Where to Sell Digital Products: Platforms Compared

Last updated: 11 October 2026 · By Zoya K · Prices checked on 11 October 2026

Seven platforms can sell your PDF guide, printable or preset pack today, and they differ mostly in what they take from each sale. Below, every fee is linked to the platform's own US page and was re-checked on 11 October 2026. You'll also see what you keep from a $12 sale and when a paid plan beats a free one.

Where should you sell digital products?

Sell where your buyers already are. With no audience yet, start on a marketplace that brings search traffic, such as Etsy for printables or Gumroad's Discover. With an audience, use a storefront: Gumroad, Payhip or Lemon Squeezy cost $0 per month, while Stan takes 0% per sale but charges $29 per month.

Real cost = platform cut + card processing + any monthly plan. Some platforms bundle these, others list them separately, so online fee comparisons often disagree.

Digital product platforms compared: fees, monthly cost and tax

As of 11 October 2026, the cheapest per-sale option is a Stripe payment link at 2.9% + 30¢, and the priciest is a Gumroad Discover sale at 30%. Free-to-start storefronts charge 5% to 10% plus a fixed fee. Etsy adds $0.20 per listing on top of its sale and processing fees.

Here is one sentence per platform you can check against the source:

• Gumroad: 10% + $0.50 per direct sale and 30% per Discover marketplace sale, no monthly fee. Card processing of 2.9% + $0.30 is not included in direct sales; the 30% Discover fee includes processing.
• Etsy (US): $0.20 per listing and 6.5% of the order total, plus 3% + $0.25 payment processing in the US.
• Payhip: Free plan $0 per month + 5%, Plus $29 per month + 2%, Pro $99 per month with no transaction fee; PayPal and Stripe still charge their standard rates.
• Lemon Squeezy: 5% + 50¢ per transaction, $0 per month, with extra fees of 1.5% for international or PayPal payments and 0.5% for subscriptions.
• Shopify Basic: $39 per month billed monthly or $29 per month billed yearly, online card rate 2.9% + 30¢, and a 2% fee if you use a third-party payment provider.
• Stan Creator: $29 per month or $300 per year, no free plan; Stan takes 0% of sales, and Stripe charges 2.9% + $0.30 in the US.
• Stripe Payment Links: 2.9% + 30¢ per domestic card payment, plus 1.5% for international cards and 1% if currency conversion is needed; the links themselves are included at no extra charge.

A merchant of record is the company legally selling to the buyer, so it collects and remits sales tax or VAT for you. That is the column most comparisons skip.

Sources: each platform's official US pricing or help page, linked above, checked on 11 October 2026.

How much do you keep from a $12 sale?

From a $12 sale to a US buyer paying by card, you keep between $8.40 and $11.35, depending on the platform. A Stripe payment link, Stan or Shopify Payments leaves $11.35 before monthly fees. Etsy leaves $10.41, and a Gumroad Discover sale leaves $8.40, because marketplace traffic is what you pay for.

$12 is a typical price for a printable planner, a short PDF guide or a budget spreadsheet, so it makes a useful test case.

How the numbers work: Stripe processing is 2.9% + $0.30 ($0.65), and Payhip adds 5% or 2% on top. Etsy is $0.20 + 6.5% + 3% + $0.25. Gumroad direct is 10% + $0.50 plus Stripe-rate processing. An Offsite Ads sale on Etsy adds 15% for shops under $10,000 a year. Sales tax, international cards, PayPal and payout fees are left out.

When is a paid plan cheaper than a free one?

A paid plan wins once the per-sale savings cover the monthly fee. Divide the monthly fee by the savings per sale. At $12, Stan ($29 per month) beats Gumroad direct from about the 18th sale in a month, and Payhip Plus beats Payhip Free from about the 81st sale.

The formula: break-even sales per month = monthly fee ÷ (fee per sale on the free plan − fee per sale on the paid plan).

For Stan vs Gumroad direct at $12: Gumroad's own cut is 10% + $0.50 = $1.70, and both pay the same Stripe processing. $29 ÷ $1.70 = 17.06, so the 18th sale is where Stan starts saving money.

Sales per month at which the paid plan costs the same or less, rounded up. Cheap products need far more volume before a subscription pays off.

Marketplace or your own storefront?

A marketplace brings buyers; a storefront only takes payments. Etsy and Gumroad Discover put your product in front of people already shopping, and they charge more per sale for it. Payhip, Lemon Squeezy, Stan, Shopify and Stripe links cost less per sale, but every buyer has to come from your own promotion.

Neither choice is permanent. You can start on a marketplace to learn what sells, then add a storefront once people ask for your products by name.

Gumroad

Gumroad's pricing page says "No hidden fees", but card processing (2.9% + $0.30) sits on top of the 10% + $0.50 on direct sales, so "flat 10%" summaries are wrong. Once paid sales in a calendar month reach $20,000, new direct sales drop to 5% + $0.50 for the rest of that month. Since 1 January 2025, Gumroad is the merchant of record and handles sales tax. Physical goods, infringing material and several regulated categories aren't allowed; check the prohibited list before you upload.

How to sell digital products on Etsy

Etsy works best for products buyers type into a search bar: printable planners, wall art, budget spreadsheets, Canva templates for small businesses. You pay $0.20 to publish each listing whether it sells or not, then 6.5% and 3% + $0.25 on each sale. If your listing currency differs from your bank account's currency, Etsy adds a 2.5% conversion fee.

Offsite Ads matter most for digital sellers. Shops that have always made under $10,000 in any 365-day period can opt out; once a shop crosses $10,000, participation becomes required for the lifetime of the shop at a 12% fee, capped at $100 per order. Like any marketplace, Etsy can change its rules or restrict a shop, so keep a second channel.

Payhip

Payhip's plans share the same features and differ only in the transaction fee, so the choice is pure volume math. Its extra for small sellers is tax: Payhip collects and remits EU and UK VAT automatically, which matters if you sell ebooks or courses to buyers in Europe. Stripe or PayPal fees still apply on top.

Lemon Squeezy

Lemon Squeezy's 5% + 50¢ already includes card processing, currency conversion and tax as merchant of record. Surcharges are where the real rate moves: +1.5% for buyers outside the US, +1.5% for PayPal and +0.5% for subscriptions. Sellers of products under $10 can ask sales for custom pricing, since the fixed 50¢ hurts cheap items.

Shopify

Shopify is a full online store, useful when digital products sit next to physical ones. Basic is $39 per month billed monthly or $29 per month billed yearly. With Shopify Payments you pay the card rate only; with a third-party payment provider, Shopify adds 2% per sale on Basic.

Stan

Stan is built for selling from a link in your social profile. It takes 0% per sale, but there is no free plan: Creator costs $29 per month or $300 per year, Creator Pro $99 per month. Stripe processing applies, plus a Stripe payout fee of 0.25% + $0.25 per payout (minimum $1) listed on Stan's own fee page.

Stripe Payment Links

A Stripe payment link is the lowest-cost way to take money, with no platform in between. It is also the most work: you deliver the file after payment and handle sales tax yourself. Use it when buyers are already waiting, such as an email list or clients.

Where can you sell digital products for free?

Gumroad, Payhip Free and Lemon Squeezy cost $0 per month and charge only when you sell. Etsy has no monthly fee either, but charges $0.20 per listing up front. A Stripe payment link is also free to create. Stan has no free plan, and Shopify Basic starts at $29 per month billed yearly.

"Free" means free to start, not free per sale: the per-sale fees in the comparison table still apply. For a first product with unknown demand, a $0-per-month option keeps your downside at zero. Move to a paid plan only after the break-even math says so.

Why sell on two channels?

Selling on two channels spreads risk and cost. A marketplace finds new buyers; a channel you control keeps the margin and the customer relationship. Pair one marketplace with one storefront or payment link, and collect emails from day one, so a fee change or account problem doesn't stop all sales.

A practical setup for a one-person shop:

• One marketplace for discovery: Etsy for printables and Canva templates, or Gumroad with Discover on for ebooks, presets and audio.
• One channel you control: Payhip, Lemon Squeezy, Stan or a Stripe link, for repeat buyers.
• One email list: the only asset that moves with you if a platform changes its terms.

Two channels and regular launches take planning. We're building the Digital Products Creator System, a planning and launch system for one-person digital-product businesses, coming soon.

How to sell digital products in 5 steps

To sell a digital product, pick one product, choose a platform from the fee table, connect payouts, upload the file with an honest listing, and promote it where your buyers already spend time. On Etsy you also set up a shop and add listing photos before the first sale.

1. Pick one product. Something small and finished: a PDF guide, a printable, a spreadsheet, a preset pack. Our list of digital products to sell has ideas by skill.
2. Choose a platform. Use the decision flow and the $12 table above. No audience: a marketplace. Audience: a $0-per-month storefront until volume justifies a plan.
3. Connect payouts. Link your bank, Stripe or PayPal account and check which fees apply in your country, since the numbers in this guide are US rates.
4. Upload and write an accurate listing. Say exactly what the buyer gets: file type, page count, software needed, license. Gumroad's terms ban listings that misrepresent "what a Buyer will receive, its format, length, licensing or authorship", and also ban earnings or results claims you can't back up, which is a good standard anywhere.
5. Promote where buyers already are. Pinterest for printables, YouTube or a newsletter for guides and courses, existing clients for spreadsheets.

If you haven't built the product yet, start with how to make a digital product.

We re-check these fees every quarter and send the changes to subscribers.

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