Software · head to head
Paddle vs Adyen
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Paddle paddle charges 5% plus 50 cents on every checkout transaction, which is well above a bare payment processor rate; Adyen there is a minimum monthly invoice, set by industry and business model and only disclosed through the sales team, so small volumes are not economic
- They diverge on capability: Paddle covers Sales tax handling, Adyen covers Risk management.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Paddle and Adyen actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price ($29/month), pricing model (usage-based), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).
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 Paddle
- Sales tax handling
- Subscription management
- Checkout
- Revenue metrics
- Stripe
- PayPal
- Various
- PCI DSS
Only in Adyen
- Risk management
- Unified commerce
- Issuing
- Platform payments
- SAP
- Salesforce
- Oracle
- PCI DSS Level 1
Both cover
- Payment processing
- SOC 2
- Web support
- Api support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Paddle
- Selling SaaS or digital products with a merchant of record handling taxnot Adyen
- Global subscription billing and checkoutnot Adyen
- Offloading sales tax and VAT compliance for cross border salesnot Adyen
Adyen
- Card acquiring with interchange plus pricing for larger merchantsnot Paddle
- Accepting local payment methods across multiple countriesnot Paddle
- Settling in several currencies through linked bank accountsnot Paddle
- Unified online and in-person paymentsnot Paddle
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
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
Adyen
- There is a minimum monthly invoice, set by industry and business model and only disclosed through the sales team, so small volumes are not economic
- Published fees are indicative rather than a rate card, with real pricing negotiated
- Interchange++ means the card cost varies per transaction rather than being a single predictable percentage
- Alternative payment methods carry their own rates on top, such as 3.3 percent plus $0.10 for American Express in North America
Pricing, plan by plan
Paddle
$29/month- Standard$5/transaction
- Payment processing
- Tax compliance
- Billing
Adyen
$29/month- CustomFree
- Payment processing
- Risk management
- Unified commerce
Which should you pick?
Choose Paddle if
- You need sales tax handling.
- You work on Web, Api.
- You also want subscription management.
Choose Adyen if
- You need risk management.
- You work on Web, Api, Pos.
- You also want unified commerce.
Questions people ask
- Is Paddle or Adyen better?
- Neither clearly leads. Paddle starts at $29/month and Adyen at $29/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Paddle or Adyen?
- Paddle starts at $29/month and Adyen at $29/month.
- Does Paddle or Adyen run on more platforms?
- Paddle runs on Web, Api. Adyen runs on Web, Api, Pos.
- What is Paddle best used for?
- Paddle is most often used for selling saas or digital products with a merchant of record handling tax, global subscription billing and checkout, offloading sales tax and vat compliance for cross border sales. Of those, selling saas or digital products with a merchant of record handling tax and global subscription billing and checkout are not what Adyen is typically brought in for.
- What can Paddle do that Adyen cannot?
- Paddle covers Sales tax handling, Subscription management, Checkout, Revenue metrics. Adyen covers Risk management, Unified commerce, Issuing, Platform payments. Both handle Payment processing, SOC 2, Web support, Api support.