Podia Fees at a Glance
Podia charges its fees on the sale price.
| Fee | Percentage | Flat | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Payment processing | 2.9% | $0.30 | — |
Fees That Apply in Some Cases
| Fee | Percentage | Flat | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free-plan transaction fee | 8% | — | Removed on any paid plan |
What You Keep
The flat component is what makes small sales expensive. The same fee schedule costs a very different effective rate depending on the order size:
| Sale | Fees | You receive | Effective rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| $5.00 | $0.44 | $4.56 | 8.90% |
| $20.00 | $0.88 | $19.12 | 4.40% |
| $50.00 | $1.75 | $48.25 | 3.50% |
| $100.00 | $3.20 | $96.80 | 3.20% |
| $500.00 | $14.80 | $485.20 | 2.96% |
Zero Transaction Fee, Real Processing Fee
Podia's paid plans take no cut of a sale. That is unusual among course platforms and is the main reason creators choose it, but "no platform fee" is not "no fee" — Stripe or PayPal still charges to move the money, and that cost is unavoidable anywhere.
| Plan | Platform fee | You still pay |
|---|---|---|
| Free | 8% | Card processing |
| Mover / Shaker / Earthquaker | 0% | Card processing |
Comparing Against a Percentage Platform
A flat monthly subscription beats a percentage as soon as your revenue is large enough. The crossover is the monthly fee divided by the competing platform's rate: against a 5% platform, a $39/month plan breaks even at $780 of monthly sales.
Below that, the percentage platform is genuinely cheaper. This is the single most common mistake in platform choice — creators buy the "0% fee" plan while making $200 a month and pay more, not less.
What the Subscription Actually Buys
Email marketing, a members area, digital downloads, coaching bookings and webinars are bundled rather than sold as apps. If you would otherwise pay for an email tool and a membership plugin, count those against the subscription before comparing rates.
Free Plan Economics
The free plan's 8% is high but charges nothing up front, which makes it the right place to validate an idea. Move to a paid plan once monthly sales clear the crossover, not before.
Charging to Hit a Target Payout
Adding 2.90% to your price under-recovers, because the percentage then applies to the larger amount as well. The correct gross-up divides:
``
charge = (target + flat fees) ÷ (1 − percentage rate)
``
| To receive | Charge |
|---|---|
| $100.00 | $103.30 |
| $1,000.00 | $1,030.18 |
Reducing What You Pay
- Raise average order value. The flat fee is fixed, so bundling two $20.00 orders
- Watch the optional surcharges. International and currency-conversion fees stack on top
- Negotiate at volume. Most processors will discuss custom rates once you are processing
- Do not migrate for 0.2%. The engineering and support cost of changing platforms
Paid plans charge no platform fee, so processing is the whole cost.