Patreon vs Ko-fi vs Buy Me a Coffee
Patreon fees depend on plan: blended estimates near 12.9% + $0.30 for new creators (10% platform) and legacy Founders/Pro/Pro+Merch (~7.9% / 10.9% / 13.9% + $0.30). Ko-fi Free takes 0% on one-time tips (processing separate); Standard is 5% on tips. Buy Me a Coffee lands near 8.4% + $0.30 blended. Run the same pledge through each calculator.
Key takeaways
- New Patreon creators: ~10% platform + processing ≈ 12.9% + $0.30 blended.
- Ko-fi Free: 0% on one-time tips (processing separate); Standard is 5% on tips.
- Buy Me a Coffee blended estimate ≈ 8.4% + $0.30 including Stripe and payout.
Calculate with Patreon →Calculate with Ko-fi →
What each platform is optimized for
Patreon is membership-native: recurring tiers, gated posts, and community tooling for creators who sell ongoing access. Fee impact depends on which Patreon plan you choose. Our planning schedules use blended Lite/Pro/Premium estimates near 8%, 11%, and 15% plus $0.10 per exchange as of 2026-10-24—always confirm on patreon.com/pricing because plan names and cuts change.
Ko-fi supports tips, shop items, and memberships with a free tier that commonly takes about 5% on donations, plus processing. Ko-fi Gold is the lever that can remove donation commission so that roughly processing-shaped economics (often modeled near 2.9% + $0.30) remain. Buy Me a Coffee (BMAC) is tip-and-support oriented with a common planning take near 5% + $0.30.
Fees are only one axis. Compare discovery, payout timing, membership features, shop tooling, and audience expectations. A slightly higher cut on a platform that converts better can still win. Pair fee math with /tools/patreon-fee-calculator/, /tools/kofi-fee-calculator/, and /tools/buy-me-a-coffee-fee-calculator/.
Fee comparison table
Use the table as a planning snapshot as of 2026-10-24. Blended schedules fold platform commission and typical processing for forecasting; your invoice lines may separate those layers. For digital downloads with a storefront-first motion, also compare Gumroad in our Gumroad fees vs Ko-fi guide.
Worked example: $100 support payment
Forward estimates on a $100 payment: Patreon Lite blended ~8% + $0.10 → fee ≈ $8.10, net ≈ $91.90. Patreon Pro ~11% + $0.10 → fee ≈ $11.10, net ≈ $88.90. Patreon Premium ~15% + $0.10 → fee ≈ $15.10, net ≈ $84.90. Ko-fi free ~5% → fee ≈ $5.00 before distinguishing exact processing lines on your statement. BMAC ~5% + $0.30 → fee ≈ $5.30, net ≈ $94.70.
Ko-fi Gold donation example: if commission is removed and processing is modeled near 2.9% + $0.30, a $100 tip looks closer to Stripe-shaped economics (fee ≈ $3.20, net ≈ $96.80) than to a 5% platform cut. Confirm current Gold benefits and pricing on Ko-fi before you advertise a net to yourself.
Reverse example: to net $100 on BMAC at 5% + $0.30, charge ≈ (100 + 0.30) ÷ (1 − 0.05) ≈ $105.58. To net $100 on Patreon Pro at 11% + $0.10, charge ≈ (100 + 0.10) ÷ (1 − 0.11) ≈ $112.47. Membership tiers should be reverse-priced so the creator’s target net survives the plan cut.
How to calculate monthly take-home
Forecast monthly pledges or tips, pick the correct schedule, run forward mode for status quo, then reverse mode for target net. If you are on Ko-fi free today, also model Gold: subtract Gold’s subscription cost from the commission you would save at your tip volume.
Example Gold break-even sketch: $800/month tips × 5% ≈ $40 platform commission. If Gold costs less than the commission you remove—and processing remains—you may come out ahead. Plug live Gold pricing from Ko-fi; do not rely on a remembered subscription price from a blog post.
- Estimate monthly volume by platform (pledges vs one-off tips vs shop).
- Select Lite/Pro/Premium, Ko-fi free/Gold, or BMAC schedule in the matching calculator.
- Compute net and effective percent = fees ÷ volume.
- Add payout timing and failed-payment drag for memberships.
- Compare feature value if fee gaps are small.
When to choose Patreon, Ko-fi, or BMAC
Choose Patreon when recurring memberships, tier gating, and community posts are the product. Accept that blended take rises on higher plans that unlock more tools—price tiers with reverse math so fans fund the cut you actually selected.
Choose Ko-fi when you want a lightweight tip jar with an optional Gold upgrade path. Gold tends to pay for itself when donation volume makes a 5% cut expensive relative to the subscription—verify with /tools/kofi-fee-calculator/.
Choose Buy Me a Coffee when your audience already uses BMAC and you want simple support payments with a predictable ~5% + $0.30 planning model via /tools/buy-me-a-coffee-fee-calculator/.
Multi-homing across all three fragments attention. Pick a primary home, then link secondary tip buttons carefully. If you sell downloads as a catalog, compare Gumroad or a Stripe storefront rather than forcing shop behavior into a tip platform.
Practical tips and pitfalls
Processing is not optional. Even when a platform advertises 0% commission on some donation types, card networks still take a cut through the payment stack. Our Gold schedule includes an approximate processing layer so you do not under-price.
Failed recurring charges, refunds, and currency conversion can move nets away from calculator ideals. Keep a month of real payout CSV data next to the model. Read hidden payment fees for instant payout and FX surprises that also hit creators.
Cite official pages when you update your public “what I earn” graphics: patreon.com/pricing, ko-fi.com, and Buy Me a Coffee help/pricing materials. Our as-of date for embedded schedules is 2026-10-15.
- Reverse-price every membership tier after plan selection.
- Re-model when you change Patreon plans or buy Ko-fi Gold.
- Do not promise fans a net you have not verified on a live payout.
- Compare shop/download fees separately (see Gumroad vs Ko-fi).
Membership math vs tip-jar math
Membership platforms collect recurring pledges that fail, upgrade, and churn. A Patreon Pro blended estimate near 11% + $0.10 on a pledged $100 is not the same as $100 deposited every month—failed cards reduce volume before fees. Build a collection-rate assumption (for example 92–97% of pledged amounts) into forecasts, then apply the fee schedule to collected volume.
Tip jars on Ko-fi and Buy Me a Coffee are spikier: launch weeks and crowdfunding moments dominate averages. Use a trailing three-month average tip volume when deciding whether Ko-fi Gold’s commission removal beats the free plan’s ~5% cut. Shop sales on those platforms deserve a separate line—do not average shop and tips into one misleading effective rate.
If you sell downloads as a primary motion, open the Gumroad vs Ko-fi comparison rather than stretching a tip platform into a full storefront. Creator hubs at /creator-fees/ group the calculators for side-by-side experiments with the same $ amount.
| Platform / plan | Planning rate | Fee on $100 | Approx. net |
|---|---|---|---|
| Patreon Lite (blended est.) | ~8% + $0.10 | ~$8.10 | ~$91.90 |
| Patreon Pro (blended est.) | ~11% + $0.10 | ~$11.10 | ~$88.90 |
| Patreon Premium (blended est.) | ~15% + $0.10 | ~$15.10 | ~$84.90 |
| Ko-fi free (typical tips) | ~5% | ~$5.00 | ~$95.00 |
| Ko-fi Gold (processing est.) | ~2.9% + $0.30 | ~$3.20 | ~$96.80 |
| Buy Me a Coffee | ~5% + $0.30 | ~$5.30 | ~$94.70 |
Sources
- Patreon pricing (as of 2026-10-24)
- Ko-fi (as of 2026-10-24)
- Buy Me a Coffee (as of 2026-10-24)
FAQ
Which creator platform takes the least?
Often Ko-fi Gold for donations when commission is removed and only processing-like fees remain, but processing and payout rails still apply. On free Ko-fi or BMAC, planning takes near 5% (BMAC also +$0.30) can beat higher Patreon plan blends—verify current policies on official pricing pages.
Should I multi-home on several platforms?
Possible, but fragmented memberships confuse fans and split messaging. Pick a primary home for recurring support and treat secondary buttons as overflow, not three equal memberships.
Do Patreon percentages include processing?
Our calculators use blended planning estimates that include platform and typical processing effects for forecasting. Your Patreon statements may show separate lines. Treat blends as planning tools and spot-check against payouts.
When does Ko-fi Gold pay for itself?
When the donation commission you remove exceeds Gold’s cost at your monthly tip volume, after still paying processing. Run the arithmetic with your real monthly tips and current Gold pricing from Ko-fi.
How do I compare a $10 tier across platforms?
Enter $10 in each of /tools/patreon-fee-calculator/, /tools/kofi-fee-calculator/, and /tools/buy-me-a-coffee-fee-calculator/ on the correct schedule, then compare net and effective percent. Multiply by patron count for monthly forecasts.