Stripe, PayPal, and Square all publish their standard processing rates directly on their sites, and the headline numbers alone don’t tell the full story — PayPal’s “pay with PayPal” checkout rate is meaningfully higher than its card-only rate, Square’s rate depends heavily on whether the card is tapped in person or typed in online, and Stripe’s base rate hides a stack of optional surcharges for international cards, manual entry, and currency conversion. Here’s what each one actually charges, sourced from their own current pricing pages.
At a Glance
| Processor | Standard online rate (US) | In-person rate | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stripe | 2.9% + 30¢ (domestic card, online) | Not Stripe’s primary use case; Stripe Terminal exists separately | Developers building custom checkout flows or software platforms |
| PayPal | 2.99% + fixed fee (card-only); 3.49% + fixed fee (PayPal/Venmo checkout) | Not PayPal’s primary use case | Sellers who want buyer trust from a recognized checkout brand |
| Square | 2.9% + 30¢ (online store/eCommerce API); 3.3% + 30¢ (Payment Links) | 2.6% + 10¢ (tap/dip/swipe) | Businesses that take both in-person and online payments under one account |
Short Verdict
For a pure online card transaction, Stripe and Square land at the same headline rate (2.9% + 30¢), while PayPal’s cheaper “standard credit/debit” rate (2.99%) is actually close to both — the real gap opens up when customers check out through PayPal or Venmo’s own wallet rather than a card, which jumps to 3.49% plus a fixed fee. Square’s structure is built around having one account that covers both a physical register and a website, and its in-person rate (2.6% + 10¢) is meaningfully cheaper than any of the three providers’ online rates. Stripe’s base rate is the simplest to reason about, but it carries the most line-item surcharges once you go outside a plain domestic card transaction.
What Each One Actually Charges
Stripe’s base online rate is 2.9% + 30¢ per successful domestic US card transaction. On top of that, Stripe adds: +0.5% for manually entered (card-not-present, typed-in) cards, +1.5% for international cards, and +1% if currency conversion is required — so a manually-entered international transaction needing conversion could stack to roughly 4.9% plus the fixed fee before any other add-ons. Separately, Stripe charges $15 per dispute received (refunded if you win, when using Smart Disputes which instead takes 30% of the disputed amount on a win), $10/month for a custom domain on Checkout, and 1.5% (50¢ minimum) for instant payouts instead of free standard payouts.
PayPal’s rate depends on how the customer pays, not just where the sale happens. Standard credit and debit card payments (where the buyer doesn’t use a PayPal or Venmo balance/login) run 2.99% + a fixed fee. PayPal Checkout, Guest Checkout, and “Pay with Venmo” — i.e., anything routed through PayPal’s or Venmo’s own wallet — run 3.49% + a fixed fee. PayPal’s Pay Later options run 4.99% + a fixed fee. International transactions add a flat 1.50% on top of whichever domestic rate applies, with the fixed fee amount varying by currency (for example 0.39 EUR or 0.39 GBP instead of the US 0.49 USD figure). Micropayments (small-dollar transactions) use a different structure entirely: 4.99% + a much smaller fixed fee (9 cents USD), which can be cheaper than the standard rate for low-value sales.
Square’s rate depends on how the card is presented. Tapped, dipped, or swiped in person: 2.6% + 10¢ — the cheapest per-transaction rate of any option covered here. Keyed-in or card-on-file (card-not-present) transactions: 3.5% + 15¢. Transactions through Square’s own online store or eCommerce API: 2.9% + 30¢, matching Stripe’s online rate exactly. Payment Links (Square’s hosted checkout-link product): 3.3% + 30¢, notably higher than its own online-store rate for what is functionally a similar use case. Square also charges a separate 1.75% fee for Instant Transfers to an external bank account, with standard transfers free.
Pricing Breakdown
| Scenario | Stripe | PayPal | Square |
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic online card | 2.9% + 30¢ | 2.99% + fixed fee (card-only) or 3.49% (PayPal/Venmo checkout) | 2.9% + 30¢ (online store) |
| In-person card | N/A (not primary product) | N/A (not primary product) | 2.6% + 10¢ |
| Manually entered / card-not-present | +0.5% surcharge on base rate | Standard rate applies (no separate CNP tier stated) | 3.5% + 15¢ |
| International card | +1.5% surcharge | +1.50% on top of domestic rate | Not separately broken out on the page reviewed |
| Instant payout/transfer | 1.5% (50¢ minimum) | Varies by withdrawal method (not detailed here) | 1.75% |
Pros
- Stripe: The most developer-friendly integration path and a predictable base rate, with surcharges that are at least itemized and documented rather than bundled into a vague “it depends.”
- PayPal: Near-universal buyer recognition and trust, plus a genuinely cheaper micropayment tier for low-value sales.
- Square: The cheapest in-person rate of the three, and a single account that covers physical and online sales without juggling two providers.
Cons
- Stripe: Surcharges stack — international, manually-entered, currency-converted transactions can meaningfully exceed the advertised 2.9% + 30¢ headline.
- PayPal: The checkout flow buyers actually prefer (PayPal/Venmo wallet) costs sellers half a point more than a plain card transaction — the convenient option isn’t the cheap one.
- Square: Its own online-checkout-link product (Payment Links) costs more than its online store rate for a similar use case, and keyed-in transactions carry the highest per-transaction rate of any scenario compared here.
Who It’s a Good Fit For
Choose Stripe if you’re building a custom checkout, marketplace, or software platform and want programmatic control over the payment flow. Choose PayPal if buyer trust and recognition at checkout matters more than shaving fractions of a percent off the rate, or if you process a lot of small-dollar transactions that qualify for the micropayment tier. Choose Square if your business takes payments both in person and online and you want one account, one rate card, and one payout schedule for both.
Bottom Line
At the headline level, Stripe and Square’s online rates are identical and PayPal’s card-only rate is close behind — the differences that actually matter show up in the surcharges and alternate scenarios: international cards, manual entry, PayPal’s own wallet checkout, and instant payouts. Map your actual transaction mix against each provider’s full rate card, not just the number on the pricing page, before choosing.
