Patreon alternatives
With 200 members at $5 a month, Patreon leaves you $810 (Standard). 6 of the 8 alternatives we price for that leave more, the most Whop at $912, $1,224 a year more; Substack and Gumroad leave less. With 50 members at $5 a month, Patreon leaves $202.50 and Whop the most, $228. With 100 members at $10 a month, Patreon leaves $841 and Whop the most, $943.
What you keep on each platform
| Platform | 50 members at $5 a month $250 a month | 200 members at $5 a month $1,000 a month | 100 members at $10 a month $1,000 a month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Patreon | $202.50 Standard | $810 Standard | $841 Standard |
| Whop | $228 +$306 a year | $912 +$1,224 a year | $943 +$1,224 a year |
| Ko-fi | $215.50 +$156 a year, Gold | $898 +$1,056 a year, Gold | $929 +$1,056 a year, Gold |
| Payhip | $215 +$150 a year, Free Forever | $861 +$612 a year, Plus | $892 +$612 a year, Plus |
| Buy Me a Coffee | $213.50 +$132 a year | $854 +$528 a year | $886 +$540 a year |
| Lemon Squeezy | $211 +$102 a year | $844 +$408 a year | $895 +$648 a year |
| Skool | $201 −$18 a year, Hobby | $831 +$252 a year, Hobby | $861 +$240 a year, Hobby |
| Substack | $200.50 −$24 a year | $802 −$96 a year | $834 −$84 a year |
| Gumroad | $177.50 −$300 a year | $710 −$1,200 a year | $791 −$600 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 Patreon over a year. US payments, payout fees left out. A dash: the platform doesn't take that kind of payment.
Where each one leaves more than Patreon
With membership payments of $5, from 1 to 1,000 a month:
- Whop, Ko-fi, Payhip, Buy Me a Coffee and Lemon Squeezy leave more at every size.
- Skool leaves more from 61 members.
- Substack and Gumroad never leave more.
What each one is for
| Platform | One-time tips | Memberships | One-time sales | A month | In its own words |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patreon | – | Yes | Yes | None | “Monthly and annual subscriptions Membership tiers One-time payments” |
| 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” |
| Buy Me a Coffee | Yes | Yes | Yes | None | “Accept support. Start a membership. Setup a shop.” |
| Lemon Squeezy | – | Yes | Yes | None | “Recurring billing + subscriptions Charge customers on a weekly, monthly, or yearly basis.” |
| 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.” |
| Gumroad | – | Yes | Yes | None | “Per transaction for all sales through your profile or direct links to your customers.” |
Patreon's own plans
Patreon's numbers above are its standard plan, the only one open to new creators: “If you published your creator page after August 4, 2025, please note that you are on our standard 10% pricing plan.” Older pages keep their legacy plan: “Creators who published their page on or before August 4, 2025, will not see any increase.”
| Plan | Fee | Card processing | 50 members at $5 a month | 200 members at $5 a month | 100 members at $10 a month |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | 10% | 2.9% + $0.30 | $202.50 | $810 | $841 |
| Pro (legacy) | 8% | 5% + $0.10 up to $3, then 2.9% + $0.30 | $207.50 | $830 | $861 |
| Pro + Merch (legacy) | 11% | 5% + $0.10 up to $3, then 2.9% + $0.30 | $200 | $800 | $831 |
| Founders (legacy) | 5% | 1.6% + $0.30 | $218.50 | $874 | $904 |
Kept a month after Patreon's fee and card processing, payout fees left out. “If you unpublish your page or if Patreon unpublishes your page for any reason, you’ll be subject to Patreon’s new, standard 10% plan + applicable taxes and payment processing fees.” Patreon's advice: “Use the pause tool instead of unpublishing your creator page.” More on Patreon's fees.
Quick answers
What is the cheapest alternative to Patreon?
On fees: with 50 members at $5 a month, Whop, $228 a month against $202.50 on Patreon; with 200 members at $5 a month, Whop, $912 a month against $810 on Patreon; with 100 members at $10 a month, Whop, $943 a month against $841 on Patreon. Whop's fee page lists card processing and no platform fee beyond it. For one-time tips, Ko-fi Free takes nothing itself, so a $5 tip leaves $4.55 after card processing.
Is Ko-fi cheaper than Patreon?
Yes, at all three sizes: Ko-fi leaves $215.50 (Gold) with 50 members at $5 a month, against $202.50; $898 (Gold) with 200 members at $5 a month, against $810; $929 (Gold) with 100 members at $10 a month, against $841 on Patreon's standard plan. Ko-fi takes 5% of memberships on its free plans, or nothing on Gold for $12 a month, against Patreon's 10%.
Does Substack take less than Patreon?
No, a little more. Both take 10% and the same 2.9% + $0.30 card processing, but Substack adds Stripe's 0.7% Billing fee on recurring payments. Substack leaves $200.50 with 50 members at $5 a month, against $202.50; $802 with 200 members at $5 a month, against $810; $834 with 100 members at $10 a month, against $841 on Patreon.
Is Buy Me a Coffee cheaper than Patreon?
Yes, at all three sizes: Buy Me a Coffee leaves $213.50 with 50 members at $5 a month, against $202.50; $854 with 200 members at $5 a month, against $810; $886 with 100 members at $10 a month, against $841 on Patreon. It takes 5% of each payment and adds 0.5% on subscription payments, against Patreon's 10%.
Is there a free alternative to Patreon?
None is free of fees, and Patreon itself charges nothing a month: “Patreon is free to start. You only pay when you start earning.” What differs is the cut. Ko-fi Free takes nothing from one-time tips (“Ko-fi Free - Pay 0% on one-time tips.”), so you pay only card processing, $0.45 of a $5 tip. Of the alternatives we price, only Ko-fi's Gold, Payhip's Plus and Pro and Skool charge a monthly fee.
Which Patreon alternative fits writers, artists or musicians?
By what each takes: a paid newsletter fits Substack (“Publishing on Substack is free, no matter how many subscribers you have.”), which takes 10%. Art commissions and tips fit Ko-fi, which lists commissions among its payment types. For downloads such as music, art packs or ebooks, Gumroad, Payhip and Lemon Squeezy sell one-time products: 50 sales of $25 leave $1,163 on Lemon Squeezy, $1,145 on Payhip Plus and $1,049 on Gumroad.
Do creators on Patreon's older plans pay less?
Pro (8%) and Founders (5%) do; Pro + Merch (11%) pays more. With 200 members at $5 a month, the standard plan leaves $810, Pro $830, Pro + Merch $800 and Founders $874. Those plans are closed to new creators: “Creators who published their page on or before August 4, 2025, will not see any increase.”
Patreon in detail: Patreon fees, and head to head: Patreon vs Ko-fi, Buy Me a Coffee vs Patreon, Substack vs Patreon, Whop vs Patreon, Patreon vs Gumroad. Also: Ko-fi alternatives, Buy Me a Coffee 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 .