Buy Me a Coffee fees explained for 2026

Buy Me a Coffee keeps a 5% platform fee on every payment, and Stripe charges 2.9% + $0.30 on top to process it, so a US creator keeps $4.30 of a $5 coffee. This guide sets both out as the platform publishes them, with every figure computed by the same engine as the Buy Me a Coffee fee calculator. The rates are quoted from Buy Me a Coffee's charges help article, cross-checked against its FAQ, and were verified on 4 September 2026.

The two fees, and whose they are

There is no monthly fee, no listing fee and no published payout fee. The help page puts it plainly: "we only apply a 5% platform fee per transaction, which means you get to keep 95% of your earnings".

On a $5 coffee, the fee on $5.00 is $0.70 ($0.25 platform fee plus $0.45 payment processing fee (Stripe, card)) and you keep $4.30, an effective rate of 14%.

Small payments are where the schedule hurts

The 5% and the 2.9% scale with the payment; the $0.30 does not. On a coffee-sized amount that fixed thirty cents is most of the processing line, and the effective rate is nothing like 5%.

On a $3 tip, the fee on $3.00 is $0.54 ($0.15 platform fee plus $0.39 payment processing fee (Stripe, card)) and you keep $2.46, an effective rate of 18%. On a $25 payment, the fee on $25.00 is $2.28 ($1.25 platform fee plus $1.03 payment processing fee (Stripe, card)) and you keep $22.72, an effective rate of 9.12%. On a $100 payment, the fee on $100.00 is $8.20 ($5.00 platform fee plus $3.20 payment processing fee (Stripe, card)) and you keep $91.80, an effective rate of 8.2%.

The practical consequence is that one $25 supporter is worth noticeably more than five $5 ones: the same money arrives carrying one fixed fee instead of five. Raising the suggested amount on your page is the only lever on this side of the schedule that is honest.

The two surcharges

Both ride on the processing fee, not on the platform fee, and both are small.

On a $5 coffee from a supporter abroad, the fee on $5.00 is $0.75 ($0.25 platform fee plus $0.45 payment processing fee (Stripe, card) plus $0.05 international transaction surcharge) and you keep $4.25, an effective rate of 15%. On a $5 monthly membership charge, the fee on $5.00 is $0.73 ($0.25 platform fee plus $0.45 payment processing fee (Stripe, card) plus $0.03 subscription / recurring membership surcharge) and you keep $4.27, an effective rate of 14.6%.

A membership therefore costs a few cents a month more than the same amount given once, and a supporter abroad costs a nickel more on a $5 payment. Neither is a reason to change what you offer.

Passing the fee on

Buy Me a Coffee lets a creator set their page so the supporter covers the processing fee rather than the creator absorbing it. That is an account setting, not a different rate: no rule states a second number for it, so the calculator always shows the fees charged on the payment and leaves who bears them to you.

What to ask for to keep a round number

To keep $100.00 you charge $108.91, and the fee is $8.91. To keep $5.00 you charge $5.76, and the fee is $0.76.

Adding the fee percentage to your target lands short, because both fees are charged on the higher amount as well.

What this guide leaves out

Payouts and their timing, currencies other than US dollars, the Extras and membership products themselves, and any fee Stripe charges the platform rather than the payment. Sales tax and VAT are not modelled either: the published schedule states none.

When these rates last changed

The help article carries no effective date, so all four rates are dated from the day they were verified: 4 September 2026. The Buy Me a Coffee fee changelog holds that single entry, later changes are added there against the rule they affect, and the schedule is re-checked at least every 60 days. Confidence is high: the 5% appears independently on the platform's own FAQ as well as on the charges article.

Frequently asked questions

Does Buy Me a Coffee really keep only 5%?

Of its own fees, yes — the other line is Stripe's. What leaves your $5 is $0.70 in total, so the platform's cut is about a third of the bill and the card network's is the rest.

Is a membership charged differently from a coffee?

Only by the 0.5% added to processing on a recurring charge. The platform fee is 5% either way.

How does it compare with Ko-fi or Patreon?

The Ko-fi fee calculator prices a platform that takes 0% on donations for a free account, and the Patreon fee calculator prices plan-based rates on membership income. Buy Me a Coffee sits between them: one flat 5% on everything, with no plan to choose.

Where do these numbers come from?

Every rate is quoted from Buy Me a Coffee's own help centre, saved as a dated snapshot and checked by a person. The methodology explains the check, the schedule is quoted line by line in the calculator's fee table, and if a figure here disagrees with what the platform shows you, report it.