Braintree
- Braintree's card rate is 2.89% + $0.29, published on PayPal's own enterprise fee page and verified 2 August 2026
- Stripe's US card rate is confirmed at 2.9% + $0.30, one hundredth of a point and one cent away from Braintree
- Compare the domestic gap on your ticket size. Braintree saves 1.2 cents on a $20 order, two cents on $100, and six cents on $500
- International cards widen it. Braintree adds +1% for cards issued outside the US. Stripe adds +1.5%, an extra half-point on that volume
- Choose on features. Braintree for native PayPal and Venmo in one integration. Stripe for the broader product surface and better docs
- Braintree charges $15 per dispute, not stated to be refunded on a win
- braintreepayments.com now redirects to paypal.com. Braintree is sold as part of PayPal's enterprise offering, not as a standalone brand
Braintree is PayPal's developer-focused payment platform. It gives you a modern API with built-in PayPal and Venmo checkout. Best for businesses that want multiple payment methods without multiple integrations.
Unless a later check is noted beside the figure, Braintree fees on this page were read from PayPal's fee page on 2 August 2026: paypal.com/us/enterprise/paypal-braintree-fees. The page still carries 'Last Updated: May 7, 2026' when opened 22 October 2026.
braintreepayments.com now 301-redirects to paypal.com. Braintree pricing lives on PayPal's site. That's where the numbers below come from.
When to Use Braintree
You should use Braintree if:
- You want cards, PayPal, and Venmo in one integration
- You have developers on your team
- You're targeting a customer base where Venmo matters
- You want the full Venmo checkout experience, which PayPal Checkout alone doesn't give you
Skip Braintree if:
- You don't have developers (Stripe or Square are easier)
- You're primarily card-present (Square is better)
- You don't need PayPal or Venmo. In that case compare Stripe's extra processing cost with the product features you'd use
Pricing Breakdown
Published Rates
| Transaction Type | Rate |
|---|---|
| Cards and digital wallets | 2.89% + $0.29 |
| Venmo | 3.49% + $0.49 |
| Standard ACH Direct Debit | 0.75%, capped at $5.00 |
| Same-day ACH Direct Debit | 1.5% + $0.10 |
| ACH return or unauthorized-payment dispute | $5.00 |
| Non-USD currency | +1% |
| Cards issued outside the US | +1% |
| Disputes | $15.00, not stated to be refunded on a win |
Source: paypal.com/us/enterprise/paypal-braintree-fees. Standard card and ACH prices verified 21 October 2026; other figures last verified 2 August 2026.
Braintree's card rate is 2.89% + $0.29. If you find 2.59% + $0.49 anywhere, it's wrong, and it doesn't just shift the comparison - it reverses the shape of it.
A lower percentage with a higher fixed fee produces a breakeven. Under those wrong numbers Braintree looks cheaper above roughly a $61 ticket and dearer below it, so any comparison built on them hands you a threshold to optimise around. Under the real numbers both components are lower than Stripe's. Braintree is marginally cheaper at every ticket size, and no breakeven exists at all.
So there's no breakeven to recompute. The honest answer is that the domestic difference is too small to decide anything.
What Is Not Published
| Fee | Status |
|---|---|
| Card-present rate | Not separately published. The card rate above covers cards and digital wallets |
| Keyed-in rate | Not separately published |
| Monthly fee | Not published |
| Setup fee | Not published |
| Instant payout | Not published |
| Volume threshold or discount schedule | Not published |
| PayPal-wallet rate through Braintree | Your PayPal account's terms apply; the fee page links PayPal Merchant Fees |
PayPal also publishes Fraud Protection Lite at $0.05 per inquiry. Fees can vary with business size and risk profile. VENDOR Braintree fees, checked 22 October 2026. A $0 monthly fee, $0 setup fee, $0.10 account updater fee and a $250K/month negotiation threshold still aren't established by that page.
Ask Braintree sales, in writing: whether there's any monthly minimum. What a Venmo or PayPal-wallet transaction really costs against a card. What the fraud tooling costs. And whether the $15 dispute fee is ever refunded.
Braintree vs Stripe on Price: The Whole Answer
Braintree 2.89% + $0.29. Stripe 2.9% + $0.30.
| Order value | Braintree | Stripe | Braintree saves |
|---|---|---|---|
| $20 | $0.868 | $0.880 | $0.012 |
| $50 | $1.735 | $1.750 | $0.015 |
| $100 | $3.180 | $3.200 | $0.020 |
| $500 | $14.740 | $14.800 | $0.060 |
At $100,000 a month with a $100 average ticket, Braintree costs $3,180 and Stripe costs $3,200. Twenty dollars.
That's 0.02% of volume at this $100 ticket: $20 / $100,000. It's more than Braintree's $15 dispute fee. Price your own volume and count before deciding whether the saving covers switching costs.
That verdict is domestic only, and the international picture is genuinely different.
| Surcharge | Braintree | Stripe |
|---|---|---|
| Cards issued outside the US | +1% | +1.5% |
| Currency conversion | +1% | +1% |
The extra international surcharge is 0.5% of international-card volume. If that's 30% of a $100,000 month, Stripe adds $100,000 × 30% × 0.5% = $150 more. Add the domestic rate gap of $20 at a $100 ticket and the total processing gap is $170. Currency conversion is separate.
The recommendation: price your domestic and international mix, then decide whether the difference matters. Native PayPal and Venmo in one integration is Braintree. The broader product surface, better docs and deeper subscription tooling is Stripe.
What Braintree Does Well
1. Multiple Payment Methods, One Integration
Braintree includes in one SDK:
- Credit and debit cards
- PayPal
- Venmo
- Apple Pay and Google Pay
- ACH
Integrate once instead of Stripe plus a PayPal button plus Venmo. That's real engineering time saved. At these rates it's the actual argument for Braintree.
2. Developer Experience
Braintree's API is clearly better than PayPal's legacy one. Modern SDKs, reliable webhooks, sensible error messages. It's still narrower than Stripe's. But that gap is much smaller than the one between Braintree and PayPal classic.
3. Full Venmo Checkout
Venmo can appear as an option inside PayPal Checkout. The full Venmo checkout runs through Braintree. If Venmo matters to your customers, that's the reason to pick Braintree. It isn't a price reason.
Note the rate. Venmo is 3.49% + $0.49, not the 2.89% + $0.29 card rate. That's 0.60% plus 20 cents more than a card. On a $60 order, about 56 cents. Venmo is worth it only if offering it adds sales. Shifting them off a cheaper method doesn't count.
4. Standard ACH Direct Debit at 0.75% Capped at $5
A $5,000 payment costs $5.00 by standard ACH Direct Debit or $144.79 by standard card processing. Add any invoice or software fees before comparing totals. ACH debits can still be returned.
What Braintree Does Poorly
1. Venmo and Wallet Rates Are Higher Than Cards
Venmo at 3.49% + $0.49 is 0.60% + $0.20 more than a card. Shift a real chunk of checkout from cards to Venmo and your blended rate goes up. Model your method mix before assuming the card rate is what you'll pay.
2. Less Is Published Than With Stripe
Stripe publishes a monthly fee of $0, explicitly. Braintree's fee page doesn't address monthly fees, setup fees, instant payouts or volume discounts at all. That isn't evidence of hidden fees. It does mean the answers come from a salesperson, not a web page.
3. Still PayPal
Braintree has PayPal's risk posture. Account holds happen, though less often than with PayPal direct. Support is better than PayPal's and thinner than Stripe's.
4. Smaller Product Surface Than Stripe
Braintree's subscription billing exists but is less mature. There's no equivalent to Stripe's revenue recognition tooling, tax product, or breadth of marketplace integrations.
Who Braintree Is Best For
Perfect Fit
| Business Type | Why Braintree Wins |
|---|---|
| Multi-method checkout | Cards, PayPal, Venmo, Apple Pay, Google Pay in one SDK |
| Venmo-relevant audiences | Full Venmo checkout, which PayPal Checkout alone doesn't provide |
| B2B with large invoices | Standard ACH Direct Debit at 0.75% capped at $5; compare full invoice costs |
| Developer-led teams already on PayPal | Much better API than PayPal classic |
Poor Fit
| Business Type | Better Alternative |
|---|---|
| Card-only | Compare Stripe's slightly higher processing cost with the product features you'd use |
| Card-present retail | Square |
| Non-technical | Square or PayPal |
| Cost-optimising at volume | Helcim or Stax. Both publish rates well below 2.89% all-in above roughly $50K a month |
Common Gotchas
1. The Fixed Fee Is 29 Cents, Not 49
The 49 cent figure belongs to Venmo and PayPal Checkout, not to Braintree card processing. Model Braintree at $0.49 a card transaction and you overstate your cost by 20 cents each. At 5,000 transactions a month that's $1,000 of imaginary cost.
2. Venmo Is US-Only
Venmo only works for US customers. If most of yours are international, price the international-card surcharges before choosing.
3. Two Separate +1% Surcharges Can Stack
Cards issued outside the US add 1%. Non-USD currency adds 1%. A EUR-denominated payment on a European-issued card is 2.89% + 2% + $0.29, which is 4.89% + $0.29. That's PayPal-Checkout territory. Braintree's advertised card rate is a domestic-USD rate.
4. Subscription Billing Is Less Mature
Proration is manual, there's no usage-based billing, and dunning logic is simpler. For complex subscription businesses, Stripe Billing is better.
5. The Dispute Fee Is Not Stated to Be Refundable
$15 per dispute. Nothing on the fee page says it comes back if you win. Compare Helcim, which charges $0 when the case resolves in your favour. And Square, which publishes a flat $0.
Test to Run
Braintree vs Stripe decision. It shouldn't be a cost exercise.
Step 1: Kill the cost question in five minutes
- Take your monthly card volume and transaction count
- Braintree:
(volume x 0.0289) + (count x 0.29) - Stripe:
(volume x 0.029) + (count x 0.30) - Subtract Braintree from Stripe:
0.0001 × volume + $0.01 × count. Divide by volume for the effective-rate gap. It's 0.06% at a $20 ticket, 0.02% at $100 and 0.012% at $500
Step 2: Price the method mix, which is where the real money is
5. Estimate what share of checkout would move to Venmo if you offered it: ____%
6. Venmo costs 0.60% + $0.20 more than a card. Multiply
7. Estimate what share of your volume could move to ACH: ____%
8. For each payment, subtract min(amount x 0.0075, 5) from (amount x 0.0289) + 0.29. That's the standard card-to-ACH processing saving. Add any invoice or software fees separately
9. Total the savings on the payments your customers would actually move to ACH
Step 3: Price the integration 10. One Braintree integration against Stripe plus a separate PayPal integration 11. Multiply the hours saved by your developer rate. This number is usually larger than the annual processing difference
Success criteria: you've priced the gap on your actual ticket and international mix, alongside methods and engineering time.
Scale Callout
Any volume, Braintree vs Stripe:
- The domestic gap depends on ticket size: 0.01 percentage points + ($0.01 / average ticket × 100)
- Compare the dollars with integration and operating costs
Above roughly $50K/month:
- The real cost question isn't Braintree against Stripe, it's flat-rate against interchange-plus
- Helcim publishes IC + 0.45% + $0.20 online in the $50K-$100K band. On a typical card mix that lands well under 2.89%
- Stax charges no percentage markup at all above its subscription
- If you need Venmo, you pay the flat-rate premium for it. That's a legitimate trade. Price it so you know what Venmo costs you
Above $250K/month:
- Braintree publishes no volume threshold or discount schedule. Ask anyway, with a competing quote
- Get any offer as interchange-plus so you can audit it
Where This Breaks
-
The domestic rate gap is small on the stated examples. Calculate it on your actual mix, then compare features and operating costs.
-
Method mix moves your rate more than processor choice does. Venmo at 3.49% + $0.49 against cards at 2.89% + $0.29 is a bigger swing than anything between processors.
-
International stacks. Two separate 1% surcharges can apply to the same transaction.
-
Little is published. No monthly fee, no volume schedule, no instant payout terms. You have to ask.
-
Both offer flat-rate pricing. Compare interchange-plus on your actual card mix and ticket. Volume alone doesn't establish a saving.
Braintree vs Stripe: Summary
| Factor | Braintree | Stripe |
|---|---|---|
| Card rate | 2.89% + $0.29 | 2.9% + $0.30 |
| Domestic cost difference | Saves 0.0001 × volume + $0.01 × count | Costs that amount more |
| PayPal and Venmo | Native, one integration | Separate integration |
| Venmo rate | 3.49% + $0.49 | Not offered |
| Standard ACH Direct Debit | 0.75% capped at $5 | Published separately by Stripe |
| Disputes | $15, refund not stated | $15 received (never returned) + $15 countered |
| API quality | Good | Excellent |
| Subscription billing | Basic | Advanced |
| Documentation | Good | Excellent |
| Monthly fee | Not published | $0, stated explicitly |
Choose Braintree if you need native PayPal or Venmo, or you're moving significant volume to ACH. Choose Stripe if you're card-focused, need advanced subscription features, or value the documentation. Price your own mix before choosing. Small domestic gaps can matter less than integration costs; international surcharges widen them.
Next Steps
Considering Braintree?
- Read the Braintree documentation to gauge complexity
- Confirm current rates yourself at paypal.com/us/enterprise/paypal-braintree-fees
- Ask sales for your monthly minimum, PayPal-wallet terms and fraud-tool eligibility. Fraud Protection Lite's published fee is $0.05 per inquiry
- Estimate Venmo uptake, and price it at 3.49% + $0.49
Already on Braintree?
- Check your method split: cards, PayPal, Venmo, ACH
- Compare standard ACH Direct Debit at 0.75% capped at $5 with the full card cost on the same payments. Include return fees and any invoice or software fees
- Price your actual domestic and international mix before switching for cost
Switching from Braintree?
- Switch for features or support, not for two cents
- If cost is the driver, look at Helcim or Stax, not Stripe
- Evaluate whether losing full Venmo checkout hurts conversion
See Also
- Stripe - Slightly higher domestic rate, different product
- PayPal - Parent company
- Helcim - Where the actual savings are above $50K/month
- Processor Comparison - Full comparison
- Buying Payments - Selection framework
- Digital Wallets - PayPal, Venmo, Apple Pay
- Checkout Conversion - Payment method optimization