Adyen vs Stripe: Fees, Payouts and Features Compared (2026)

Short version: Stripe charges one flat rate, 2.9% + $0.30 per successful domestic card payment, and that simplicity is the product. Adyen charges $0.13 per transaction plus interchange and scheme fees at cost plus a 0.60% markup on Visa and Mastercard, and that transparency is the product. At $50,000 a month on an $80 average ticket, Stripe costs $1,637.50 in card fees, while Adyen costs about $1,231 on an illustrative 1.70% blended interchange and scheme cost. But Adyen only wins when your card mix is cheap enough, and it comes with a sales-led onboarding process and a minimum monthly invoice. The full profiles, with rates and fit notes, are in our Adyen review and our Stripe review.

Two pricing models, not two prices

Stripe uses blended pricing. You pay the same rate whether the customer pays with a low-cost debit card or a premium rewards card. Stripe absorbs the variance and keeps the difference on cheap transactions. That is why the rate never changes with your card mix, and why it is easy to forecast.

Adyen uses Interchange++ pricing. You pay the exact interchange fee the issuing bank charges, the scheme fee Visa or Mastercard charges, both passed through at cost, plus Adyen's markup. Your bill moves with every card your customers use. Debit-heavy volume lands well below Stripe's flat rate; rewards-heavy volume can land above it. There is no honest single Adyen percentage, only a formula, and any comparison that quotes one without stating its card-mix assumption is guessing.

The fee table (published US rates, checked 25 October 2026)

Every figure below comes from Stripe's pricing page (stripe.com/pricing) and Adyen's pricing guide (adyen.com pricing), checked on 25 October 2026.

Two details in that table catch merchants out:

Stripe's add-ons stack on international sales. A $100 sale on a foreign card that needs currency conversion costs 2.9% + 1.5% + 1%, plus $0.30, which is $5.70. The headline 2.9% is a domestic rate, not a global one.

Adyen's headline is not a total. The $0.13 and the 0.60% are Adyen's own charges. Interchange and scheme fees sit on top at cost, and they are the largest part of the bill. Anyone quoting Adyen at "0.60%" alone is leaving out most of the cost.

What each costs at $50,000 a month: worked example

Same volume for both: $50,000 in monthly card sales, $80 average ticket, 625 transactions, US domestic cards.

The Adyen maths, stated in full so you can redo it with your own mix: processing fees $81.25 (625 times $0.13), markup $300.00 (0.60% of $50,000), interchange and scheme fees $850.00 at the illustrative 1.70%. Change the 1.70% and the answer changes: at 2.50% blended interchange and scheme cost, Adyen costs about $1,631, essentially tied with Stripe. At 1.20%, it costs about $981, a clear win. Your card mix decides the winner, not the headline.

The same logic shows up on a single sale. On a $100 domestic card payment, Stripe takes $3.20. Adyen takes $0.13 plus $0.60 plus $1.70 at the illustrative mix, which is $2.43. On a $10 sale, Stripe takes $0.59 (5.90% effective, because the $0.30 fixed fee dominates), while Adyen at the same illustrative mix takes $0.36. Small tickets are where flat rates hurt most, and where Interchange++ helps most, provided your mix is debit-heavy.

International cards and payouts

Stripe's international pricing is explicit and expensive: 4.4% + $0.30 on a domestic-style sale once the 1.5% international surcharge applies, and 5.4% + $0.30 when currency conversion is also required. There is no mystery, but there is also no discount for volume on standard pricing.

Adyen's international pricing is structural rather than surcharged. Cross-border interchange and scheme fees pass through at cost, so a foreign card costs more than a domestic one, but only by what the networks actually charge, plus the same $0.13 and 0.60%. Adyen also lets you link multiple bank accounts in multiple currencies and choose when and in which currency you settle, which removes a conversion step that Stripe charges 1% for. For a business selling across borders, that settlement control is often worth more than any single rate difference.

On payouts generally, the contrast is control against simplicity. Adyen offers flexible payouts: you choose timing and currency. Stripe pays out on its standard schedule into your bank account, with custom payout arrangements available on custom packages. Neither publishes a payout speed that should decide the choice on its own; the decision is whether you want to manage settlement or have it managed for you.

Features and fit: what else you are buying

Stripe is the faster start. Self-serve signup, checkout and payment links included with Payments, a large developer ecosystem, and add-on products with published prices: Billing at 0.7% of billing volume, Invoicing at 0.4% capped at $2.00 per invoice, Terminal readers from $59. The trade-off is that the ecosystem is priced per product, and a full stack (Billing, Tax, Radar for Fraud Teams, Connect) can push your effective rate well above 2.9% + $0.30.

Adyen is the unified platform. One integration covers online, in-app and in-store payments, with direct acquiring relationships and a broad local payment method catalogue. That matters most for omnichannel retail and for businesses with real volume in Europe, where local methods like iDEAL and Bancontact sit on Adyen's direct rails. The trade-off is onboarding: Adyen works through its sales team, implementation takes longer, and the minimum monthly invoice means low-volume merchants can pay more than expected even with no monthly fee on paper. Adyen also states plainly that some business models and industries are not eligible, so high-risk merchants should confirm eligibility before investing in an integration. For the recurring-payments angle specifically, see our Stripe vs Adyen recurring payments comparison.

Verdict: who should pick which

Pick Stripe if...

• You want to start now, without a sales process, and forecast costs from one rate.
• Your volume is low to mid, or your card mix is unknown, and predictability beats optimisation.
• You build on Stripe's developer tools, Billing, or Terminal ecosystem and want published add-on prices.
• Most of your sales are domestic, so the international surcharges rarely apply.

Pick Adyen if...

• Your volume is high enough that a 0.5 to 1 point saving beats the cost of a longer implementation.
• Your card mix is debit-heavy or domestic-heavy, so Interchange++ lands below the flat rate.
• You sell omnichannel or across borders and need unified acquiring, local methods, and control over settlement currency and timing.
• You have the team to reconcile Interchange++ invoices and negotiate the markup down at volume.

Look elsewhere if...

• You are low volume and want the cheapest possible start: Adyen's minimum invoice works against you, and Stripe's flat rate is not the cheapest for tiny tickets either. Compare both against a low-cost flat-rate alternative in the processor directory before committing.
• You are high-risk or restricted: confirm eligibility with Adyen first, and check Stripe's restricted-business list, before building an integration on either.

FAQ

Is Adyen cheaper than Stripe?

It depends on your card mix. At $50,000 a month on an $80 ticket, Stripe costs $1,637.50 in card fees. Adyen costs about $1,231 at an illustrative 1.70% blended interchange and scheme cost, but about $1,631 at 2.50%. Debit-heavy volume favours Adyen; rewards-heavy volume closes the gap or reverses it.

What is Adyen's pricing model?

Interchange++: $0.13 per transaction plus interchange and scheme fees passed through at cost, plus a 0.60% markup on Visa and Mastercard. There is no setup fee and no monthly fee, but a minimum monthly invoice applies, with the amount depending on industry and business model.

What is Stripe's pricing?

Standard US pricing is 2.9% + $0.30 per successful domestic card payment, with no setup or monthly fee. International cards add 1.5%, currency conversion adds 1%, in-person payments are 2.7% + $0.05, and disputes cost $15 to receive plus $15 to counter (refunded if you win).

Does Adyen charge a monthly fee?

No monthly fee, setup fee, integration fee or closure fee appears on Adyen's pricing guide. Adyen does state that a minimum invoice applies depending on industry or business model, so low-volume merchants should ask for that figure before signing.

Which is better for international sales?

Adyen, usually, for structural reasons: cross-border costs pass through at cost with no separate surcharge, and you can settle in multiple currencies. Stripe is explicit and simple but expensive internationally: 4.4% + $0.30 without conversion, 5.4% + $0.30 with it, on a $100 sale basis.

Sources and method

Fee figures were checked against Stripe's published pricing page (stripe.com/pricing) and Adyen's published pricing guide (adyen.com pricing) on 25 October 2026. Adyen totals are illustrations with their assumption stated (1.70% blended interchange and scheme cost), not quoted rates, because interchange and scheme fees vary by card. Rates change, so confirm current pricing with the provider before you sign.

Compare both against every alternative in the PSPDex processor directory, or read the full Adyen review and Stripe review for features, risk fit and supported business models.