1 Best Stripe Alternatives in 2025
Last updated: February 2026 • 4 min read
Stripe is a popular tool for online businesses needing payment processing. With pricing starting at 2.9% + 30¢/transaction, it can be expensive for many teams. Whether you're looking for a cheaper option, better features, or an open-source solution, we've compiled the 1 best Stripe alternatives to help you find the right fit.
📋 Quick Summary
- Total alternatives: 1
- Free alternatives: 1 (Lemon Squeezy)
- Best overall: Lemon Squeezy
- Best free: Lemon Squeezy
Why Look for Stripe Alternatives?
People commonly look for Stripe alternatives for several reasons:
- Cost: At 2.9% + 30¢/transaction, Stripe isn't cheap, especially for small teams and startups.
- Feature gaps: Transaction fees and account holds reported are common complaints.
- Simplicity: Some users find Stripe overly complex for their needs and prefer simpler solutions.
- Data ownership: Organizations wanting data sovereignty prefer open-source, self-hosted alternatives.
- Better fit: Different tools excel at different use cases — you may find a tool that's specifically built for your workflow.
📊 Quick Comparison Table
| Tool | Free Tier | Starting Price | Rating | Open Source | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stripe | ✗ No | 2.9% + 30¢/transaction | ⭐ 4.6 | No | Online businesses needing payment processing |
| Lemon Squeezy | ✓ Free (5% + 50¢ per transaction) | 5% + 50¢/transaction | ⭐ 4.3 | No | Indie devs and digital product sellers |
Detailed Reviews of Each Alternative
Lemon Squeezy
Payments, tax, and subscriptions for software companies.
Lemon Squeezy is an all-in-one platform for selling digital products and software. It handles payments, global tax compliance, subscriptions, and license key management. As a merchant of record, it takes care of all the complex payment infrastructure so creators can focus on building.
Pros
- ✓ All-in-one for digital products
- ✓ Handles taxes globally
- ✓ License key management
- ✓ Beautiful checkout
Cons
- ✗ Higher fees than Stripe
- ✗ Limited customization
- ✗ Newer platform
- ✗ Fewer payment methods
🏆 Our Recommendations
Best Overall Alternative:
Lemon Squeezy — Indie devs and digital product sellers
Best Free Alternative:
Lemon Squeezy — Free (5% + 50¢ per transaction)
❓ FAQ
What is the best free alternative to Stripe?
The best free alternative to Stripe is Lemon Squeezy, which offers Free (5% + 50¢ per transaction).
Is there an open-source alternative to Stripe?
There are no widely-used open-source alternatives to Stripe at this time, but several affordable options exist.
What is the cheapest alternative to Stripe?
The cheapest alternatives are the free options: Lemon Squeezy. For paid alternatives, prices start from as low as $550/mo.
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