Buy Me a Coffee alternatives
With 200 one-time tips of $5, Buy Me a Coffee leaves you $860. 3 of the 6 alternatives we price for that leave more, the most Whop at $912, $624 a year more; Lemon Squeezy, Patreon and Gumroad leave less. With 50 one-time tips of $5, Buy Me a Coffee leaves $215 and Whop the most, $228. With 100 members at $5 a month, Buy Me a Coffee leaves $427 and Whop the most, $456. With 50 sales of $25, Buy Me a Coffee leaves $1,136 and Whop the most, $1,201.
What you keep on each platform
| Platform | 50 one-time tips of $5 $250 a month | 200 one-time tips of $5 $1,000 a month | 100 members at $5 a month $500 a month | 50 sales of $25 $1,250 a month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buy Me a Coffee | $215 | $860 | $427 | $1,136 |
| Whop | $228 +$156 a year | $912 +$624 a year | $456 +$348 a year | $1,201 +$780 a year |
| Ko-fi | $227.50 +$150 a year, Free | $910 +$600 a year, Free | $443 +$192 a year, Gold | $1,187 +$606 a year, Gold |
| Payhip | $215 the same, Free Forever | $861 +$12 a year, Plus | $430 +$36 a year, Free Forever | $1,145 +$102 a year, Plus |
| Lemon Squeezy | $212.50 −$30 a year | $850 −$120 a year | $422 −$60 a year | $1,163 +$318 a year |
| Patreon | $202.50 −$150 a year, Standard | $810 −$600 a year, Standard | $405 −$264 a year, Standard | $1,074 −$750 a year, Standard |
| Gumroad | $177.50 −$450 a year | $710 −$1,800 a year | $355 −$864 a year | $1,049 −$1,050 a year |
| Skool | – | – | $411 −$192 a year, Hobby | – |
| Substack | – | – | $401 −$312 a year | – |
Kept a month after each platform's subscription, its cut, payment processing and any fee on recurring payments, on whichever of its plans open to new sign-ups leaves the most, and the difference from Buy Me a Coffee over a year. US payments, payout fees left out. Only Ko-fi and Buy Me a Coffee have a tip button: elsewhere a one-time tip is priced as a one-time sale of the same amount. A dash: the platform doesn't take that kind of payment.
Where each one leaves more than Buy Me a Coffee
With one-time tips of $5, from 1 to 1,000 a month:
- Whop and Ko-fi leave more at every size.
- Payhip leaves more from 194 one-time tips.
- Lemon Squeezy, Patreon and Gumroad never leave more.
- Skool and Substack don't take one-time tips.
What each one is for
| Platform | One-time tips | Memberships | One-time sales | A month | In its own words |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buy Me a Coffee | Yes | Yes | Yes | None | “Accept support. Start a membership. Setup a shop.” |
| Whop | – | Yes | Yes | None listed | “Whop aims to be the cheapest, most resilient place to accept pure payments.” |
| Ko-fi | Yes | Yes | Yes | Gold $12 | “A flat 5% service fee applies to anything else, such as shop items, memberships, monthly tips, and commissions.” |
| Payhip | – | Yes | Yes | Plus $29, Pro $99 | “Unlimited products Unlimited revenue” |
| Lemon Squeezy | – | Yes | Yes | None | “Recurring billing + subscriptions Charge customers on a weekly, monthly, or yearly basis.” |
| Patreon | – | Yes | Yes | None | “Monthly and annual subscriptions Membership tiers One-time payments” |
| Gumroad | – | Yes | Yes | None | “Per transaction for all sales through your profile or direct links to your customers.” |
| Skool | – | Yes | – | Hobby $9, Pro $99 | “Unlimited members Unlimited courses Unlimited videos Unlimited live calls” |
| Substack | – | Yes | – | None | “Publishing on Substack is free, no matter how many subscribers you have. If you turn on paid subscriptions, Substack keeps 10% of subscription revenue, and Stripe charges its own payment processing fees.” |
Where Buy Me a Coffee pays out
“This article lists the countries where creators can receive payouts through Buy Me a Coffee, based on Stripe availability.” “Please note that we can only offer payouts in countries supported by Stripe.” It lists 44 countries under Stripe Standard Connect and 70 under Stripe Express, 114 in all; its FAQ still says “Available to creators in 44 countries.”
| Country | Buy Me a Coffee payouts |
|---|---|
| India | Listed, Stripe Express |
| Pakistan | Not listed |
| Bangladesh | Not listed |
| Philippines | Listed, Stripe Express |
| United Kingdom | Listed, Stripe Standard Connect |
From Buy Me a Coffee's supported countries for payouts article. Its fees as its help center lists them: 5% of each payment, Stripe's 2.9% + $0.30, and 1% more on payments from outside the US. See Buy Me a Coffee's fees.
Quick answers
What is the cheapest alternative to Buy Me a Coffee?
With 50 one-time tips of $5, Whop leaves $228 against $215 on Buy Me a Coffee; with 200 one-time tips of $5, Whop leaves $912 against $860 on Buy Me a Coffee; with 100 members at $5 a month, Whop leaves $456 against $427 on Buy Me a Coffee; with 50 sales of $25, Whop leaves $1,201 against $1,136 on Buy Me a Coffee. Buy Me a Coffee takes 5% of every payment; the cheapest alternatives take less or nothing from each one. Whop has no tip button: there a tip is a one-time sale of the same amount.
Is Ko-fi cheaper than Buy Me a Coffee?
Yes: Ko-fi leaves $227.50 (Free) with 50 one-time tips of $5, against $215; $910 (Free) with 200 one-time tips of $5, against $860; $443 (Gold) with 100 members at $5 a month, against $427; $1,187 (Gold) with 50 sales of $25, against $1,136. On one-time tips Ko-fi Free takes 0%, so a $5 tip leaves $4.55 against $4.30 on Buy Me a Coffee.
Is Patreon cheaper than Buy Me a Coffee?
No: Patreon leaves $202.50 (Standard) with 50 one-time tips of $5, against $215; $810 (Standard) with 200 one-time tips of $5, against $860; $405 (Standard) with 100 members at $5 a month, against $427; $1,074 (Standard) with 50 sales of $25, against $1,136. Patreon has no tip button, so tips are priced as one-time purchases there.
Can you get paid by Buy Me a Coffee in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh or the Philippines?
Buy Me a Coffee pays out only through Stripe: “Please note that we can only offer payouts in countries supported by Stripe.” Its list of 114 countries includes India (Stripe Express), the Philippines (Stripe Express) and the United Kingdom (Stripe Standard Connect), but not Pakistan or Bangladesh. Creators in a country it doesn't list need another platform that pays out there.
Is there a Buy Me a Coffee alternative that pays to PayPal?
Buy Me a Coffee pays to your bank account through Stripe. Patreon (1%), Lemon Squeezy ($0.50, in the US) and Gumroad (2%) can pay out to PayPal, at the fees shown, and Ko-fi takes payments straight into your own PayPal account: “All payments go straight into your own PayPal or Stripe account. Your payment processor's usual fees still apply on top (typically around 3% + $0.30).”
Is there a free alternative to Buy Me a Coffee?
Buy Me a Coffee has no monthly fee either; every alternative takes something per payment. The lowest cut on tips is Ko-fi Free's 0%: a $5 tip loses only card processing, $0.45, against $0.70 on Buy Me a Coffee.
Buy Me a Coffee in detail: Buy Me a Coffee fees, and head to head: Ko-fi vs Buy Me a Coffee, Buy Me a Coffee vs Patreon. Also: Patreon alternatives, Ko-fi alternatives, and every creator payment platform's fees.
Fees from each platform's own pricing and help pages, read on 5 October 2026 or later; the sources are listed on each fee page.
Prices checked against each platform's own pricing page on .