FastSpring vs Lemon Squeezy

FastSpring is a payment processing and subscription billing platform built for companies selling software, SaaS, digital products, and games globally. As a merchant of record, it takes on responsibility for calculating and remitting sales tax and VAT across more than 200 regions and 35+ currencies, which removes a major compliance burden for companies expanding into new international markets. Beyond payments, it offers subscription and recurring billing management, a customizable localized checkout, fraud prevention tools, a built-in affiliate marketing network, and B2B sales quoting with e-signatures. FastSpring reports over 3,200 customers including Adobe, Intel, and Rovio, processing more than $2 billion in annual transactions, and provides REST APIs and webhooks for developers building custom purchase flows.

Lemon Squeezy is a merchant-of-record platform that handles payments, subscriptions, tax compliance and license key delivery for software sellers. It streamlines the entire checkout experience, letting developers focus on building products rather than managing financial logistics. The service offers built‑in tax calculation, automated license key generation, and robust subscription management, all delivered through a simple web dashboard and API. It integrates with major payment processors and popular developer tools to keep revenue flow smooth and compliant.

• Merchant-of-record model removes the burden of tracking global tax law changes in-house.
• All-inclusive flat-rate pricing avoids the per-feature fee stacking some competitors use.
• Proven scale with 3,200+ customers and over $2B processed annually.
• Combines B2C subscription billing and B2B quoting in one platform.

• All‑in‑one solution for payments, taxes, and licensing
• Easy-to-use dashboard and API
• Supports major payment processors
• Transparent pricing with no hidden fees

• No public pricing; exact fees require a sales conversation to determine.
• Merchant-of-record model means less direct control over payment processor relationships than a standard PSP.
• Best suited to software, SaaS, and digital goods sellers rather than general physical retail.

• Limited to cloud SaaS; no self‑hosted option
• Custom branding options are basic
• Advanced tax scenarios may need manual review