Best Ways to Get Paid Selling Digital Products in 2026

Conversion can cost more than the platform fee. We traced $2,000 of digital sales to a euro bank across 11 routes, with fees re-verified in October 2026.

Start your store for free with Framekit→
Best Ways to Get Paid Selling Digital Products in 2026

A creator store page built in Framekit, with digital products sold directly from the creator's own site
A creator store page built in Framekit, with digital products sold directly from the creator's own site

Your store says you made $2,000 this month. Your bank says something smaller, and the gap is bigger than the platform fee you spent a weekend comparing.

Between a sale and your bank account sit up to four separate charges: the platform's cut, card processing, a payout fee, and a currency conversion if your bank holds a different currency from the sale.

Most guides to the best ways to get paid selling digital products stop at the first. The last one is charged on your whole balance, and on the default settings of most platforms it is the most expensive line in the chain.

A payout route is the path your money takes after a sale completes: the balance it lands in, the currency that balance is held in, and the transfer and conversion that finally move it into your bank.

Quick Answer

If your sales and your bank are in different currencies, the best way to get paid is to hold the balance and convert it through Wise, whose calculator quoted 0.29% to turn US dollars into euros on 12 October 2026, against 2% for Stripe's automatic conversion and 3.00% on PayPal's US fee schedule.

Payoneer is second, at 0.50% between balances, and is often the only route a marketplace supports. If your buyers pay in your own currency, Stripe's standard payouts are free and nothing needs converting.

Framekit ranks fourth as the cheapest store that pays straight into your own Stripe account, at 0% on its $39 Business plan, but it is a store, not a payout rail, and does nothing about conversion.

Full disclosure: Framekit is our product and ranks fourth here, because this guide is about moving money to a bank and Wise, Payoneer and Stripe do that job while Framekit does not. Every fee was re-verified on the provider's own pricing page or help docs on 12 October 2026, which changed two conclusions from the August version: Wise's quoted conversion fell below Payoneer's, and PayPal's conversion spread turned out to be published after all.
Start selling on your own site - free→

How the Money Was Traced

This guide follows one realistic month from sale to bank, reads every fee from the provider's own published page, and separates what was read at the source from what was calculated, and it reports no test transfers or hands-on account use.

The carried scenario. $2,000 a month in sales of a $29 digital product, which is 69 orders, bought mostly by US card holders, sold by a creator whose bank account is in euros and whose Stripe account is registered in Ireland.

That is the most common shape of an international creator business and the one where the hidden costs are largest. A second table prices the same products for a US seller paid in dollars, at $500, $2,000 and $5,000 a month.

Read at the source on 12 October 2026. Wise's pricing page and its public price calculator for US dollars to euros; Payoneer's pricing page; Stripe's Irish pricing page; PayPal's US pricing page and its merchant fee schedule, last updated 1 October 2026; Polar's pricing page; Payhip's and Sellfy's pricing pages.

Lemon Squeezy and Gumroad payout terms come from our 12 October checks of their help docs, published in Lemon Squeezy vs Framekit and Gumroad vs Framekit.

Calculated. Stripe charges its Irish international-card rate in euros, so its 25-cent fixed fee is converted at the mid-market rate Wise quoted that day, about $0.28. Every monthly total is arithmetic you can redo with your own numbers.

Not claimed. We did not move money through any of these accounts for this version. An earlier version described some providers as used directly; that claim is gone, and nothing below depends on it.

The Rubric

Five weighted criteria decide this ranking, and they are tuned to the specific problem this guide solves, getting money out of a selling platform and into a bank account that may hold a different currency, which produces a different order from a ranking of stores.

CriterionWeightWhat it covers
Total cost from sale to bank35%Platform cut, processing, payout fee and conversion together
Transparency of the conversion25%Whether the rate is published, and where
Speed and reliability of payout20%Schedules, holds, minimums, first-payout delays
Country and currency coverage15%Where you can receive, and in which currencies
Account risk5%Who holds your balance, freezes, inactivity charges

Transparency is weighted at a quarter of the score because the charge you cannot see is routinely larger than the charges you compared.

Under these weights Framekit cannot rank above Stripe, because every Framekit sale is a Stripe sale with a plan price added; if the rubric scored only the store's own fee, Framekit Business at 0% would sit level with Stripe at the top.

Payouts by the Numbers

Eight published figures do most of the work in this guide, and every one of them was read on the provider's own page on 12 October 2026.

  • 0.29% is what Wise's calculator quoted to convert $2,000 to euros inside a balance; its pricing page lists conversion "from 0.23%".
  • 0.50% is Payoneer's fee to move money between your own currency balances.
  • 2% is what Stripe adds when a charge has to be converted into your settlement currency.
  • 3.00% is the currency conversion rate on PayPal's US merchant fee schedule for most conversions.
  • 1% is what Lemon Squeezy charges to pay out to a bank outside the US, converted at the mid-market rate.
  • $29.95 is Payoneer's annual fee if you receive under $6,000 in any twelve consecutive months.
  • $6.11 is Wise's fee to receive a US dollar wire, against nothing for a domestic US transfer.
  • 13 days is Lemon Squeezy's hold before a payout; Gumroad's weekly payouts hold sales for 7.

Where $2,000 Actually Goes for a Seller Paid in Euros

On the carried month, the cheapest complete route from a sale to a euro bank account costs about $107, Stripe with dollar settlement and a Wise conversion, while the same $2,000 through Gumroad costs $313 before Gumroad's own payout conversion, which we could not read at the source.

Every line is the same 69 orders of a $29 product bought with US cards. Stores that pay into your own Stripe account inherit Stripe's Irish rates: 3.15% plus €0.25 for an international card, plus 2% when the charge is converted into euros.

Route to a euro bankPlatform and processingPayout feeConversionMonthly totalA year
Stripe, US dollars settled and sent to Wise$82$19 (1% of payout volume)$6 (Wise, 0.29%)About $107About $1,284
Stripe, default euro settlement$82$0$40 (2% on each charge)About $122About $1,467
Polar Pro, merchant of record$124About $12 (Stripe pass-through)Included in the payout feesAbout $135About $1,624
Polar Starter, merchant of record$135About $12Included in the payout feesAbout $146About $1,753
Framekit Business, USD settlement plus Wise$39 plan plus $82$19$6About $146About $1,752
Lemon Squeezy, merchant of record$135$19 (1% to a non-US bank)Mid-market rate, no spreadAbout $153About $1,838
Framekit Business, default euro settlement$39 plan plus $82$0$40About $161About $1,935
Payhip Plus on Stripe$29 plan, $40 fee, $82$0$40About $191About $2,295
Sellfy Business on Stripe, monthly billing$79 plan plus $82$0$40About $201About $2,415
Gumroad, merchant of record$313Depends on payout methodNot published in what we read$313 plus conversion$3,758 plus conversion

In one linetwo creators with identical sales on identical platforms can end the year about $180 apart purely on which settlement setting they chose, and that gap is larger than the difference between several of the stores themselves.

What the table hides. Stripe's dollar settlement is listed on its pricing page at 1% of payout volume "or a minimum fee", and receiving those dollars needs an account in US dollars, which Wise's account details provide; check that your Stripe country supports the setup before relying on it.

Lemon Squeezy adds 1.5% on non-US transactions, so a buyer mix with more Europeans moves its line up. Polar adds 1.5% on non-US cards.

If You Are Paid in Your Own Currency

A seller whose buyers and bank share a currency has no conversion to pay, so the only questions are the platform's cut, card processing and the payout fee, and on that basis Stripe's free standard payouts make it the cheapest route at every volume.

This table prices the same $29 product for a US seller paid in dollars by US cards, over a full year, with processing included and each platform's cheapest plan at that volume.

Route, US seller, $29 product$500 a month$2,000 a month$5,000 a month
Stripe Payment Links, no store$236$944$2,361
Lemon Squeezy or Paddle$403$1,614$4,034
Polar (Starter, then Pro)$403$1,483$3,348
Sellfy, yearly billing$500$1,652$3,789
Framekit (Free, then Business yearly)$536$1,316$2,733
Payhip (Free, Plus, then Pro)$536$1,772$3,549
Gumroad, direct sales$940$3,758$9,395

The crossover worth knowing. Framekit Business billed yearly becomes cheaper than Lemon Squeezy at about $1,111 a month in sales of a $29 product, and cheaper than Framekit's own 5% free plan at $780 a month.

Below those lines, a merchant of record that includes processing in its rate is the cheaper route as well as the one that files your tax.

The hosted Framekit checkout at framekit.ai/buy for a $59 LUT bundle, with the seller's name, the order total and Card, Link and Cash App Pay buttons, the payment that lands in the seller's own Stripe account
The hosted Framekit checkout at framekit.ai/buy for a $59 LUT bundle, with the seller's name, the order total and Card, Link and Cash App Pay buttons, the payment that lands in the seller's own Stripe account

1. Wise: Best for Converting What You Earn

Wise ranks first because it turns the most expensive hidden line in the chain into the cheapest visible one: it gives you account details to receive US dollars as a domestic transfer, holds the balance, and converts at a rate it shows before you commit.

The real numberWise's pricing page lists conversion "from 0.23%", varying by currency, and its calculator quoted 0.29% to convert $2,000 to euros inside a balance on 12 October 2026, about $5.80. Receiving domestic US payments costs nothing; receiving a US dollar wire costs $6.11.

The standout detailthe fee is stated separately from the exchange rate, which Wise says is the mid-market rate. Most conversion elsewhere is priced inside the rate, so you cannot tell what you paid without looking up the mid-market rate yourself.

The honest gotchawhich currencies you can receive as a local transfer depends on where your account is registered, and whether your selling platform will pay out to those details depends on the platform. Check your own combination before assuming a free dollar inbound.

Skip it ifyour buyers already pay in the currency your bank holds; you would be adding an account to solve a problem you do not have.

Verdict: the default answer for any creator whose sales and bank are in different currencies, and since October's quote, the cheapest as well as the clearest.

2. Payoneer: Best Marketplace Coverage

Payoneer ranks second because of acceptance rather than price: many marketplaces and platforms pay into Payoneer in countries where they pay into nothing else, which makes it the practical answer for a large share of international sellers.

The real numbermoving money between your own Payoneer balances costs 0.50%, receiving through a receiving account in your local currency is free, receiving in a currency that is not your local one costs 1% (minimum $1), and withdrawing to a bank in your own country in local currency costs $1.50 in supported countries, which include every EU country.

For a euro seller receiving dollars, that is about $20 to receive $2,000, $10 to convert and $1.50 to withdraw.

The honest gotchaan annual account fee of $29.95 applies if the account receives less than $6,000 in any twelve consecutive months. A creator making $300 a month is under that line and pays it.

Skip it ifyour platforms all pay out to Wise or to your bank directly and you earn under $6,000 a year.

Verdict: the pragmatic choice when a platform will not pay you any other way, and a slightly expensive one for small sellers because of the inactivity charge.

3. Stripe: Cheapest When Currencies Match

Stripe is the cheapest route in this guide whenever your buyers pay in your bank's currency, because standard payouts on Stripe's schedule are free and there is nothing to convert, so the only cost is card processing.

The real numberfor a US seller, 2.9% plus 30 cents per card charge, $944 a year at $2,000 a month. For an Irish account selling to US cards, Stripe's pricing page lists 3.15% plus €0.25 for international cards, plus 2% when the charge is converted, which is $40 a month on the carried $2,000.

The standout detailStripe's multi-currency settlement lets you hold and pay out US dollars at 1% of payout volume rather than converting every charge at 2%, turning an automatic charge into a decision you make.

The honest gotchaStripe moves money and sells nothing. There is no storefront, no file hosting and no delivery, and disputes cost €20 each in Ireland ($15 in the US), plus the same again if you counter.

Skip it ifyou need a marketplace to find buyers or a store to sell from.

Verdict: the cheapest answer when currencies align, and a quietly expensive one when they do not, unless you change the default. Stripe fees for creators breaks down every line.

A LUT bundle product page on a filmmaker's Framekit site, with the Atlas pack artwork, an $89 price and a Buy now button
A LUT bundle product page on a filmmaker's Framekit site, with the Atlas pack artwork, an $89 price and a Buy now button

4. Framekit: Best Store That Pays Into Your Own Stripe

Framekit is an AI website builder with a digital-download store, client galleries, video review and Slides in one account, and it belongs in a payout guide for one structural reason: it never holds your money, because each sale is a direct charge on your own connected Stripe account.

The texture. A buyer pays at framekit.ai/buy, the charge is created on your Stripe account, Framekit's percentage comes off as an application fee, and the balance, payout schedule and settlement settings are Stripe's and yours.

The product itself sits on your Framekit site and on a direct buy link that works anywhere.

The number that matterson the carried month, the $39 Business plan takes 0%, so the store costs $39 plus Stripe's processing: about $161 a month on Stripe's default euro settlement, or about $146 with dollar settlement and a Wise conversion, against $153 on Lemon Squeezy and $313 on Gumroad.

For a US seller the same month costs $1,316 a year on Business billed yearly.

The standout detailbecause the balance is in your own Stripe account, every move in this guide is available to you. A platform that pays you from its own balance decides the currency, the timing and the conversion for you; here they are Stripe settings you control.

The honest gotchaFramekit does not convert currency, does not pay you out and is not a merchant of record. It keeps its own fee on refunded sales on the 5% and 3% plans, sells one-off digital downloads only, and adds no tax at checkout, so any VAT you owe comes out of your price.

Skip it ifyou want tax settled before the money reaches you (a merchant of record such as Lemon Squeezy or Polar), want PayPal payouts, or need a marketplace to find buyers.

A Framekit commercial film company homepage, a surfer beneath a dark wave under the title Commercial Film: The Journey, the kind of site the store sits on
A Framekit commercial film company homepage, a surfer beneath a dark wave under the title Commercial Film: The Journey, the kind of site the store sits on

Verdict: the cheapest store in this guide to put in front of your own Stripe payouts, and no help at all with the conversion; pair it with a Wise account if you are paid in a currency you do not bank in.

Build your storefront with Framekit→

5. Lemon Squeezy: Paid Net of Tax, at the Mid-Market Rate

Lemon Squeezy ranks fifth because what reaches you is already net of its fee, card processing and the tax it collected and remitted as merchant of record, and it converts non-dollar payouts at the mid-market rate with a published 1% payout fee.

The real number5% plus 50 cents per order, $134.50 on the carried month, then 1% to pay out to a bank outside the US, about $19. Payouts are created on the 1st and 15th and paid on the 14th and 28th after a 13-day hold, with a $50 minimum.

PayPal payouts cost $0.50 in the US or 3% capped at $30 elsewhere.

The standout detailyou are never holding money that belongs to a tax authority, which for a solo creator is cash-flow clarity worth more than it sounds.

The honest gotchathe cycle is fixed, so a launch on the 4th reaches your bank around the 28th, and the company's January 2026 update said its team is focused on Stripe Managed Payments and an easy migration path for users.

Verdict: the cleanest money in this guide, arriving later and slightly smaller than the store routes. The best Lemon Squeezy alternatives covers where to go if the migration news worries you.

6. Polar: Merchant of Record With Published Payout Fees

Polar is a merchant of record that publishes its payout costs as plainly as its sales fees, passing through Stripe's charges without a markup, which is rare enough in this category to earn it a place in a payout guide.

The real number5% plus 50 cents on the free Starter plan, or 3.8% plus 40 cents on Pro at $20 a month, then Stripe's payout fees: $2 a month for an active payout account, 0.25% plus 25 cents per payout, and cross-border conversion of 0.25% in the EU and up to 1% elsewhere.

On the carried month that is about $12 of payout costs.

The honest gotchanon-US cards add 1.5%, and disputes cost $15 each whatever the outcome.

Verdict: a better-priced merchant of record than Lemon Squeezy for sellers past about $1,300 a month, with the payout arithmetic on the page rather than in a support ticket. Lemon Squeezy vs Stripe covers the neighbouring options.

7. Payhip: Paid Into Your Own Processor

Payhip's structural advantage for getting paid is that it never holds your money: sales go into your own Stripe or PayPal account at the moment of sale, so the payout schedule and currency handling are your processor's.

The real numberits pricing page lists Free at 5%, Plus at $29 a month and 2%, and Pro at $99 a month with no transaction fee.

At $2,000 a month, Plus costs $69 before processing, and the cheapest route for a euro seller on Stripe's default settings is about $191 a month.

The standout detailPayhip collects and remits EU and UK VAT for you, which no other store in this guide does.

The honest gotchayou inherit your processor's conversion: 2% on Stripe's default settings, or PayPal's spread if buyers pay with PayPal.

Verdict: the best structure for a European seller who wants VAT handled and money in their own account; change the conversion default and it gets cheaper still. Framekit vs Payhip compares the two store routes.

A Framekit store product page next to the hosted framekit.ai/buy checkout its Buy now button opens
A Framekit store product page next to the hosted framekit.ai/buy checkout its Buy now button opens

8. Paddle: Same Merchant Arrangement, Built for Software

Paddle is a full merchant of record priced like Lemon Squeezy, at 5% plus 50 cents per checkout transaction with tax, chargebacks and buyer support included, and its own homepage describes it as purpose-built for SaaS and apps.

The real number$134.50 on the carried month, identical to Lemon Squeezy, with no monthly fee. Products priced under $10 need a custom quote.

The honest gotchaits pricing page does not publish payout schedules or minimums, so the transfer-and-conversion half of this guide cannot be priced from the page.

Verdict: correct if your product renews or installs, and unnecessarily formal for a one-off creative file. The best Paddle alternatives covers lighter options.

9. PayPal: Most Accepted, Priced Deep in the Fee Schedule

PayPal is the payout method almost every platform supports and almost every buyer recognises, and it is the clearest example in this guide of paying for convenience at a price you have to dig for.

The real numberPayPal's US pricing page lists 2.89% plus 29 cents for cards on Expanded Checkout, 2.99% plus 49 cents for cards on standard Checkout, and 3.49% plus 49 cents when the buyer pays with PayPal or Venmo.

Its merchant fee schedule, updated 1 October 2026, lists a 3.00% currency conversion rate for most conversions, which is $60 on $2,000.

The honest gotchathe conversion is charged inside the exchange rate rather than as a line on your statement, so it never looks like a fee. Rates differ by country, so a European account should read its own country's schedule.

Skip it ifyour platform supports any other payout and your currencies differ.

Verdict: keep PayPal as a payment option for buyers who want it, and avoid it as your conversion route. PayPal vs Stripe for creators compares the two for selling.

10. Sellfy: Flat Fee, Money Straight to You

Sellfy charges a flat monthly plan and no transaction fee, and it routes every payment straight into your own PayPal or Stripe account, so the money is yours instantly and pays out on your processor's schedule.

The real numberStarter costs $29 a month or $22 billed yearly, Business $79 or $59 and Premium $159 or $119, with annual sales ceilings of $10,000, $50,000 and $200,000.

The carried $24,000 a year is past Starter's ceiling, so it needs Business, about $201 a month on monthly billing for a euro seller on Stripe's default settings.

The honest gotchaa 0% fee inside a sales band is a percentage paid in steps, and if you pass a ceiling without upgrading Sellfy may charge 2% on the revenue above it.

Verdict: 0% within the band you paid for, which is a narrower promise than it first appears. Sellfy vs Gumroad converts the bands into effective rates.

11. Gumroad: Simplest Payout, Largest Cut

Gumroad is the least work in this guide and by a distance the most expensive: it is the merchant of record, files your sales tax and VAT, and pays out on a schedule with no setup, but it takes 10% plus 50 cents per direct sale with card processing on top.

The real numberon the carried month, $234.50 in Gumroad fees and about $79 of processing, $313 before the money leaves Gumroad, or $3,758 a year.

Weekly payouts hold each sale for at least 7 days behind a $100 minimum, PayPal payouts cost 2%, and US creators can pay 3% for instant payouts after 60 days of processing.

The honest gotchaGumroad's help pages did not render the conversion terms for non-dollar bank payouts to our read, so the last line of the chain is the one number in this guide we could not price.

Verdict: the least thinking and the most expensive thinking-free option. Gumroad's fees explained and the best Gumroad alternatives show when to move.

The Conversion Is the Fee Nobody Compares

Creators research platform fees to two decimal places and accept whatever conversion the payout screen offers, even though the conversion is charged on the whole balance rather than per sale, so a single point of spread can outweigh a point of commission.

Here is the same $2,000 balance converted from US dollars to euros by each published route.

Conversion routePublished rateCost on $2,000Cost over a year
Wise, inside a balance (12 October quote)0.29%About $6About $70
Payoneer, between balances0.50%$10$120
Lemon Squeezy payout to a non-US bankMid-market rate plus a 1% payout feeAbout $19 on its net payoutAbout $224
Stripe, dollar settlement then Wise1% of payout volume, then 0.29%About $25About $300
Stripe, automatic conversion on each charge2%$40$480
PayPal, US fee schedule3.00%$60$720

The gap that matters. Moving from PayPal's 3.00% to Wise's quoted 0.29% is worth about $650 a year on $2,000 a month, on money you have already paid a platform to earn.

The counter-argument. Consolidating everything into one account is simpler, and simplicity has value when you run a business alone. The point is not that everyone should hold four accounts. It is that the conversion should be a setting you chose once, on purpose.

The test to run on your own account this week

  1. Find your last payout and note the amount that left the platform in its original currency and the amount that arrived in your bank.
  2. Look up the mid-market rate for that date on any reputable currency site.
  3. Multiply the amount sent by that rate. The difference between your result and what arrived is what conversion cost you, including anything priced inside the rate.
  4. Multiply by twelve, then compare it with the platform fee you spent a weekend researching.

A digital product store template in Framekit, with product cards on a full branded page
A digital product store template in Framekit, with product cards on a full branded page

Payout Speed, Holds and What Goes Wrong

Cost is the part of getting paid you can plan; holds, minimums, first-payout delays and freezes are the parts you cannot, and they differ more between providers than the steady-state schedules do.

ProviderWho holds your moneyFirst payoutOngoing scheduleMinimum or fee
Stripe (Framekit, Payhip, Sellfy)You, in your Stripe balanceTypically 7 to 14 days after your first live paymentYour Stripe schedule, which can be dailyStandard payouts free; instant payouts 1% on the Irish price list
Lemon SqueezyLemon SqueezyAfter the 13-day holdPaid on the 14th and 28th$50 minimum; 1% to non-US banks
GumroadGumroadAfter an account review of one to three weeksWeekly with a 7-day hold, or daily, monthly or quarterly$100 minimum; 2% on PayPal payouts
PolarPolar, until you withdrawOn withdrawalManual withdrawals$2 a month plus 0.25% + $0.25 per payout
PayoneerPayoneerWhen the platform pays inWithdraw when you choose$1.50 local withdrawal; $29.95 a year under $6,000
WiseYou, in your Wise balanceDomestic inbound arrives as a normal transferConvert and send when you chooseNo account fee; conversion from 0.23%

Rolling reserves. Processors can hold a share of revenue for a period when an account is new or its dispute rate rises. It is disclosed in the terms rather than on the pricing page, and it is a real cash-flow event for a small business.

Country coverage. This overrides every cost calculation here. If your country is not supported by the cheapest route, that route does not exist for you, and the practical answer becomes whichever of Payoneer or PayPal your platform pays into.

Account freezes. Every option can freeze an account, and the ones holding your balance can hold it longest.

The mitigations are unglamorous and work: keep a second payout route verified before you need it, withdraw on a schedule rather than accumulating, and never treat a platform balance as your only working capital.

Our refunds and chargebacks guide covers the disputes that most often trigger a review.

Decision Guide

Work down these questions and stop at the first yes, because the constraint that decides the answer here is currency rather than preference: if your buyers pay what your bank holds, most of this guide does not apply to you.

1. Do your buyers pay in the currency your bank holds? Take payments through Stripe directly, or through a store that charges on your own Stripe account such as Framekit, and the payout is free with nothing to convert. Stop here.

2. Is your country supported by Wise for the currency you are paid in? Hold the balance in that currency and convert with Wise at its published rate rather than accepting an automatic conversion on each charge.

3. Does your platform or marketplace only pay into Payoneer? Use Payoneer, and check your annual volume against the $6,000 threshold so the $29.95 fee does not surprise you.

4. Are you paid into PayPal by default? Change it if anything else is available; 3.00% on PayPal's US schedule is the most expensive published conversion here.

5. Do you want tax settled before the money reaches you? Lemon Squeezy or Polar, or Paddle if the product is software. You trade a slower or manual payout cycle for a balance that is genuinely yours.

6. Do you want the money in an account you control from the moment of sale? Framekit, Payhip or Sellfy, all of which charge through your own processor.

Framekit is the cheapest of the three at $2,000 a month on its $39 Business plan with no sales ceiling; Payhip adds EU and UK VAT handling.

7. Do you want to think about none of this? Gumroad, and accept that at $2,000 a month it costs about $2,800 a year more than Stripe alone.

A Lightroom preset product page on a photographer's Framekit site, with a 50% off badge, a $49 price and a Get the Presets button
A Lightroom preset product page on a photographer's Framekit site, with a 50% off badge, a $49 price and a Get the Presets button

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best way to get paid selling digital products?

The best way to get paid selling digital products depends on whether your buyers pay in your own currency.

If they do, take payments through Stripe or a store that charges on your own Stripe account, because standard payouts are free and nothing needs converting.

If they do not, hold the balance and convert through Wise, which quoted 0.29% for US dollars to euros in October 2026, rather than accepting Stripe's 2% or PayPal's 3.00% automatic conversion.

How much does currency conversion cost when selling internationally?

Currency conversion costs between about 0.3% and 3% of your balance depending on the route, and the expensive end is usually the default.

In October 2026 Wise quoted 0.29% for dollars to euros, Payoneer charged 0.50% between balances, Stripe added 2% to each converted charge, and PayPal's US fee schedule listed 3.00%.

On $2,000 a month that is the difference between about $70 and $720 a year.

Wise vs Payoneer: which is better for creators?

Wise is better for creators when both are available, because its October 2026 quote of 0.29% for dollars to euros beat Payoneer's 0.50% between balances, and Wise shows the fee separately from the rate before you convert.

Payoneer wins on coverage: many marketplaces pay into Payoneer where they will not pay into Wise. Payoneer also charges $29.95 a year if you receive under $6,000 in twelve months.

Does Payoneer charge a fee if I do not use it much?

Yes. Payoneer charges a $29.95 annual account fee if your account receives less than $6,000 in any twelve consecutive months, according to its pricing page, and it is not charged in the first year on paid annual plans.

For a creator making a few hundred dollars a month, that fee can outweigh what the account saves on conversion.

Why is the money in my bank less than my platform dashboard says?

The money in your bank is less than your dashboard because up to four charges sit between them and dashboards usually show only the first: the platform's cut, card processing, a payout fee, and a currency conversion if your bank holds a different currency from your balance.

The conversion is charged on the whole balance and is frequently the largest of the four.

Does Framekit hold my money before paying me?

No. Framekit charges each sale directly on your own connected Stripe account, so the money sits in your Stripe balance and pays out on your Stripe schedule, with Stripe's first payout typically 7 to 14 days after your first live payment.

Framekit's fee is 5% on Free and Starter, 3% on Pro and 0% on the $39 Business plan, and it does not convert currency or file tax.

Lemon Squeezy vs Stripe: which pays out better?

Stripe pays out faster and, when currencies match, cheaper: standard payouts are free and can run daily once the first payout clears.

Lemon Squeezy pays twice a month after a 13-day hold with a $50 minimum and charges 1% to pay out to a non-US bank, but it converts at the mid-market rate and pays you net of the tax it has already remitted as merchant of record.

How long do digital product payouts take?

Digital product payouts take anywhere from two business days to about four weeks depending on the platform and whether it is your first payout.

Stripe's first payout typically arrives 7 to 14 days after your first live payment and then follows your schedule, Gumroad holds weekly payouts for 7 days after an account review, and Lemon Squeezy holds sales for 13 days and pays on the 14th and 28th.

Is it cheaper to sell through a merchant of record if I live outside the US?

Not necessarily. On the carried $2,000 month, Lemon Squeezy costs about $153 to reach a euro bank and Polar about $135 to $146, against about $107 for Stripe with dollar settlement and a Wise conversion.

The merchant of record also files your VAT, so compare its premium with what registration and quarterly returns would cost you.

Should I take PayPal payouts?

Take PayPal payouts only when nothing else is offered and your currencies match.

PayPal's US merchant fee schedule lists a 3.00% conversion rate for most conversions, the highest published rate in this guide, and Gumroad charges 2% on PayPal payouts on top.

If you must use it, keep the balance in the original currency and convert elsewhere.

Can a platform freeze my money?

Yes, every option in this guide can freeze an account, and the ones that hold your balance can hold it longest.

Structures where funds land in your own processor account, such as Framekit, Payhip and Sellfy on Stripe, reduce how much is exposed. Keep a second payout route verified in advance and withdraw on a schedule.

Do I pay tax on money before or after these fees?

You generally owe income tax on gross revenue and deduct platform, processing and conversion fees as business expenses, though the details depend on your country and business structure.

A creator who records only the net payout understates revenue, so keep the platform statements as well as the bank statements.

What is the cheapest overall way to sell and get paid?

The cheapest overall way is a store that charges through your own processor, a balance held in the currency your buyers pay in, and a deliberate conversion through a published-rate provider.

For a euro seller on $2,000 a month that is about $107 with Stripe alone, or about $146 with a Framekit Business store in front, against $313 on Gumroad before its conversion.

The Verdict

Wise wins this guide on the criterion that turned out to matter most, a conversion rate you can see before you commit, and in October 2026 it was also the cheapest, at 0.29% for dollars to euros against Payoneer's 0.50%.

Payoneer is the practical second wherever a platform pays only into it, and Stripe is the cheapest route of all when your buyers and bank share a currency.

Framekit sits fourth as the cheapest store to put in front of your own Stripe payouts, with the money never passing through our hands and a 0% fee on the $39 Business plan.

Where Framekit losesit does not convert currency, does not pay you out and is not a merchant of record, so Stripe does the payout and the conversion and tax jobs stay with you.

If you hoped a website builder would solve the payout question, it will not; Wise, Payoneer and Stripe, ranked above it, are where that problem gets solved, and Lemon Squeezy or Polar are the better fit if you want tax settled before you are paid.

Verdict: match your currencies if you can and take Stripe's free payouts. If you cannot, hold the balance and convert on purpose, and run the four-step test on your last payout, because conversion is the one fee in this business that nobody sends you an invoice for.

Keep more of every sale - start free→

Fees were read from each provider's published pages on 12 October 2026. Conversion pricing varies by corridor and changes often, so check your own currency pair.

Related readingthe best payment processors for digital products, what it costs to sell digital products online, do you need a merchant of record, the best sales tax tools for digital sellers, and, for invoices rather than payouts, selling digital products to businesses.

TAGGED WITH

get paid selling digital productswise vs payoneer for creatorsinternational payouts for creatorscurrency conversion feessell digital products internationallycreator payout options

Written by

Framekit Editorial Team

Creative Tools Research

The Framekit Editorial Team researches the website builders, client galleries, video review, presentation and selling tools that photographers, filmmakers, designers and creators use. Comparisons are built from each vendor's own pricing pages, plan limits and help documentation, read and dated at the time of writing, with Framekit's own figures checked against the product it ships. Framekit is our product, and every post that ranks it says so.

Creative-tool research from vendors' published pricing, plan limits and documentation

Ready to create your online store?

Launch a storefront you own and keep more of every sale - built in minutes with Framekit.

START SELLING FREE