Tool profile
Polar: cost, fit and limits
Polar is a merchant of record platform made by Polar Software, Inc. that lets developers sell software, subscriptions and digital downloads, with tiered transaction fees, an MCP server for AI agents and Stripe as the named payment provider.
What to know first
Polar runs on Stripe and Stripe Tax and sells four published tiers. Starter is free to start at 5.00% plus $0.50, while Pro, Growth and Scale cost $20, $100 and $400 monthly in return for fees of 3.80%, 3.60% and 3.40%. A Startup Program gives Scale access free for 12 months. An MCP server lets agents handle customers, usage and revenue, and Polar's docs say merchant of record fees exceed payment service provider routes.
Polar at a glance
| Maker | Polar Software, Inc., United States |
|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes |
| Entry price | 5.00% + $0.50 on the free Starter tier |
| API access | Yes |
| Category | Best AI Merchant of Record Platforms in 2026, rank 2 of 13 |
| Website | polar.sh |
Who Polar is best for
Early AI product builders
The Startup Program gives Scale access free for 12 months, and Cost Insights sets inference cost against revenue, which speaks to teams selling usage-based AI features.
Developers who work through agents
The MCP server is named for Claude Code, Cursor, ChatGPT and Claude Desktop, so customer, usage and revenue questions can be put to an agent instead of a dashboard.
Sellers of license keys and repo access
Digital delivery covers file downloads, license keys, Discord invites and private GitHub repository invites, which suits open source maintainers and tool makers.
Polar plans and pricing
| Plan | Price | What it includes |
|---|---|---|
| Starter | 5.00% + $0.50 per transaction | Free tier, described as for validating ideas, with no monthly fee shown. A seller should test this point in a sandbox account with Polar before relying on it. |
| Pro | 3.80% + $0.40, $20 per month | Lowers the transaction fee in return for a monthly charge of $20, as shown on the pricing page we read. |
| Growth | 3.60% + $0.35, $100 per month | Another fee step down, at $100 per month, for sellers whose volume covers the subscription. |
| Scale | 3.40% + $0.30, $400 per month | The lowest published fee, at $400 per month, which only pays back at high monthly sales. |
| Startup Program | 3.40% + $0.30 | Scale-plan access free for 12 months, for eligible startups; the eligibility rules were not read in detail. |
Checked November 2026.
What Polar does
- MCP server for agents
- Polar names an MCP server that lets AI agents handle customers, usage and revenue, with Claude Code, Cursor, ChatGPT and Claude Desktop named as supported clients.
- Cost Insights
- A Cost Insights view compares inference cost against revenue, which lets an AI product seller see whether a usage-priced plan earns more than the model calls behind it cost.
- Digital delivery
- Sales can deliver file downloads, license keys, Discord invites and private GitHub repository invites automatically after payment, so a maintainer does not need a separate delivery script.
- Stripe underneath
- Stripe is named as the payment provider and Stripe Tax handles tax, so Polar's role is the seller-of-record layer on top of Stripe's processing and tax engine.
How Polar handles your data
Polar's privacy policy says information is kept while an account is open and longer where legal obligations, disputes or fee collection require it. It warns that data may be stored in the United States, Canada or other destinations outside the EEA and UK, and it names no specific hosting region. It does not say whether customer data trains AI models, and it states no security certification. European sellers should ask about data transfer terms.
Where Polar falls short in practice
- Monthly fee decides the rate. The lowest 3.40% fee needs the $400 Scale tier, so a seller below that volume pays more in fees or subscription than the headline suggests.
- Merchant of record premium. Polar's own docs describe merchant of record fees as higher per payment than routing through a payment service provider, so the convenience is paid for on every sale.
- No stated certification. The policy read names no certification and no hosting region, which leaves security reviews to written questions. Our reading covers only the public pages of Polar visited in November 2026.
Works with
Alternatives to Polar
Polar: common questions
What does Polar charge?
Polar lists Starter at 5.00% plus $0.50, Pro at 3.80% plus $0.40 and $20 a month, Growth at 3.60% plus $0.35 and $100 a month, and Scale at 3.40% plus $0.30 and $400 a month. A Startup Program gives Scale access free for 12 months. Stripe is the underlying provider.
What can the Polar MCP server do?
Polar says its MCP server lets AI agents handle customers, usage and revenue, naming Claude Code, Cursor, ChatGPT and Claude Desktop. The pages we read do not list individual actions or permissions. Check what scopes an agent receives before connecting it to a live store.
Is Polar cheaper than a payment service provider?
No, by its own account. The merchant of record docs say these fees are higher per payment than payment service provider routes, because Polar takes on tax and seller duties. The trade is lower admin work against a higher percentage on each sale.
What can Polar deliver after a sale?
Polar names file downloads, license keys, Discord invites and private GitHub repository invites as digital delivery options. That covers many developer products without extra scripting. The pages read do not describe physical goods, so treat Polar as a digital seller.
Where is Polar data stored?
The privacy policy says data may be stored in the United States, Canada or other destinations outside the EEA and UK, and it gives no region. Retention lasts as long as the account is open, with longer periods for legal needs. It does not state whether data trains models.