Free during the beta
Free until you're selling. Never more than $29 a month.
Free in test mode. Free for your first 100 orders each month. Then 1% per order (max $2), but never more than $29 a month per store. No monthly fees.
Build everything with Stripe test cards. npx commerceforai init, no sign-up.
Every store, every month. Most side projects never pay.
Max $2 an order, and never more than $29 a month per store. It stops there automatically.
- ✓ No monthly fee, no per-store fee, no setup fee, no plan to pick
- ✓ Payments go to your own Stripe account. Stripe's processing fees are billed to you by Stripe
- ✓ Your own Printify, Printful, EasyPost, Shippo and Resend accounts at their prices. No markup
- ✓ We announce the post-beta start date at least 30 days ahead
What you'd pay
- Stripe Checkout (DIY)$88 totalsame as us
- Shopify Basic$117 totalwe're $29 less
- Snipcart$136 totalwe're $48 less
- Lemon Squeezy$150 totalwe're $62 less
Totals include standard card processing (2.9% + 30¢) so every option is comparable.
Compared with the alternatives
Total monthly cost including card processing, with $40 orders, so every row is comparable. Merchant-of-record services (Lemon Squeezy, Polar, Paddle, Gumroad) include processing in their rate and handle sales tax for you. Lowest public prices, billed yearly where offered, as of November 2026. Prices change, so check each link.
| Option | Monthly | Fee per sale | At $2k/mo | At $10k/mo | At $50k/mo | Physical goods | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CommerceForAI no sign-up to start | $0 | 1% (max $2/order) after 100 free orders/mo, capped at $29/mo | $73 | $394 | $1,854 | yes | Inventory, orders, shipping labels, returns, print-on-demand, emails, MCP. On your own Stripe account. |
| Stripe Checkout, DIY | $0 | none | $73 | $365 | $1,825 | yes | You (or your agent) build and maintain orders, stock, shipping, returns and webhooks yourself. |
| Stripe Payment Links | $0 | none | $73 | $365 | $1,825 | yes | No stock control, order workflow, labels or returns. |
| Shopify Basic | $29 | none with Shopify Payments; 2% with another processor | $102 | $394 | $1,854 | yes | $29/mo billed yearly, $39 monthly. Apps cost extra. Headless needs extra work. |
| Wix Core | $29 | none | $102 | $394 | $1,854 | yes | Billed yearly. Site builder first. |
| Squarespace Basic Commerce | $16 | 2% | $129 | $581 | $2,841 | yes | Billed yearly ($25 monthly). Higher plans remove the 2% fee. |
| Square Online Free | $0 | card rate 3.3% + 30¢ | $81 | $405 | $2,025 | yes | Plus is $49/mo per location at 2.9% + 30¢. |
| Ecwid Starter | $5 | none | $78 | $370 | $1,830 | yes | 10 products. Larger catalogs need higher plans (up to $149/mo). |
| Big Cartel Platinum | $12 | none | $85 | $377 | $1,837 | yes | 50 products, billed yearly. Gold is free for 5 products. |
| Snipcart | $0 | 2% (min $10–20/mo) | $113 | $565 | $2,825 | yes | Add-on cart for your own site. |
| Medusa Cloud Launch | $99 | none | $172 | $464 | $1,924 | yes | Open-source commerce backend, hosted. Develop plan $29/mo for non-production. |
| Swell Starter | $29 | none up to the plan's revenue limit | $102 | $394 | $1,854 | yes | Billed yearly. Headless commerce platform. |
| Commerce Layer Developer | $0 | free for 100 live orders/mo, then custom | $73 | custom | custom | yes | Headless commerce API; paid plans are sales-quoted. |
| Lemon Squeezy | $0 | 5% + 50¢ (includes processing) | $125 | $625 | $3,125 | digital-first | Merchant of record: handles sales tax/VAT. +1.5% international. |
| Polar | $0 | 4% + 40¢ (includes processing) | $100 | $500 | $2,500 | digital-first | Merchant of record for digital products. +1.5% international. |
| Paddle | $0 | 5% + 50¢ (includes processing) | $125 | $625 | $3,125 | software only | Merchant of record for software/SaaS. |
| Gumroad | $0 | 10% + 50¢ | $225 | $1,125 | $5,625 | digital-first | Some sources add card processing on top; we show the lower figure. |
| Payhip Free | $0 | 5% | $173 | $865 | $4,325 | digital-first | Plus: $29/mo + 2%. Pro: $99/mo + 0%. |
Scenarios: 50, 250 and 1,250 orders a month of $40. Card processing modeled at 2.9% + 30¢ (Square Free: 3.3% + 30¢). App, theme, international-card and currency fees not included. Found a number that's out of date? Tell us and we'll fix it.
The honest summary
- Against building it yourself on Stripe: we cost at most $29 a month more, at any size. That buys the inventory, order, shipping, returns and fulfillment code you'd otherwise write and maintain.
- Against Shopify, Wix and Swell: the same $29 ceiling as their yearly plans, but $0 until your 101st order each month, and you keep your own code and Stripe account.
- Against percentage-only tools: Snipcart, Squarespace Basic, Payhip and the merchant-of-record services charge more as you grow. We stop at $29.
- Cheaper for tiny catalogs: Ecwid (10 products) and Big Cartel (50 products) cost slightly less at small sizes, within their product limits.
FAQ
- Is it really capped at $29?
- Yes, per store per calendar month, automatically. A store doing $1M a month pays $29.
- What about Stripe's fees?
- Stripe charges its normal processing fees directly to your Stripe account. We never mark them up.
- 1% of what?
- The order's items. Shipping and tax aren't included. Months are calendar months in UTC.
- How is the fee collected?
- As a small Stripe application fee on each paid order. There's no separate bill or card on file.
- Several projects?
- Each store gets its own 100 free orders a month and its own $29 cap.