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Whop vs Gumroad vs Stan Store vs Skool vs Hotmart: fees compared
Platform pricing pages show one number. What you keep depends on three layers: the platform fee, card processing on top, and any fixed monthly plan. This page puts the three together for the five platforms most used to sell digital products, with each figure’s source and the date it was checked.
The fees side by side
| Whop | Gumroad | Stan Store | Skool | Hotmart | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly plan | None | None | $29 Creator · $99 Pro | $9 Hobby · $99 Pro | None |
| Platform fee | 0% without automations · 3% with them | 10% + $0.50 direct · 30% via Discover | 0% | 10% Hobby · 2.9% Pro, processing included | 9.9% + $0.50, processing included |
| Processing on top | ≈ 2.7% + $0.40; +1.5% international cards; +1% currency conversion | Stripe 2.9% + $0.30 or PayPal; effective ≈ 12.9% + $0.80 overall | Standard Stripe or PayPal | Included | Included |
| Best at | Files, software access, communities | Templates and design, marketplace | Link-in-bio stores | Paid communities | Spanish/Portuguese courses with affiliates |
What you keep from every €100
Single sale, EU customer, no affiliate, no optional add-ons. Monthly plans are not included in this per-sale figure.
| Platform | Approx. net |
|---|---|
| Direct Stripe (Spain-based account, EEA card) | €98.25 |
| Stan Store (plan paid separately) | €96.80 |
| Skool Pro (plan paid separately) | €96.80 |
| Whop (EUR, no automations) | €95.50 |
| Lemon Squeezy (merchant of record) | €94.50 |
| Skool Hobby (plan paid separately) | €89.70 |
| Hotmart | €89.60 |
| Gumroad direct | €84.90 |
| Gumroad via Discover | €70.00 |
With a 30% affiliate, subtract another €30 on any of them (plus 1.25% affiliate processing on Whop).
Two realistic scenarios
A €15 guide, 50 sales a month (€750)
| Platform | Net per month |
|---|---|
| Whop | ≈ €704 (94%) |
| Stan Creator (after the $29 plan) | ≈ €687 (92%) |
| Hotmart | ≈ €653 (87%) |
| Gumroad direct | ≈ €605 (81%) |
| Gumroad via Discover | ≈ €525 (70%) |
A €29 membership, 100 members (€2,900)
| Platform | Net per month |
|---|---|
| Stan Creator | ≈ €2,761 (95%) |
| Whop | ≈ €2,750 (95%) |
| Skool Pro | ≈ €2,696 (93%) |
| Skool Hobby | ≈ €2,573 (89%) |
| Hotmart | ≈ €2,567 (88.5%) |
| Gumroad direct | ≈ €2,408 (83%) |
Below roughly €300 a month in sales, fixed plans (Stan, Skool Pro) weigh you down and the no-plan platforms are the safer start. Above roughly €700 a month, the 0%-fee platforms pull ahead of the ones that take 10 to 15 points.
Which one for which product
| You sell | First choice | Why |
|---|---|---|
| PDF guides, vaults, zip downloads | Whop, or a Stripe payment link | No platform fee on files; Stripe is the cheapest for EU cards |
| Templates and design assets | Gumroad or Whop | Gumroad’s Discover is strong for templates, if you accept 30% on those sales |
| A paid community with a weekly ritual | Skool | Gamification and discovery help retention; it costs a few points more than Whop |
| A link-in-bio shop driven by social media | Stan Creator | Built for creator storefronts; the plan pays off once sales cover it |
| Courses for Latin America with installments | Hotmart | The only one here with native Pix, OXXO, PSE and installments |
| Selling to many countries without handling VAT | Lemon Squeezy | Merchant of record: it collects and remits VAT for you |
Things the pricing pages don’t tell you
- Whop’s 0% only applies without automations. Turning on Discord, Telegram or TradingView roles adds 3%.
- Whop can add VAT on top of your price. If your page says €28 and the tax setting is “exclusive”, an EU customer is charged €33.88. Set tax to “included” if you advertise final prices, and test the checkout from a logged-out browser.
- Gumroad’s 10% is before processing. With card fees the effective cost is closer to 12.9% plus about 80 cents.
- Currency matters. A wallet in dollars with prices in euros means a conversion fee on every sale.
- New accounts can see funds held, especially on pre-sales. Plan cash flow accordingly.
Sources and verification
| Figure | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Skool Hobby $9/month with 10% · Pro $99/month with 2.9% | Confirmed | skool.com/pricing |
| Whop: no platform fee without automations; 3% with them | Third-party | ruzuku.com · schoolmaker.com |
| Whop processing 2.7% + $0.30, Radar $0.07, 3DS $0.03, +1.5% intl, +1% FX | Third-party | ruzuku.com |
| Gumroad 10% + $0.50 direct · 30% via Discover | Confirmed | gumroad.com/pricing |
| Gumroad’s 10% excludes processing | Third-party | cartmango.com |
| Hotmart 9.9% + $0.50 | Unverified | Official page not checked |
| Stan Store $29 / $99 a month, 0% fee | Unverified | Pricing page did not respond |
Net figures are estimates for a seller in Spain with EU customers, computed from the rates above. They are not quotes from the platforms.
Frequently asked
Is Whop cheaper than Gumroad?
For a direct sale, usually yes. Whop charges no platform fee on products without automations, only payment processing, while Gumroad charges 10 percent plus 50 cents before processing. Gumroad Discover sales cost 30 percent.
Does Whop charge a fee on digital products?
According to third-party analyses updated in 2026, Whop takes no platform fee on products without automations and 3 percent when automations such as Discord, Telegram or TradingView are enabled, plus card processing of about 2.7 percent and 30 to 40 cents.
Which platform is best for selling a digital download?
For a file sold to your own audience, Whop, Gumroad direct, Lemon Squeezy or a Stripe payment link all work. Stripe is cheapest for EU customers; Lemon Squeezy handles VAT for you; Gumroad Discover only pays off if its marketplace brings buyers you wouldn't reach.
Launch price · lifetime community included
Want the whole method? That’s The Vault
This guide is one piece of it. The Vault is the complete Obsidian vault it comes from: 31 notes and 54,000+ words in plain markdown, covering niche and validation, product design, platforms and fees, landing pages and email, and ready-to-paste legal templates. Every figure has its source and date.
- Lifetime access to the community: ask what a file can’t answer
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- Launch price: it goes up as the vault grows; you keep yours and every update
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