Merchant of Record & Payments-Provider Selection
Helps choose how to bill global customers for SaaS/digital products: whether to use a Merchant of
Record (which absorbs global sales-tax/VAT liability for a higher fee) or a self-managed processor
like Stripe (lower fee, but you own tax registration + remittance), and which specific provider fits.
Step 1 — Gather context
If references/learnings.md exists, read it first for accumulated knowledge.
Ask the user (lead with a best-effort answer if they've already told you most of this):
-
What's the decision?
- A) MoR vs self-managed (Stripe) — the strategic call
- B) Which MoR — Paddle vs Lemon Squeezy vs FastSpring vs Dodo vs Polar vs Creem vs Gumroad
- C) Switching providers — is it worth it / how painful
- D) Tax-compliance worry — VAT/GST/sales-tax nexus and who's liable -
What are you selling? Self-serve SaaS subscriptions · B2B SaaS (invoices/POs/net terms) · one-off
digital products · usage-based · mobile-app purchases. -
Where are your customers? Mostly domestic (one tax jurisdiction) · global (many) — this is the single
biggest factor in the MoR-vs-DIY call. -
Stage / team? Solo/indie · small team (no finance/tax ops) · scaling with finance ops · enterprise.
-
Fee sensitivity? Lowest possible fee · willing to pay ~5% to never touch tax.
Skip-ahead rule: if the prompt already provides most of this, go straight to Step 4 with stated
assumptions, then ask 1–2 critical clarifiers.
Step 2 — Route or answer directly
| If the question is about... | Route to... |
|---|---|
| Paddle-specific API, webhooks, Billing-vs-Classic, or config | /sales-paddle {question} |
| Lemon Squeezy-specific setup/API | /sales-lemonsqueezy {question} |
| Gumroad-specific setup/API | /sales-gumroad {question} |
| Checkout-conversion optimization (order bumps, upsells, cart recovery) | /sales-checkout {question} |
| Subscription churn / dunning / retention tactics | /sales-membership {question} |
| Two-sided marketplace seller payouts (paying out many suppliers) | /sales-marketplace-payouts {question} |
| Choosing a billing engine (stay seller of record, keep tax in-house): Chargebee/Recurly/Maxio/Stripe Billing/Zuora/Orb/Lago | /sales-subscription-billing {question} |
| Chargebee-specific API/webhooks/config | /sales-chargebee {question} |
Otherwise, answer from the framework below.
Step 3 — Provider comparison reference
Read references/platforms.md for the full comparison — the MoR-vs-processor distinction, the decision
matrix (Paddle / Lemon Squeezy / Polar / Creem / Gumroad / Stripe) plus the FastSpring and Dodo Payments
sections, per-provider fees, tax coverage, B2B support, and switching costs.
Answer using only the relevant section. Don't dump the whole reference.
Step 4 — Actionable guidance
The core decision: MoR vs self-managed (Stripe)
- Sell globally + small/no finance team → MoR. The ~5% buys away registering, calculating, filing, and
remitting VAT/GST/sales-tax in every jurisdiction, plus fraud/chargeback liability. You're the product
builder, not a tax department. - Mostly domestic, or have finance/tax ops (or a tax engine like Anrok/Avalara), or need max control/low
fee at scale → Stripe (self-managed). Stripe Tax calculates but does not remit — you stay the
seller of record and own compliance. - Reframe the fee: MoR ~5% vs Stripe ~2.9% looks like a 2% gap, but international Stripe (intl card +FX
+Stripe Tax) effectively reaches ~5%, and then you still owe the compliance work. The real comparison is
"~2% extra" vs "an accountant + registrations in N countries."
Which MoR (quick picks)
- Lowest fee, indie/micro-SaaS: Creem (newest — weigh vendor risk) or Lemon Squeezy.
- Self-serve SaaS, great DX, staying simple: Lemon Squeezy (now Stripe-owned).
- Devtool/OSS audience, DX over fee: Polar (highest fee, ~10%).
- Scaling into B2B/enterprise — POs, net terms, deepest tax coverage: Paddle.
- Software/games/SaaS wanting a proven enterprise MoR with B2B quotes/invoicing (rate is negotiated): FastSpring — mind the quote-based pricing and that refunds keep the fee.
- Creator selling one-off digital products with a marketplace: Gumroad.
Don't churn providers lightly
Switching MoRs (or MoR→Stripe) forces payment-method re-tokenization (often a customer re-subscribe),
subscription migration, and a tax-registration transition. Choose deliberately; migrate only for a real
structural reason (outgrowing B2B support, fee at scale, vendor risk).
If you discover something not covered here, append it to references/learnings.md with today's date.
Gotchas
> Best-effort from research (2026-06) — fees and tax coverage change frequently; verify on each provider.
- Stripe Tax ≠ tax compliance. It calculates rates but does not remit or take liability — with bare
Stripe you are the seller of record and must register + file + remit yourself. - The fee gap narrows internationally. Stripe's effective international rate (intl card + FX + Stripe
Tax) approaches a MoR's ~5%, before counting your compliance labor. - Lemon Squeezy lacks enterprise billing. No purchase orders / net terms — a wall for B2B selling to
larger companies; Paddle (or Stripe Invoicing) is the move there. - Polar's headline fee is ~10% + processing — much higher than Paddle/LS; great DX, but model the cost.
- Newer MoRs (Creem) carry vendor + coverage risk. Lowest fee, but thinner tax-jurisdiction coverage and
longevity uncertainty — fine for indie, riskier for a business you're betting on. - Switching is expensive and customer-visible. Re-tokenization can force re-subscribes; plan migrations
carefully and rarely. - MoRs control payouts + acceptable use. You're paid on their schedule (not instant), and high-risk
categories can be declined at onboarding — verify your product is allowed before committing.
Related skills
/sales-paddle— Paddle platform help (MoR API/webhooks, Billing vs Classic, tax/fee model)/sales-fastspring— FastSpring platform help (enterprise-heritage MoR — REST API/HMAC webhooks, Store Builder Library, B2B invoicing/quotes; quote-based ~5.9%+$0.95 / 8.9% fee)/sales-dodo-payments— Dodo Payments platform help (developer-first MoR — full REST API, 9 SDKs, framework adapters, Standard-Webhooks signing, CLI + MCP server; ~4% + $0.40/txn)/sales-lemonsqueezy— Lemon Squeezy platform help (MoR for indie/self-serve SaaS, license keys, API)/sales-gumroad— Gumroad platform help (creator MoR marketplace, digital products)/sales-subscription-billing— Choosing & operating a billing engine (Chargebee/Recurly/Maxio/Stripe Billing/Zuora/Orb/Lago) when you stay seller of record and keep tax in-house — the other billing decision next to MoR/sales-chargebee— Chargebee platform help (subscription-billing engine on your own gateway — NOT a MoR; API/webhooks, dunning, proration, RevRec)/sales-checkout— Checkout-conversion optimization across tools (order bumps, upsells, cart recovery)/sales-membership— Subscription retention, churn, and dunning strategy/sales-marketplace-payouts— Paying out many suppliers in a two-sided marketplace (the supply side)/sales-do— Not sure which skill to use? The router matches any sales objective to the right skill. Install:npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-do -a claude-code
Examples
Example 1: MoR vs Stripe for a global SaaS
User says: "I'm launching a SaaS selling worldwide. Stripe is cheaper — why would I pay 5% for Paddle or Lemon Squeezy?"
Skill does: Explains the MoR value: with Stripe you're the seller of record and must register, calculate, file, and remit VAT/GST/sales-tax in every jurisdiction (Stripe Tax only calculates). For a global product with no finance team, a MoR's ~5% absorbs that entire burden + liability; the international effective Stripe rate also climbs toward ~5%. Recommends a MoR unless they have finance ops or are mostly domestic.
Result: A clear MoR-vs-DIY decision grounded in their geography and team.
Example 2: Paddle vs Lemon Squeezy for B2B
User says: "B2B SaaS, some customers want to pay by invoice with net-30. Paddle or Lemon Squeezy?"
Skill does: Flags the decisive factor — Lemon Squeezy has no purchase orders / net terms, while Paddle supports B2B invoicing and has the deepest tax coverage. Recommends Paddle for B2B/enterprise selling, routes Paddle setup to /sales-paddle, and notes Lemon Squeezy stays great for the self-serve portion.
Result: Paddle recommended for the B2B requirement, with a setup hand-off.
Example 3: Cheapest MoR for an indie hacker
User says: "Solo dev, tiny revenue, want a merchant of record but the fees hurt. Options?"
Skill does: Compares the low-fee end — Creem (lowest fee, newest, vendor risk) and Lemon Squeezy (proven, great DX) — vs Polar (best DX but ~10%). Recommends Creem or Lemon Squeezy for cost, with the caveat to verify Creem's tax coverage and longevity. Notes switching later is costly, so weigh stability.
Result: A fee-aware shortlist matched to an indie's risk tolerance.
Troubleshooting
"I got a surprise VAT/tax bill / a country says I owe tax"
Symptom: A tax authority (often EU VAT or a US state) claims you owe uncollected tax.
Cause: You were on a processor (Stripe/PayPal), so you were the seller of record and liable — Stripe Tax calculates but doesn't remit, and you hadn't registered/filed there.
Solution: This is the classic reason to move to a MoR (Paddle/Lemon Squeezy/etc.), which becomes the seller of record and remits going forward. For past liability, consult a tax professional; for the future, a MoR removes the registration/remittance burden. If staying on Stripe, add a tax engine (Anrok/Avalara) and register where you have nexus.
"Which is actually cheaper — MoR or Stripe?"
Symptom: The 5% MoR fee looks far worse than Stripe's 2.9%.
Cause: Comparing headline rates only, ignoring international surcharges and your own compliance cost.
Solution: Compute Stripe's effective international rate (intl card +1.5%, FX +1%, Stripe Tax +0.5% ≈ ~4.9%) and add the labor/accountant cost of registrations + filings. Against that, a MoR's all-inclusive ~5% is often a wash or cheaper once compliance work is priced in — especially for a small team selling globally.
"Should I switch providers?"
Symptom: Tempted to move for a lower fee or missing feature.
Cause: Switching MoRs/processors forces payment re-tokenization (possible customer re-subscribe), subscription migration, and tax-registration changes — real cost and churn risk.
Solution: Switch only for a structural reason (outgrowing B2B/invoicing support, fee material at scale, vendor risk), not a small fee delta. Quantify the migration cost and expected churn before moving; otherwise optimize within your current provider.
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