Softwr

E-Commerce · head to head

Medusa vs Paddle

Medusa logo

Medusa

E-Commerce

Open source Shopify alternative

From
$29/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Paddle logo

Paddle

Accounting

The complete payments infrastructure for SaaS

From
$5/percent_plus_transaction
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Medusa the managed cloud meters four separate resources: edge requests, emails, compute hours and database storage; Paddle paddle charges 5% plus 50 cents on every checkout transaction, which is well above a bare payment processor rate
  • They diverge on capability: Medusa covers Open source, Paddle covers Payment processing.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Medusa and Paddle actually diverge.

Attributes where Medusa and Paddle differ
AttributeMedusaPaddle
Starting price$29/month$5/percent_plus_transaction
Pricing modelsubscriptiontransaction
PlatformsWebWeb, Api
CategoryE-CommerceAccounting
Founded20202012

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Medusa

  • Open source
  • Modular architecture
  • Multi-region support
  • Plugin system
  • Admin dashboard
  • Order management
  • Inventory tracking
  • Payment integrations

Only in Paddle

  • Payment processing
  • Sales tax handling
  • Subscription management
  • Checkout
  • Revenue metrics
  • Stripe
  • PayPal
  • Various

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Medusa

  • Building a custom ecommerce backend on an open source headless platformnot Paddle
  • Running a self hosted or managed commerce API with a custom storefrontnot Paddle

Paddle

  • Selling SaaS or digital products with a merchant of record handling taxnot Medusa
  • Global subscription billing and checkoutnot Medusa
  • Offloading sales tax and VAT compliance for cross border salesnot Medusa

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Medusa

  • The managed cloud meters four separate resources: edge requests, emails, compute hours and database storage
  • The Develop plan at $29 a month applies a hard limit of 1,000 emails, so it stops rather than bills
  • Compute hours are capped at 600 on Develop and 800 on Launch
  • Edge request overage is $0.3 per million and storage $0.5 per GB month above the plan allowance
  • Background workers and priority support require the Scale plan at $299 a month

Paddle

  • Paddle charges 5% plus 50 cents on every checkout transaction, which is well above a bare payment processor rate
  • The 50 cent fixed component falls heavily on low value sales, and products under $10 require custom pricing agreed with sales
  • Invoicing is not covered by the published rate and requires custom pricing
  • As a merchant of record Paddle sits between the seller and the customer, so payouts and tax handling run through Paddle rather than the seller's own processor

Pricing, plan by plan

Medusa

$29/month
  • Develop$29/month
    • Base cloud hosting
    • Commerce features included
    • No GMV-tax
  • Launch$99/month
    • Enhanced features
    • No GMV-tax
  • Scale$299/month
    • Advanced features
    • No GMV-tax
  • Enterprise$null/custom
    • Custom configuration

Paddle

$5/percent_plus_transaction
  • Pay-as-you-go$5/percent_plus_transaction
    • 5% + 50¢ per checkout transaction
    • Global payments and billing unified in one platform
    • Cross-border sales tax compliance
  • Custom Pricing$null/contact
    • All pay-as-you-go features
    • Custom pricing tailored to business model
    • Optional premium services access

Which should you pick?

Choose Medusa if

  • You need open source.
  • You also want modular architecture.
Medusa review

Choose Paddle if

  • You need payment processing.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want sales tax handling.
Paddle review

Questions people ask

Is Medusa or Paddle better?
Neither clearly leads. Medusa starts at $29/month and Paddle at $5/percent_plus_transaction, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Medusa or Paddle?
Medusa starts at $29/month and Paddle at $5/percent_plus_transaction.
Does Medusa or Paddle run on more platforms?
Medusa runs on Web. Paddle runs on Web, Api.
What is Medusa best used for?
Medusa is most often used for building a custom ecommerce backend on an open source headless platform, running a self hosted or managed commerce api with a custom storefront. Of those, building a custom ecommerce backend on an open source headless platform and running a self hosted or managed commerce api with a custom storefront are not what Paddle is typically brought in for.
What can Medusa do that Paddle cannot?
Medusa covers Open source, Modular architecture, Multi-region support, Plugin system. Paddle covers Payment processing, Sales tax handling, Subscription management, Checkout.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Medusa: What does Medusa charge for additional team members?

Additional seats on the Medusa Cloud development platform cost $30 per seat per month. Unlimited users can access the Medusa Admin Dashboard at no additional cost for commerce operations.

Source
Paddle: How much does Paddle charge per transaction?

Paddle charges 5% plus 50 cents per checkout transaction on their pay-as-you-go plan. Custom pricing is available for products under $10 or those requiring invoicing.

Source
Medusa: Are there usage-based charges beyond the base Medusa plan price?

Yes. Beyond base plan costs, Medusa charges for edge request overages at $0.30 per 1M requests, email overages at $0.70 per 1,000 emails, data transfer at $0.125 per GB, and database storage at $0.50 per GB-month.

Source
Paddle: Are there hidden fees with Paddle?

No. Paddle emphasizes all-in-one pricing with no hidden costs, migration fees, or monthly fees. The stated 5% plus 50¢ rate covers payments, billing, tax compliance, fraud protection, and support.

Source
Medusa: Can I cancel my Medusa subscription at any time?

Yes, users can cancel their Medusa subscription anytime. Plans are billed monthly in advance, with flex usage charges from the previous month added to the next invoice.

Source
Paddle: Does Paddle offer custom pricing?

Yes. Paddle offers custom pricing arrangements for businesses with specific needs. Customers can contact Paddle directly to discuss custom pricing tailored to their business model.

Source
Share

Related pages

More on Medusa

More on Paddle

Keep looking

Other head to heads