Ko-fi
Creator page for tips, memberships, a shop and paid commissions
Ko-fi report card
Good · out of 4.0 · graded Oct 18, 2026
Best for tips, memberships and commissions from fans
Ko-fi is a free page where fans can tip you, join a membership, buy from your shop or order a commission, and the money goes straight to your own payment account. It takes 5% on shop, membership and commission sales. It's lighter than a real store, though, and sales tax is yours to sort out.
Who Ko-fi is for
- Great if you're an artist or streamer who wants tips, members and a shop on one page
- Handy when you take paid commissions and want requests and payment in one place
- Good for small sellers who don't want a monthly fee
Who Ko-fi is not for
- Skip it if you want sales tax handled for you, since you're the merchant of record
- Too light for a proper store with email, discount codes and upsells
Why Ko-fi gets a 2.6
Five grades, each with its reason. The GPA is their average: an A is 4 points, an F is none.
- CValue for moneyNo price for Ko-fi Gold is on record, so our rule for a missing price makes this a C. On the free page, 5% of $1,000 in shop, membership and commission sales is $50 a month, with card fees on top (not counted). That's Buy Me a Coffee's rate and half Patreon's 10%.
- AFree plan and trialThe free page has tips, memberships, a shop and commissions with no monthly or listing fee, and no cap on record. You pay 5% when you sell, and the value grade counts that.
- CFeaturesGraded against its own alternatives, fan-support pages. Tips, goals, member tiers with posts and Discord roles, a shop for files and physical items, commissions and stream alerts. It does that job fully, but it's a smaller kit: no email, discounts or tax handling in the listing.
- CEase of useNo App Store rating on record. A page is quick to start, but you connect PayPal or a card account first, and member tiers and a shop take some setting up.
- BPlatforms and integrationsWeb, with PayPal, Discord, Twitch, YouTube and a WordPress plugin, plus stream overlays. No phone or desktop app is listed.
What these grades rest on. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Ko-fi's own pages on 18 October 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. How we review and grade.
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<a href="https://toolgpa.com/tools/ko-fi#review"><img src="https://toolgpa.com/badge/ko-fi.svg" alt="Ko-fi: 2.6 GPA on ToolGPA" width="196" height="56"></a>Where Ko-fi stands among tools for selling digital products
Ko-fi's GPA of 2.6 is higher than 6 of the 14 other tools for selling digital products we grade, and level with 5.
It stands best on free plan and trial (A, above 7 of 14) and worst on features (C, above 0).
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 15 tools for selling digital products we grade, cut by the letter each got. Ko-fi’s own letter is outlined.
- CValue for moneyAbove 3 of 14, level with 9
- AFree plan and trialAbove 7 of 14, level with 7
- CFeaturesAbove 0 of 14, level with 5
- CEase of useAbove 1 of 14, level with 11
- BPlatforms and integrationsAbove 0 of 14, level with 14
Keep Ko-fi, or make your own?
Keep it
To replace Ko-fi you would be making checkout, card payments and sales tax handled for you. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
What you could make
- Digital downloads: an app builder makes this well.
What you could not
- Checkout, card payments and sales tax handled for you.
- It plugs into other products, PayPal, Discord and Twitch among them.
What this rests on. Ko-fi’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
What is Ko-fi?
Ko-fi gives creators a free page where supporters can leave one-off tips, join paid membership tiers, buy digital or physical items and order commissions. Supporters pay the creator directly, and the creator stays the merchant of record. Ko-fi takes a small platform fee on most sales, and a paid Gold plan is sold alongside the free page.
Ko-fi's current pricing could not be confirmed from its own site. See every plan
Good for
- Artists and streamers who want tips and memberships on one page
- Creators who take paid commissions from fans
- Small sellers who want a shop with no monthly fee
Worth knowing
- Ko-fi sells a paid Gold plan, but its price could not be confirmed on Ko-fi's own pages for this listing.
- Shop, membership and commission sales carry a 5% Ko-fi fee on the free page, and PayPal or card processing fees come on top.
- Creators are the merchant of record, so sales tax and VAT on their sales are their own responsibility.
Key features
- Tips and goals
- One-off tips from supporters, plus funding goals that creators can set and show on their page or on a stream overlay.
- Memberships
- Membership tiers with member-only posts (text, audio, video and polls), member-only shop items and requests, and Discord roles for members.
- Ko-fi Shop
- Sell digital downloads and physical items from a link, with no listing or monthly fees; Ko-fi takes 5% when a sale is made.
- Commissions
- Take paid requests such as artwork, tutorials, feedback sessions or video messages, with a 5% platform fee on each sale.
- Stream alerts
- Connect Twitch or YouTube to show tips, subscriptions and goals as on-stream alerts and overlays.
- Direct payouts
- Supporters pay the creator directly through PayPal, Venmo, cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay or local methods, with no payout schedule to wait on.
Ko-fi pricing
We could not confirm Ko-fi’s current pricing from its own site, so we are not listing plans here. See ko-fi.com for current prices.
Works with
Ko-fi alternatives
- Ko-fi vs Patreon
Free
- Ko-fi vs Gumroad
Free
- Ko-fi vs Stan
Free trial · from $29/mo
- Ko-fi vs Memberful
Free trial · from $49/mo
Common questions
Is Ko-fi free?
Ko-fi has a free plan. A free page with tips, memberships, a shop and commissions. Ko-fi's own pages state a 5% platform fee on shop, membership and commission sales, plus card processing fees.
What platforms does Ko-fi work on?
Ko-fi is available on Web.
Does Ko-fi have an Android app?
No Android app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 18, 2026. Ko-fi is listed for Web.
Does Ko-fi have an iPhone app?
No iPhone app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 18, 2026. Ko-fi is listed for Web.
Is Ko-fi open source?
Ko-fi is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Oct 18, 2026.
What does Ko-fi integrate with?
Ko-fi's listing names PayPal, Discord, Twitch, YouTube and WordPress. A listing names up to eight integrations, so it may connect to more.
Who makes Ko-fi?
Ko-fi is made by Ko-fi Labs.
What are the alternatives to Ko-fi?
The closest alternatives to Ko-fi in our directory are Buy Me a Coffee, Patreon, Gumroad, Stan and Memberful. Each one has a side-by-side comparison with Ko-fi.
How does Ko-fi compare with other tools for selling digital products?
Ko-fi's GPA of 2.6 is higher than 6 of the 14 other tools for selling digital products we grade, and level with 5. It stands best on free plan and trial (A, above 7 of 14) and worst on features (C, above 0).
Could I make my own version of Ko-fi?
To replace Ko-fi you would be making checkout, card payments and sales tax handled for you. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one. What you could not make: Checkout, card payments and sales tax handled for you. It plugs into other products, PayPal, Discord and Twitch among them. This is a judgement from its listing. We have not built one.
Sources for this page
The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Oct 18, 2026.