PayKickstart vs SamCart (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, SamCart grades higher than PayKickstart: 2.4 against 2.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
SamCart grades higher on features. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
PayKickstart
Checkout, recurring billing and affiliate management for sellers
Free trial
SamCart
Checkout and sales page builder with courses and an AI assistant
Free trial · from $79/mo
Which one is for you
Pick PayKickstart if
- Fits if you sell courses or coaching with recurring billing and affiliates
- Works for sellers who prefer to keep their own payment processor
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want tax handled for you, as you set up tax profiles and it is not described as a merchant of record
- Watch out: prices could not be read, so check them before you start the trial
- Watch out: what happens after the 14-day trial depends on the plan you pick
Pick SamCart if
- Fits if you sell courses or ebooks and want pages, checkout and hosting in one place
- Works for marketers who'll pay $199 a month for Pro's upsells, order bumps and A/B tests
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you want upsells, affiliates or the API, as all need Pro at $199 a month
- Not for you if you want a few weeks to decide, since there's no free plan and the trial is 7 days
- Tight if you have a team, as Core includes one seat, and more than Pro's ten needs a custom plan
- Watch out: SamPay charges 2.9% + 30 cents a sale, and tax collection adds 0.5% on Core or 0.35% on Pro
- Watch out: the AI assistant has limited use on Core, and other payment processors need Pro
How we grade them
| 2.2GPAPayKickstartFair | 2.4GPASamCartFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CPlan prices could not be read because the pricing page blocked automated access, so it sits in the middle until they are seen. | CCore billed yearly is $79 a month less 25%: $59.25. SamCart takes no cut beyond SamPay's 2.9% + 30 cents card rate (not counted), though tax collection adds 0.5%, $5 on $1,000. That's above this category's dearer quarter, short of its dearest tenth. |
| Free plan and trial | CA free 14-day trial is listed; the pages read do not say whether a card is needed. No free plan. | CNo free plan. There's a 7-day free trial on every plan, a week and no more, and the listing doesn't say it needs a card. |
| Features | CCheckout and upsells, subscription management, retention, affiliates and tax tools. It is not a merchant of record, and tax profiles are set up by you. | BCheckout with wallets and buy now pay later, sales and link-in-bio pages, a courses app with a members area, subscriptions with a customer portal and an AI assistant. The whole job is covered; upsells, A/B tests and affiliates wait for Pro. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. You build checkouts, funnels and tax profiles yourself. | CNo App Store rating on record. The AI assistant drafts copy and pages, but you're still building pages, checkouts and a members area before you sell. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb with eight listed integrations, including Stripe, PayPal, QuickBooks Online, Xero and HubSpot. No desktop or phone app. | BWeb, with PayPal, Stripe Link, Zapier, Klarna, Afterpay, Affirm, Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager. The API needs Pro, and no phone or desktop app is listed. |
| Best for | checkout, recurring billing and affiliates in one tool | checkouts and sales pages with AI help |
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: PayKickstart and SamCart. How we grade
Where they differ
- PayKickstart also covers invoicing, reports and online store.
- SamCart also covers online courses and a/B testing.
In commonWebPublic APIAffiliate trackingDigital downloads
At a glance
| PayKickstart | SamCart | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | Not published | $79 per month |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | Free 14-day trial, cancel at any time | 7-day free trial on every plan |
| Web | ||
| Made by | PayKickstart | SamCart Inc. |
| Price read from | Not confirmed | samcart.com |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Oct 18, 2026 |
Worth knowing
PayKickstart
- Plan prices could not be read: its pricing page blocked automated access, so none are listed here.
- Its help pages describe tax profiles you set up yourself, and none of the pages read call it a merchant of record.
- The home page offers a free 14-day trial; what happens after it depends on the plan chosen.
SamCart
- No free plan, only a 7-day trial; Core starts at $79 a month, with 25% off for yearly billing.
- SamPay charges 2.9% + 30 cents a sale on both plans, and tax collection adds 0.5% on Core or 0.35% on Pro.
- Upsells, order bumps, A/B testing, affiliates, the API and third-party processors all need Pro at $199 a month.
- Core includes one team seat and Pro ten; more seats and marketplaces need the custom Done For You plan.
Key features
PayKickstart
- Checkout and upsells
- Hosted checkout pages with one-click upsells, order bumps, coupons, exit intent offers and multi-currency support.
- Subscription management
- Recurring billing and subscription tools, including pausing subscriptions and carrying a trial period over an upgrade or downgrade.
- Revenue retention
- Dunning management, cancellation retention flows and cart abandonment recovery, plus ringless voicemail and SMS features.
- Affiliate management
- Lead and sales referral tracking, affiliate verification, affiliate coupon codes and a marketplace where affiliates find products to promote.
- Tax and accounting
- Invoices, sales and VAT tax profiles, an in-house EU VAT calculation and QuickBooks Online and Xero integrations.
- Payment processors
- Help pages cover connecting Stripe, PayPal, Authorize.net, Apple Pay, Google Pay, ACH and SEPA debit, and its own Connect payments.
SamCart
- Checkout pages
- Mobile-first checkouts with stored cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal, Venmo and buy now pay later through Klarna, Afterpay and Affirm.
- Pages and link-in-bio
- Sales pages, microsites, link-in-bio pages and opt-in pages on your own domain, built with AI help and no code.
- Courses and members area
- A courses app with a built-in members area and video hosting, so courses can be sold and delivered without another platform.
- AI assistant
- Writes sales copy and designs ebooks, courses, lead magnets, social posts and ads. Core has limited AI use; Pro is unlimited.
- Upsells, tests and affiliates on Pro
- One-click upsells, order bumps and upgrades, A/B tests of pages and prices, an affiliate center and failed-payment recovery.
- Subscriptions and customer portal
- Memberships, recurring plans and payment plans, with a portal where customers update cards and manage their own subscriptions.
Plans
PayKickstart
Pricing could not be confirmed. See paykickstart.com.
SamCart
Core$79
per month
Unlimited pages, products and checkouts, AI assistant with limited use, courses app, cart abandonment, integrations and 1 team seat.
Pro$199
per month
Adds one-click upsells, order bumps, A/B testing, Subscription Saver, the Affiliate Center, advanced reports, API, other processors and 10 seats.
Done For YouCustom
Sold through a call: white glove setup, a dedicated account manager, priority support, multiple marketplaces and the lowest processing rates.
Ways to pay less
PayKickstart
No public discounts listed.
SamCart
- Annual discount
25% off with yearly billing
SamCart's pricing page offers yearly billing at 25% off the monthly prices of $79 for Core and $199 for Pro.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, PayKickstart or SamCart?
As of Nov 13, 2026, PayKickstart has no price we could confirm, and SamCart starts at $79 per month.
Which has a free plan, PayKickstart or SamCart?
As of Nov 13, 2026, neither PayKickstart nor SamCart has a free plan. Both have a free trial.
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.