Freemius vs Lemon Squeezy (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Lemon Squeezy grades higher than Freemius: 2.8 against 2.4 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Lemon Squeezy grades higher on the free plan and platforms. They get the same grade on value for money, features and ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Freemius
Merchant of record, licensing and payments for software sellers
Free plan
Lemon Squeezy
Merchant of record checkout for software, subscriptions and downloads
Free plan · from $10/mo
Which one is for you
Pick Freemius if
- Fits if you sell a WordPress plugin or other software and want licensing and tax handled
- Works for solo developers who prefer paying only when something sells
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you sell WordPress products, as 2.3% is added to 3.8% + 50¢ and gateway fees come on top
- Watch out: wire payouts may carry intermediate bank fees
- Skip it if you sell high volumes, as those sellers are sent to separate growth pricing not shown
- Not for you if you sell physical goods or run a general store, as it is built for software
Pick Lemon Squeezy if
- Fits if you sell software licenses or subscriptions to buyers worldwide
- Works for makers who want sales tax and VAT filed for them, with no monthly bill
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a platform with a clear road ahead, as Stripe plans to move users to Managed Payments
- Pricey if most buyers are abroad or pay by PayPal, as each adds 1.5%, and subscriptions add 0.5%
- Watch out: recovered carts add 5%, affiliate referrals 3%, and payouts to non-US banks 1% each
- Not for you if your products cost under $10, as Lemon Squeezy asks you to contact sales
- Tight if your email list grows: free to 500, then $10 a month at 1,000, $24 at 3,000 and $60 at 10,000
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAFreemiusFair | 2.8GPALemon SqueezyGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C3.8% + 50¢ a transaction plus gateway fees, and another 2.3% for WordPress and templates. That is not below the 2.9% + $1 Digistore24 lists, so it lands in the middle. | CNo monthly fee. Each order costs 5% + 50¢, which covers card fees and sales tax, so $1,000 of sales costs $50 plus 50¢ an order. Buyers abroad add 1.5%, PayPal 1.5% and subscriptions 0.5%. That's above this category's dearer quarter, short of its dearest tenth. |
| Free plan and trial | BNo setup or monthly fee, and you can set up products and licensing without paying until you make a sale. No trial is listed, because the fee only applies to sales. | ASelling is free to start with every ecommerce feature, and you only pay as orders come in. Email marketing is free up to 500 subscribers too, then $10 a month at 1,000. |
| Features | BMerchant of record, software licensing by plan and activation, subscriptions with recovery, a customer portal, affiliates and payouts by wire and other routes. The core job is covered. | BMerchant of record, subscriptions with usage billing, license keys, signed download links, a store on your own domain, affiliates, upsells, cart recovery and email marketing. It covers the whole job. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. Licensing means integrating its SDK into your product, so a developer has to do the work. | CNo App Store rating on record. It's a web dashboard where you set up products, checkouts and a store before your first sale, with nothing in the listing to say it's quicker than that. |
| Platforms and integrations | CWeb only. Payment and payout routes run through Stripe, PayPal, Wise and Payoneer, and nothing else is listed. | BWeb, with Zapier, ConvertKit, Mailchimp, WordPress and Laravel, checkout overlays for any site and a public API. No phone or desktop app is listed. |
| Best for | selling plugins, themes and software with licensing built in | selling software and subscriptions worldwide |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Freemius and Lemon Squeezy. How we grade
Where they differ
- Lemon Squeezy also covers email campaigns.
In commonFree planWebPublic APIAffiliate trackingOnline storeDigital downloadsMerchant of record
At a glance
| Freemius | Lemon Squeezy | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | Not published | $10 per month for email marketing to 1,000 subscribers |
| Free plan | No setup or monthly fees: 3.8% + 50¢ per transaction plus gateway fees, with a further 2.3% for WordPress and templates. | Selling is free to start with every ecommerce feature included; Lemon Squeezy keeps 5% + 50¢ of each order. Email marketing is free up to 500 subscribers. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Freemius | Link, LLC (formerly Lemon Squeezy LLC) |
| Price read from | freemius.com | lemonsqueezy.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Oct 18, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Freemius
- Gateway fees are charged on top of the 3.8% + 50¢ rate.
- WordPress and templates carry an additional 2.3%.
- Wire payouts may incur intermediate bank fees, and high-volume sellers are directed to separate growth pricing.
Lemon Squeezy
- Stripe's 2026 update admits slower support and fewer updates while the team builds Stripe Managed Payments, and plans a migration path for users.
- Each order costs 5% + 50¢, plus 1.5% for buyers outside the US, 1.5% for PayPal and 0.5% for subscription payments.
- Recovered abandoned carts add 5% and affiliate referrals add 3% to the fee; payouts to non-US banks cost 1% each.
- Products priced under $10 and high-volume sellers are asked to contact sales for custom pricing.
Key features
Freemius
- Merchant of record
- Freemius becomes the seller on record and manages sales tax and VAT, fraud protection, chargebacks and disputes.
- Software licensing
- Controls access by plan, feature and activation, with multi-site licenses and automatic updates.
- Subscriptions and recovery
- Recurring billing with renewal reminders, trials and failed-renewal recovery, plus cart abandonment emails at no extra fee.
- Customer portal and affiliates
- A self-serve portal for plan changes and payment updates, and an affiliate platform that lets customers earn by promoting your product.
- Payout options
- Earnings can be paid through wire, Wise, Payoneer or PayPal.
Lemon Squeezy
- Merchant of record
- Lemon Squeezy is the seller on each order: it calculates, collects, files and pays sales tax and VAT, and takes on the tax liability.
- Subscriptions and usage billing
- Weekly, monthly or yearly plans with upgrades, downgrades, free trials, PayPal subscriptions, usage-based billing and a customer portal.
- License keys and secure files
- License keys are issued after each sale and can be deactivated or reissued; download links are signed and throttled.
- Checkout anywhere
- Hosted checkout links, an overlay checkout for any website, or a store on a custom domain, taking cards, PayPal and payments in many currencies.
- Email marketing
- Broadcasts, signup forms, segments that update from purchase behavior and email reports, free up to 500 subscribers.
- Affiliates and recovery
- A built-in affiliate program, discount codes, bundles and upsells, plus abandoned cart emails and failed payment recovery.
Plans
Freemius
Per transaction$0
No setup or monthly fee. Pay 3.8% + 50¢ per transaction plus gateway fees; WordPress and templates add 2.3%. Wire payouts are free.
Lemon Squeezy
Ecommerce$0
No monthly charge. The seller pays 5% + 50¢ of each order, covering card fees and tax, plus 1.5% abroad, 1.5% on PayPal and 0.5% on subscriptions.
Email marketing$10
per month for up to 1,000 subscribers, billed monthly
Free up to 500 subscribers. The price rises with the list: $24 a month at 3,000 subscribers and $60 a month at 10,000.
Ways to pay less
Freemius
No public discounts listed.
Lemon Squeezy
- Annual discount
Two months free on yearly email marketing
Lemon Squeezy prices yearly email marketing at ten times the monthly rate: $100 a year instead of $10 a month at 1,000 subscribers.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Freemius or Lemon Squeezy?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Freemius publishes no starting price, and Lemon Squeezy starts at $10 per month for email marketing to 1,000 subscribers.
Which has a free plan, Freemius or Lemon Squeezy?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both Freemius and Lemon Squeezy have a free plan.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.