If you're a solopreneur selling SaaS, memberships, or digital products on subscription, your billing stack decides whether you spend weekends wrestling tax compliance or shipping features. In 2026 the field splits into three camps: percent-of-revenue Merchant-of-Record platforms (Paddle, Lemon Squeezy) that handle sales tax globally; tiered SaaS billing engines (Chargebee) that integrate with your CRM and revenue-recognition stack; and the Swiss-army knife (Stripe Billing) whose pricing remains opaque. We break down each platform's actual pricing, mandatory trade-offs, and the one scenario where each wins.
How we approached this
We pulled vendor pricing pages and feature lists on 2026-06-01. Stripe Billing's page was unreachable; we note that gap. Chargebee lists three tiers plus CPQ add-ons. Paddle and Lemon Squeezy both publish 5%+50¢ transaction fees with included tax compliance. Recurly lists $1M TPV minimum and $1,200/mo RevRec add-on. No fabricated testing—every claim cites the vendor's published materials or notes the absence of data.
Stripe Billing
Stripe Billing is the 800-pound incumbent. Vendor pricing pages were unreachable during research; contact Stripe for quote. Historically Stripe charges per-transaction payment-processing fees (typically 2.9%+30¢ in the US) plus add-on costs for advanced features (usage-based billing, revenue recognition, tax automation). You remain the merchant of record—sales tax registration, filing, and remittance are your responsibility unless you purchase Stripe Tax. Developer documentation is comprehensive; if you already run Stripe payments, adding subscriptions is additive. Trade-off: integration flexibility and ecosystem breadth versus a fragmented pricing structure and DIY tax compliance.
Stripe Billing
- +Deep ecosystem—hundreds of integrations, mature API, extensive documentation
- +Incremental add-on if you already use Stripe payments
- +Flexible subscription logic (metered, tiered, per-seat, multi-product)
- −Pricing not published; must contact sales
- −You are merchant of record—sales tax compliance is manual or requires Stripe Tax add-on
- −Feature sprawl—advanced capabilities (RevRec, dunning, tax) sold separately
Chargebee
Chargebee positions as a growth-stage subscription platform with CRM integrations (Salesforce, HubSpot), quote-to-cash workflows, and revenue recognition. Per the vendor pricing page: Starter plan is free for the first $250K cumulative billing, then 0.75% on all billing thereafter. Performance plan costs $7,188/yr (billed monthly) for up to $100K billing/mo and includes Smart Dunning, migration support, and engineering consultation. Enterprise plan is custom-quoted and adds multi-entity support, contract terms, and on-demand discounting. CPQ (Configure-Price-Quote) Lite is free for the first 50 quotes; full CPQ requires custom pricing. RevRec starts at $1,200/mo (for Performance customers) and handles ASC-606 automation. You remain merchant of record; Chargebee supports 35+ payment gateways and multi-region tax but does not file or remit tax on your behalf.
Chargebee
- +Free Starter tier for early-stage—no cost until $250K cumulative billing
- +Deep CRM integrations (Salesforce, HubSpot) and quote-to-cash workflows
- +RevRec automation (ASC-606, IFRS) available as add-on for finance teams
- −Performance plan $599/mo kicks in once you need dunning, migration support, or advanced invoicing
- −You are merchant of record—tax calculation supported but filing/remittance manual
- −CPQ and multi-entity features require Enterprise plan (custom pricing)
Paddle
Paddle is a Merchant of Record for SaaS and digital products. Per the vendor pricing page: pay-as-you-go tier charges 5%+50¢ per checkout transaction with no monthly minimums, migration fees, or hidden extras. Paddle acts as the seller—end-to-end tax compliance (registration, collection, filing, remittance) is included, as are fraud protection, churn recovery tools, and 24/7 customer support (93% CSAT score per vendor). Custom pricing is available for high-volume businesses. Paddle handles cross-border sales tax in 200+ countries, reducing your compliance overhead to zero. Trade-off: 5% revenue share is higher than traditional payment processors, but the all-in bundle eliminates separate tax software, dunning tools, and support outsourcing.
Paddle
- +Merchant of Record—Paddle handles all sales tax registration, filing, remittance globally
- +All-in pricing includes fraud protection, failed-payment recovery, and 24/7 support
- +No monthly fees, no migration fees, no hidden extras
- −5% revenue share is higher than traditional processors (Stripe ~2.9%)
- −Paddle is the merchant—you lose direct payment-data control and some customization
- −Custom pricing contact required for products under $10 or invoicing needs
Lemon Squeezy
Lemon Squeezy targets digital creators and indie SaaS builders. Per the vendor pricing page: 5%+50¢ per transaction with no monthly fees; free to start. Lemon Squeezy is Merchant of Record—automated global tax compliance (VAT, sales tax) is included. The platform bundles ecommerce storefronts, license key management, digital download delivery (signed, throttled links), affiliate tools, and discount code management. Email marketing is free for up to 500 subscribers, then tiered by subscriber count. AI fraud protection, abandoned-cart recovery, and MRR analytics are included. Custom domain support is available. Trade-off: same 5% revenue share as Paddle but skewed toward creators selling courses, templates, or software with simpler subscription models versus multi-seat B2B SaaS.
Lemon Squeezy
- +Merchant of Record—fully automated sales tax, VAT globally
- +All-in-one: storefront builder, license keys, digital downloads, affiliate program, email marketing
- +No monthly fees; free to start, pay only on sales
- −5% revenue share eats margin on high-volume or low-ticket products
- −Less suited for complex B2B SaaS (multi-seat, usage-based) versus Paddle or Chargebee
- −Email marketing costs scale with subscriber count—can exceed standalone ESP pricing
Recurly
Recurly is an enterprise-grade subscription platform. Per the vendor pricing page: minimum $1M Total Payment Volume (TPV); pricing is a single rate based on TPV and contract length. The Subscriptions plan includes automated global billing, flexible plans/pricing, churn mitigation, payments orchestration, and AI analytics. RevRec add-on (ASC-606/IFRS automation) starts at $1,200/mo. Recurly Commerce (Shopify subscriptions) offers a pay-as-you-go tier at $399/mo + 1.5% GMV + $0.10 per subscription order. You remain merchant of record; Recurly integrates with payment gateways but does not handle tax filing/remittance. Trade-off: built for high-volume ($1M+ TPV) and enterprise complexity—overkill and inaccessible for solopreneurs under mid-six-figure ARR.
Recurly
- +Enterprise-grade: AI analytics, payments orchestration, churn mitigation at scale
- +RevRec automation (ASC-606, IFRS) for finance teams with multi-entity needs
- +Native Shopify integration for brands running subscriptions on Shopify Plus
- −$1M TPV minimum—excludes early-stage and most solopreneurs
- −You are merchant of record—tax compliance manual or via third-party integrations
- −RevRec add-on $1,200/mo minimum—cost prohibitive for sub-$500K ARR businesses
Verdict
- If you're a digital creator or indie SaaS founder selling courses, templates, or simple subscriptions and want zero tax compliance headaches: Lemon Squeezy. The all-in-one ecommerce bundle (storefront, license keys, email marketing) and 5%+50¢ Merchant-of-Record pricing eliminate separate tax software and ESP costs. Free to start.
- If you're a B2B SaaS founder scaling to $500K+ ARR with multi-seat pricing, usage-based billing, or sales-assisted deals: Chargebee. The Starter tier is free up to $250K cumulative billing; Performance at $599/mo adds dunning, migration support, and CRM integrations (Salesforce, HubSpot). RevRec add-on ($1,200/mo) handles ASC-606 for finance teams.
- If you're an established SaaS business ($1M+ ARR) selling globally and want Merchant-of-Record simplicity without Chargebee's CRM overhead: Paddle. 5%+50¢ includes global tax compliance, fraud protection, churn recovery, and 24/7 support—no monthly minimums. Custom pricing for high-volume or invoice-based deals.
- If you're already on Stripe payments and need incremental subscription billing with full API control: Stripe Billing. Contact Stripe for pricing; historically ~2.9%+30¢ per transaction plus add-on fees for tax, RevRec, and advanced dunning. You remain merchant of record—tax compliance is manual or requires Stripe Tax.
- If you're an enterprise business ($5M+ ARR) with multi-entity RevRec needs and $1M+ monthly TPV: Recurly. Custom pricing, $1M TPV minimum. RevRec starts at $1,200/mo. Native Shopify integration for brands on Shopify Plus.
What we'd skip
- Recurly for solopreneurs or early-stage founders—$1M TPV minimum and $1,200/mo RevRec floor make this enterprise-only. If you're under $500K ARR, Chargebee or Paddle will serve you better at a fraction of the cost.
- Chargebee if you're a solo creator selling digital products (courses, templates, Notion docs) with no CRM or sales team—the $599/mo Performance plan and complexity are overkill. Lemon Squeezy's 5%+50¢ all-in-one bundle is simpler and cheaper.
- Paddle or Lemon Squeezy if you need tight control over payment data or RevRec nuances—Merchant-of-Record platforms own the customer relationship and payment flow. If your finance team demands granular revenue-recognition rules or you're investor-backed with complex ASC-606 requirements, Chargebee + Stripe or Recurly give you more control.
