing and fees docs
• Polar fees
• Payhip pricing
• Ko-fi pricing and Ko-fi fees help
• Etsy fees & payments policy, Etsy digital listings and Etsy marketplace sales tax
• Stan Store pricing and Stan transaction fees